Pork Tenderloin Medallions with Balsamic Onion Sauce

I decided to splurge and get some pork tenderloin instead of the usual bone-in pork chops.... definitely worth it!  This was WAY more tender and flavorful than they tend to be, plus you don't have to cut around the bone!

The only vegetable I put in the sauce was onion, but if I had had mushrooms, I definitely would have included them.  So give that a try. 

What you need:

Two 1-pound pork tenderloins, cut into 1/2 inch medallions.

Salt, pepper, and garlic powder

Cooking Spray or small amount of olive oil.

1-2 cups sliced onion

3-4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

(mushrooms, sliced, if you have them- I definitely think they would add to this!)

1/2 cup Balsamic Vinegar or 1/4 cup Balsamic Glaze

Water

2-3 tablespoons flour

Place the tenderloin medallions, 1-2 teaspooons salt, 1 tablespoon black pepper, and 1 Tablespoon garlic powder, and 1/2 teaspoon dried sage in a large bowl.  Stir to even distribute seasoning.  Heat a large frying pan on high until very hot.  Spray with cooking spray or add a little bit of oil and let that heat up.  Place the tenderloin medallions in a layer across the pan (you may not be able to fit them all at once, depending on your pan size and how much tenderloin you are doing).  Sear for 2 minutes, then flip, cover, and let cook 5-7 minutes more, or until cooked through.  Remove from pan and place on a plate.  Cook the remaining tenderloin in the same fashion if necessary.  Remove that to the plate, spray the same pan with oil again and add the onions, garlic, and mushrooms.  Saute until softened and slightly browned, then add 1/4 basamic glaze (which is I used since I didn't have balsamic vinegar at the time) or 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar.  Also add 1/3 cup water if you use the glaze or a few tablespoons if you use the vinegar.  Whisk in the flour until smooth and then add the tenderloin back into the pan.  Stir to coat in the sauce and let cook 3-4 minutes until the pork has heated back through and the sauce has thickened slightly.  Ready to serve!

I served this with sauteed swiss chard on the side for me, and herb roasted potatoes for Rob.  Yum!

Super Healthy Veggie and Tuna Stir fry

A staple college lunch of mine that I should be making more often now!  It's quick, low calorie, filling, highly nutritious, and fairly cheap. 

For the Stir Fry:
1.5-2 cups chopped fresh vegetables (an example blend I use: 1/4 cup onion, 3/4 cup eggplant, 1/4 cup mushroom, 1/4 cup bell pepper.  Also try zucchini, celery, cabbage, hot peppers, bok choy)
Cooking spray or small amount of olive oil
Sprinkle of Salt
Garlic Powder, Black Pepper, Cumin, Coriander- I put these in order of what I use the most of to least, but switch it up according to your own preferences
1 5 ounce can of chunk light tuna in water
Soy Sauce

Saute the veggies in a lightly greased frying pan with the sprinkle of salt (this helps the vegetables cook down).   As they cook, add the other spices to your taste (since this is just one serving, I usually go with a sprinkle of each, heavier on the garlic than the others).  When the veggies have softened and slightly browned, add the can of tuna, undrained, and a splash of soy sauce.  Cook until heated through, about 1-2 minutes.  Serve on top of a bed of lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and, if desired.  Sometimes I will also add a drizzle of this ginger-wasibi sauce I like to buy and also garnish with fresh cilantro.

Enjoy!

Stromboli

A hearty and delicious meal.  Great as an appetizer if cut into thin slices.  Also very portable for packing in lunches (which is what I usually do for my boyfriend if he doesn't eat it first)

What you need:

Pizza or Bread Dough (I have done this with my own- see recipe below- or store bought dough in the refrigerator section)

Spicy Mustard and Mayonnaise

1/2 pound Deli Meat: I use a mixture of salami and pepperoni usually- you can also use ham or cook up some Italian sausage if you have it
(Sauteed peppers, onion, and garlic cloves if you feel like it- sometimes I do, sometimes I don't make the effort)
1-1.5 cups Shredded Cheese: I usually use a mixture of mozzarella, Parmesan, and cheddar- you can also try provolone, pepper jack, or whatever suits your fancy
Garlic Powder, Oregano, Red Pepper Flakes

