What to Cook this Week

Where I live, it was just 108 degrees last week and now it’s 68. Crazy. And very much welcome, I might add. So, it’s official: Fall is here! And as you may know, Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the transition (albeit a fast one this time) from the heat of summer, to the cool, crisp evenings and mornings of Autumn. I especially love the way the light changes. I just noticed this the other day, while I was out for my daily walk. Where the light is harsher and brighter in summer, ambient light becomes warmer and richer and more golden in Fall. The sky is just different. Clouds are different. It’s an amazing transition.

With the shorter days now, Fall is the time to start making stews and nourishing broths for soup, for casseroles, braising vegetables and meat, and of course baking!

At some point, despite all the recipes on the internet, we can sometimes find ourselves fresh out of ideas. So I’m here to help. “What to Cook this Week” is a new feature, meant to provide you (and me) with a few ideas for things to put on the menu this week.

I look to what’s currently in season to help inspire me. This time of year it’s not hard to come up with the usual fall-themed ingredients: apples, artichokes, broccoli rabe, Brussels sprouts, grapes, kale, parsnips, pears, pomegranates, pumpkins, rutabagas and winter squash, to name a few.

Today I want to cover apples and I have 2 recipes for you to consider.

Apples are good so many different ways. They can be, and usually are, made into something sweet (like the apple oven cake that I simply love), but they can also be used in savory dishes, like alongside a pork loin. In fact, fruit is often used with pork. I’ve seen apricots, as well as berries, used. Fruit tends to offset the gaminess of the meat a bit. If you’ve never had this combination and think it might be weird, try it anyway. You might be pleasantly surprised.  Here is a recipe I usually make this time of year.

Pork Loin with Apples, Prunes and Mustard Cream Sauce

Ingredients:
1 (4-lb) boneless pork loin roast
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Granny Smith apples
1 Tbsp butter
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup packed dried pitted prunes, quartered
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tbsp coarse-grain mustard
1/2 cup dry white wine

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375F.
Heat oil in an oven-safe heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot, then brown the pork on all sides, 6-8 min per side. Transfer skillet to oven and roast the pork until the thermometer inserted diagonally at least 2 inches into the meat registers 150F, about 40-50 minutes.

While pork roasts, peel, quarter and core apples, then cut into 1/4 inch thick wedges. Add a little butter to a pan and cook onion over moderate hear, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3-5 minutes. Add apples, prunes, broth and water and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally until apples are tender and prunes have plumped up and softened, 10-12 minutes. Stir in cream and mustard and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and keep sauce warm, partially covered. Transfer pork to a cutting board, cover with foil, and let stand 10 minutes. Add wine to skillet, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until reduced to about 1/4 cup, 2-3 minutes. Stir pan juices into cream sauce along with remaining 3/4 tsp salt and 3/4 tsp pepper and heat sauce over moderate heat, stirring, until hot.

Serve the pork and sauce alongside potatoes, ideally mashed, but you could also roast them if you wish, and tender green beans or roasted broccoli. Serve with one of the following wines: Dry Riesling (not a sweet one, a dry one), Viognier, Malbec, Grenache or Nero d/Avola.

Now for something else with apples. Next time you head to Costco, or buy a ton of apples at the farmer’s market because they simply looked so good, make applesauce. This is a super-healthy version, without sugar, and honestly 100% better than anything store-bought.

Applesauce makes a great snack, and if you have a baby or toddler to feed, you’ve gotta try this sometime. It’s soooo easy! And what’s nice is you can control the spices that go in. Let’s say you want to add the complexity of pumpkin pie spice, or any of those spices individually, like maybe just the cinnamon and nutmeg, you can do that. Experiment each time you make it until you dial the spices in just the way you like ‘em.

Cinnamon Applesauce

Ingredients:
4 pounds tart apples, cored, peeled (optional) and sliced
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup water

Place everything into a slow cooker bowl and stir. Cook on low for 6 hours.

For a smooth applesauce, place in a blender or food processor and, in batches, puree until smooth.

That’s it for this week. I hope you make the pork and applesauce and feel free to leave a comment below with the results, or how you changed it up, if you did, and what you thought.