Slow-Cooker Italian Pork Roast

This is a simple pork roast recipe that can easily be adapted to whatever you have on hand.  I used up some leftover vegetables from the week before along with herbs from the garden.  It was supposed to be served with polenta but I didn't have everything I needed for that, so I went with pesto smashed potatoes and parmesan roasted broccoli.  It was a delicious meal!

For the broccoli, I drizzled broccoli florets with olive oil and seasoned with S&P and roasted them at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, added shredded parmesan cheese and roasted for another 5 minutes.  For the potatoes, I just made regular mashed potatoes with milk and a little butter and added a couple of large spoonfuls of pesto.

The next day I made little pesto tater tots with the leftover smashed potatoes and they were so tasty!  I used the same recipe for my regular mashed potato cakes omitting the addition of green onions.  I then placed them on parchment paper and baked them in a 400-degree oven for about 20 minutes, turning them over during the baking process to brown all sides.  I served them with a marinara dipping sauce. . .yum!  I actually don't have a pic of the finished tots because they went so quickly!  :-)

Slow-Cooker Italian Pork Roast

1 handful of parsley leaves

10 basil leaves

2 large sprigs of rosemary

1 T minced garlic

1-1/2 t salt

5 grinds of fresh black pepper

2 lb pork sirloin roast

3 T extra-virgin olive oil

2 carrots, chopped

1/2 large onion, chopped

1 C diced tomatoes

1/2 container sliced cremini mushrooms

1/2 C reduced-sodium chicken broth

Coarsely chop up all the herbs and set them in a mortar along with the garlic and S&P.  

Use a pestle to grind everything into a paste.  You could easily use a small food processor for this step if you don’t have a mortar and pestle. 

Rub the garlic-herb paste all over the pork roast.  Heat up the oil in a large pan over high heat and sear the roast on all sides, creating an herb crust.

Put the carrots and onions into the slow cooker and add the roast on top.  Add the tomatoes on top of the roast along with the mushrooms and pour the chicken broth around the roast.  Cook on low for 6 hours.