So I threw Jonathan a surprise birthday party yesterday. It was his 30th birthday, so how could I let it pass without throwing him a party? And what better way to do so than a surprise? He's never had a surprise party before, and he was very surprised. I think everyone had a wonderful time.
And, of course, how could I have a party without food? My mom made some really delicious appetizers. The shrimp toast was the real hit amongst the guests. A good friend of ours, who's pretty much like an aunt to me, made her to-die-for chicken pot pie. And my mother-in-law provided some of Jonathan's favorite desserts -- oatmeal scotchies and one-bowl chocolate cake.
I made the main dishes and supplemented the dessert table. I made a new pulled pork recipe with coleslaw and barbecue sauce on the side. I made Jonathan's favorite pasta dish, vegetarian-style (baked tofu in place of the chicken the original recipe calls for). And I made a vegetarian curry that's one of Jonathan's and my favorites. To go with the cakes (in addition to my mother-in-law's cake, we also had a sheet cake from a local deli), I made vanilla ice cream and, my favorite, Nutella ice cream.
Oh... We also played a couple of games at the party (my husband is a bit of a game nut), and one of the prizes was a box of those wonderful peanut butter-hazelnut brownies I made before. And what a shame... One of the winners left her portion here... Awwww... *insert evil grin here*
Everyone seemed really happy with the spread. I'm thrilled, not only with how much people seemed to like it, but also with how much we have left over! I don't think I'm going to have to go grocery shopping for another 2 weeks.
So here are my new additions to my recipe collection... The pulled pork was done in the oven rather than in the crockpot, and, as far as texture, I'm not sure I liked it as much. The flavor was awesome though, so I think I'll just keep the recipe and put it in the crockpot the next time. I also halved the amount of vinegar and mustard called for in the original recipe for the barbecue sauce, as recommended by the reviewers on the Food Network website. It came out really tangy but not overwhelmingly so.
Happy 30th birthday, Love. I hope you had a birthday that you'll never forget.
Pulled Pork Barbecue Sandwich
A variation on this recipe by Tyler Florence
Dry Rub:
3 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon dry mustard
3 tablespoons coarse sea salt
1 (5 to 7 pound) pork roast, preferably shoulder or Boston butt
Cider-Vinegar Barbecue Sauce:
3/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup yellow or brown mustard
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pan drippings from the pork
Hamburger buns
Coleslaw, recipe follows
Pickle spears, for serving
Mix the paprika, garlic power, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt together in a small bowl. Rub the spice blend all over the pork. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to overnight.
Preheat the oven to 300ºF. Put the pork in a roasting pan and roast it for about 6 hours. An instant-read thermometer stuck into the thickest part of the pork should register 170ºF, but basically, what you want to do is to roast it until it's falling apart.
While the pork is roasting, make the barbecue sauce. Combine the vinegar, mustard, ketchup, brown sugar, garlic, salt, cayenne, and black pepper in a saucepan over medium heat. Simmer gently, stirring, for 10 minutes until the sugar dissolves. Take it off the heat and let it sit until you're ready for it.
When the pork is done, take it out of the oven and put it on a large platter. Allow the meat to rest for about 10 minutes. While it's resting, deglaze the pan over medium heat with 3/4 cup water, scraping with a wooden spoon to pick up all of the browned bits. Reduce by about half. Pour that into the saucepan with the sauce and cook 5 minutes.
While the pork is still warm, you want to "pull" the meat: Grab 2 forks. Using 1 to steady the meat, use the other to "pull" shreds of meat off the roast. Put the shredded pork in a bowl and pour half of the sauce over. Stir it all up well so that the pork is coated with the sauce.
To serve, spoon the pulled pork mixture onto the bottom half of each hamburger bun, and top with some slaw. Serve with pickle spears and the remaining sauce on the side.
Coleslaw:
1 head green cabbage, shredded
2 carrots, grated
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 green onions (white and green parts), chopped
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 lemon, juiced
Pinch sugar
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
Several dashes hot sauce
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Combine the cabbage, carrots, red onion, and green onions in a large bowl. In another bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, and sugar. Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss gently to mix. Season the coleslaw with the celery seed, hot sauce, salt, and black pepper. Chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator before serving.
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