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Showing posts from September 4, 2011

Easing Into Fall 2011 Tablescape

...And I am more than the fallen leaf That Autumn winds hath blown along- I am more than the branch that breaks When the wind proves itself too strong- But I am like the tree that dances To the music of the lilted wind song... (from one of my many unfinished poems)   The past few days have been so beautiful here, with weather that beckons everyone to go outdoors. The afternoons with gentle breezes make it almost easy to forget that we in Oklahoma just experienced one of the hottest summers on record.  I've heard that people favor the time of year they were born and if that's the case, then it makes perfect sense that Fall should be my favorite season.  It is. I set this table for Labor Day and then we changed our plans that very day and went to my sisters for a hamburger cookout instead.   I think this table hints at the season to come, and would have been really cute set outside or better yet, inside a barn!  It does have a country farm fee

Porchetta ~ Classic Italian Pork Roast

Today we welcomed cooler weather here in Tulsa, and my family celebrated it with a fantastic pork roast, called Porchetta (pronounced Pork etta) made in the classic Italian style.   So long Summer, hello Autumn.  Actually, I celebrated and Shawn slaved to make this. ;-)  He got an eensie teensie bit of help from Ethan and me. Isn't it beautiful?   Tuscany is famous for big, bold flavors.  This roast is no exception. There they will often prepare this roast using the whole pig!  It's a common tradition to go into the city center on the weekends to buy Porchetta where it is prepared by locals who've been making this for generations. We started with a 10 lb. pork shoulder roast.  Try to get one that has the skin/fat still attached.  This may require a trip to your local butcher.  This is important because what makes the Porchetta stand out as a unique roast is that you get the crunchy cracklin (skin) in addition to the fantastic roast. De-