Honey Vinegar Basted Rack of Pork with Whipped Sweet Potatoes

Bradley Ogden's recipes that I got while dining at the Cafeteria in Levi's Plaza, SF, CA

2 lbs Pork loin, center cut, small-eye, well marbled, 4-5 bone rack
1/2 tsp cumin seed, toasted and ground
1/3 cup honey
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups yellow spanish onion, peeled and sliced
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup fresh apple juice, pressed
(in a sachet bag: 1 sprig of thyme, 1 tsp peppercorns, 1/4 bay leaf, 4 parsley stems)
1.5 cup cranberry jam (recipe below)

Procedure

• Preheat oven to 350-375 degrees
• Toast cumin seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat. Remove from heat and grind in a spice grinder.
• In a small bowl mix the ground cumin, honey, mustard, olive oil, 2 tbsp of kosher salt and 1.5 tsp of fresh ground black pepper
• Arrange a baking sheet with a baking rack. Loosely cover the bones of each pork rack with foil
• Brush a thin layer of the above mixture on all sides of the pork. Lay facing up on the rack.
• Roast until internal temp is 160 degrees. Let rest in warmer until ready to serve.

Honey Vinegar Sauce
yields 2 quarts

Ingredients
10 each white onions
12 each garlic cloves
1/4 lb butter
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 gal chicken stock
1 quart apple juice
1 bottle white wine
1/2 gal apple cider vinegar
10 sprigs fresh thyme
2 each bay leaves
1/2 tsp chili flakes
to taste salt and fresh ground black pepper

Procedure

• Caramelize the onions and garlic together over low heat
• Add the rest of the ingredients except the salt ad black pepper and reduce by 2/3 of until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.
• Strain the sauce through a chinois, season to taste with salt and fresh black pepper

Cranberry Jam yields 1.5 cups

Ingredients
1 cup cranberries, clean and pick stems (discard any bruised ones)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Procedure

• Place all the ingredients into a small, heavy bottom stainless steel sauce pan and cook over medium heat just until the cranberries start to pop.
• Pass through a fine grind food mill and let cool.

Whipped sweet Potatoes
serves 4

Ingredients 1.5 lb sweet potatoes
3/4 cup organic apple juice of apple cider
1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp kosher salt
3/t tsp fresh ground black pepper

Procedure

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Scrub the potatoes under running cold water. Place on a baking sheet and bake until soft, approximately 45 minutes.
• While the potatoes are baking, add the apple juice and ginger to a non-corrosive saucepan. Place over a moderate slow burner to steep for 10 minutes. Strain and set aside until needed.
• Remove the potatoes from the oven; cool slightly before handling. Remove and discard peels and rinse the potatoes.
• Place the potatoes in a bowl of an electric mixer. Using the whip attachment, whip together the butter and the cream. Continue whipping while adding the apple-ginger juice.
• Season with salt and black pepper; keep warm until ready to serve.
• Combine the remainder of the ingredients together in a bowl, reserving the chilies.
• Add the chilies as needed for taste. Add this mixture onions mixture and season to taste. Cover and refrigerate approximately 1/2 to 1 hour before serving so all the flavors have a chance to develop.

Note: Make sure the potatoes remain rather stiff. You may not need to add all the liquid to the sweet potatoes.