Pork Roast with Apples, Carrots, and Asian Plum Sauce

I just got finished putting a pork roast in the crock pot.  I thought I’d better start documenting it before I forgot the measurements.  If you’re reading this post, it turned out awesome! 

As I was having coffee this morning, I was thinking about what to do with the roast that I had thawed in the frig.  I just bought a big bag of organic apples and just yesterday I peeled a bunch of my small carrots from the garden.  Supplied with adequate caffeine, the brain began spinning.........  Let’s put it all together in the crock pot and see what happens!!!

For some reason, all my creativity was used up on the ingredients today and I could not come up with a super snappy name for it.  If you have any ideas, let me know.  Here’s the details:

Pork Roast with Apples, Carrots, and Asian Plum Sauce

2 ½ - 3 pound pork roast - I used a sirloin tip roast, a loin roast or any meaty roast would be good

4 cups peeled carrots, cut into 3" long by 1" thick pieces
1 large sweet onion, chopped
4 large apples, cored and chopped into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp sage
1 cup Asian Plum Sauce* - purchased or homemade - my recipe follows
* Don't have Plum Sauce?  Here is a perfect alternative - an equal amount of whole berry cranberry sauce.

Rinse and pat dry the roast, then brown it on all sides in a little olive oil over a moderately high heat.

Browning the meat adds lot of flavor.

Once the roast is browned, remove it, turn the heat down to low, add a little more olive oil and the chopped onions.  Caramelize the onions over low heat until they are translucent and a delicate brown color.  Sprinkle the salt, thyme, and sage into the onions.

Lightly caramelize the onions and add the herbs

 


I put my carrots on the bottom.  Then put the roast on top of the carrots, poured the caramelized onions over the top of the roast, and then added the chopped apples on top of that.

Carrots-roast-onions-apples

After I dumped the onions into the crock pot, I put the Asian plum sauce in the skillet to warm and to continue deglazing the skillet.  I wanted every little bit of flavor from the browning, caramelizing, and the herbs into the crock pot.  

Top it off with the sauce

Once everything else was in the crock pot, I poured the Asian plum sauce over the top and turned the dial to high to give it a kick start.

After about an hour, turn the crock pot down to low and let it cook for about 5-6 hours or until you are ready to serve.

This would be equally good served over a bed of wide noodles or rice.  I chose to make the rice today.

As mentioned above, whole berry cranberry sauce will make this dish equally as good and there's no need to search the stores for plum sauce.  This recipe made enough for a family meal or if you're only one or two, generous left overs.  It had a delicious sweet flavor with the mingling of the sweet carrots and apples.  A perfect compliment to the pork roast.

Enjoy!




Here is my recipe for the Sauce:

Asian Plum Sauce

This is a condiment that you can purchase at your local co-op or grocery in the ethnic food section, but it is easy to make if you have a supply of plums.  Plums seem to be abundant in the Missoula valley in the fall and last year someone gave me a bucket full.  I had already made more jam than I knew we would eat in several years so I decided to make plum sauce.  We have enjoyed it with many dishes, including stir fries and just over noodles.

 8 cups plums, pitted and chopped - skins on
1 cup onion, chopped
1 cup apple juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup rice vinegar or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger

In large heavy saucepan, bring plums, onions, garlic, and apple juice to boil a over medium heat - reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until tender.

Add sugar, vinegar, salt, and spices and continue to simmer until it reaches the desired sauce consistency.

Fill and seal canning jars and process in a boiling water bath for 30 minutes, or freeze in ½ pint containers.

Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake

Caramel Apple Upside Down Cake

My husband could eat butter cream icing from a bowl with a spoon any day of the week, but it is the main thing that I don’t like about cake.  I’ve found a delicious way around dealing with icing and that is the old fashioned upside down cake.  I’m going to give you two versions of this cake so that you will be free to experiment with any fruit you like.  It seems like such a great answer to never having to deal with icing again.  I make them frequently with whatever fruit I have on hand or that is in season.

I make a version of this cake with my frozen Flathead cherries that is beautiful and delicious too.  If you’re using frozen fruit or canned fruit, be sure to drain the fruit before using it in this recipe.  There are just 2 basics steps to this recipe.  The topping, which goes into the pan first, and the cake.

Upside Down Cake

Begin all cakes with a generous spray of Pam or similar vegetable spray on the 9 x 9 x 2 inch deep square pan or a pan that will accommodate the cake.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Heat the butter, sugar, and vanilla to make a sauce.

The topping:
4 Tablespoons butter
3/4 cup brown sugar (for caramel apple) OR 3/4 cup white sugar (for other varieties)
1 teaspoon of vanilla (for caramel apple) OR 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice (for other varieties)

Melt the butter, sugar, and vanilla or lemon juice in a small sauce pan over low heat until the sugar melts and the mixture bubbles.
Pour into the prepared pan and coat the bottom of the pan.

Layer the fruit on top of the sauce.

2-3 Apples or fruit of your choice
Add a layer of apples or any fruit to cover the bottom of the pan.  (Apples, cherries, peaches, pears, apricots, and pineapple of course) Fresh apples like I used can have a double layer or overlap significantly as they do shrink.  Other more moist fruit won’t shrink.

 



The cake:
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup of milk (or use apple cider for the apple cake)
1 ½ cups sifted flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Sift together the dry ingredients into a bowl and set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar.  After this becomes light and pale, add the eggs one at a time and then the vanilla.

Continue beating adding ½ the dry ingredients, then the milk, and follow with the other half of the dry ingredients.
Spoon the batter onto the top of the fruit and bake until the cake is well risen and golden brown.  At around 45-55 minutes, the cake will be firm to the touch, a tooth pick inserted into the center will come out clean, and the cake will begin to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Apples shrink so add twice as many as you think.

Have a plate or platter ready to receive the cake.  Run a knife around the edges to make sure it is free.  Immediately upon removing it from the oven, invert it onto the plate.  Leave the pan inverted for a few seconds, up to a minute and then gently lift it off.  Should any of the fruit have stuck to the pan, you can quickly transfer it back to the cake.

Allow the cake to cool and serve with a little whipped cream.  You won’t miss the icing.