Pork and sauerkraut is a New Year's tradition in my wife's family. She remembers the tradition fondly. Or at least, she does now. When she was growing up, she wasn't a big fan. (Sauerkraut? Eeew!) Her grandma would always hound the kids to eat at least one strand of sauerkraut, "because it brings good luck in the new year". Needless to say, the grandkids weren't convinced.
I grew up loving sauerkraut; I have fond memories of hot dog carts in downtown Cleveland, dogs loaded with everything, where the highlight was the sauerkraut. My love of these hot dogs was a turn-off to Diane when we were dating; she couldn't believe I loved those "smelly dogs" so much. I was thrilled with her family's New Year's sauerkraut tradition. I had to work on Diane, thought; she ate her sauerkraut out of obligation, not because she wanted to. Eventually I was able to find some sauerkraut recipes that she didn't hate. In fact...she kind of likes this one.
*And! Now
Jackie, Diane's sister, is hosting our New Year's Eve celebration this year. (Thank you, Jackie!) She asked me for a slow cooker pork and sauerkraut recipe, so I sprang into action in my test kitchen.* I loved the result; the key to this meal is the sauerkraut, and it is flavored with bacon, spices, apples, and wine.
*My test kitchen is more commonly known as Tuesday night dinner.
Want to guarantee good luck in the new year? Have some pork and sauerkraut! You can only have one strand if you have to. But I'll bet, once you taste it, that you'll have more than that.
Recipe: Slow Cooker Pork and Sauerkraut
for Christmas. And I'm much less likely to shoot my eye out. But more likely to burn myself, so I guess that's a wash.
. Turkey skin doesn't add anything to the recipe. Or at least, not anything good. After the long, slow cooking the skin comes out flabby and chewy. All it does is add extra fat to the sauce, which I don't want anyhow.
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inspired more of my posts than any other book I read this year.
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reminded me that I don't have to kill myself in the kitchen to have people over.
and Lorna Sass's update of 
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explains how to become a better cook through science.
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encouraged me with great Mexican party ideas, and the food to go with them.
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opened my eyes to the complexity behind eating seafood.
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is the best pepper grinder around; it solves all those problems, and makes fresh ground pepper easy.
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model, which is 9 inches tall and holds almost one cup of peppercorns; the regular sized 
, there is a Sunday dinner worthy recipe for roast pork loin simmered in a tomatillo salsa and white bean sauce. The flavors are a revelation; the meaty pork loin, spicy tomatillo salsa, and creamy white beans are a brilliant combination.
, out of loyalty to the original recipe.
, as recommended by 
, second from the left, is my favorite. It's sharp, light, and effortless to use. With a chef's knife, I want some weight, some heft, so the knife does the work. With a paring knife, that extra weight makes it feel heavy and slow. The Victorinox feels light and swift in my hand.
and this paring knife. Later on I would add their 
and 
. That's all you really need.
