Apple Pork Roast

It's fall in Minnesota, the leaves are red and yellow, the air is cool and the sun is shining. It's the perfect time for Apple Pork Roast. Fill the house with the smell of apple and tempt your family to the dinner table!

3 1/2- to 4-lb boneless pork top loin roast
3 clove garlic, cut into thin slices
1 tsp coarse salt or regular salt
1 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 ts[ coarsely ground black pepper
3 medium apples, I suggest something tart like honey crisp
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions

Trim fat from meat. Cut a few slits about an inch deep in meat; insert a piece of garlic in each slit. Make the rub in a small bowl by combining salt, rosemary, and pepper. Sprinkle evenly over meat; rub in with your fingers.

Place roast on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Insert a meat thermometer. Roast, uncovered, in a 325° oven for 1 1/4 to 1 3/4 hours or until the meat thermometer registers 145°.

Spoon off any fat in roasting pan.

In a large bowl combine the apples, brown sugar, apple juice, lemon juice. Spoon the apple mixture around meat.

Roast, uncovered, for 30 to 45 minutes more or until meat thermometer registers 155°.

Transfer meat to a serving platter. Cover meat with foil; let stand for 10 minutes before slicing. (The internal temperature will rise about 5° during standing.)

Remove the rack from the roasting pan. Stir the apple wedges into the pan juices. Serve with the meat.

My favorite fall treat : Apple Strudel

My mom use to fill the house with the smell of Apple Strudel each fall. I still remember walking in the house and just melting from the smell. This is one of my all time favorite recipes!

Apple Strudel

• one sheet of thawed puff pastry
• two apples, peeled, cored, and cut into thin slices (I recommend using two different kinds of apples just to add a little interest to the flavors. My favorite? Granny smith and Honey Crisp)
• 2-3 tbsp of sugar depending on how sweet your apples are
• 1 tbsp of flour
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• a good pinch of salt
• 1 egg

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
2. Slice up your apples as thin as you can. If you slice them thickly you will want to add a few minutes to baking time. Put the apples in a medium bowl.
3. Sprinkle the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt over the apples. Toss the apples really well with those dry ingredients. You want all the slices to be coated well.
4. Roll out the sheet of pastry till thin but not too thin.
5. Pile the apples along the bottom edge, but leave a good margin of pastry as a border.
6. Fold the pastry over the apples as of you are wrapping a present ( which really you are!) , and pinch the edges together. You'll end up with a long rectangular shape that looks like a giant toaster strudel.
7. Carefully put the "log" on a baking sheet, pinched-edge-side down. Fold under the ends to make sure everything stays where it's supposed to.
8. Brush the top with a little beaten egg, and sprinkle with a bit of sugar. Cut about three slits in the top so steam can escape.
9. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the top is brown and you're intoxicated by the smell of apples.
10. Cut it into slices, and serve with vanilla ice cream.Or go wild and add a little caramel sauce . Holy sweetness.

Rockin' Guacamole!

Ingredients

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/2 red onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)
• 1-2 Serrano chilies, stems and seeds removed, minced
• 1 tablespoon of fresh lime or lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• A dash of freshly grated black pepper
• 1/2 ripe tomato, seeds and pulp removed, chopped

Serve with tortilla chips.

Method

1 Cut avocados in half. Remove seed. Scoop out avocado from the peel, put in a mixing bowl.

2 Using a fork, mash the avocado. Add the chopped onion, lime or lemon, salt and pepper and mash some more. Chili peppers vary individually in their hotness. So, start with a half of one chili pepper and add to the guacamole to your desired degree of hotness. Be careful handling the peppers; do not touch your eyes and wash hands well. Use lemon juice on your fingers to get rid of extra pepper
Keep the tomatoes separate until ready to serve. Blend to taste.

3 Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole and refrigerate until ready.

4 Just before serving, add the chopped tomato to the guacamole and mix.
Serves 2-4.

20 tips to help in the kitchen!

If you are like me you love to find tips that will help you around the house and in particular with food. Here are some great ones!

1. Stuff a miniature marshmallow in the bottom of a sugar cone to prevent ice cream drip.

2. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

3. To prevent egg shells form cracking, add a pinch of salt to the water before hard-boiling.

4. To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it’s fresh, but if it floats, throw it away.

5. Run your hands under cold water before pressing Rice Krispies treats in the pan and the marshmallow won’t stick to your fingers.

6. To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature and roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing.

7. To easily remove burnt on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stove-top.

8. Spray your Tupperware with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato-based sauces and there won’t be any stains.

9. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it’s still cooking, drop in a peeled potato and it will absorb the excess salt for an instant “fix.”

10. Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in a refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.

11. Brush some beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.

12. Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it.

13. Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.

14. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers. Just slice and rub raw potato on the stains and rinse with water.

15. To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area and you will experience instant relief.

16. Ants are said never to cross a chalk line. So, get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march.

17. Don’t throw out all the leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

18. Let raw potatoes stand in cold water for at least half an hour before frying to improve the crispness of french-fried potatoes.

19. A roast with the bone in will cook faster than a boneless roast - the bone carries the heat to the inside of the roast quicker.

20. Instead of the water your recipe calls for, try juices, bouillon, or water you've cooked vegetables in. Instead of milk, try buttermilk, yogurt or sour cream. It can add a whole new flavor and improve nutrition.