Come here Friday and give me a hug!  Ahhhh thank you.  Happy Friday to you!

After visiting the new local market last week, I left with a nice pork roast that I was planning to roast for sandwiches, stir-fry and whatever else rolled through my brain. This dish was an ad hoc lunch prepared in less than 15 minutes on Saturday afternoon.

A couple of days prior, I slow cooked the pork roast for about 8 hours with a combination of Apricot Jam, Rosemary and splash of apple juice. To say the least – the meat was amazing! So tender, juicy and full of flavor.

Ingredients (Pork Roast)

• Pork Roast
• 1/2 Cup Apricot Jam
• 1 Tbsp. Dried Rosemary
• 3 Tbsp. Apple Juice

Method

1. Add all ingredients to the slow cooker and set to low and cook for 8 hours.  Your final roast should look similar to this below.  Oh so good!

Ingredients (Pasta Dish)

• 2 Cups cooked Pork Roast
• 1 Cup Button Mushrooms
• 1 Cup Broccoli
• 1 Cup Baby Spinach
• 1/4 Cup Chopped Walnuts
• 1/4 Cup Feta Cheese
• 2 Cups Spiral Pasta
• 1 Tbsp. Hoisin Sauce
• 2 Tsp. Soy Sauce
• 1 Clove Garlic
• 1 Tbsp. Ginger
• 2 Tbsp. Orange Juice
• 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil

Method

1. Preheat Large Pan on Medium- High Heat and add olive oil.
2. Add pork pieces and mushrooms, sautee for 3-4 minutes until the pork and mushrooms caramelize.



3. Add Ginger and Garlic, Cook for 3 more minutes
4. Add Soy Sauce and Hoisin Sauce



5. Add Orange Juice and Broccoli – stirring to coat the broccoli ( be sure to add a sprinkle of salt on the broccoli to ensure it stays bright green.
6. Add Spinach – cook for 1 minute while stirring ( If you find the hoisin sauce is sticking to the pan which is quite possible due to all the sugars – add a tablespoon of hot water to the hot pan and de-glaze the pan and get all those great flavors.



7. Add Walnuts and cooked spiral pasta (you can use whatever pasta you have on hand as well).



8. Plate and top with Feta Cheese.
9. Enjoy!

As part of the zesty tradition, I can’t wait to hear what people both think of this recipe as it is so simple but quite tasty and also what’s your favorite type of pasta. Again happy Friday and I hope you have a great weekend.

Take care

Zesty

WOW!  I had a great day off yesterday.  I was able to get some grass cut, went to the building supply store to pick out all the windows for the new house, hung out with the family and had a great dinner.

Tuesday night as we were sitting in the living room watching some TV, we all of a sudden heard a truck coming up the lane.  It was the neighbor with a special treat.  Fresh pork chops which were aching to be grilled.

I just knew they were to be on the menu for dinner and I had a great idea for a glaze.  Fresh orange balsamic glaze with a mustard addition.  In addition to the great pork – we drove up the road and picked up some fresh new PEI Potatoes from our neighbors road side stand.  So delicious… wait to see the pictures!

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 Tbsp. Brown sugar
• Juice of 1 Orange
• 1 Tsp. Mustard
• Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper
• Pork Chops
• PEI Potatoes

Method

1. Preheat Grill to medium heat
2. Apply olive oil, salt and pepper to the pork and let rest to room temperature
3. Cook over medium heat turning once



4. Combine Vinegar, Sugar, Mustard and Orange Juice in a bowl and baste the pork after turning it once.
5. Once desired temperature is reached, remove from heat and let rest.



6. Boil potatoes in water until fork tender



7. Assemble the plate



8. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: When cooking potatoes, try to avoid a rumbling boil as they tend to cause the potatoes to become wet.

I hope you have a great day!  I am back at the office today and preparing for next week’s travel.  Talk to you all on Friday morning.

Take care

zesty