SOUTHERN COCA COLA PORK ROAST

I found a recipe for this dish, quite a while ago. It looked, and sounded so good, and... I must have been hungry. So, I made it!!! The Pork Roast was awesome!!! but sadly, the marinade and glaze were so overpowering, that I actually filed the recipe away, with a million notes and changes, and then, never looked at it again. UNTIL... A few weeks ago, when my husband said he'd like a good Pork Roast for Dinner.

So... I went looking through  Crazy Jayne's Famous Recipe Book (in my mind anyway ) and dug it out. This time, after reading my notes, and changes, I decided to try it again. WELL.... it was a pleasant surprise to say the least, and a treat to the palate!!! Juicy, tender and delicious!!!

  

Ingredients:

 

11/2 cup Coca-Cola

1/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/8 cup soy sauce

11/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tablespoon dry mustard

1 teaspoon thyme, crushed

1 teaspoon ginger

3 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

5 tablespoons red wine
salt and pepper to taste

4 - 5 pounds pork loin roast, boned & rolled 

Glaze:
The marinade that you set aside, comes into play now. Instead of changing up the flavor, I decided to take the original marinade, put it on the stove, brought it to a soft boil, covered it and then, let it simmer, until it was reduced by at least half and thickened a bit. I stirred and tasted it as it cooked, added a little more sugar half way through cooking it down, and a little more salt and pepper. In the last half hour, I coated the roast several times. The result was a stunning crown for a perfectly cooked pork roast.

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 What I changed and why:

The recipe I had saved to try, when I cooked it.... truthfully, was so disappointing. I found it almost bitter, yet sickly sweet and too "puckering" to be honest, despite the amount of sugar it required. The balance of sweet and sour was in my opinion, severely unbalanced. In My Crazy Kitchen, both the glaze and marinade had so many strong flavors fighting each other it was just too biting for lack of a better word. I also know what my family ultimately likes too.  So.... I calmed this baby down a bit to suit my taste this time!!!.
The original recipe called for more sugar, I cut it in half. Ketchup, I added none, Soy Sauce, I cut in half. I added a bit more garlic. Balsamic vinegar was called for, I honestly don't care for it much, shameful I know!!! So I replaced  it with red wine. Somehow the adding of  ketchup with all the other great ingredients just didn't sit right with me. But if you think a touch of tomato taste is called for... go for it!!! 
BIG, BIG DIFFERENCE!!! For me the balsamic vinegar in the original recipe completely overwhelmed the delicious roast, and adding so much sugar, seemed to try to make up for it unsuccessfully. With the balsamic vinegar and the strong tastes of both the soy sauce and Worcestershire, ketchup didn't belong. There had been too much bite from the soy sauce amount used too. The sugar amount and combination of the Coke, was just too sweet for me, and that is rare.
So... after adjusting the original recipe to reflect my taste, I ultimately changed it completely. In the end, I just found the flavors seemed to blend... so much better for me!!!  I tolerate balsamic vinegar, which is being nice, but it is also the basis of so many great foods that I do like. Sadly, I'm just not a big fan, and never expected the outcome to be so overpowering. I am sure there are many, who will disagree however. That is part of the fun of cooking. There are a thousand variations for every one recipe!!!

I am also aware that I most probably just made it a lot less Southern too. *LOL*
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Directions: 

• Combine all the ingredients except for the meat, mix well with a fork to make the marinade.
• Place the pork roast into a gallon sized, zip lock bag.
• Pour in the marinade and seal the bag tightly.
• Put the zip lock bag in a bowl large enough only so the roast, when pushed down, is covered with the marinade and not going away from the roast. You want to cradle it. Let the bowl sit for about 12 hours in the refrigerator. Turn the bag every few hours to allow the meat to marinate evenly. This helps the roast absorb the marinating liquids, making for a really tender, juicy very aromatic and flavorful pork roast.
• Remove roast from marinade, put the remainder of the marinade aside for later use.
• Place roast, fat side up, on rack in roasting pan. No water, and do not cover. Roast in a low, preheated  325 degree oven.  Allow 30 to 40 minutes per pound for roasting, so for a 5 pound loin roast, you would be roasting for about 2-1/2 +/- hours.  
• Check with your meat thermometer at 2 hours. (earlier, if your roast is smaller) You want the meat to cook until a meat thermometer registers about 165 - 170. During last 1/2 hour of cooking time, brush on the glaze a couple of times. When ready, remove from oven and let set, for about 10 minutes before slicing.
• Even out of the oven, while standing to set, the roast will continue to cook and raise the temperature as well. The perfect pork roast should have a faint pink center, almost haloed by a slightly darker outer ring, and a dark glazed topping. With the first cut, juices should start to flow.
• Place on platter, slice and serve!!!
• I served this with a warm, buttery spinach and hard boiled egg, side, and garlic mashed potatoes.

