Chermoula Marinated Pork Loin

Pork loin is all or nothing for me.  It’s either juicy, succulent, and full of delicious porky flavor, or it’s as dry and chewy as a hockey puck.  When done correctly, the loin is one of my favorite cuts of pork.  Tied and pan roasted, it makes for a roast as beautiful as it is tasty, perfect for a small dinner party.  But pork loin can be finicky.  Because it is relatively lean, it does have a tendency to dry out. And being pork, the loin needs lots of seasoning to be flavorful.

Before the pork loin goes anywhere near a pan, there are steps you can take to ensure that the final product will come out juicy.  First, get a high quality piece of pork.  Look for one in your butcher’s case that has good marbling, has most of its fat cap intact, and that still looks pink and fresh.  If the only pork loin you can find is vacuum sealed in plastic and labeled as “enhanced” pork (i.e., pork that has been injected with salt water), consider using this marinade on a nice pork chop instead.

Brining is an additional step you can take towards keeping your pork loin juicy.  I use a very basic brine for this recipe, because the pork loin is marinated after brining.  As an alternative recipe, try using the brine I call for in my Roast Chicken recipe.  Pan roast the loin as I do below and make a simple pan sauce with all of the delicious brown bits sticking the bottom of the skillet.  The end result would make a Frenchman proud.

Pork loin benefits from heavy seasoning and pairs great with big, intense flavors.  The chermoula marinade I use here – a potent North African marinade traditionally used to season vegetables – penetrates the pork with deep and complex flavors and imparts the loin with an attractive golden brown exterior when seared.

The chermoula calls for both fresh ginger and fresh turmeric.  You can substitute dried ground turmeric if you cannot find fresh, but the fresh ginger is essential. If you have never seen tumeric, it looks like small, orange fresh ginger that is as bright as a carrot when peeled and gets on everything it touches (see photos).  Grating the ginger, turmeric, onion and garlic on a Microplane grater or through the small holes of a box grater intensifies their flavors and will help to tenderize the meat.

Chermoula Marinated Pork Loin

Ingredients

1 boneless pork loin roast, 2-3 pounds

8 cups water
½ cup Kosher salt

1½ teaspoons cumin seeds
½ teaspoon coriander seeds
½ teaspoon black peppercorns
½ teaspoon red chile flakes
2 cloves garlic, grated
¼ cup grated yellow onion
½ teaspoon peeled and grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon peeled and grated fresh turmeric, or ½ teaspoon ground turmeric

2 teaspoons unsmoked Spanish paprika
Grated zest of ½ lemon
2 tablespoons
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
finely chopped cilantro
3 tablespoons olive oil

Instructions

1. Trim the pork loin of any excess fat, but be sure to leave most of the fat cap intact. Tie the loin at one inch intervals with butcher’s twine, making sure to tie it very tightly so that the roast will maintain its shape during cooking.
2. Combine the water and salt in a large bowl and stir until the salt is completely dissolved. Add the trimmed and tied pork loin, cover, and refrigerate for 8-10 hours, or overnight.
3. Toast the cumin and coriander seeds in a small skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently, until fragrant. Remove to the bowl of a spice grinder and add the peppercorns and chile flakes. Grind finely.
4. Transfer the ground spices to a small bowl and add the garlic, onion, ginger, turmeric, paprika, lemon zest, parsley, cilantro and two tablespoons of the olive oil.  Stir to combine.
5. Remove the pork loin from the brine and rinse under cold, running water. Dry thoroughly with paper towels.
6. Rub the chermoula all over the pork loin, then wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
7. The next day, pre-heat your oven to 325° F. Unwrap the pork loin and wipe most of the chermoula off with your hands. Allow to sit at room temperature for one hour to temper.
8. Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a large non-stick or cast iron skillet over medium high heat until shimmering but not smoking. Add the pork loin and sear on all sides until well browned, about 10 minutes.
9. Turn the pork loin so that the fat cap is on top, and then place the skillet in the oven. Roast until center of roast registers about 135 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 35 to 45 minutes.
10. Remove the roast to a plate. Cover with tin foil and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
11. After the roast has rested, transfer to a carving board. Cut the twine with scissors and discard. Slice the roast into ½ inch to ¾ inch slices. Poor any accumulated juices from the resting plate over the slices and serve.

