Men’s Health Recipe: Porchetta-Style Pork Loin with White Beans
My husband made dinner! In our house, my husband does a ton. Really, we both have busy jobs, so it makes sense that the chores get split 50/50. But dinner is typically more my thing. Or we make dinner together. Enter one very nasty muscle spasm that decided to show up in my lower back this past weekend (my chiropractor is saying “compressed disc” – ouch!) and my husband’s household chore percentage just shot up to nearly 100%. Oy! One solution to this problem? I’m teaching the kids to do a little more for themselves – like packing their lunches, picking up their dirty laundy (which I can’t reach right now), and folding clothes.
But back to my husband and the dinner…
Saturday morning, during Meal Planning Conference, he told me that he wanted to make a recipe that he read about in Men’s Health Magazine. “Woo Hoo!” I thought, and this was before I knew the extent of my back injury. Meal Planning Conference, by the way, is what we do for about 20 minutes over our Saturday morning coffee. We look at the upcoming week’s calendar and plan what we will have for dinner each night. Then we make the shopping list. I know, I know. We live such an exciting life!
So, Sunday evening, after he washed and vacuumed my car (do you love him, or what?), my hubby made this Porchetta-Style Pork Loin with White Beans from the January/February 2011 issue of Men’s Health.
And it was amazing!
Ingredients
3 garlic cloves (NuVal score of 91)
1 Tbsp fennel seeds
1 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (NuVal score of 81)
1 Tbsp olive oil (NuVal score of 11)
Salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
1 pork loin (about 2 lbs), preferably with a thin layer of fat attached (NuVal score of 28)
2 cans cannellini beans, drained (NuVal score of 57)
Juice of one lemon (NuVal score of 99)
Directions:
- Pre-heat the oven to 450.
- On a cutting board, combine the garlic, orange zest, fennel seeds and 1 tablespoon of reosemary. Chop the mix until it forms a paste.
- Scoop it up into a small bowl and add the oil
- Season the pork with salt and pepper and rub it all over with the paste. If you like, you can let it marinate up to 4 hours in the fridge before cooking. Then place the pork in a roasting pan.
Note: My husband, recalling the days BC (Before Children), when we were known to host dinner parties where pork roast was often on the menu, remembered that the best way to cook pork loin is using our Schlemmertopf. It’s a clay pot made in Germany. The Schlemmertopf rocks! Pork loin comes out perfectly tender, every time.
We purchased our Schlemmertop at Williams-Sonoma a million years ago. The funniest thing about it is that it comes with an instruction book that is very poorly translated from German. So, it has some pretty funny lines in it like this one: Make friends with your Glazed Schlemmertopf – it will give you tasty meals. Your reputation as an excellent cook will grow with your friends and family.
- Bake until a themometer inserted into the middle reads 160 degrees.
- Take the meat out and let it rest 10 minutes.
- In a saucepan, heat the beans, lemon juice, and remaining rosemary until warmed through.
- Season with salt and pepper. Slice the pork and serve with the beans.
Alternative: Men’s Health also recommends trying a different twist on this recipe – swap the orange and rosemary for lemon zest and sage. That sounds awesome too!
The Verdict
This recipe is The Bomb! It was so moist and tender. And we loved the beans. The kids loved it too – the pork, because it was easy to chew – the beans, not so much. But, someday, they will eat beans. Another plus? This recipe was quick! Just a few ingredients and short cooking time meant that my hubby had dinner done in no time. I bet you could try marinating this all day while you are at work, and then pop it in the oven when you get home. Love that short cooking time! I am looking forward to the next recipe my DH decides to try from Men’s Health.
Yesterday’s Winner
Congratulations to Commenter #48 Vanessa G.! You’ve won the Irish Breakfast Giveaway! Send me an email at abetterbagofgroceries@gmail.com with your mailing address so that I can mail your prize out to you. Thanks to everyone who entered.
Posted by: Melissa 9 comments
Posted in: Men's Health Magazine
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 9:03 am
oh my a hubby who cleans the car and cooks dinner? you are one lucky girl Melissa! and the dinner looks great. i need to look into one of those pots from williams sonoma.
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 9:26 am
So sorry you hurt your back! I’ve had disc problems before and it’s not fun at all – hope you’re feeling better!
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 9:29 am
Do love him…can he give my husband lessons????
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 10:24 am
This recipe sounds really good! Love all the flavors, and especially with cannellini beans on the side.
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 10:46 am
I love the idea of the Meal Planning Conference, it’s great!
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 12:10 pm
My husband is an awesome cook – but he’s more of “a pinch of this, a pinch of that” where I am following a recipe word for word (and then omitting the onions!).
Hope your back feels better – and get those kids to do their own laundry!
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 12:34 pm
Feel better!
on Mar 16th, 2011 at 2:35 pm
Sorry to hear about your back. Thanks for the recipe. Looks great.
on Mar 17th, 2011 at 5:55 am
your husband is a keeper. just sayin.