Topping: Kosher Salt, Oregano, Garlic Powder

Roll dough out on a jelly roll pan as if you were creating a rectangular pizza crust.  Spread mustard and mayonnaise on the dough to create a THIN layer.  Arrange deli meat (and sausage if you are using it) in a strip down the middle, about 3-4 inches wide.  Add the peppers and onions if you decided you wanted them.  Sprinkle cheese on top and the garlic powder, oregano, and red pepper flakes.  Fold the sides of the dough in and pinch shut.  Then fold the ends in and pinch again to seal.  Carefully flip the loaf over.  Sprinkle with the kosher salt, oregano, and garlic powder.  Let rest for 10-20 minutes and place in preheated 400 degree Fahrenheit oven, or place in cold oven and turn on to 400 degrees (it will rise a bit while the oven heats).  Bake for 25 minutes, or until lightly browned.  Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing.  Enjoy!

Dough Recipe:
This recipe makes double what you need for one loaf of stromboli- you can either halve it, or make the whole thing and place the other half of the dough in the frig for a day or so until you need it.  Just be sure to cover it.

6 + cups all purpose flour
2 packets yeast
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
2 1/2 cups water

Mix 4 cups of flour, the yeast, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.  Heat the water until it is hot (you should be able to stick a finger in it without it burning, but is slightly uncomfortable).  Pour into the bowl and stir to mix really well.  Keep adding the flour, switching from stirring to kneading when the dough becomes stirrer and not unmanageably sticky.  Knead for 5 minutes to create a smooth, soft dough.  You want to avoid adding much flour- only use as much as is needed to knead without it sticking all over you.  Form into a ball, spray with oil and place in bowl.  Cover and let rise 1-2 hours or until at least doubled in size.  Punch down, and let rest for 10-20 minutes.  It's ready to roll out (if you are making the stromboli or a pizza), or can be formed into loaves and baked.

Sweet Potato "Hash"

This is something I completely made up and I've done a lot of little variations on it by changing spices and what vegetables I add.  Here's the latest variety.  It may not be the prettiest dish, but it is tasty.

What you need:

1 large or 2 small cooked sweet potatoes (you can boil, bake, or roast in chunks- roasting will impart the most flavor, but the other methods are simpler)

2 eggs

2/3 cup bread crumbs, or 2 pieces of toast, crumbled

2 teaspoons black pepper

2 teaspoons cumin

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 tablespoon garlic powder

Olive oil or vegetable oil

1/2 onion, chopped

2 small hot peppers, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

Soy sauce (1-3 tablespoons)

Cilantro and green onions, chopped

Start by slightly mashing the sweet potato- it doesn't need to be at all smooth, you just want to get rid of really big chunks.  I keep the skin on, but you can take it off if you don't like the texture.  Add the eggs, bread crumbs, pepper, cumin, chili powder, coriander, and garlic powder.  Stir together.

In a large frying pan, saute the onion, hot peppers, and celery in a lightly greased pan with a sprinkle of salt.  When they have softened and browned slightly, add the sweet potato mixture and stir to mix.  Continue to saute, adding splashes of oil to help the mix fry up a bit.  Also add soy sauce to taste.  There is no need to stir it around constantly- letting it sit for a minute or two lets more browning occur, which creates a nice texture and flavor.  Cook until the entire mixture has taken a slightly darker color from browning.  Top with the cilantro and green onions.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Cheesecake with Raspberry Sauce

I made this for a someone's birthday.  Can't take much credit for the actual recipe (got it off of Eva's Fika blogspot and made few changes- so thanks Eva!)  Didn't try the actual cheesecake, but judging by the little mini ones (see picture below) I made with some the bit of extra batter, it was pretty tasty.

What you need:

For the crust:

1 1/2 cups crushed chocolate sandwich cookies, creamy filling mostly removed

1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

For the batter:

3 (8 oz) blocks of cream cheese- I used full fat because that was all the store had at the time, but I think you could easily sub in the 1/3 less fat for little change in taste or texture, room temperature

1 cup white sugar

12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips (or 12 ounces of bittersweet baking chocolate, chopped if that is available to you)

3 eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon Amaretto

1 cup sour cream, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit or 180 degrees Celsius.  Butter a 10 inch spring form pan, if you have one.  Or, line a 10 inch cake pan with parchment paper (which is what I did).

Mix together cookie crumbs and butter, press into pan. Set aside.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, stirring until smooth.  Let cool a bit.