Fresh Plum Ice Cream

Plums are my favorite of the fruits. I could eat an entire bag of plums in one sitting. The problem is that for every delicious, sweet, dripping and perfect plum, I eat probably five or so tart, hard, and not-yet-ready plums in anticipation. Plum season is woefully short. It occupies only a few weeks in August/September (although plums are available much longer). So the trick is to have some ways to use those close-but-no-cigar, not-quite-ready plums to capitalize on their increased availability. 

While making this recipe with in-their-prime plums is ideal (the better your fruit, the better your ice cream), you can extract an incredible amount of sweetness out of the plums through boiling, even if starting with a tart plum. Just the smell and the beautiful color of the plums in the pot will tell you how wonderful your ice cream is going to be. The end result is not overly sugary or cloying (the downfall of many fruit or berry ice creams) or rich. This is a light summer fruit ice cream that we've served with our Meyer Lemon Yogurt Cake in the photos.


This ice cream is also notable because you do not make a custard and you do not use eggs. Simply create your fruit and syrup, add cream, and blend. If you're worried about accidentally cooking the eggs when making custard, but want something with cream and more body and smoothness than a sorbet, this is a great option. The lovely color is all natural from the skin of the plums (which, no, you do not have to peel the plums, and don't worry about slight bruising). Any type of plum will do. Pick the ones most in season. We used red plums, but black or any can work. The recipe was written in David Lebovitz's Perfect Scoop for wild plums. We substituted frambois for the kirsch due to what we had on hand.

Serve by itself, with fresh fruit, with cake, or however you want. It makes one quart of ice cream.

 

 

Plum Ice Cream

 

Ingredients

1 pound plums (whatever available, around 5-8 depending on varietal)
1/3 cup water
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon kirsch or frambois

 

Instructions

1. The night before, make sure bowl for ice cream maker is chilling in the freezer.
2. Cut plums in half and remove pits.
3. Cut each half in quarters (approximately 8 slices per plum).
4. Place in medium (3 qt) non-reactive saucepan.
5. Add water. The juices from the plums will create the rest of the necessary moisture.
6. Cover and cook over medium heat for about 8-10 minutes or until tender and easily split without resistance by pressing with the back of a wooden spoon.
7. Remove from heat and stir in sugar until dissolved.
8. Cool to room temperature (about an hour)
9. Once cool, puree in a blender with the heavy cream and framboise until smooth and peels have been broken down as much as humanely possible.
10. Chill mixture, pref. overnight but at least six hours.
11. After thoroughly chilling, start ice cream maker and slowly add plum mixture in a drizzle. Note, this is written for our fairly standard $50 Cuisinart ice cream maker. If your ice cream maker's instructions are different, follow the directions for your ice cream maker.
12. Run ice cream maker until mixture is no longer visibly moving around the scraper, and then wait a couple minutes longer, up to but not over twenty minutes total. This particular ice cream has taken pretty much the whole twenty minutes when we've made it before. If it is still moving at twenty minutes, you should still take it out (unless your ice cream maker says differently). Move to quart sized container and freeze until ready to serve.
    

Mexican Style Shrimp Cocktail

Just as our Brown Sugar and Citrus Cured Salmon has become a tradition at our winter celebrations, this sweet-and-spicy shrimp cocktail based on an octopus recipe from the Rick Bayless cookbook has proved to be an immensely popular item at our parties during the warmer months. The first time we served this dish, our guests finished the entire bowl before E.S. even got to try one shrimp! Also like the cured salmon, this recipe is very simple.

Unlike your traditional shrimp cocktail arrangement – in which cooked shrimp are hung on the edge of a container of cocktail sauce – this recipe calls for the shrimp to be tossed in the sauce ahead of time, which allows the flavors of the sauce to penetrate the shrimp. Don’t add the shrimp to the sauce more than three hours before serving the cocktail, or the shrimp will start to get soft.

Tomatoes charred under a hot broiler, and a large quantity of hot sauce form the base of the cocktail sauce. I prefer Valencia or Cholula brand hot sauce for this recipe, as both have a subtle horseradish kick that compliments the shrimp nicely. Brown sugar and sherry vinegar provide a sweet contrast that balances the spice in the hot sauce.

