Rosemary Garlic Pork Tenderloin

I wish I had taken a photo of this. The tenderloins turned out better than I imagined. The tenderloins were succulent and the rosemary and garlic complemented the pork perfectly.

Ingredients:

2 pork tenderloins

2 stalks fresh rosemary

4 cloves garlic

1 tsp kosher salt

Directions:

Remove the rosemary from the branch, combine with salt and garlic in a mini-chopper. I used the small sized cup on my Bullet chopper. Process until everything is well combined.

Line a lipped cookie sheet with aluminium. Place tenderloins on it. Rub the rosemary/garlic mixture all over the tenderloins.

Place in the oven on broil for six minutes. Turn the tenderloins over to the other side and broil for another six minutes.

Lower heat to 425 and bake for 10 minutes. Let the tenderloins rest for at least 10 minutes. Thinly slice across on the diagonal.

Delicious!

Click here for printable recipe

Treats for Thanksgiving

Ah, Turkey Day! I've said it before - I'll say it again - the BEST meal of the year! I've got a few good recipes for Thanksgiving yummy's! Here are the links to my previous posts:

Cranberry Relish

Sweet Potato Medley

Creamed Corn

Grandma Julia's Pumpkin Pie

Mom's Pecan Pie

Roasted Beets

Savory Mexi-Corn

Wishing you and yours a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Mom's Pecan Pie

Here's another of those family recipes that my holiday's can't be without. Pecan pie is so rich and delicious. It brings me such happy memories with every bite!

Ingredients for one pie:

3 beaten eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. light Karo Syrup
1 c. pecan pieces

Directions:

Beat the eggs and sugar until thick. Add Karo and vanilla. Pour into a 9" pie shell that has been filled with the pecan pieces.

Bake at 300° for 1 hour. Test with toothpicks for doneness.

Click here for printable recipe.

Grandma Julia's Pumpkin Pie

My Grandma Julia could bake pies like no one else. She shared her recipes with my Mom who passed them on to me. It wouldn't be Thanksgiving without her Pumpkin Pie, nor Christmas without the Pecan. She had a unique way of cutting a pie too; two cuts! One pie for four people! Mmm... Great memories!

Directions for two pies:

In a large bowl, mix 2/3 of large can of pumpkin and 6 eggs. Beat well.

Add to that 1 1/2 c. sugar. Beat again.

Mix into that 1/2 tsp. ginger, 1/2 level tsp. cloves, 1/2 heaping tsp. allspice. Add 3 cups of milk and mix again. Put this mixture into 2 - 9" pie shells.

Bake at 400°for 15 min. Then turn down to 325° for 45 min. Test with a knife.

Click here for printable recipe.

Spicy Beef Stew

Here's a twist on your average "run of the mill" beef stew. I like to spice it up with chili powder, cayenne pepper and smoked paprika. I like to make garlic mashed red potatoes and serve the stew over them. Or, you could serve over rice. This is a great meal to make on the weekend and then just have to reheat on a busy week night.

Ingredients:

2 ½ lbs stew meat
4 heaping spoons of flour, I used a soup spoon for measuring
1 soup spoon of dried oregano, crumbled between your palms
4 level soup spoons of chili powder
2 level soup spoons of smoked paprika
1 ½ onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
Olive Oil
¾ cup wine
3 cups water
2 beef bouillon cubes
1 tsp salt
½ - 1 tsp cayenne pepper, depending upon how spicy you like it
6 – 7 stalks celery, chopped
1 lb baby carrots
½ lbs mushroom caps cut into quarters
3 – 4 zucchini’s cut into 1”rounds

Directions:

Start by cutting the stew meat into smaller pieces. Some of the pieces come rather large. I like them all to be approximately 1” pieces.

In a large bowl combine the flour, oregano, chili powder and paprika. Use your hands to mix really well. Add the meat to the bowl and toss well to completely cover the pieces of meat with the flour mixture. (reserve left over flour mixture)

Drizzle olive oil into a pot with a heavy bottom. Shake excess flour off the meat and place into pot, a few pieces at a time, to brown. Don’t over crowd the pan, otherwise the meat will steam rather than brown. Remove meat from the pan to a plate; repeat until all the meat has been browned using olive oil as needed.

If needed, drizzle a bit more olive oil in pan. Add onions and garlic; sauté until translucent. Add wine to pan to deglaze; scrap up brown bits from pan. Add reserved flour mixture, cook for just a few seconds. Slowly add water to pan, mixing as you go. Add meat, bouillon cubes, celery, carrots and cayenne pepper to pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Cook for about 1 hour.

Add mushrooms and zucchini to pot; recover and cook for approx 30 -45 minutes.

Serve stew over garlic roasted mashed potatoes.

click here for printable recipe

Chicken Mole - My 100th Post!

