When it gets cold outside its APPLE BUTTER MAKIN' TIME! Every year I go overboard and even after giving away 20 pint jars I still have some left over. So Mom and I started thinking about ways to use up that last bit in the fridge. And what goes better with apples and cinnamon than pork? A main dish this is full of flavor and deserving of a worthy side. None is better than Mom's friend green tomatoes. Here is how we did it.
Garlic Rubbed Pork Loin
Ingredients:
1 1/4 pounds pork tenderloin
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon crushed garlic
Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Rub tenderloin down with fresh crushed garlic. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil and heat. Using tongs, place tenderloin in the pan and sear on all sides until brown. This should take about 10 minutes. Transfer meat to a roasting pan and roast approximately 45 minutes.
Pork does not have to be cooked to death unless you are making barbeque. Just enough so that the internal temperature is right at 145 degrees.
Fried Green Maters:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups bread crumbs (we used Panko and it made them extra crispy)
3 eggs beaten
Salt and Pepper
dill, oregano or any spice you might prefer
1 quart of vegetable oil for frying
Directions:
Slice tomatoes 1/2 inch thick. Discard the ends.
Whisk eggs in a medium-size bowl. Mix bread crumbs, salt and pepper and spices in another medium-size bowl. Dip tomatoes into beaten eggs, then dredge in breadcrumb/flour mixture. If you do this twice you will have extra crispy tomatoes. If you don't want extra crispy, dip in both mixtures once.
In a large skillet, pour vegetable oil (enough so that there is 1/2 inch of oil in the pan) and heat over a medium heat. Place tomatoes into the frying pan in batches of 4 or 5, depending on the size of your skillet. Do not crowd the tomatoes, they should not touch each other. When the tomatoes are browned, flip and fry them on the other side. Drain them on brown paper bag or paper towels.
Red Hot Crock Pot Apple Butter:
- 1 (48 ounce) jar applesauce
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice (or allspice)
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 ounces red-hot candies
Directions:
Combine ingredients in a crockpot and cook on high for 12-18 hours. It should be thick and dark brown when finished. Divide into jars or pour over the pork as we did in this delicious recipe!
