Pork Cassoulet and Chocolate Almond Orange Cake aka French Soul Food

It's snowing here in beautiful British Columbia and I am cozied up with a few people watching the Super Bowl.  While I have some good appies (chicken wings, scallops and bacon) roasting away in the oven to stay within the bounds of a traditional Super Bowl fare, I am also cooking our family Sunday dinner.  I defrosted a pork roast and had lots of brown lentils so I am slow cooking a pork cassoulet in the crock pot, accompanied with Yorkshire puddings and Nigella Lawson's recipe for almond flour and orange chocolate cake.  Of course this is perfect for those who are gluten free and it is seriously sublime.  Rather than using regular olive oil in the recipe however, I make sure I have orange flavored olive oil for this cake which you can get at most Italian delis and all those cool olive oil and vinegar specialty stores popping up.  Here's to some delicious French Soul Food!

Get your slow cooker organized
a Pork Roast
Fav spices, I chose fennel and some Montreal Steak Spice (because it was closest in the pantry and my back was too sore to reach for something else!)
olive oil
1 1/2 cups of brown lentils
4 large carrots peeled and chopped how you like them
2 onions sliced
4 garlic cloves
6 celery chopped
maple syrup
chicken broth

Season your pork roast with your favorite spices and sear in a pan or pot with olive oil along with the onions adding the garlic in a little later so it doesn't burn.

Once your pork is seared, pop it into your slow cooker with onions and garlic, add carrots, celery and lentils.  Pour in enough chicken broth to cover half of the pork.  Drizzle with some maple syrup about 1/4 cup. 

I then put my slow cooker on high to cook the veggies for about three hours, then to low and slow so that all the veggies and the lentils would absorb all the juices from the chicken broth and pork.  Let me tell you one and all - this is DELICIOUS!

Total cooking time will be 7 hours, but of course, it may not even take that long depending on the size of your roast.  Just baby it and taste a little here and there to see how it is going.  Slow cookers are the best.

Almond Flour Chocolate Orange Olive Oil Cake

Now for the cake.  This recipe is so easy and absolutely fabulous.  The orange adds a special touch and of course the almond flour and the chocolate make it decadent. 

In a mixture or with your mixer spoon, combine three eggs, 2/3 cup orange flavored olive oil (don't panic if you've not the orange flavored, use regular olive oil), 1 cup of sugar.  Mix until primrose

coloured and thick.  In a cup mix 6 tbsp. of cocoa, 2 tsp. of vanilla and 1/2 cup of boiling water and add to the primrose mix.  Let stir for a bit, then add 1 1/2 cup of almond flour, 1 tsp. baking soda and continue mixing. 

Pour into a greased cake pan or spring form pan and bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes....or even a little more if you like.  The cake will be a tiny bit pudding like.  XO