Place the cream cheese in a large bowl and beat until smooth (Or use a mixer if you have one.  Or even the whisk attachment on an immersion blender, if you're desperate like me).  Add the sugar and beat some more. Add the chocolate, beat until it is fully incorporated.  Then add the eggs, one by one, beating well after each addition.  Add the amaretto and sour cream, beat until batter is smooth and even.  Pour the filling on top of the crust, smooth the top slightly with the back of the spoon (and if you're like me and used a cake pan, you probably have some extra batter- yay! you get to make the mini cakes).  Place the pan on a jelly roll or other large pan and pour a cup or so of water into this pan (this will help prevent cracks on the top of the cheesecake).  Place in the oven and bake for about an hour, or until firm.  The center will still be a little jiggly and wet looking.  Remove from the oven and carefully run a knife around the outside or the pan.  Let cool and then place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours and preferably overnight.  Remove from pan, enjoy with whipped cream and the raspberry sauce.

For the Raspberry Sauce (this is a Saba version- not easy to get fresh or even frozen raspberries.  It works though, and is simple and convenient): 

12 ounces seedless raspberry jam

1/4-1/3 cup water

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon Amaretto

Place the jam, water, and lemon in a sauce pan on medium high heat.  Whisk until smooth, bring to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer until it begins to thicken again.  Remove from heat and add the Amaretto.  Serve at room temperature.

Cheesecake Minis!

I made these with the bit of extra batter.  I crushed one cream filled cookie for each hole in the mini muffin tin (didn't bother taking out the cream filling this time or adding butter).  Poured a bit of batter on top to fill.  Baked at the same temperature for about 15 minutes or until set.

Pan fried Whole Redfish with Chimichurri Sauce

Some guy was selling these fresh caught from his cooler and I couldn't resist buying it, even though it wasn't scaled.  So I scaled my first fish and then had to figure out a way to cook it.  Pan frying is a simple, tasty, and quick solution.  I made a chimichurri style sauce to accompany it.

What you need:

A 1.5-2 pound whole redfish, scaled, gutted, and washed (mine was gutted already, but I did have to scale it.  The back of a butterknife works just fine.  It's very messy, though, so you probably want to do it outside.  Do a Google search on how to scale a fish for more direction)

Cooking spray or oil 

Salt, pepper, garlic powder (and anything else you want to season with)

After the fish is scaled, gutted, and well washed, pat it dry with paper towels.  Season the outside and the inside (where the guts were cut out) with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.  Heat a large skillet to HIGH and spray with cooking spray or add a few teaspoons of olive to the pan.  Wait for the oil to heat up and then place the fish in the pan.  Cook on high for 5 minutes on each side (don't move it while it is searing, except to flip).  Reduce heat and continue cooking for another 5-10 minutes, or until it is cooked through.  The skin will be a bit blackened and the fish should flake easily with a fork.  Serve hot and be wary of the bones!  

To make the Chimichurri Sauce:

In a blender, place:

3-4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

3/4 cup EACH loosely packed, roughly chopped mint and parsley (if you have cilantro, replace some of these herbs with it)

2 green onions, roughly chopped

2 small hot peppers, roughly chopped (or only use one if you don't like much heat)

2 teaspoons honey

2 teaspoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice

1-2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1/2-1 teaspoon anchovy paste

Olive oil or water

Blend, adding olive oil or water as needed to help puree everything.  The olive oil, if used, will help mellow out the very fresh flavors in addition to adding its own flavor, but using just water cuts calories and keeps the sauce VERY fresh and tangy tasty. A combination of both would probably be optimal, but I went with just water to keep it very light.  Tasty and bold!

I served the fish over a bed of lettuce with cucumber, sun dried tomatoes, and a wedge of lemon with the sauce on the side  Enjoy!

Peanut Pesto Chicken Salad

What you need:

2 cups chopped cooked chicken

1/2 cup EACH finely diced onion and celery

1/2-2/3 cup Peanut Pesto (see my previous post for this recipe)

1/3 cup olive oil mayonnaise (or try fat free or reduced fat)

1/3 cup chopped sundried tomatoes

Mix everything together.  Let sit for a few hours before serving.  Enjoy!

I stuffed this into pita pockets for my boyfriend, but it would also work well on top of a green salad if you want to go a bit lighter.