Ok, so all puns aside, this recipe is the kind of roast dinner I CAN get on the table, even on a weeknight. Usually, the combination of the number of dishes in a traditional roast dinner, the different cooking methods, times etc, fills me with dread. How on earth do you get everything on the table, cooked (and still hot), at the same time? Well, in my family, you go round to my Mum's or my sister's and eat there, as they seem to manage this culinary juggling act superbly well.
However, THIS roast is done in the slow cooker (yay!), and the two sides I cooked to go with it were easy peasy AND fit with our current healthy-eating quest. The first of the sides was simply boiled green beans, tossed with some lemon zest and juice once they are cooked. (Yes, youngest son will still eat (almost) any veggie if you toss it with lemon juice. And won't, if you don't. Go figure.) The second side dish was a riff on mashed potatoes, but using cauliflower and just a touch of butter and cheese to make it extra creamy and tasty. I've never even thought to mash a cauliflower before, but Gina Homolka, author of the fabulous Skinnytaste Cookbook claimed it is "just as tasty" as mashed potatoes, a claim that seemed ripe for testing. I have to say, I kind of agree. It doesn't taste LIKE mashed potato, and although it has a creamy texture, doesn't FEEL same either. But it was completely delicious nonetheless, and will definitely be served around these parts again. Since we were not having a whole raft of other sides, I increased the quantity of this recipe, but otherwise, stayed true to the original.
As for the roast itself, the Skinnytaste website was the source for that one. The recipe immediately caught my eye, because it had the words crock pot in it (you know how much I love my slow cooker), and also because it is cooked with balsamic vinegar. Where one son covets lemon juice on everything, the other is addicted to balsamic vinegar, and is often to be found raiding the kitchen. There he gets out a plate, on to which he pours a sizable puddle of balsamic vinegar, which he then mops up with whatever bread he can get his hands on. So the combination of balsamic and crock pot was made in heaven for this household. And again, this recipe was delicious, and will be revisited again. If you haven't yet checked out Skinnytaste, online, or in her new book, I highly recommend that you do. If you could smell my kitchen, when this roast was cooking, then you'd already be at Barnes and Noble by now....
Crock Pot Balsamic Pot Roast
Serves 4
2lb boneless pork roast (I used boneless pork loin)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/3 cup chicken/vegetable broth/stock
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 TBSP honey
1. Trim the pork of visible fat, and season with the salt and garlic powder. Spray the stoneware in the slow cooker with oil spray and place the meat inside.
2. Mix together the broth and vinegar, and pour over the meat.
3. Drizzle the honey over the top of the meat.
4. Cook on low for 6-8 hours (or 4 hours on high).
5. Once it is cooked, remove the meat from the crockpot and slice it. Put the slices back into the liquid and toss to coat before serving.
6. Serve with extra sauce spooned over the pork if so desired.
Cheesy Cauliflower "Mash"
Serves 5
2 heads of cauliflower cut into florets (should give you about 11 cups of florets)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup low fat buttermilk
1 1/2 TBSP butter
salt and black pepper to taste
1 1/2 TBSP finely chopped fresh chives
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add cauliflower and garlic and cook until cauliflower is soft (about 15-20 minutes). Don't undercook it as you might if you were simply serving boiled cauliflower, or it won't 'mash' properly.
2. Drain the cauliflower and return to the pan. Add the buttermilk, butter, salt and pepper to taste. Blend the mixture together using an immersion blender until smooth.
3. Stir in the chives and the cheese and serve hot.
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