Author Notes
This wonderful meal will rival anything you can find in a restaurant, use it to impress friends and family without killing your budget. The ingredients are humble and easy to get, and if butterflying the roast is intimidating just ask the butcher to do it for you.
The stuffing has a warm rich flavor that plays up the earthiness of the walnuts and mushrooms in a nice contrast to the sweet fruit and maple syrup glazed bacon. The fresh sage hidden under the bacon wrapping helps to baste the pork with a soft sage flavor that intensifies when you find a cooked sage leaf to eat with the pork. It’s a great winter meal that just calls out for a glass of red wine and good company. —Mlc1977
Ingredients
- Rice Stuffing
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1 cup
dry brown rice cooked in chicken/beef broth
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1/2
large onion, chopped small
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2
small carrots, chopped small
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1
rib of celery, chopped small
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6-8
mushrooms of any kind, chopped small
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2/3 cup
walnuts, chopped small
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1 cup
golden raisins (rehydrate if you want)
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1
apple, cored and chopped small
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1-2 teaspoons
thyme
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2 teaspoons
ground sage
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1/2 teaspoon
ground nutmeg
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butter and olive oil
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salt and pepper
- Pork Roast
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3 pounds
pork roast
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8-10
sage leaves
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6-10
slices thick sliced uncured apple wood smoked bacon
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Ground Sage
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1/2 cup
maple syrup
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olive oil
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salt and pepper
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cooking twine
Directions
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Start by making the rice stuffing. Cook the brown rice per package instructions substituting chicken/beef broth for water, be sure and include the butter that directions on the box call for. I cook my rice in the microwave, and it works great.
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While rice is cooking put the onion, celery, and carrot into a pan on the stove with a drizzle of olive oil and cook until the onion is clear. Add the mushrooms and a large pat of butter; cook for about 5 minutes or until the mushrooms are tender. Add the dry spices: thyme, sage, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Remove pan from heat and stir in the apple, walnuts and raisins. When your rice is ready add it to the veggies as well. Taste and adjust spices as needed. Set aside until you need to stuff the roast.
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Butterfly the roast so it can be stuffed. Start by slicing across the roast about one inch from the bottom rolling the rest of the meat away from your blade. Think of it as un-rolling a rug. Continue across until you have laid open the whole piece of meat. Then rub the inside with olive oil and spice with ground sage, pepper and salt.
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Fill the roast with about 1 cup of the rice stuffing, fill down one side and roll up. As you roll you may need to add more or less stuffing. Secure the roast in 3-4 places with cooking twine. Trim the extra string off close to each knot.
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Next layer the fresh sage across the top of the roast. Then cover with bacon in a single layer tucking the ends under the roast.
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Place the roast into a deep roasting pan and put in the oven at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes a pound. The extra rice stuffing can be put in an ovenproof dish and into the oven for the last 30 minutes of baking to heat it up. Serve the rice on the side of the roast.
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5-10 minutes before the roast is done drizzle maple syrup over top of the bacon, and return to the oven. When inside temperature of the roast is 160 remove from oven and let rest ten minutes before slicing parallel to the bacon so the spiral stuffing will show in each slice. Serve and enjoy.
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