Sunday evenings at Fartwood Manor are usually spent watching the wonderful animated offerings of the Fox Network. From 6pm until 9pm we learn the wisdom of Hank Hill (I can't believe Cotton died!), cringe at the bad jokes of Family Guy, and luxuriate in the glory that is The Simpsons.
I usually try to have dinner on the TV table by 6 so we can eat and watch the shows.
Last night I made one of my old-school favorites: roast pork loin, mashed potatoes, gravy, and corn. When I was growing up, this was one of my family's favorite meals--one of my Mom's specialties. She made it in a Nesco roaster, so I guess it really wasn't technically "roasted" but more like "a la poele". I cooked mine in the oven in one of those little blue enamel covered roasting pans, since I don't have a Nesco.
I made a paste of Penzey's Shallot Salt, rubbed sage, black pepper and a little olive oil and massaged it into the pork. I cooked it at 325 degrees for a little over an hour (it was a small loin) until 160 degrees on the instant read. One thing I notice is that back in the day, the pork roasts had this nice layer of fat on top that got all crispy and good. I don't see that any more.
I made a nice little gravy with the juices in the pan for the garlic mashed potatoes. No substitutions..it HAS to be corn on the side. The pork was super tender, I was very happy with it. Not quite as good as Mom's but still OK.
A nice crackling fire in the fireplace, pork roast, a new episode of The Simpsons, pumpkin ice cream for dessert AND another Packer win.....it doesn't get better than that.
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