Ingredients

  • 1/3 cup golden raisins
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • EVOO, as needed
  • 3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 small bulb fennel, chopped, plus 3 to 4 tablespoons fronds
  • 1 onion, chopped Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 4 tablespoons lightly toasted pine nuts
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
  • One 3-pound trimmed boneless pork loin
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/3 pound thinly sliced (but not shaved) prosciutto di Parma or pancetta
  • EVOO, as needed
  • 2 pounds small Yukon or white potatoes, halved
  • 24 cipollini onions, boiled 3 minutes
  • 4 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
  • 3 heads garlic, halved horizontally
  • 1 cup white wine
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • Special equipment: butcher's twine

Method

  • For the fennel and golden raisin stuffing: Place the golden raisins in a small dish, cover with boiling water and let stand to soften.
  • Melt the butter with a turn of the pan of EVOO in a skillet over medium heat.
  • Add the garlic, fennel (reserving the fronds) and onions, sprinkle with some salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables soften, 12 to 15 minutes.
  • Deglaze with the wine, transfer to a bowl and let cool completely.
  • Drain and chop the raisins, and then combine with the fennel, onions, ground pork, pine nuts and thyme.
  • For the prosciutto-wrapped pork roast: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Butterfly the meat by thirds: Measure one-third from the bottom of the loin, and make a lengthwise cut along one longer side (not going all the way through to the opposite side).
  • Continue to make long cuts to open up the meat.
  • When you have reached almost to the opposite side of the roast with your lengthwise cuts, stop and roll the top two-thirds of the roast over.
  • Measure the height of the rolled-over portion and make a lengthwise cut to butterfly this in half.
  • Continue slicing and opening up the meat until the loin has been butterflied into a single slab.
  • Pound the meat with a meat mallet to 3/4-inch thick, and then sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  • Spread the stuffing over the meat, leaving a 1-inch border.
  • Roll up the pork, cover with overlapping slices of the prosciutto, and tie in intervals with twine to secure.
  • Heat 2 turns of the pan of EVOO in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
  • Add the pork and brown evenly all over.
  • Toss the potatoes and onions in a roasting pan together with the rosemary, garlic, about 1/4 cup EVOO, and some salt and pepper.
  • Set the browned roast on top and deglaze the Dutch oven with the wine, scraping up the bits from the bottom.
  • Pour the liquid over the pork.
  • Roast until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees, up to 2 hours, then let rest 30 minutes under a foil tent.
  • Before serving, place the roasting pan on a burner, deglaze with the stock and then stir in the fennel fronds and butter.
  • Slice the roast, spoon the fennel butter jus over top and serve alongside the potatoes and onions.