Super Bowl Pulled Pork
What could be better than walking your local farmers market on a balmy winter’s day? Here in NYC the temperature just hit 60 degrees & the Union Square Market is glistening in the morning sun. I have my favorite Saturday vendors and today I was on a hunt for a pork shoulder.
Nothing says a lazy winter afternoon to me more than a slow cooked pork roast. The aroma of the spices and the warmth of the oven as filling your home is as good as it gets. I usually make a traditional roast but next week is Super Bowl Sunday & I decided to try something different. This recipe takes a bit of planning – but is has the Sartor family seal of approval and that is good enough for me.
My dear friend Forrest Sartor recently shared this recipe with me. She is an excellent cook – who has taught me a thing or two about Southern Fried Chicken, Cheese Grits, Pecan Pie and Life. Raising her family in Monroe, Louisiana she continues a long-standing tradition of good food and Southern hospitality.
Forrest explained that she & her husband would get up at 5:00 in the morning to cook a pork roast on a smoker for her pulled pork sandwiches. Her mother in law passed on this recipe to her and as Forrest said, “It is just as good and so much easier and quicker. I thought you may want to try it. It is great to have for a crowd, and both the sauces are good for sandwiches.” I feel like I have the Pope’s blessing!
One note, the recipe calls for pork shoulder but Forrest suggest pork butt. I prefer an organic pork butt preferably from your local farmer’s market. I have never matched the flavor and quality of pork from Violet Hill Farms or Flying Pig Farms. Each is unique and their sausages are sensational.
Sartor Family Pulled Pork
Makes 14 cups of Pork
Total Time: About 8 hours plus Resting
¼ cup kosher salt – JF Natural Gres Salt even better
¼ cup Ground Black Pepper – JF Butchers Grind Black Pepper
¼ cup Chili powder – JF Rough Rider Chili
1 T Dried Oregano
1 T Dried Thyme
1 t Cayenne Pepper
1 Bone in Pork Shoulder – or Pork Butt
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees
Combine salt, pepper, chili, powder, oregano, thyme, & cayenne in a bowl.
Place a large sheet of foil on a roasting rack, then layer another sheet on top of it perpendicular to the first. Place the pork in the middle of the foil; rub the spice mixture on all sides of the pork, crimping the foil closed at the top to ensure a tight seal. Crimp all sides of the foil closed
Roast the pork for 5 to 6 hours. Increase the oven temperature to 400 degrees. Open the foil to expose the pork, roast until the crust is dark and crisp, another 20 minutes. Remove the roast from the oven. Let the pork rest until it is cool to the touch – about 30 minutes.
Transfer the pork to the cutting board and pull out the large bone from the roast. This should slide out easily with no resistance.
Using two forks, pull pork apart and discard any visible pieces of fat or gristle before serving. Serve pork with Mustard Sauce or Vinegar Sauce.
Mustard Sauce
Makes 1 3/4 cup
Total Time 15 minutes
1 cup Prepared Yellow Mustard – or Dijon
½ cup White Vinegar
1/3 cup Packed Brown Sugar
2 T Unsalted Butter
1 T Molasses
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
½ Cayenne Pepper
To Make: Simmer Mustard, vinegar, brown sugar, butter, molasses, Worcestershire, & cayenne in a sauce pan over a medium heat stirring often.
Vinegar Sauce
Makes 2 cups
Total Time: 5 minutes
1 ½ c Cider Vinegar
½ cup Organic Ketchup
2 T Brown Sugar
2 T Molasses
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
1 T Ground Black Pepper – – JF Butchers Grind Black Pepper
Kosher Salt to taste – – JF Natural Gres Salt
Whisk vinegar, ketchup, brown sugar, molasses, Worcestershire, pepper & salt until smooth.
Salmon with Pomegranate Seeds and Tangerine
Welcome 2012! And with the New Year comes a checklist of reflections and maybe a resolution or two. For me easiest way to jump-start 2012 is a quick salmon dinner that brings together healthy food and seasonal flavors. The bonus is that it is a cinch to make – perfect for a family dinner or a weekend dinner party
Choose a piece of Wild Salmon – if you are able to get Steelhead Salmon lucky you. The Steelhead season in the Olympic Peninsula starts in December and runs thru April and is definitely worth looking for. This dish also works perfectly with frozen salmon and if the Wild King Salmon from your fishmonger has been “previously frozen” I would encourage you to purchase that over a farm raised fish.
