Saturday, September 29, 2012

Pork Tenderloin with a Garlic & Orange Vinaigrette


Tonight's dinner was simple and delicious as well as a nice, light meal.  I started out by heating the oven to 400 degrees and browning the pork tenderloin, seasoned with just salt and pepper.  I then put it into a casserole dish and roasted it for 20 minutes.
 
 
I made dinner for 2 but one large tenderloin is enough for 4 and the vinaigrette recipe is for 4.  On each plate, I have mounded fresh arugula and some diced tomatoes from the garden.
 
 
Garlic & Orange Vinaigrette
 
1 large orange
1 clove of garlic
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp mustard
 
 
Zest about half of the orange, juice the entire orange, grate one clove of garlic, add 1 Tbsp of honey and 2 Tbsp of olive oil.  Whisk these together with 2 tsp of mustard to emulsify the dressing.  I used a champagne and shallot mustard from Stonewall Kitchens.  This one of my favourites.
 
 
Arrange slices of pork tenderloin over your salad and drizzle with the vinaigrette.
 
Bon Appetit,
 
Julie

Friday, September 21, 2012

Love my Mom's Lemon Meringue Pie


My Mom made the best lemon meringue pie today that I have ever tasted.  I promise that this winter, I will learn how to make pastry and then I will share this recipe with you.  She made it all from scratch and reduced the amount of sugar and eggs so I could have a piece without giving the calories too much thought.  On a side note, I have lost 30 lbs since January 1st...


Julie

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Pork Chop Casserole


 
Fall is coming and it was cold and rainy today so I decided to make a quick comfort food dinner.  A couple of pork chops were marinated for the day and then roasted.
 
Marinade
 
1 lemon, rind peeled and cut into eights and squeezed
a couple of Tbsp of olive oil
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
a couple of crushed garlic cloves
salt and pepper to taste
 
 
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Peel and chop potatoes and carrots and one apple.  Sprinkle with olive oil and stir to coat.  Place pork chops and marinade on top of the veg and roast (uncovered) for one hour.  This is a tasty, extremely easy fall or winter supper.  Enjoy!
 
Julie


Saturday, September 8, 2012

Home Ec Disappointment


 
Tonight's dinner reminded me of my first Home Ec  class in high school.  I had cooked and baked a little at home but not a lot by the time I reached Grade 9.  I grew up in a house where Mom cooked a nice dinner every night, where we all sat down together at the table to eat and where we'd complain if dessert was only "cookies, fruit or ice cream".  We were very spoiled with great cooking and baking around our house.  There was no real need to learn this domestic art.  But now, I was going to learn to cook and bake by someone whose job it was to teach me.  A real professional...
 
I was sadly disappointed.  The first class was all about how to warm up TV dinners and make them "special" by setting a nice table.  We actually were given handouts that diagrammed placemats and napkins so we could make our husbands feel they were having a home-cooked meal.  I would have been better off in shop class.  
 
 
 
So why did tonight's dinner remind me of Grade 9?  Well, because a busy day led to spiffing up a store-bought package of cheese tortellini.  It wasn't bad but as my Mother says "tomorrow we need to have a proper dinner".  I made a quick vodka tomato sauce while the pasta was cooking.  Three cups of crushed tomatoes, 2 shots of vodka, 1/4 cup of cream, a handful of fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped fresh basil and oregano plus salt and pepper to taste.  All warmed up, spooned over cooked pasta with shavings of fresh Parmesan on top.  Dinner in 15 minutes.  Not bad considering...better than a TV dinner.
 
Julie