Butter & Bourbon Bathed Boar - Bourbon Cream Pork Loins

There are just some things, no matter HOW terribly bad for you they are, that you just cannot resist indulging in on occasion. When I was young, my aunt came for a visit. While she was here, she decided that she wanted to cook dinner for everyone. Well this recipe of her's was da bomb. Loaded with butter, laced with bourbon and overflowing with mushroomy goodness. This is some serious plate lickin' sauce, lemme tell ya.

Since the key ingredient is the bourbon, let's talk about bourbon for a moment. Bourbon is part of the whiskey family, just like Scotch, Irish, Canadian and Tennessee whiskeys. The difference between Bourbon and all the other whiskeys is location, location, location. Bourbon comes from the area of Kentucky that was once Bourbon County. (Though the county was divided up a long time ago). The mash content is at least 51% corn, though more often it's as high as 70%, and aged in new charred oak barrels for at least 2 years. While Tennessee whiskey may be made of the same ingredients, it is filtered through maple charcoal, lending it's particular flavor. Canadian Whiskey is usually higher in Rye and of course Scotch and Irish are primarily malted barley, though Scotch uses peat in their process to give those "smoked earth" notes that are absent from the Irish.

blah blah blah blah blah......

Suffice it to say that this recipe is best with Bourbon. Though my dad also makes it with Pendleton which is a Canadian "style" whiskey, and it is nice as well, I personally prefer Maker's Mark Bourbon.

And while Maker's isn't the oldest Bourbon distillery (Jim Beam) nor the most expensive on the market (Woodford Reserve - save that for your $1000 Kentucky Derby Mint Juleps), it is a small batch distillery that values Quality over Quantity. And I must say that, for the price, the quality and consistency of Maker's Mark is perfect for this recipe.

Originally, this wass a recipe for 6 pork loins, however, I enjoy the sauce so much that I usually cook only 4 pork loins in the same amount of sauce. Tonight however, I have but 3 pork loins, and, well.... I am making the same amount of sauce as I would for 6. Trust me, it really IS that good... And awesome over rice too...

Bourbon Pork Loins

4 Pork loins (technically it's 6)
Kosher salt
Cracked Black Pepper
8 TB Unsalted Butter, divided (6TB for searing & 2 TB to finish the sauce)
3 TB Olive Oil
3/4 cup (177 ml) Heavy Cream
3 TB Dijon Mustard (Though I usually use Gulden's Brown)
1/2 cup (118 ml) Maker's Mark Bourbon
1 Shallot, minced fine
8 oz (227 g) Button Mushrooms, sliced
1/4 tsp Thyme

Season the pork loins with Salt and pepper on both sides.

Place 6 TB of the Butter and the 3 TB Olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

In a small pitcher, measure out the Heavy Cream and add the Mustard.

Stir until combined, then set aside.

Now that the butter and oil are heated, add the pork loins...

Sear for 3 minutes on each side, you don't want to cook them all the way through (this will depend on how thick your loins are, mine were about 1 inch)

When seared, move the pork loins to a clean plate and cover with foil to keep warm.

Add the bourbon to deglaze the pan. (you really wanna get that fond scraped up and incorporated into the sauce)

Continue stirring the mixture until it reduces to a thick sauce.

Add the shallots...

Then the mushrooms.

Cover and cook for 5 minutes.

Remove the cover, sprinkle with thyme.

Reduce the heat to medium-low, then add the Heavy Cream/Mustard mixture and stir to combine.

Move the pork loins back to the pan, nestling them down into the sauce.

Cover and cook 3 minutes...

Turn the pork loins and cook an additional 3 minutes.

Move the loins from the sauce, and onto warmed plates.

Remove the sauce from the heat and stir in the remaining 2 TB of butter. (Yep, it's time to release your inner Paula Dean)

Season with Salt and Pepper, then spoon the mushroom sauce over each pork loin and add a sprig of thyme for a simple garnish and dig in.

If your not serving this with rice, I would suggest some sourdough rolls, cause you gonna wanna sop up the sauce, otherwise you might be reduced to licking the plate.

BUSTED!!! LOL

Mangia!!
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Piggin Out On Prosciutto - Porcine Extravaganza, Take 2

I apologize for not having step by step photos on this one and the 1 picture that did turn out, isn't all that great. But is simply a variation on a theme - Prosciutto Wrapped Pork Loins in Caper Pan Sauce.
The Pork loins are stuffed with Cambazola, a Blue Brie for all intensive purposes, which is what led to the modification of the pan sauce.
Capers might not be so wonderful with the blue cheese, but Muscat wine makes a delicious counter point. Thus was born this recipe.

I was lucky enough to have a test subject. This was one of the various meals I cooked while my friend Joe was visiting from Yuma over the 4th of July weekend. A friend of mine from BakeSpace, Matt74, had made fingerling potatoes wrapped in prosciutto several days before. Yet more BakeSpace inspiration... Thus I decided if I was gonna be "cookin me up some pig", I was gonna be a hog about it. ;)

Your gonna wanna start the taters first though. They take 40 minutes, unless you have already partially baked or steamed them.