Using precooked shrimp purchased from your local fishmonger makes this recipe a breeze. Just whip up the sauce in your food processor, chill in the refrigerator, and then toss in the shrimp. It’s that easy. Of course, if you want to cook your own shrimp, that will work too. Either way, be sure to remove all bits of shell and tail from your shrimp.

Serve this shrimp cocktail as part of a buffet in a large bowl, or as a plated first course in small glass bowls, topped with freshly sliced avocado and chopped cilantro.

Mexican Style Shrimp Cocktail

Ingredients

1 red onion, sliced thin
1 pound ripe tomatoes (2 large or 6 plum)
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
¼ cup Mexican hot sauce (such as Valencia or Cholula brand)
2 ½ pounds cooked shrimp, shells and tails removed
1 ripe avocado, cut into small chunks
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro


Instructions

1. Roast the whole tomatoes on a rimmed baking sheet about four inches below a very hot broiler until splotchy black and thoroughly soft, at least 5 minutes per side. Remove and cool.

2.While the tomatoes are cooling, set the oven temperature to 425 degrees. Spread the onion and whole garlic cloves on a baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil. Toss to combine. Place in the oven and roast until richly browned, about 15 minutes, stirring a few times to ensure even browning.

3. Pull the blackened skins off of the tomatoes, and scoop them into a food processor. Pulse several times to chop them into small pieces. Scrape into a medium bowl.

4. Scoop the onion and garlic into the food processor (don’t bother to clean the bowl of the food processor between uses). Pulse until finely chopped and add to the bowl with the tomatoes.

5. Add the sherry vinegar, brown sugar and hot sauce to the bowl and combine with the chopped vegetables. Season to taste with salt (I usually add about 2 teaspoons). Chill the cocktail sauce in the refrigerator.

6. An hour or two before you want to serve the shrimp cocktail, add the cleaned shrimp to the bowl and toss to combine. Try a shrimp to see if the cocktail needs additional salt or hot sauce. Once you are satisfied with the seasoning, return the bowl to the refrigerator.

7. When ready to serve, transfer the shrimp and sauce to an attractive bowl and top with the avocado and cilantro. Alternatively, divide the shrimp and sauce among small glass bowls and top each bowl with a few chunks of avocado and some chopped cilantro. Serve with high quality tortilla chips.

Related: Look at our Chilled Cucumber and Avocado Soup recipe to see how to pit an avocado.

Strawberry Torta (Strawberry and Cream Cake)

Recently, my parents celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. My mother is Swedish and my parents met in Sweden, so naturally she requested a Swedish dessert. There is nothing more Sweden-in-Summer to me than fresh jordgubbar (strawberries) and fresh whipped cream, lightly sweetened but still a touch of tang. Swedish cooking is about highlighting fresh ingredients while they are still in season, and this cake is really all about highlighting the natural goodness of the strawberries. The cream is just slightly sweetened so as not to overwhelm the berries. Strawberry and Cream torta (cake) is a cross-cultural favorite, and a great way to celebrate Summer, special occasions, or just because. While in traditional Swedish recipes a sponge cake is used, in this recipe a chiffon cake creates a more buttery flavor while keeping the light structure of a sponge cake.

The most intimidating thing about making this cake is torting the cake- or dividing the cake into three layers. Even though it is a tall cake that requires a 2" tall pan or a springform pan, that takes a little precision from an admittedly clumsy person. The first time I made it I went with only two layers, but added mashed strawberry to the top layer, to be topped again with whipped cream. That was pretty good, and certainly was easier to manage with a knife, but I felt the cake to cream ratio could be a little better and that I needed to get comfortable cutting a single cake into three layers. This is particularly true if I ever want to learn how to make princess torta, the royalty of Swedish cakes.

So I went out and got myself a cake leveler. I try not to overdo it on the niche purpose baking goods, I really do. But I will say that this was a wise $7 investment if you're in for the layer cake long-haul. It took all the intimidation away, created nice, flat, even layers with a simple sawing motion. And is thin enough to tuck away in the baking gadgets drawer. I included a video on using the cake leveler below. You want to start just a little below where the top starts to crown (at the lowest point of the cake) for your first layer. If you are using the leveler and are having trouble getting it started, use the knife to start and then start sawing back and forth and gently rotating the cake.

