Slow Cooker Pulled Pork with Bourbon-Peach Barbecue Sauce

I don't cook many pork recipes, but I have a friend who tried this one and said she loved it so I had to try it. Thanks Jillian for sharing this recipe! She found this one at Cooking Light. I'm from the south, so it's really hard to find good barbecue out here where I live so I typically just don't bother. But this recipe is great and it's absolutely worth repeating!

What makes this recipe taste so good is the smoked paprika. Not regular plain ole paprika, but smoked paprika. It really gives it a smoky flavor and it reminded me of my southern barbecue from back home. This one is gluten free (use gluten free soy sauce and make sure your chicken stock is gluten free) and dairy free. Make sure you read all your labels to ensure everything is gluten free if you are going that route! One thing I want to point out is this recipe calls for balsamic vinegar. I love flavored vinegar and I had a peach balsamic vinaigrette on hand, so I used that. Regular balsamic vinaigrette does the trick, but if you have flavored, use it!

I love my crock pot meals, so take advantage of this one! This recipe goes great with baked beans and cole slaw. It's evern really tasty on rolls for a sandwich!!

Nutritional Information is below!


Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons Spanish smoked paprika
• 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (3 1/2-pound) bone-in pork shoulder roast (Boston butt), trimmed
• 1/2 cup unsalted chicken stock (such as Swanson) 
• 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 2 tablespoons lower-sodium soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 cup peach preserves
• 2 cups vertically sliced onion 
• 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup bourbon 
• 2 tablespoons cold water 
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Combine paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and black pepper; rub evenly over pork.

2. Coat pan with about 1 tsp of olive oil. Add pork to pan; cook 10 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Place pork in a 6-quart electric slow cooker.

3. Add stock and next 4 ingredients (through crushed red pepper) to skillet; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add preserves, stirring with a whisk.

4. Pour mixture over pork; top with onion and garlic. Cover and cook on LOW 6 1/2 hours or until pork is very tender.

5. Remove pork from pan, reserving liquid; cool slightly. Shred with 2 forks. Remove onion with a slotted spoon; add to pork.

6. Place a large zip-top plastic bag inside a 4-cup glass measuring cup. Pour cooking liquid into bag; let stand 10 minutes (fat will rise to the top). Seal bag; carefully snip off 1 bottom corner of bag. Drain drippings into skillet, stopping before fat layer reaches opening; discard fat.

7. Stir bourbon into drippings; bring to a boil. Cook 10 minutes or until mixture is reduced to about 1 1/2 cups. Combine 2 tablespoons cold water and cornstarch in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk; add cornstarch mixture to sauce, stirring constantly until thickened. Stir in remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt. Drizzle sauce over pork; toss gently to coat.

Nutritional Information
Amount per serving: serving size: about 3 ounces meat and about 2 tablespoons sauce

Calories: 206
Fat: 5.9g
Saturated fat: 2g
Monounsaturated fat: 2.6g
Polyunsaturated fat: 0.7g
Protein: 17g
Carbohydrate: 20g
Fiber: 1g
Cholesterol: 54mg
Iron: 2mg
Sodium: 369mg
Calcium: 41mg

Steak with Creamy Balsalmic Mushroom Sauce

I love it when I find an excellent recipe! I did a lot of research and looking around this weekend for some good recipes and tried some out this weekend. I found this particular recipe on "A Sweet Pea Chef" website (http://www.asweetpeachef.com/). I've tried some of her stuff before and she does a really nice job on her recipes, so I'm sharing this one with you!

This one was surprisingly easy to make. It sounds a little "fancy" but it took 30 min total to make. What makes this dish so fantastic is the mushroom sauce. And let me stress to you that a good quality balsamic vinegar is essential for this recipe. One of my favorite places to get good quality oils and vinegars is a store called "Oil and Vinegar" (http://oilandvinegarusa.com/). They have a lot of different flavored oils, as well as vinegars. I used a Hibiscus Vinegar for this recipe and it was absolutely fabulous!

This dish is gluten free and my recommendation is to use either Ribeye steak or New York Strip. I paired this dish with homemade mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli and carrots. This one is definitely a keeper in our house and if you love steak, you'll want to make sure you try this one.

Ingredients:

• 4 New York Strip or boneless ribeye steaks
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 20 baby bella mushrooms quartered
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt, plus some for seasoning your steaks
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper, plus some for seasoning your steaks
• 1/4 cup good quality balsamic vinegar (I used a hibiscus balsamic vinegar)
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter

Directions:

• Heat an outdoor grill over medium heat. Coat each steak evenly with salt and pepper for flavor.
• Place steak on grill and cook for 5 minutes. Then, flip and cook an additional 5 minutes. Cook steak to your desired temperature. While steak is cooking on the grill, start the sauce.
• In a medium saucepan, heat your olive oil over medium-heat. Add mushrooms and saute for 8-10 minutes, until most of the juices have released and the mushrooms start to brown.

                                                          

• Add the garlic and cook and additional minute, allowing the garlic to become fragrant. Add the salt and pepper.
• Add the chicken broth and balsamic vinegar and cook 8-10 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half.
• Add the cream, and stir well. Cook until heated through and then remove from heat. 

                                     

• Add the butter and stir to combine until melted.
• Serve hot over the steaks.