1 Piece of Salmon – preferably with skin
1 Tangerine
½ t sea salt
Pinch Black Pepper
1t Herbes de Provence
½ cup Pomegranate Seeds
Olive oil
One pat of butter (optional – I like the flavor)
Oil a cast iron pan with a light coating of olive oil to keep the fish from sticking
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Season the salmon fillet with salt and pepper – both sides
Zest the skin of the tangerine and hold aside
Juice the tangerine – a lemon juicer works best
Place the salmon in the center of the pan, you can add a scant drizzle of olive oil and or a pat of butter on the fish. (You can omit this step is you are watching your weight)
Pour the tangerine juice, the tangerine zest, the Herbes de Provence, and the Pomegranate Seeds over the fillet.
Place the dish in the 350-degree oven and cook 10 minutes per inch of fish. At least once during the cooking open the oven and spoon the juices over the fish. Let the salmon rest tented in foil for 5 minutes before serving.
I love the ease of this dish – and you can experiment with other citrus and herb combinations. Meyer Lemons and Dill or Grapefruit and fresh Chives also combine beautifully.
Moitié-Moitié Fondue
Fondue Moitié-Moitié is well suited for those long winter nights or after a day of skiing while sitting in front of the fire or watching an old movie. With one pot to clean up what could be better? My brother-in-law James has a Swiss friend and colleague who has shared his family recipe for a Fondue Moitié-Moitié using Gruyère and Vacherin Fribourgeois. James makes it on Christmas Day for our family along side of his wife’s Bourbon Glazed Ham.
Fondue refers to several French Swiss communal dishes always shared at the table in an earthenware pot called a “caquelon” or over a small burner called a “réchaud”. The term “fondue” comes from the French “fondre” (“to melt”), referring to the fact that the contents of the pot are kept in a liquid state so that diners can use forks to dip into the sauce. Though cheese fondues are the best known, there are several other possibilities for the contents of the pot and what is used for dipping — recipes are not entirely fixed and vary depending on the cook.
Making fondue is easy – a heavy pot is best, either enamel or cast iron. And as always the better the ingredients the better the result. We were instructed to use Vacherin Fribourgeois & Gruyère and were told it is better to ask for “the “cave-aged” Gruyère as it is only slightly more expensive than the regular one, but it has a much better taste.
Traditional Moitié-Moitié Swiss Fondue
2 cups Dry White Wine (one cup per person)
2 cloves Garlic – finely minced
1 T Cornstarch
1/2 lb Vacherin Fribourgeois & 1/2 lb Gruyère – grated
1 to 2 T Kirschwasser
1 to 2 Baguettes – cubed
Rub the inside of the pot with the two cloves of garlic and place the pot on a medium flame adding 2 cups of the wine and the cornstarch. Blend with a spoon or whisk.
Add the grated cheese and stir consistently until all the cheese has melted and the fondue is smooth. You may want to lower the heat a bit – to keep the cheese from scorching. For safety, remove the pot from the flame and add the Kirschwasser. Stir. Return to the flame and cook to the correct thickness.
The fondue is fully cooked when it is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon – if it is too thick add more wine and continue to stir.
Serve in a fondue pot with cubed bread on skewers – a baguette would be perfect but any good loaf of crust bread would do.
Half the fun of the fondue is in the eating – a glass of dry white wine – preferable chilled is the traditional accompaniment – although a good winter beer is also nice. In a perfect cheese fondue, the fondue mixture is held at a temperature low enough to prevent burning, but hot enough to keep the fondue smooth and liquid. Ideally, when the fondue is finished, there will be a thin crust of toasted (but not burnt) cheese in the bottom of the caquelon. In French, this is commonly referred to as ‘la religieuse’ (“the nun”).
Often a snifter of Kirschwasser is served alongside the fondue – bread dipped in a touch of kirsch just before it is dipped into the fondue pot warms the spirit as well as the heart. And it is important to continue the Swiss tradition of the “dropped” bread. If bread is dropped into the pot – you must kiss someone at the table for good luck. This could be fun but optional depending on the company you keep.
