Pork Roast, Carrots, Salad, and Biscuits

My favorite grocery store ever is Central Market in Texas. When we lived in San Antonio, I used to take a lot of cooking classes. They would bring in local chefs and also famous cooks and authors. One class I had was with Shirley Corriher, the food scientist (I used to watch her on some of Alton Brown's shows. She is such a pistol! Anyway, she is from Atlanta so she did a bit of a southern menu. I hadn't made this roast in years, we just don't eat much beef or pork around here, but I just had a bug for it lately. This roast is incredible. So tender and it just melts in your mouth. Her recipe called for cooking it in the oven, but I find a crock pot so much easier (let me know if you'd like the times/temps if you prefer to cook it in the oven). And her biscuits are absolutely the best I've ever had. Being from Atlanta, she is a true White Lily brand flour afficionado which may not be available in your area, but she did give substitutions. And this salad is so wonderful! I'm so into textures in food, and this is like a party in your mouth! I did cut the recipe in half using only one head of romaine.

FALL-APART TENDER SLOW ROAST PORK

1 pork butt roast (3-4#)

1/4 to 1/3 cup Lea & Perrins

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1 cup apple juice

1/2 tsp salt

Sprinkle the Lea & Perrins on all sides of the roast. Then, press brown sugar coating on all sides of the pork. Pour the apple juice down the side to the bottom of the crock pot not over the crusted pork. Cook on high for half an hour, then turn to low for about 8 hours.

Remove the roast and pull the meat apart, removing the bone. Stir in the salt. Do not omit the salt. It is vital for the taste of the dish. Serve meat in its delicious juice hot or room temperature.

PLUM CRAZY CARROTS (3-4 servings)

1 # carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2 slices, or baby carrots

1/2 Tbsp salt

1 1/2 Tbsp butter

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp white pepper

2 Tbsp light brown sugar

1/4 cup (2-3) plums, sliced

1/2 orange, zested (I would use much less)

1 Tbsp brandy, Amaretto, or Grand Marnier

2-3 Tbsp roasted almond slivers

parsley to garnish, optional

In large saucepan, cook carrots in boiling water with 1/2 Tbsp salt until fork tender (I used a microwave steamer). Drain.

In a heavy skillet, melt 1 1/2 Tbsp butter, add carrots, sprinkle with salt, white pepper, and brown sugar. Cook until sugar is dissolved and coats carrots. Add plums and orange zest. Stir in brandy and pour into serving dish. Sprinkle with almonds and garnish with parsley.

MIXED CRISP GREENS WITH CRUNCHIES AND WALNUTS

1 small head Boston lettuce

1 small head Bibb lettuce

1 small head of romaine

2 pkgs ramen noodles

1/4 tsp seasoned salt or Old Bay

4 Tbsp butter, melted

1 1/4 cup walnut pieces

1/2 tsp salt

6 Tbsp butter, divided

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1/4 head of cauliflower

DRESSING (I used Julia Child's Basic Vinaigrette)

2 large shallots, peeled and halved

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp white pepper

1 tsp Dijon

1 cup vegetable or olive oil

10 fresh basil leaves, optional

Wash the lettuces and soak for 10-30 minutes in cold water. Spin dry, then wrap in a clean towel to dry thoroughly. Remove and place in zip-lock bags, squeeze out the air, salt, and refrigerate (I just chopped up the romaine). Dry salad greens require a minimum of dressing.

Preheat oven to 350.

Unwrap ramen noodles and discard flavoring packet. Stir seasoning salt into melted butter and brush noodles well on all sides. Break noodles up and spread out over half of a large baking sheet. Spread walnuts out over the other half of the sheet and roast noodles and walnuts until both are lightly browned, about 10 minutes. While the walnuts are hot, stir in 2 Tbsp butter and 1/2 tsp salt.

In a large skillet, melt 4 Tbsp butter, stir in bread crumbs and toast, stirring constantly over low heat until lightly browned (I omitted this step).

Grate cauliflower or coarsely chop by pulsing in a food processor. Remove to a small bowl.

With the steel knife in the processor, drop shallots one at a time down the feedtube onto the spinning blade to mince. Add the vinegar, 1 1/2 tsp salt, sugar, pepper, and mustard. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the oil. Add 1/4 cup of the walnuts and basil leaves, process a few seconds to grind. Set aside (I also omitted this step since I was using vinaigrette I already had on hand).

When ready to serve, tear the lettuce into bite-size pieces and place in a large mixing bowl. Add 1/2 cup dressing and toss very well to coat each piece. Taste and add more dressing or salt if needed. Add roasted ramen noodles and grated cauliflower. Place on a cold salad platter or invididual salad plates. Top with toasted crumbs and remaining walnuts. Serve immediately.

SHIRLEY CORRIHER'S "TOUCH-OF-GRACE" BISCUITS (Makes 12-14 biscuits)

She learned that the secret to these biscuits is using a very wet dough. This wet dough in a hot oven creates steam to puff and make feather-light discuits.

Non-stick cooking spray

2 cups self-rising flour, low protein Southern flour like White Lily or any self-rising flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp salt

4 Tbsp shortening

2/3 cup cream

1 cup buttermilk or until dough resembles cottage cheese. If you are not using low-protein Southern flour, it will take more than a cup

1 cup plain (lower-protein like bleached all-purpose or White Lily) (for shaping)

2 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 425 and arrange a shelf slightly below the center of the oven. Spray an 8" or 9" cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the self-rising flour, sugar, and salt. Work the shortening in with your fingers until there are no large lumps. Gently stir in the cream, then the buttermilk. Stir in buttermilk until the dough resembles cottage cheese. It should be a wet mess, not soup, but cottage cheese texture. If you are not using a low-protein Southern flour, this may require considerably more than a cup.

Spread the plain (not self-rising) flour out on a plate or pie pan. With a medium (about 2", #30) ice cream scoop or spoon, place 3 scoops of dough well apart in the flour. Sprinkle flour over each. Flour your hands. Turn a dough ball in the flour to coat, pick it up, gently shape it into a round, shaking off the excess flour as you work. Place the biscuit int he prepared pan. Coat each dough ball and place the shaped biscuit smushed up against its neighbor. Continue scooping and shaping until all the dough is used.

Place on the shelf in the center or slightly below the center of the oven. Bake until lightly browned, about 20-25 minutes. Brush with melted butter. Invert onto one plate then back onto another. With a knife or spatula, cut quickly between biscuits to make them easy to remove. Serve immediately. "Butter'em while they're hot" or spread with CHERRY-CHAMBORD BUTTER.

CHERRY CHAMBORD BUTTER

This is also excellent with orange marmalade instead of cherry preserves and Grand Marnier instead of Chambord.

1 stick butter

8 oz cream cheese

2 Tbsp Chambord or other raspberry liqueur

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar

5 oz cherry preserves

Grated zest of 1 orange (optional)

Process the butter, cream cheese, liqueur, and confectioners' sugar in the food processor with the steel knife, to blend well. Stir in the preserves and zest by hand. Chill well before serving. Keeps well refrigerated for several days in a closed jar.