What's For Dinner?

Here's what we've had for dinner lately...

1. Baked ham and broccoli salad.
2. Chili.
3. Spinach and mushroom tart.
4. Clam chowder.
5. Fried chicken and slaw.
6. Bacon and eggs.

What's been on your dinner plate lately?

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What's For Dinner?

Here's what I've been cooking up in the kitchen lately...

1. Teriyaki glazed chicken with grilled pineapple.
2. Chicken breasts stuffed with mozzarella and sun dried tomatoes.
3. Spinach salad with chicken and shaved parmesan.
4. Buttermilk blueberry pancakes.
5. Creamy chicken and vegetable soup.
6. BBQ Chicken sandwiches and slaw.
7. Pork tenderloin with cranberry chutney.

What have you been cooking lately?

There's a meatloaf in the oven right now...the

smell is killing me!

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What's For Dinner?

Here's what we've been eating lately...quick

and easy summer dinners...

1. Grilled cheese burgers with cole slaw.
2. Fried eggs on english muffins.
3. Cucumber salad topped with chilled grilled salmon.
4. Balsamic pork tenderloin sandwiches and sweet corn.
5. Chicago dogs with deep fried asparagus.
6. And we have to end with something sweet, of course!

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Serendipity Cooking

It's my favorite kind of cooking...

Look in the refrigerator and see what needs using up!

Monday night I put a spaghetti squash in the microwave.

While that cooked, I grilled a pork tenderloin

and threw zucchini, onion, mushrooms and garlic

in a skillet with olive oil.

Then everything came together and was sprinkled

with shredded Parmesan, salt and pepper.

The Mister said to remember how I made it, because

he wants it again!  And I do, too!

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Bread and Butter Pickles

I made Bread and Butter Pickles from some cucumbers

out of our garden this past week.  They turned out great

and we've been eating them on burgers, sandwiches

and paninis!  This recipe was a keeper and easy, too!

Today we had them on Balsamic Pork Tenderloin Sliders.

 I think this was my favorite so far.

Just slow roast a tenderloin 6 hours at 250 that you've

smothered with brown sugar, garlic, soy sauce,

balsamic vinegar, olive oil and kosher salt.

Seal pot with foil and let it turn into melt-in-your-mouth

yumminess while you play all day. :)

Then we washed them down with blueberry smoothies.

Mmmm.

Bread and Butter Pickles

source

5½ cups (about 1½ pounds) thinly sliced pickling cucumbers
1½ tablespoons kosher salt
1 cup thinly sliced sweet onion
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup white vinegar
½ cup apple cider vinegar
¼ cup light brown sugar
1½ teaspoons mustard seeds
½ teaspoon celery seeds
1/8 teaspoon ground turmeric

1. Combine cucumbers and salt in a large, shallow bowl; cover and chill 1½ hours. Move cucumbers into a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water. Drain well, and return cucumbers to bowl. Add onion to the bowl and toss with the cucumbers.

2. Combine the granulated sugar, white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, mustard seeds, celery seeds and ground turmeric in a medium saucepan; bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Pour the hot vinegar mixture over cucumber mixture; let stand at room temperature 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate 24 hours. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator up to 2 weeks.

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New Years Day Pork Tenderloin With Saurkraut

I know this is a traditional meal for New Year's Day here in the

USA, but I've never made it!  My future daughter-in-law, who happens to

love it, was talking about it a few days ago, so I thought I'd give it a try.

I looked online and found a recipe for Lancaster, PA Pork and

Kraut, which just happens to be right where she lives!

I changed a few things and came up with this.... 

Pork and Kraut

I browned a 4 lb tenderloin in olive oil, removed from heat and

rubbed with salt, pepper, and minced garlic.

Then I layered on a sliced onion, two sliced and peeled apples,

a can of kraut and 4 T brown sugar.

Cover and roast at 250 for 4-5 hours.

(I think next time I won't cover it since there

was so much liquid, and put the pork on top

of all the layers.)

And I hear it's some kind of sacrilege to serve without mashed 

potatoes, so of course, we happily followed along!

Yum!  It was delicious and the pork was so tender!

Do you have a traditional meal on New Year's Day?

Would you believe I slept until 11:30 this morning?

This hostess was tired from the whole month of December.

Not to mention someone's snoring kept me up until around 3. ha.

And when I finally did get up, The Mister had taken down

the Christmas tree!  Glad I missed that chore! ha ha.

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Grilled Marinated Pork Tenderloin

For dinner today we had this yummy tenderloin on the grill.

I used Trader Joe's Soyaki, a blend of soy sauce, teriyaki, garlic and sesame.

It marinated a full 24 hours in the refrigerator, then was brought to room temperature

for about an hour before grilling.  Sprinkle with kosher salt and grill about 12 minutes

 per side for a medium doneness.  Be sure to let the meat rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

They were so tender you could cut them with the side of your fork!  Wow.  So good!

And since I will be extra busy the next few days decorating cookies,

I made extra so we can have leftovers!  Love it when I'm organized

enough to remember to do stuff like that. ha.

I'm linking up with Marsha at The Weekend Potluck!

Click HERE to visit her blog and other yummy recipes!

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Risotto From Leftovers

Once you try making risotto and you see it really isn't as intimidating as you thought,

you can make the basic recipe and throw in whatever you want for a one-dish meal!

I had one thick boneless grilled porkchop and a cup of frozen peas...add

lots of garlic, thyme and parmesan cheese and dinner was ready in 45 minutes.

A pinch longer than my usual goal of 30 minutes, but so worth it!

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Slow Cooked BBQ Ribs

This was The Mister's birthday dinner last Friday evening. If you need a fool proof recipe for ribs, this is a good one. Cut slabs in half, which is a serving size, approximately. Lay ribs in a pan, (it's ok if they overlap a little). Pour 1 bottle of beer over them and sprinkle with chili powder. Seal tightly with foil and bake at 250 for 6 hours or more. Just before serving, carefully remove slabs onto a cookie sheet, spread tops with your favorite sauce and return to the oven uncovered for 15 minutes. They fall off the bone. Perfect every time. Yum.

Served here with cole slaw and THESE onion rings.

And THIS chocolate cake recipe, of course. :)

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