NOW ENJOY!!!

RIGATONI PASTA PIE

I have collected tons of recipes over the years. But I have to say, this is one of the best. It is impressive to look at, and incredibly, delicious to eat.
I would like to be able to take the credit for this brilliant work of art, and mouth watering recipe, but I can't. I found it online one day, and tucked it away for a "can do" meal. This is the 3rd time I've made it. And you can be sure it will become a staple of this household.
I will confess I did change a couple of things, but, only for my personal taste preference though.
This is a spot on recipe. If you follow the directions. It will come out perfect every time.
What I loved about it was, that it was actually easy to make and not nearly as time consuming as I thought it would be. Your friends will truly be impressed, if served at a brunch or pot luck dinner.

 

Dinner was just for my me and my husband the other night, and we were glad *LOL* We didn't have to share this beautiful piece of culinary artistry with anyone, and just "pigged" out !!!

It would be perfect with a nice a merlot, or even a zinfandel, red wine, but this night, we choose a hearty beer. Sammy Adams Lager on the left, a Sierra Nevada for me, on the right. I probably have a glass of beer. about 5 times a year!!! Because I like it too much!!!  *LOL* 

Ingredients:

 

 1 lb. rigatoni pasta

 1 lb. ground beef 

 2 garlic cloves (minced)

 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

 your own homemade sauce (or 1 jar of  your favorite store bought spaghetti sauce)

 salt

 1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

 15oz ricotta cheese 

(The original author of this recipe also added 4oz. cream cheese. I did not. With name like "Giansante" I just couldn't make myself do it *LOL*)

 2 eggs

 1 tsp. basil

 1 tsp. oregano

(This is where preference comes in. I associate oregano with pizza, not my Italian meals. It's taste is noticeable and for me, I didn't want the "pizza" flavor, so I omitted it.)

 1 cup onion

 spring form pan

 cooking spray

 

Directions: 

• Boil the noodles according to the directions on the box.
• Stop cooking when they're still very firm and avoid stirring more than once, so they do not fall apart.

This is really important, because you don't want the rigatoni to break or tear.

• Once done, drain and run cold water over so they are cool enough to handle. .
•  In a large skillet, brown the ground beef and then, drain excess grease.
• Add chopped onion and garlic. (cook slow and low, stir often, you don't want your onions and garlic brown, when the onions are translucent and a golden yellow color, proceed to the next step.)
• After about 5 minutes add cream cheese and stir until melted.

I do not add the cream cheese when I cook this meal.

• Add spaghetti sauce next. (I used the equivalent of about 1/2 a jar.)

 Use a small mixing bowl to mix the ricotta, Parmesan, basil, oregano (I left this out) and 2 eggs until smooth. (I also added salt to taste and parsley instead of oregano. With the exception of raw pork and chicken, I really do taste as I go. *LOL* 

 



• Set the mixture aside..
• Use cooking spray on the bottom of the spring form pan first to avoid sticking.
• Tightly pack pasta into pan, standing each piece on end

 



• Put a zip lock bag inside a tall glass and fill the bag with the cheese mixture.
• Close the bag and snip the corner of the bag and pipe a small amount into each noodle until it's full.



 

• After piping the mixture into the pasta tubes. Gently bang the pan down straight on a good work surface a couple of times, packing down the cheese filling and sauce. At this point if your pasta tubes have room left, fill them up again. The more you can pack in the better it tastes *LOL* (I repeated this step one more time, but it probably isn't necessary.) 
• Pour the red ground beef sauce over the whole top and push down as much as possible, without squashing the pasta of course *LOL*.

I went astray on this step too. I added the remainder of the pasta sauce over the noodles first, about 1/4 cup since I did not add the cream cheese to the meat mixture. Not too much, you don't want to drown them either.  I just like a bit more sauce that what was called for in the original recipe. I thought it was a tad too dry in the pasta section, the first time I made it. (Again, ...this is a personal preference.) I poured the sauce alone, on the top so it would seep down into the pasta.

Then, I added the red ground beef mixture.

 Top with 2 cups of mozzarella cheese. (Recipe calls for 2 cups but you can use low fat or skim if you are looking to cut calories.)

• 
•  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes and...
•  Then broil until the cheese turns bubbly. (watch this last step closely, you don't want the mozzarella to burn, just a little brown and very bubbly, otherwise the cheese will get hard!!! And we certainly don't want that. If you are worried you will get distracted, you can even omit this step. It really won't make a difference. I actually prefer it without broiling at the end.)

 

 

Serve with a small bowl of sauce, in case anyone wants more. A crusty Italian Bread, and a nice glass of wine. And, if there's room, a nice light salad, tops the meal off!!! I like a simple little cucumber salad with it. 8D

 

 original recipe courtesy of: http://tinyurl.com/rigatoni-pie

 



NOW ENJOY!!!