Harvest Supper

entertaining

Harvest Supper

Fall calls for homey, slow-cooked dishes that use the season’s bounty: apples, sweet potatoes, squash, nuts and hearty greens. This menu features pork loin braised with carrots, onions and seasonings in apple cider until all are tender and almost buttery. The gratin (page 24) features sweet potatoes and Swiss chard enshrouded in a creamy Parmesan cheese sauce, and the salad provides a contrasting crunch with broccoli and apples tossed in a sprightly orange dressing. The pork quietly simmers on top of the stove, while the sweet potato gratin bakes in the oven, and nothing has to be put together at the last minute. Add your friends and a crackling fire, and you have a recipe for success.

Mesclun Salad with Broccoli and Red Apple

To save time the day of your dinner, prepare the dressing and steam the broccoli ahead, and refrigerate until you’re ready to toss the salad.

Ingredients
¼ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup orange juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
3 cups small broccoli florets
12 cups mesclun or spring mix
1 medium-size red apple,
cut into bite-size cubes


Instructions
1. In a medium bowl, whisk oil, orange juice, lemon juice, honey, mustard, salt and pepper until blended.
2. Steam broccoli 3 minutes or until just tender; cool under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. In a large bowl, combine mesclun, broccoli and apple. Add dressing and toss gently. Serves 6.

Recipe by Jean Kressy, Relish Entertaining, "Harvest Supper," October 2007.
Nutritional Information
Per serving: 150 calories, 12g fat, 4g prot., 10g carbs., 3g fiber, 150mg sodium

Cider-Braised Pork Loin with Carrots and Onion

Ingredients
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 (2-pound) boneless pork loin
2 medium onions, vertically
sliced (about 2½ cups)
4 medium carrots, cut diagonally into ¼-inch slices (about 1½ cups)
2 celery stalks with leaves, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon coarsely ground
black pepper
1 cup apple cider

Instructions
1. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven. Add pork and cook until well-browned on both sides. Remove to a plate. Add onions, carrots and celery to pan; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes or until onions are tender. Stir in garlic, sage, thyme, salt and pepper.
2. Return pork and any juices to Dutch oven and pour cider over top. Cover and simmer, basting occasionally, 1 1/4 hours or until temperature on meat thermometer inserted in middle reaches 150F. Remove roast from pan and let rest 10 minutes. Slice pork and serve with vegetables and pan sauce. Serves 6.
Recipe by Jean Kressy, Relish Entertaining, "Harvest Supper," October 2007.
Nutritional Information
Per serving: 320 calories, 13g fat, 34g prot. 16g carbs., 3g fiber, 430mg sodium.

Gratin of Sweet Potatoes and Swiss Chard

For cooks in a hurry, 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and water squeezed out, can be substituted for the chard. Parboiling the potatoes ensures they’ll get done in the oven.

Ingredients
1 pound Swiss chard, ends
trimmed and stems and leaves coarsely chopped
2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled
and cut into ¼-inch slices
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1½ cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1½ cups lower-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground
black pepper
3 tablespoons grated
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2⁄3 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Instructions
1. Butter an 11-by-7-inch baking dish or a 2 1⁄2-quart gratin dish.
2. Rinse chard and place in a large pot with water clinging to leaves. Cover and cook over medium heat 10 minutes or until tender. Drain thoroughly.
3. Place sweet potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 3 minutes or until tender. Drain.
4. Preheat oven to 400F. Melt butter in a medium saucepan; whisk in flour. Add milk and broth; cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in salt, nutmeg and pepper.
5. Arrange half the potatoes in baking dish. Top with chard and half the sauce. Cover with remaining potatoes and sauce. Sprinkle with cheese and breadcrumbs. Bake 25 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling. Serves 6.
Recipe by Jean Kressy, Relish Entertaining, "Harvest Supper," October 2007.

Nutritional Information
Per serving: 300 calories, 9g fat, 9g prot., 48g carbs., 6g fiber, 920mg sodium.

Recipes by Jean Kressy, a food writer in Ashburnham, Mass.�

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