a family affair

I was originally going to title this blog "a German invasion," as Vance's family is either all German or all German wannabes (read - the Polish brother-in-law, Peter), but I thought that may be in poor taste. Now that we are true home-owning adults, Vance's family members gathered in Nashville last week. Traveling from the four corners of Pennsylvania, the Hamor-Vicinski Clan helped us welcome in December with good drinks, great story telling, laughter and some tasty food.

The patriarch, Pap, and eldest grandson.

My mom suggested I try a recipe from the Kitchen Shoppe in Carlisle, PA. She attended a class there a few weeks ago and raved about a roasted pork with sauce and a zucchini gratin. In hindsight, trying a new recipe that involves over four ingredients, with a full (hungry) house is not the most stress-free option, but it did turn out quite nicely! Everyone seemed to enjoy the food, and well all enjoyed the drinks.

The pork begins with a EVOO and mustard-based rub.

mustard and fennel rub 

Pork loin, about 5 lbs
2 tablespoons EVOO
4 teaspoons dijon mustard
4 teaspoons whole grain mustard
1 teaspoon ground fennel seed
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black ground pepper
3 cups chicken stock
Mix all ingredients and rub all over pork loin. Place pork in roasting pan. Pour 3 cups of chicken stock over the pork. Place in preheated oven (400 degrees). Roast for roughly 1 1/4 hours or until cooked through. Cover in tin foil and allow to rest for about 20 minutes before slicing thin.
Sauce
2 shallots minced
3 tablespoons flour (I used Wondra)
1 cup white wine
3 cups chicken stock (2 cups reserved to add sauce if needed)
2 teaspoons dijon 
2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
1/4 cup green peppercorns (in brine, drained)
1/4 cup sun dried tomato pesto
2 tablespoons red current jelly
1/4 cup heavy cream
Pour the liquid from the roasted pork into a gravy separator (scraping up the pan bits), reserving about 1/4 cup of fat. If you don't have that much just add some melted butter. Pour fat/butter into a large saute pan over medium heat. Saute the shallots until tender, add flour and whisk for a few minutes until sauce begins to slightly thicken. Stir in wine and scrape the pan, making sure to get up the brown bits. Whisk in roughly 3 cups of pan juices/chicken stock. Add mustards, peppercorns, and tomato pesto. Stir continuously and bring to a boil. Whisk in jelly and cream and remove from heat. Slice pork and serve with warm sauce.

A creamy, sweet and savory sauce really gives this pork the punch. The Gruyere and zucchini gratin was equally as pleasing (and a bit less labor intensive). 

Roasted small potatoes with sour cream and chives rounded out our side dishes.

I picked up about 4 bags of small potatoes from Trader Joe's. Clean them up a bit with a peeler and boil for roughly 10-12 minutes until almost done. Remove and toss with EVOO, S&P. Finish by roasting in the oven at about 375 for 10 minutes until skins are crispy.
On Saturday, we went to The Carter House in Franklin.

KK and Peter

The Clarbaugh's - Holiday 2012