Last night I made a dinner that I am now famous for. This year for my mom’s birthday, I made a Marinated Pork Roast with pan gravy, roasted carrots and new potatoes, and a Cookie and Cream Cake. {Don’t worry, I’ll post the cake later. Yum!} My grandpa and Aunt Cindy were in town taking care of my mom. Five days before her birthday she had a double mastectomy. my goal for her special day was to get her to relax – no easy task there – have a good meal, and enjoy being surrounded by her family.
My step-father Rob have given me a bone-in pork loin roast the night before and asked me to cook it since he wouldn’t be home early enough to get things going. Rob is a very good cook and a bit protective of his kitchen. If he is not the one cooing, he will push out whoever is manning the stove and take over, in a very clandestine way. That night I stood my ground. All Rob got to do was make some fresh corn sauteed with diced onions and butter. But after eating y meal, I have his full consent to take over the kitchen, from time to time.
So here’s my mom’s birthday dinner. I hope you smile when you take your first bite. I always do.

Marinated Pork Roast
Ingredients
- 1 liter ginger ale {I like Canada Dry}
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 4 garlic cloves rough chopped
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- One 4 pound pork roast bone-in or boneless
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
Instructions
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In a 13” x 9” glass baking pan, combine the ginger ale, soy sauce, onion powder, garlic, lemon juice and sugar. Add pork roast. Cover and refrigerate at least 7 hours, or overnight, turning once. {I like to end with the fat side up so the fat caramelizes while roasting.}
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
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Cook roast in the marinade for 1 ½ to 2 hours, or until digital thermometer reads 155 degrees. Remove roast from pan, wrap in foil and let stand 10 minutes.
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Meanwhile, pour pan drippings into a gravy separator. Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until melted. Whisk in flour, let roux cook for 1-2 minutes to remove raw flour taste. Pour in half of the separated pan juices and whisk until there are no lumps. Add in remaining juices. Bring to a boil; cook for 2 minutes then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes. Serve over roast.