Monthly Ingredient Challenge: Apples {Slow Cooked Pork & Apple Salad and Apple Pie Ice Cream}

I’ve recently joined a group of fellow food bloggers who do a monthly recipe challenge.

What fun – I’m so excited to be doing my first one!

The ingredient to use was apples…

I decided to do 2 dishes, because you just HAVE to have a sweet apple dish in the mix.

My slow-cooked pork & apple salad is so versatile, you can have the salad version in summer {or whenever you feel like salad} or have just the pork with apples as a hot dish!

I decided to also make an ice cream, because it’s just been SO hot lately {Summer in SA} and nothing beats ice cream.

Being a ‘low-carber’, the ingredient was a bit of a challenge, because apples are fruit {duh} and they’re quite high in sugar {naturally}. However, they are allowed and you should just then keep an eye on the rest of your hidden carbs for the day – and definitely not eat more fruit that day!

IMG_9536 (683x1024)

Here it is:

Slow-cooked Pork & Apple Salad

Servings: 6-10
Time: 7hrs 30mins
Difficulty: moderate
Print

{Before you run a mile, it’s only the pork that takes a bit of time, but you can get 3 meals from this so it’s really perfect to cook ahead and keep in the fridge.}

You will need:
2 kg pork neck {whole, boneless}
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp whole coriander
1 tsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tbs Himalayan rock salt + extra
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 tbs olive oil
4 apples, cored & cubed
1 onion, chopped
2 cups of boiling water
2 tbs butter

Start by making the rub for the pork:

Toast the coriander & mustard seeds in a pan until fragrant.
In a mortar & pestle, grind the coriander, mustard seeds, garlic, 1 tbs salt, fennel seeds and olive oil to a paste.

Rub the pork with your fab homemade rub, cover with clingwrap and let it marinade for 3 hours.

Next – on to the cooking:

Place the apples, onion and water in your slow cooker. Sprinkle with salt.
Place the pork neck on top and add the butter in dollops.

Slow cook for 4 and a half hours.

Once it’s cooked, you will need to let it cool to room temp and then use about 1/4 for the salad for 2 people.

Pull the pork apart, using a fork and serve it with some of the apples on a bed of herbs and lettuce.
Garnish with matchstick apples.

Apple Pie Ice Cream

Servings: 2
Time: 2hrs
Difficulty: easy
Print

{You don’t need an ice cream maker for this – but if you have one, great!}

You will need:
2 apples, peeled, cored and cubed
1/4 cup of water
1 tbs xylitol
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 egg yolks
1 cup of heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbs xylitol
Pinch of salt

Start by making your apple puree:

Place the apple, water and 1 tbs xylitol in a small saucepan and let it simmer until all the water is gone and the apples are soft.
Blend with a stick blender and add the cinnamon.

Next, make the custard base:

Whisk the egg yolks, 2tbs xylitol, salt and vanilla together.
Heat the cream – not boil – and slowly whisk it into the yolk mixture.
Heat over a very low heat in a small saucepan until the custard has thickened. It should coat the back of a spoon.

Add the pureed apples to the custard, mix thoroughly and pour it into a metal bowl to freeze.

Place in the freezer for about 2 hours, whisking it every half hour or so until frozen.