A List of Traditional Swiss Fondues:
Fondue Neuchâteloise: Gruyère and Emmental
Fondue Moitié-Moitié: (half-half): Gruyère and Vacherin Fribourgeois
Fondue Vaudoise: Gruyère
Fondue Fribourgeois: pure Vacherin Fribourgeois (often served with potatoes instead of bread)
Fondue de Suisse centrale: Gruyère, Emmental and Sbrinz
Tomato Fondue: Gruyère, Emmental and crushed tomatoes in the place of wine.
Spicy Fondue: Gruyère, red and green peppers and chilli
Mushroom Fondue: Gruyère, Vacherin Fribourgeois and mushrooms
French Fondues:
Fondue Savoyarde: Comté Savoyard, Beaufort, and Emmental.
Fondue Jurassienne: pure mature and normal Comté
Italian Fondues:
Fonduta: is prepared in the French-minority region of Aosta valley in Italy, and employs Fontina, milk, eggs, and truffles
Tracy’s Company Eggs
One of the most welcome gifts of the season is the unexpected invitation to share some time with friends. Just last week my friend Tracy Dockray – an exceptional gal & an expat from Texas – collected a gaggle of ‘Class Moms” at her home for holiday coffee. The hour of conversation was a terrific diversion from the commotion of the season.
A collector of the extraordinary – from her friends, to her pets, to her boxes of biological bug specimens and bobwire (!) Her home was decorated in holiday memorabilia passed down from her family. A beautiful Victoria tree and a perfectly set table – all set off by her hand painted murals on the dining room walls. Tracy is a well known artist and the illustrator of the Beverly Cleary books.
Tracy called them “Company Eggs”, a tradition from her Texas family. I am not sure if she made the eggs or her very gracious husband Mark Rudd, but they offered us the recipe. The fabulousness of the dish is that it MUST be made the night before and then baked in the oven first thing in the morning. Sounds perfect for New Year’s Day to me…you can also add bacon, sausage, ham, herbs, or whatever you like. We loved it and I will be serving this in my home on Jan 1. – it is just as perfect as my friend Tracy.
Tracy’s Company Eggs
Butter
12 eggs
8 slices of bread – something soft will soak up the eggs and get almost fluffy
1 cup of milk (or half & half if you are truly decadent)
2/3 lb cheddar cheese grated – but you can substitute
½ t dry mustard
1 t salt – I prefer sea salt
pepper to taste – I prefer white pepper
If you are living large, try a grating of nutmeg or cayenne – but that is my addition not Tracy’s
Butter an ovenproof dish
Layer the bread & the cheese
Beat the eggs; an old-fashioned eggbeater is perfect for this
Add dry mustard, milk, salt, pepper, nutmeg or cayenne if you choose
Pour over the bread & cheese
Cover and refrigerate overnight
Bake in a 325-degree oven – covered for 1 hour
Remover cover and continue to cook for another 10 minutes to brown
Sugar Plum Loaf
Sugar Plums at Prospect Park Market - Kristen Taylor
One of the most delicious cakes my sister-in-law Louise bakes every holiday is a Sugar Plum Loaf. It is one of those seasonal delights that she and her daughters – and now granddaughters bake throughout the holiday season. I believe the cake has it’s roots in British cookery, harkening back to a time of Mrs Bridges (Upstairs Downstairs) kitchen when candied fruits, exotic raisins and exotic spices filled the kitchen during the holidays. More of a sweet bread than a true cake the name alone has visions of sugarplums dancing in my head.
A rich quick bread, the Sugarplum loaf is not unlike an Italian Pantone or a Polish Babka. It is baked in a traditional round and is a perfect match for JF Sugarplum Preserves. I suggest you make two loaves – one for yourself and one to give as this recepie is easily doubled.