Cambazola Stuffed Prosciutto Wrapped Pork Loins

4 boneless pork loin chops
8 oz Cambazola
8 thinly sliced Prosciutto di Parma
2 tsp rosemary leaves, rough chop
2 tsp fresh sage leaves, rough chop
1/2 tsp freshly crushed black pepper
2 TB extra virgin olive oil

Plus more for rubbing down the pork loin chops.

Preheat oven to 350°.
Your pork loin chops should be at least 1inch thick and fat trimmed away.
Slice a pocket into the side and stuff with about 2 oz of Cambazola.
Season each side of pork loin chop evenly with rosemary, sage and cracked black pepper.
Take 2 pieces of thinly sliced Prosciutto and wrap one continuous band around each pork chop until Prosciutto meets.
After all pork loins have been wrapped, heat 10-inch, preferably non-stick sauté pan, to medium-high heat and brown pork chops evenly on both sides (approximately 1 1/2 - 2 minutes per side).
Place all pork chops on sheet pan and cook in preheated oven for approximately 10 minutes for medium; 20 minutes for well down.

Remove them from the baking pan and tent; they should rest for 5 minutes to finish cooking.

Save fond in sauté pan as well as any fond on baking sheet, this will be used for Orange Muscat Cream sauce.

Orange Muscat Cream Sauce

1/4 cup Orange Muscat wine
1/3 cup heavy cream
Juices from the Baking sheet and/or the sauté pan.

Scrape the fond from the baking sheet into the sauté pan over high heat.
Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup wine and reduce by half or to 1/8 cup.
Lower heat and add heavy cream.
Stir well and reduce slightly to thicken slightly.
When the sauce has the desired consistency, remove from the heat and drizzle it over the prosciutto wrapped pork loins.

Serve with Prosciutto Wrapped fingerling potatoes and Dry Sauted Asparagus

Prosciutto Wrapped Fingerlings

4 oz Prosciutto
6 oz Fingerling Potatoes
Rosemary
Thyme
Olive oil
Salt & Pepper

Preheat oven to 375 Degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.
Toss fingerlings with Olive Oil, Herbs and Salt and Pepper.
Wrap each one in a piece of Prosciutto and place on baking sheet.
Bake for 40 minutes.

Serve.

Mangia!!
~~

Pig in a Poke - Italian Style (Porcine Extravaganza)

OK, I stated last Sunday, in the Kibbeh post, that the only thing that might possibly be better than Lamb wrapped Lamb was Pork wrapped Pork... I wanted an excuse to cook with a varietal Italian wine (Trebbiano) that I picked up. It's a very light citrusy wine with a little bit of grassiness to it... Not necessarily remarkable in any way, but something new. I have never had it as a varietal before, only blends with Trebbiano grapes, such as Orvieto, and I know it's used to make Armagnac in France where it is called Ugni blanc. It is also paramount to the production of Balsamic Vinegar. (Not the '4 dollar a bottle' stuff in the mega mart, I mean the real stuff that is 100 bucks per 100ml. or is it 50 ml?)


I decided that this particular dish was in order. My friend Joe, on Sans Sanity, introduced me to this idea a couple years ago... The caper sauce is my own little spin on it.

Plump, prime Porcine Packaged in Prosciutto and Pan seared. The Pinnacle of which is the pan sauce of non-peril capers.

So, without further preamble...

Prosciutto wrapped Pork Loin in Caper Sauce

6 Boneless Pork Loin Chops
6-12 Prosciutto di Parma Slices (depending on the size, you may only need 1 per loin)
2 tsp Dried Rosemary
2 tsp Dried Sage leaves (rub your sage)
1/4 TB freshly Cracked Black Pepper
3 TB Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Browned Butter.

Preheat oven to 350°.
Your pork loin chops should be at least 1 inch thick and fat trimmed away. (I didn't trim mine very well)

Season one side of the pork loin, then place the seasoned side down on a piece of Prosciutto; season the upturned side.

Fold over one side.
Fold over to encase the loin.

After all pork loins have been wrapped,

Heat a 10-inch sauté pan over medium-high heat with Olive oil or Browned butter and brown pork chops evenly on both sides. Starting "seam side" down.

(approximately 1 1/2 - 2 minutes per side).

Place all pork chops on sheet pan and cook in preheated oven for approximately 10 minutes for medium; 15 minutes for well done. (Remember, if using temp gage, remove pork 5 degrees before your ideal "Done" temp, meat continues to cook after removed from a heat source)

Remove from oven and tent with foil on a plate. (They will finish cooking and keep warm)

Scrape the fond from the baking sheet into the sauté pan to make the sauce.

Caper Sauce:
Juices from the Baking sheet and sauté pan.
1/4 cup white wine (Normally I recommend a Pinot Gris/Grigio or a Sauvignon Blanc)
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 TB drained capers

Scrape the fond from the baking sheet into the sauté pan, and heat over medium flame.

Deglaze sauté pan with wine and reduce by half.

Lower heat and add heavy cream and reduce again until thickened.

Stir in capers right before plating and serving.

Spoon sauce over pork loin.

Mangia!!
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