Winter Sunday Dinner: French-Style Pot-Roasted Pork Loin

I haven't done a Sunday dinner post in a while. We're still making all kinds of wonderful things - especially on Sundays! - but the light is so poor by the time we eat that I usually don't take pictures. Plus, winter food isn't always so photogenic.

But I'm making an exception because this recipe for pork loin is truly exceptional, and very different from any I've made before. It's from America's Test Kitchen, so you know it's a good one.

Basically, you butterfly the roast and smear a butter-garlic mixture inside before tying it up again. The roast gets seared on three sides (just three!), and then finishes cooking in the oven at an extremely low temperature. I'm not usually one to go all nuts for pork loin, but this recipe is outstanding. So moist and porky, and I was just using a humble Trader Joe's roast!

Winter Sunday Dinner: Cozy French Roast

• French-style pot-roasted pork loin*
• Butter lettuce with roasted baby Brussels sprouts, blue cheese, and golden raisins
• Roasted potatoes
• Darkest chocolate ice cream, with crushed candy canes mixed in

*We did make a few substitutions. I forgot to buy an apple, so we used a mixture of green and purple grapes instead, probably about one cup. It was lovely - I think roasted grapes are an underused cooking gem - but I'm excited to try it the original way next time. Also, I threw a mess of parsley on top, because I always like green stuff on my plate.