Fantastic Sugar Plum Loaf
For the Cake:
2 packages active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2/3 c butter
½ cup sugar
4 eggs
8 cups flour
1 ½ cups warm milk
2 t salt
1 T ground cardamon
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 cup golden raisins
1 1/2 cups chopped dried fruit – plums, apricots, apples and/or pears
½ cup candied peel – I prefer lemon or orange
For the Deliciously Fresh Lemon Glaze:
1 ½ cups of sifted confectioner’s sugar
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
1 t finely grated lemon rind
Dissolve yeast in warm water to bloom. In the bowl of an electric mixer cream the butter with sugar and add eggs. Add ½ the flour, salt, cardamon, warm milk and the second ½ of flour. Add the yeast. Turn off the mixer and stir in chopped nuts, raisins, dried fruit and candies peel. Cover the owl and let rise until double. Punch down, Lightly knead. And let rise again.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Shape into 3 large or 6 small round loaves. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
To make the glaze, combine the confectioners sugar, lemon juice and lemon rind. This can be strained but it is not necessary
While the Sugar Plum Loaf is still warm, brush with the Delicious Fresh Lemon Glaze
Apple Sauce and Gingerbread Cake
It is that time of the year – the turkey is put away and the countdown to the holidays begins. If your not wading knee deep in markdowns – your probably making your list and checking it twice.
“The indulgence of a dime instead of the indulgence of a dollar ” quoting Daniel Bouloud in the NYTimes upon the opening of DBGB. This statement has resonated with me for the past two years. Especially this holiday. What to give?
I have always been cleaver enough to finish my holiday shopping by Thanksgiving weekend leaving some time to bake or make special treats for my friends and family. Here is a very quick and easy gingerbread recipe that is both delicious and nutritious. This makes a quick house warming gift or holiday desert.
Apple Sauce and Gingerbread Cake
1 16oz jar of organic apple sauce
1 cup light molasses
2 t baking soda
3 c all purpose flour
½ t salt – I use fine grain sea salt
2 T fresh ground ginger or 2 t powdered ginger
1 ½ t of cinnamon
½ t cloves
4 eggs – organic
1 ½ c organic sugar
2/3 c vegetable oil – I use grapeseed
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees
Mix the first three ingredients together in one bowl – applesauce, molasses & baking soda.
In a second bowl mix the flour, salt, fresh or powdered ginger, and spices.
In the bowl of an electric mixer begin beating the eggs until light in color then add the sugar. When thick add in the oil.
Combine the wet and dry ingredients alternatively.
Pour into two 9” loaf pans. This recipe can be used in smaller loaf pans or mini bunt pans when drizzled with jam. It makes wonderful cupcakes dollop with whipped cream.
Josephine’s Feast at Slow Food Tasting
Taste Josephine’s Feast! for yourself at the Slow Food Show on 12/3 & 12/4 here in NYC. The Slow Food Show will be a two-day event.
Saturday, December 3, from 1 to 5 pm, at Jimmy’s No. 43, the Slow Food NYC Snail of Approval and Good Beer Seal winning bar in the East Village from 2:00 to 5:00 pm.
Sunday, December 4, from 11 am to 4 pm, at the award winning New Amsterdam Market, in Lower Manhattan’s East River Market District.
The New Amsterdam Market will provide a focused tasting and sales area.
Here is some more details and info from WNET- Channel 13
Wild Turkey-tini with Fresh Pressed Apple Cider
Sean just pressed 6 bushed of apples in his cider press – so we are blessed with an embarasasment of delicious heirloom apple cider. He’s thinking of making some hard cider but in the meantime I came up with a Wild Turkey-tini in honor of the bird we will be eating on Thursday.
Wild Turkey-tini
2 oz wild turkey bourbon
2 oz fresh apple cider
2 dashes of bitters – I prefer Fee Brothers West Indian Orange Bitters
One Maraschino Cherry for garnish – I prefer Tillen Farms
Combine the first 3 ingredients in a shaker with ice – and shake vigorously. Strain and serve in a martini cocktail glass . Garnish with a maraschino cherry
Leftover Turkey Chili
It’s Thanksgiving and now that your turkeys are ordered and your shopping list goes on for miles – cauliflower, turnips, pearl onions, green beans, carrots and parsnip – my all time favorite. And then there are the pies – sweet potato, apple and pumpkin. I really love a Thanksgiving Feast!
But when all is said and done – after the table has been cleared – and the meal is enjoyed – the pies are mere crumbles of their former self, what do you do with all those leftovers? A roast turkey sandwich is great, with Cranberry Sauce or JF Hurricane Hot Pepper Preserves. But….
One of the best ways to extend your Thanksgiving meal is a pot of Roasted Turkey Chili. I love the fragrance of New Mexican chili and cumin on a cold fall afternoon. This is an easy and healthy meal that makes all those containers of leftovers simply disappear.