I found this recipe on the internet a couple of years ago, and have adjusted it slightly. I understand that normally making a mole sauce takes a very long time. This recipe is surprisingly easy and doesn't really take too terribly long to make.

Ingredients:

1 (14 oz.) can tomatos

1 green bell pepper, chopped fine

8 - 15 boneless, skinless chicken thighs - depending upon how many you are serving

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 - 2 chipotle chile in adobo sauce (these can be purchased in a small can at the grocery store. Find them on the Mexican food aisle. There are more in the can than you will need. I individually wrap each remaining chili in saran wrap, place in a baggie and freeze.)

2 teaspoons cumin

1 jalapeno, chopped - remove seeds if you like less spicy

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

1/2 cup water

3 tablespoons cocoa

1 tablespoon sugar

Directions:

Place all ingredients except cocoa and sugar in large pot. Cover and simmer until chicken is very tender (about an hour). Remove chicken from pot.

Let the sauce mixture cool for a bit and then place into a blender; add cocoa and sugar. Blend until sauce is smooth. Return to pan; add chicken and bring to a simmer for about 5 - 10 minutes to blend flavors.

Serve chicken over rice with plenty of the yummy spicy sauce.

Click here for printable recipe.

Baked Salmon

My son and I both love salmon. For years I never really fixed it, because I wasn't sure how - and when I cooked it in a saute pan I always managed to burn it on the outside, but it was still raw on the inside. One day we salmon at my brother-in-laws house. It was perfectly prepared. He had wrapped it in foil and baked it on the barbecue. I liked THAT idea. Seemed totally easy and it sure was delicious. So, I came home and began experimenting. This is what I came up with! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Ingredients:

Salmon fillet

Small amount of butter

Lemon juice

Seasoning Salt

Dill Seasoning (I love the Pampered Chef Dill Seasoning, but if you don't have that - you could use dill weed)

Lemon slices - for garnish

Directions:

Wash and pat dry the salmon fillet. Place on a large sheet of aluminum foil - large enough to make an "envelope" of sorts around the fillet.

Sprinkle the salmon with a very small amount of lemon juice, followed by the seasoning salt. Place 4 - 5 small pats of butter on the salmon. Sprinkle with the dill seasoning.

Wrap the salmon in the aluminum foil, closing tightly and leaving space around the salmon so that it can steam. Place the foil package on a cookie sheet with edges - just in case there is any leakage.

Bake at 350 for 30 - 35 minutes. Remove from oven and test salmon for doneness. If it is not done enough, reclose the package and replace in oven for a few minutes longer. A few times with larger pieces of salmon I have had to cook for longer than the 35 minutes. When I replace the package in the oven I do so for only 5 minutes at a time. You definitely don't want over done salmon.

Click here for printable recipe.

Pan Fried Potatoes with a Cajun Flair

I really love potatoes. I like them baked, mashed, fried, hashed - you name it! These are super easy to whip up as a side dish to most any meal. And, if you don't really like spicy - you could replace the Tony's Chachere's seasoning with some seasoning salt, garlic salt and pepper. I bet you could even throw in some bell pepper for some "added flair" if you'd like!

Ingredients:

Red Potatoes – 4 to 6
1/3 of a white onion, finely chopped
1 – 2 Tbls olive oil
Water or chicken broth
Tony Chachere’s seasoning

Directions:

Wash and cut the potatoes in quarters lengthwise. Cut quarters across into several smaller bite sized pieces. Depending upon the size of your potato – 4 or 5 pieces out of each quarter.

Heat a skillet that can be fitted with a lid. Add olive oil, cook onions for a few minutes until they are soft and translucent.
Add the potatoes to the skillet, sprinkle with the Tony’s. This seasoning is spicy and salty... so be careful not to add too much. Toss well to combine the onions with the potatoes and to coat the potatoes with the oil. Place lid on, skillet and cook over medium heat for several minutes. Remove lid every so often and toss the potatoes so that they brown – but don’t burn.

When the pan becomes dry add a little water or chicken broth. Replace lid and continue to cook until potatoes are completely done. Brown, golden and delicious!

Click here for printable recipe.

Dirty Martini

This may not be a good thing - but I've discovered Martini's. I love them "dirty" - which means adding olive juice to them. Make sure to use a "top shelf" gin - or vodka if you prefer. Drinking the alcohol like this requires that you use the best.

Ingredients: (Makes 2)

3 oz Gin - I use Bombay or Bombay Sapphire (if you prefer, you can use vodka)

Splash of Dry Vermouth

2 Tbls olive juice
2 oz water

6 pimento stuffed green olives

Directions:

Freeze the martini glasses

Place a splash of vermouth in each frozen glass. Swirl the vermouth around the glass and pour into a cocktail shaker filled with ice.

Add the olive juice, water and gin to the cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously.

Strain into the chilled martini glasses. Garnish with three olives on a cocktail pick.