Another Year of Turkey and Thanks!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope that you all had a wonderful and delicious Thanksgiving dinner.  It's a day revolving around food, tradition and family.  We pass on old traditions and create new ones. 

Every year we spend Thanksgiving Day at my parents home.  My mom creates a fantastic dinner and others make their usual contributions to the meal.  My sister makes the green bean casserole, my aunt makes the sweet potatoes and fruit fluff, and my other aunt makes the pies. 

My mom plans to teach techniques and cooking ideas to my sister and I next year.  She is going to gradually pass the "Thanksgiving Dinner Torch" off to us.  And we are pretty excited to learn from a talented woman that has spent over 20 years making some awesome food on this holiday.

As I reflected on tradition and food... it made me wonder what other families do for this particular holiday.  So I have created a survey and will display results in a couple weeks.  This survey is intended to ONLY collect data and not for "selling email addresses" or spam.  It was created by me and is purely just for fun.  Please take 2 minutes to answer the 6 questions in my Thanksgiving Poll 2011.  I really appreciate your participation.

Have a great holiday season!

We could all use a hint of more time!
Copyright 2011 A Hint of Thyme.  All rights reserved.

*Free photo at top from http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/images.

Slow Cooker Meal - Braised Apple Butter Pork

Ever have some type of meat or vegetable that you'd like to throw in the slow cooker but not sure what kind of sauce or ingredients will go with it?  That's how this recipe started out for me.  I found a "family pack" of porkchops on sale for $6.00 and wasn't quite sure what to do with them.

Another snowy evening in northern Wisconsin made me bust out the slow cooker and put on my food creativity hat.  I knew that something sweet would pair perfectly with the pork.  I didn't have enough rasberry jam BUT, I did have an unused jar of Apple Butter.  Hmmm.  I started thinking "Asian cooking" and immediately got to work on what turned out to be a well executed dish!

Prep Time - 5 minutes
Cook Time - 2.5 hours (high) / 5 hours (low)

Braised Apple Butter Pork
- 4 to 6 porkchops
- 1/2 jar of apple butter (I had a 12oz jar and used the whole thing - my recommendation is to use less than that)
- 12 oz. can of chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 TBSP of brown sugar
- 1/2 of medium sweet onion; sliced
- 1 cup of dried or whole cranberries
- 1 sweet apple; diced (do not use a sour apple like Granny Smith, use a sweet one like Gala)
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Optional: 1 tsp of chipotle or cayenne pepper (This gives it a nice kick but, add it after if your family doesn't like spicy food. A little goes a long way, trust me!)

Set the slow cooker to your desired temperature.  In the slow cooker combine the apple butter, broth, and brown sugar.  Stir until the sugar is dissolved.  Add the rest of the ingredients to the slow cooker.  Cook on high for 2.5 hours or on low for 5 hours.  My recommendation is to keep an eye on the pork so that it doesn't become too tough.  When the pork has reached the desired temperature (160), remove and let it set. 

Pour the remaining sauce into a separate dish.  You may find that the sauce is too thin for your preference.  If you would like the sauce to be thicker you can add a little corn starch (while over the heat) and stir until it becomes thick. 

The remaining apple butter sauce.

The idea of this dish is to combine all the ingredients together on the plate or in a bowl.  I steamed some white rice then added the sauce and pork over the top.  It pairs perfectly together.

I realize that apple butter might be hard to come by in March.  Typically you can find it in the fall months.  Keep an eye out for some at your local farmer's market though.  You may also be able to purchase some online.  Go to Google Shopping and type Apple Butter.

I really hope that you find comfort in this sweet and potentially spicy dish.  Enjoy!

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Tips from Mara: 

Always taste the sauce before cooking.  Add a small amount of the ingredients or seasoning at first.  You can always add more seasoning but you cannot take any out.  Your preference is obviously different than mine.  But ALWAYS add salt and pepper to what ever you cook!



Copyright 2011 Hint of Thyme.  All rights reserved.

A Slow Cooker Meal for 2

Slow cooker meals, as many of us might know, are perfect for the on-the-go woman!  You can set it on low or high and go about your day is normal. 

The day that I decided to make a slow-cooker meal was the night of a pretty large snow storm up in northern Wisconsin.  My husband was busy snow-blowing and snow-plowing for work.  I wanted to make him a meal that smelled fantastic and would comfort him after a long day. 

Prep time = 10 minutes
Cook time = 8 hours on low/4 hours on high

Braised Ginger Cranberry Pork Roast
- 2 or 3 lb pork loin or roast
- Half of a medium sweet onion; sliced
- 1 1/2 cups of a Sesame Ginger marinade (the brand doesn't matter, pick your favorite)
- 1 TBSP of minced ginger
- 1 cup of whole cranberries (if you can't find whole cranberries try using canned whole cranberries)
- 2 TBSP of brown sugar
- Salt and pepper

Combine all the ingredients into the slow cooker and walk away!  The internal temperature of the pork should be 160.  Set it on low for 8 hours if you are heading off to work or set it on high for 4 hours if you have errands to complete.  Let the smell take over your kitchen.  It's almost heavenly! 

Prior to cooking.

Ready to eat!

At the end, pour the remaining marinade and cooked ingredients over the top of the pork.  Serve with steamed rice or pasta.  As always... enjoy!