The original recipe for this is from Cook's Illustrated, but I found the way they organized ingredient measurements to be confusing so I adjusted it for a better mis en place. I also am the type of person that always feels very guilty taking up a bunch of pantry space with a bag of cake flour, so I rewrote the recipe for all-purpose flour. If you have cake flour on hand, use 1 1/4 cup cake flour instead of the all purpose flour and omit the cornstarch from the recipe (1 cup cake flour=7/8 cup all purpose flour + 2 tablespoons corn starch). If you want to plan ahead, you can make the cake portion, free it in plastic wrap (at least double wrapped), then thaw 2 hours before you want to make the cake. If you want to make it the night before, leave cutting the cake to right before you are ready to decorate, cover in plastic wrap, and put in fridge for night.

Lastly, this particular cake that got photographed I made when friends brought over raspberries from their garden. So obviously I put the raspberries on the cake. You don't mess around with that. There's also raspberry in the Frambois we used (Chambourd) in place of Kirsch, due to Frambois being a little easier to locate, so it all works out.

 

Ingredients

 

For the cake

1 cup and 1 1/2 tablespoons All Purpose flour (If using cake flour, use 1 1/4 cup cake flour and omit the cornstarch)
2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
3 egg yolks, room temperature
3 egg whites, room temperature
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

plain bread crumbs (optional)

For the Strawberry Filling
2 pounds fresh strawberries (medium or large, about 2 quarts), washed, dried, and stemmed
5- 6 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons Kirsch or a Frambois like Chambourd
pinch table salt
 

For the Whipped Cream   

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature 

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/8 teaspoon table salt 

2 cups heavy cream (more local the better)

Instructions 

1. FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and line with a very light dusting of bread crumbs, (or flour if you don't want to be as Swedish about it) round 9 by 2-inch straight sided cake pan or 9-inch springform pan and line with parchment paper. 
2. Set three tablespoons of the sugar aside for use later. 
3. In medium mixing bowl, whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, and rest of the sugar in mixing bowl. 
4. Whisk in 2 whole eggs and 3 yolks, butter, water, and vanilla; whisk until smooth.
5. In clean bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat remaining 3 egg whites at medium-low speed until frothy, about 2 minutes. 
6. With machine running, gradually add the reserved 3 tablespoons sugar. 
7. Increase speed to medium-high, and beat until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. 
8. With a rubber spatula, stir one-third of whites into yolk batter to lighten. 
9. Add remaining whites and gently fold into batter until no white streaks remain. 
10. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. 
11. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then invert cake onto greased wire rack; peel off and discard parchment. Invert cake again; cool completely, about 2 hours, during which you can complete the filling and the cream.
    
    
    
    
    
    
12. FOR THE STRAWBERRY FILLING: Halve 24 of best-looking berries and reserve. 
13. Quarter remaining berries; toss with 4 to 6 tablespoons sugar (depending on sweetness of berries) in medium bowl and let sit 1 hour, stirring occasionally. 
14. Strain juices from berries and reserve (you should have about 1/2 cup). 
15. In workbowl of food processor fitted with metal blade, give macerated berries five 1-second pulses (you should have about 1 1/2 cups). 
16. In small saucepan over medium-high heat, simmer reserved juices and Frambois until syrupy and reduced to about 3 tablespoons, 3 to 5 minutes. 
17. Pour reduced syrup over macerated berries, add pinch of salt, and toss to combine. Set aside until cake is cooled. If you want to wait to whip the cream and decorate right before serving, you can pause here.

1. FOR THE WHIPPED CREAM: When cake has cooled, place cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and salt in bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment. 
2. Whisk at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Reduce speed to low and add heavy cream in slow, steady stream; when almost fully combined, increase speed to medium-high and beat until mixture holds stiff peaks, 2 to 3 1/2 minutes more, scraping bowl as needed (you should have about 4 1/2 cups).

