Cranberry and Apple Stuffed Pork Loin

A few weeks ago, I had a predicament. Eileen and I–pretty much without consulting our husbands–had decided to do a new years dinner party. And we had invited 12 for a formal sit down. At first, we were thinking we would do something over the top fancy, like crab, lobster, or some other spectacular seafood. But then I started to price out crab and other seafood recipes. EEK! I had no idea that jumbo lump was so expensive! Guess that restaurant markup on crabcakes isn’t quite as much as I thought after all. I love my friends, but I didn’t want to be bankrupt in January! Double EEK!

So what do you make for a whole crowd of people that’s 1) fancy enough for a formal sit down and 2) not so expensive you’re going to spend a whole month’s food budget on it?

Pork loin–it’s fantastic! And available in bulk, at very reasonable prices, at Costco. Look at that 7 1/2 pound beauty. Suitable for serving 12, half of which we expected to be very hungry boys.

Then the challenge was to find a suitable treatment for the pork loin, something that was festive and fancy, but not too much work. We found the perfect recipe at Simply Recipes–Cranberry and Apple Stuffed Pork loin. I loved the idea of traditional fall flavors like apples and cranberries, offering an echo of traditional holiday tables, with the twist of an inside stuffing. And the best part of the recipe was that we could stuff the loin early in the day and then refrigerate until we were ready to cook it in the oven. No slaving over a hot stove in party dresses required!

Looks like someone else approved of our choice of pork loin as well.

Cranberry and Apple Stuffed Pork Loin
Adapted from Simply Recipes

As soon as we mixed the stuffing for this, we knew it was going to be a hit. It had me at croutons alone, but Carlos, Eileen and I all agreed that the stuffing smelled wonderful. It really was tough not to spoon it right out of the bowl–I had to satisfy myself with a few of the extra croutons out of the bag instead. We doubled this recipe to accommodate our pork loin, so if you follow the scale below you will get enough to make one 3 pound loin. Also, if you refrigerate this after stuffing, be aware that your loin will take longer to cook through.

Ingredients:

• 1 boneless pork loin (about 3 pounds)
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup seasoned croutons
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1 cup peeled, chopped green apples
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon minced rosemary

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325.

Rinse the pork and pat it dry. Butterfly the roast by first cutting lengthwise about halfway through the roast. Then angle the knife and cut horizontally almost all of the way through, on both sides. You are making a total of three cuts into the pork. Unfold the pork. Cover with 2 layers of of plastic wrap. Pound with a meat mallet to flatten as much as possible. Remove plastic wrap. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper and set aside.

Place croutons and stock in a small bowl and let sit for 5 minutes, until the croutons have absorbed the stock and have softened. If you’re me, mash the croutons repeatedly until they’re mushy. Stir in the apples, walnuts, cranberries, shallots, maple syrup and rosemary. Spread mixture over surface of the pork. Starting with the smallest side of the meat (which should be in the shape of a rectangle), roll up tightly and secure with kitchen string in three or four places, depending on the size of your loin. At this point you can wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate if you are making ahead.

Coat the bottom of a roasting pan with cooking spray. Place the roast in the pan and cook at 325°F, uncovered, for about 1 hour ten minutes, or until the pork reaches an internal temperature of 140-145°F. Start checking the internal temperature of the roast at about one hour. The pork may still look pinkish on the outside, so you really need a kitchen thermometer to make sure it is done! Let stand for 10 minutes. Remove the kitchen string and slice into 1/2-inch thick slices.

The loin looked just beautiful on our festive holiday table! But those boys let us down and we ended up with a whole extra half leftover! Good thing that the loin is also excellent reheated the next day. And it allowed me to fulfill Noel’s annual Pennsylvania Dutch pork on New Year’s Day tradition without eating pork cooked in saurkraut, which I really can’t stand!

Update!!

There were actually two Nikons at the pork assembly party–my baby and the Sanchez family D80. I just got the pictures off the Sanchez camera and frankly, since they’re so beautiful they made me cry, I have to share two here:

this is our beautiful loin all rolled up!

and here with some of the fantastic stuffing peaking out! Amazing pictures–thank you LS!

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