Roast Pork Loin

Mmmm.....Our guests were very happy today.

The first 100 or so guests today at the Wednesday Community Meal were treated to oven-roasted pork loin and homemade mac and cheese. The lean meat was seasoned with a rub made of sugar, salt, cumin, garlic powder, black pepper, chili powder and Italian seasoning and came out of the oven with a nice flavorful crust and super moist inside.

Roast pork loin just out of the oven.

Volunteer Linda serving the pork. It's always a treat to put beautiful and nutritious food on the plates.

We served sauteed chard as a side with the pork. The just-picked chard was donated by longtime volunteer Kate who has an amazing garden and is so generous. Kate also brought in zucchini and squash that we roasted and served with the following entrees — crispy chicken wings, barbecue chicken, Thai green curry, sauteed beef and peppers, breaded halibut, oven-baked chicken, ribs and pizza.

We had to change our menu multiple times to utilize the food we receive from wonderful donors like Good Samaritan Hopspital, Phil's Uptown Meat Market and Pizza Schmizza.

The pork loin that we served was purchased by Trinity Episcopal Cathedral to extend the meal and help us feed every single person who comes to our door.


For dessert we served rice pudding made by volunteer Cheryl whose creativity amazes me. She made the rice pudding by mixing leftover cooked rice with boxed vanilla pudding. She topped servings of it with crushed Oreos and vanilla wafers and the guests loved it.

Cups of rice pudding topped with crushed Oreos and vanilla wafers.

We also served hot soup, salad and drinks.

At the end of the day, we served 266 meals and received the following comment from a satisfied guest that just about sums everything up:

"Nothing lifts the spirit like good food."

Meatloaf And Pork Roast

A plate of meatloaf and rice.

We guessed right that this Wednesday, the last and fifth of the month, would be one of our busiest.

With the holiday weekend, guests weren't able to find food so easily this past Monday when many places were closed. And with it being the end of the month, the 361 guests we served today were extra hungry and as always appreciative.

We served homemade meatloaf made from premium ground beef donated from Phil's Meatmarket and pork roast that we made from pork we purchased at Cash 'n' Carry.

Alongside the meat, we served rice donated from Good Samaritan Hospital that we extended by adding frozen green beans and seasoning. The rice didn't last the whole service so we also served mashed potatoes and pasta.

Salads, soup and dessert were also on the menu.

One of the beautiful salads made by dedicated volunteer Kate.

It was such a busy day that I didn't get a chance to get a photo of the beautiful pork roast after it was cooked. But here's a pre-oven photo. I seasoned the pork with a homemade rub made with chili powder, cumin, oregano, a bit of sugar, salt and pepper.

Seasoned pork roast that's ready for the oven.