1. TO ASSEMBLE THE CAKE: If using a large serrated knife, slice cake into three even layers. If only making a two layer cake, slice in half with knife. If using a leveler, set the leveler slightly below where the cake starts to crown at the lowest part of the cake if your oven is uneven to cut the first layer. Halve the remaining cake.
2. Place bottom layer on cardboard round or cake plate bottom side up and arrange ring of 20 strawberry halves, cut sides down and stem ends facing out, around perimeter of cake layer. 
3. Pour one half of pureed berry mixture (about 3/4 cup) in center, then spread to cover any exposed cake. 
4. Gently spread about one-third of whipped cream (about 1 1/2 cups) over berry layer, leaving 1/2-inch border from edge, reaching the tips of the strawberry ring. 
5. Place middle cake layer (or top layer if only doing two layers) on top and press down gently Whipped cream layer should become flush with cake edge. 
6. Repeat with 20 additional strawberry halves, remaining berry mixture, and half of remaining whipped cream.
7. Gently press last cake layer upside down on top. If doing only two layers, go to step 28.
8. Spread remaining whipped cream over top.
9. Decorate with remaining cut strawberries. 
10. Serve, or chill for up to 4 hours.

Heirloom Tomato Sorbet with Chive Oil

As a little kid, I used to love it when restaurants would serve sorbet as first course or as a palate cleanser between courses.  "Early dessert!" I'd think to myself when greeted with basil ice cream as an amuse or presented with pear sorbet before my main course.  Those are the memories that inspire me to work sorbets and ice creams into unexpected parts of my menus today.  I try to find recipes that surprise my guests – and get them excited for the meal to come.

This recipe for tomato sorbet, from Thomas Keller's The French Laundry Cookbook, is particularly good.  The sorbet has intense tomato flavor, but is still clean enough to be refreshing between courses, thank in part to the addition of orange zest.  Wait until late summer when the very best tomatoes are available to make this sorbet.  The wait will be worth it.

Keller's method for making chive oil is as simple as can be, and pairs beautifully with the sorbet.  Just hold the chives under hot running water for a couple of minutes and then blend with the oil.  The heat created by the friction of the blade spinning through the oil is enough to heat the mixture and infuse the flavor of the chives into the oil.  The oil is best if made at least one day ahead of time, and then strained just before use.

Ingredients

Simple Syrup

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water

Tomato Sorbet
2 1/4 pounds heirloom tomatoes, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/3 cup finely chopped yellow onion
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Pinch of chopped tarragon
Pinch of cayenne
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons simple syrup
Julienned zest of 1/2 orange (removed with a zester; 1 teaspoon), brought to a boil in cold water, strained and repeated 2 additional times
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Chive Oil

1 packed cup chives
1 cup canola oil

Fleur de sel
Extra chives for garnish

Instructions

For the simple syrup: 

1. Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.  
2. Remove from heat, let cool to room temperature, and then refrigerate.

For the sorbet: 

1. Place the tomatoes in a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. 
2. Cook, stirring often, for about 45 minutes, or until the tomatoes have reduced by half.  There may still be a small amount of liquid remaining.
3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a skillet over low heat.  
4. Add the onions to the skillet and cook gently for 7 to 8 minutes, or until tender.
5. Place the reduced tomatoes and the onions in a blender and puree them until very smooth.  
6. Press the mixture through a fine mesh strainer (there will be about 1 cup of puree) and return it to the clean blender.  
7. Add the remaining sorbet ingredients and blend again.  
8. Strain through a clean fine mesh strainer.  There should be about 1 1/2 cups sorbet base.  
9. Cool the mixture over ice, stirring often.
10. Freeze the sorbet in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions.  
11. Store the sorbet in a covered container in the freezer.  The sorbet is best eaten the day it is made.

For the chive oil: 

1. Place the chives in a strainer and run hot water over them for about two minutes to soften and remove the chlorophyll taste.
2. Place half of the chives in a blender with the oil.  
3. Turn on the blender to medium speed and allow the chives to blend for a minute to begin the process. 
4.  Turn the speed to high and continue to blend for another 2 minutes.  If your blender has a hole at the top, remove the stopper to allow some air in.
5. Add half of the remaining chives to the machine and blend for another 2 minutes, then add the remaining chives and blend for 2 more minutes.
6. Remove the puree to a covered container and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.
7. When ready to use, strain the oil through a fine mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth.

To serve: 

1. Spoon a little of the chive oil into the center of a six small bowls.  
2. Top each with a quenelle of tomato sorbet.  
3. Sprinkle each bowl with a few grains of fluer de sel and garnish with the extra chives.