3 T olive oil
1 large onion – I like a sweet variety
4 cloves of garlic – there is a wide variety in your farmers market try a German hard neck if you can
2 stalks of celery
3 to 4 carrots
2 parsnip
1 to 2 pounds of Turkey
1T to 3 T chili mix – ( Try Josephine’s Feast Rough Rider Chili )
1 T cumin
1 can of organic tomato paste
2 quarts Chicken or Vegetable Stock – homemade or organic low sodium.
Sea Salt
Pepper
Start with a large pot and add 3 T olive oil and heat. Dice or slice the onions and garlic. Sauté in olive oil. Dice Celery, Carrots, Parsnip, and add to the sauté. Dice a 1 to 2 pounds of leftover turkey and add to the pot. Now the magic happens – add 1T to 3 T of chili mix and 1T of ground cumin. Continue the sauté until the mix begins to perfume your kitchen. Add the tomato paste – you want to cook off the raw taste of the chili & tomato with out burning the spice. Add sea salt & pepper to taste – Remember, “Less is more” you will have a chance to adjust the seasoning later. Add 2 quarts of chicken or vegetable stock. The better the stock the better the meal. And cook on a low simmer for 45 minutes to an hour. If the stock is cooking off too quickly – add some water. If the chili has too much broth raise the flame. If your adventurous you can add a plethora of leftover vegetables – cauliflower, Brussels sprouts – even diced baked potato. This chili is unique as the cook that makes it and is a mouth watering healthy meal that extends the Thanksgiving Feast!
Serve with a pot of black beans or over polenta for a wonderful autumn meal. It can also be frozen for a quick meal when you are too busy to cook.
Brining A Turkey
What strikes me most about Thanksgiving is that just a few weeks before – I get that urge to cook a turkey. Call it a seasonal urge, just like driving upstate New York to see the leaves change color. I can’t wait to cook my turkey dinner.
In anticipation I page thru a number of favorite cookbooks looking for ways to improve on my favorite recipe. This year my interest is brining. We have had a great summer barbequing brined pork ribs and chops – why not the Thanksgiving Feast!
I must admit that my all time favorite Turkey recipe is “Turkey with Two Stuffings” from the Theory and Practice of Good Cooking by James Beard. The bird is stuffed with a fresh herb bread stuffing and the neck is stuffed with a rich coriander scented sausage stuffing. I prefer to use an organic turkey – one from North Sea Farms but in the past I have also used a wild turkey and even a boned turkey breast – we’ll save that technique for another post.
Brining is simple, but it takes some planning – you’ll have to start 3 days before Thanksgiving if you are using a frozen turkey. Similar to a marinade – Brining makes cooked meat moister by hydrating the cells before cooking, via the process of osmosis. There are no short cuts to brining; your turkey must remain in the brine for 16 to 24 hours. Simply stated this process makes a great piece of meat even better
The basic bring mix is quite simple – salt, sugar, and water. This recipe is an adaptation from Jeremiah Tower’s “New American Classics” Influenced by Elizabeth David, Richard Olney & Alice Waters – this is a cookbook that changed the way we thought about American food when it was published in 1986.
For the Brine:
1 cup of salt – I prefer grey sea salt
½ cup of brown or organic sugar
1 gallon of water – plus additional water
2 T black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 T whole coriander
3 T dried thyme or Herbes de Provence
3 days before cooking you will have to thaw your turkey – if it is fresh – all the better.
Combine one gallon of the water with all the ingredients above in a large stockpot over medium heat. Stir and bring to a boil. Remove the brine from the heat cool down and refrigerate
The day before cooking pour the brining mix into a 5-gallon bucket. Adding an additional gallon or more of water. Place the thawed turkey in the bucket and weight it down to insure the brining mix covers it. Cover and refrigerate for 16 to 24 hours.
Brining works by osmosis – if you cut the brining time you will result in an over salted turkey. If you allow the full 16 to 24 hours for the brine – you’ll have a delicious turkey with outstanding gravy.
This recipe can be reduced by half or quarters and used to brine organic chickens, pork chops, pork tenderloin and my absolute favorite barbequed ribs.
If you don’t want to make your own brining Mix, Then try ours. Enough for one Turkey.