Jamie Oliver Friday & Thankful to Be Able To Post!

This is the Jamie Oliver meal we had last Friday. Here I thought I was a good little Girl Scout and prepared ahead of time with delicious results. However reality and life do exert their prerogative to totally thumb their noses at me and usurp my plans. I know this NEVER happens to any of you. Shortly after my last post our computer caught a virus and had to be sent to the computer hospital , whereupon we paid an extra fee to have our dearly beloved computer restored quickly. Our computer came home with amnesia and thanks to a dear friend ( and NOT the computer hospital ) we have some semblance of computer function and now I have to relearn my computer, and he has to re-learn us. Namely , I have to figure out where all the files and pictures are hidden , as the back-up disks the computer hospital made for us grouped all my precious pictures in strange ways and places. As I work out the game of hide-and-seek with my pictures I was able to locate Jamie's picture and download the last meal we made using his book. Here goes... Jamie's Balsamic-Baked Onions & Potatoes With Roast Pork "This dish has attitude-it uses a lot of balsamic vinegar but, trust me , it works really well!....I've chosen to serve them with pork, but beef or lamb works just as well." J. Oliver You Will Need:

• 3 and 1/2 pounds medium sliced waxy potatoes ( all purpose..we used potatoes from our garden) peeled and quartered lengthwise
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• olive oil
• 7 ounces butter, cubed
• a bunch of fresh rosemary leaves picked and chopped
• 1 whole bulb of garlic, quartered or smashed
• 5 medium red onions, peeled and quartered
• 1 and 1/2 cups cheap balsamic vinegar

For The Pork

• a small bunch of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped
• 2 Tablespoons freshly ground fennel seeds
• 1 - 3 and 1/2 pound pork loin ( or beef or lamb of choice)
• olive oil
• 6 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 medium red onion, peeled and quartered
• 2 sticks of celery trimmed and chopped
• 4 bay leaves
• 2 wineglasses of white wine
• extra virgin olive oil

"Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Put the potatoes into a pan of boiling water and cook for about 8 minutes, then drain and return to the pan. Chuff them up a bit by shaking the pan. To prepare the meat, scatter a handful of finely chopped rosemary leaves onto a large chopping board. Sprinkle over some salt and pepper and the ground fennel seeds. Roll the pork ( or roast of choice) across the board, pressing down hard so all the flavorings stick to it. Get a large roasting pan that your pork will fit snugly into, and place it on a burner over medium high heat. Pour in a little olive oil and place the pork in, fat side down, sprinkled with any flavorings remaining on the board. After a few minutes, when the pork fat is lightly golden , turn it over and add the garlic cloves, onion, celery and bay leaves to the pan. Place on the bottom shelf of your pre-heated oven for an hour, basting it halfway through. ( For the last 20 minutes of cooking you may need to cover the pork with a bit of damp waxed paper to stop it coloring too much.) Get another roasting pan into which you can fit the potatoes in one layer, and heat it on the stove. When hot, pour a glug of olive oil into it and add the butter, rosemary and garlic. Add the potatoes and toss them in all the flavors. Add the onions and all the balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes on the burner to reduce the balsamic vinegar a little. Place the pan on the top shelf ( of oven ) and cook for around 50 minutes until potatoes and onions are dark, sticky and crispy- removing the pan to toss the onions and potatoes half-way through. After an hour , the meat should be cooked. Prick it with a sharp knife- if the juices run clear, it's done; if not, pop it back in the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes, keeping the potatoes warm . Remove it from the oven and let it rest on a plate for 10 minutes. Pour away most of the fat from the pan and mash up the garlic and onion. Place the pan over the burner and add the white wine. Simmer until the liquid has reduced by half,scraping all the meaty, marmitey goodness off the bottom to make a tasty little sauce, and season if necessary. Pass through a sieve into a serving pitcher. Then slice the pork and serve it with your incredible baked onions and potatoes, drizzled with the pan juices. Great with some nice greens on an arugula salad." J. Oliver The vegetable portion of this recipe is delicious all by itself! We decided the wine sauce was not worth the effort because the sauce from the vegetable dish was superior to it. The pork loin I bought was on sale, however this would be delicious as a beef or lamb dish too. And don't think this recipe requires an expensive cut of meat, it does NOT! Worth making and great eating. Thanks again Jamie! BTW, I served home-made buttermilk biscuits slathered in REAL butter and home-made yellow plum jam along-side this dish.