Apple Tree Blossoms
Yeah, I’ve gotten pretty far behind on posting here. Hopefully I’ll be caught up in a week or two. It’s mid-summer now, but here are a few shots of the first flowers that bloom in My yard every year. Too bad the squirrels haven’t let us have any of the apples in a decade or so…
A New Place to Taste
I guess this place opened about 3 months ago. Located in east Saint Paul, ‘Cook’ looks to be a place that I shall be going to again soon. I opted to get a Monte Cristo sandwich, which was very yummy. Next time I shall get the Short Ribs Eggs Benedict, which one of My friends ordered. The bite of it that I got was quite delicious. Also pictured is their Brunch Burger and homemade Apple Pie.
Fancy Feast
Last fall, I headed up to northern Wisconsin with My brother and some friends. During that trip, two of the bunch proposed a monthly cook-off. The original theme was simply ‘make Your s*** fancy.’ What can I say, it was a weekend of drinking, shooting and dirt bikes. The feast idea changed slightly after that and starting this past January, Fancy Feast had begun. Instead of making it a competition, it is a slightly less intense meal making endeavor. Four courses minimum, guests bring a bottle of decent booze as tribute, or declare themselves the next host/cook for the feast.
First up was My friend Keith, who made some beet and cheese appetizers that were quite good. Followed by a lobster and shrimp torta with lima beans, avacodo topped with seasoned cream cheese and an encrusted herby salmon bake. Then, He banged out a lovely candied bacon, puffed cream and brownie desert.
February went to My brother, Chris. Churning out seven dishes and various drinks. I did however neglect to catch a picture of the fresh pumpkin bread desert. Pictured are His mushroom soup, with leeks. Egg cooked in swirling water and hash, a topper variety plate, cold soba and soy sauce, what I think was a chorizo dish and meatballs cooked forever in a pho soup stock.
I called March’s meal. My theme was simply to do something different. So, no stir-fry. No grill, or smoker. No cajun spices, chili blends, sherry, or even soy sauce. I struggled a bit, making multi-course meals that come round after round doesn’t mesh particularly well with My laid back, ‘just throw some stuff together and hope it’s good’ cooking tendencies. I produced the minimum of four dishes. Bacon and baby lima bean soup, spicy sweet potato mash with roasted brocolli and pistachios on toast, fruit stuffed pork tenderloin roll and finished with citrus gratin. The desert was kind of odd honestly, but it had much potential to be delicious. Something to ponder on how to go about improving.
Fruit Stuffed Tenderloin
A sweet and savory meat dish. It’s a recipe I stumbled upon while sifting through a stack of old family cook books a couple years ago. No idea why I didn’t attempt to make it sooner. Far more delicious than I anticipated after reading the ingredient list. If you use the right amount of apple juice in the roasting pan, you end up with 2 sweet sauces to accompany your meal. I drizzled the apple/dripping sauce atop some spinach and cooked down the last of the basting sauce to use for dipping. Loins cooked in this fashion would go well with some wild rice and steamed, buttered asparagus, or brussel sprouts, or as pictured, with fresh greens. Serves 8 to 12 depending on the size of your tenderloin.
Supplies Needed: Sauce Pan, Roasting Pan or Baking Sheet with high sides, Mixing Bowl, Cook’s String, and a Large Sheet or cutting board for prep. If Your tenderloin did not come in a vacuum sealed, leak-proof packaging, You shall also need something large enough to soak the meat in.
Ingredients:
1 Pork Tenderloin
1 Large Onion, chopped
3/4 of a cup of Bread Crumbs
half a cup of Dried Cranberries
half a cup of Dried Apricots, chopped
half a cup of Golden Raisins
half a cup of Apricot Preserves
1 cup of Apple Juice, possibly more.
1.5 cups of Port Wine
2 tbsp of Thyme
1 tsp or so of Cinnamon
1 cup of water
2 tsp or so of sea salt
Salt and Pepper to taste
Prep and Cooking:
First, mix a cup of the port wine, a cup of water and 2 teaspoons or so of sea salt. Mix until the salt has dissolved. Put Your tenderloin into the mixture and store in the fridge for at least 6 hours, rotating the meat as needed to get it soaking in from all sides.
In a mixing bowl, combine the onions, bread crumbs, dried fruit and a quarter cup of the port. Next, You must butterfly the tenderloin. Lay it out length-wise on a sheet or cutting board and slice down the side, half way up like a hot dog bun. Do try to make the top and bottom even in thickness, or it will cook un-evenly. After it’s cut open, salt and pepper all sides to Your liking. Lay it with the inside facing up and rub/sprinkle on the thyme and cinnamon, then spread the dried fruit and bread crumb mixture evenly over the meat, fold the tenderloin back up and tie it shut. Pre-heat Your oven to 350 degrees. Place the loin in the roasting pan, pouring the apple juice into the bottom of the pan. Roast for 35 minutes.
In a small sauce pan, bring the preserves and remaining port(1/4c) to a boil, stir until it starts to thicken up a bit. I started this sauce 25 minutes into the roasting on medium-low heat and it was a nice semi-thickened sauce, perfect for basting when I checked the loin at 35 minutes. Use this sauce to spread upon the tenderloin. You will want 3 to 5 layers for a nice sweet glaze. Continue to roast, basting every 5-10 minutes until the tenderloin is cooked fully, a meat thermometer should read at 160 degrees(F) or more. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5-10 minutes, slice and serve!
Notes:
This recipe is very sweet. The dried fruit and the port have a fair amount of sweetness to them, then You add the apricot preserves into the mix as well. If You can aquire some ‘less sugar added’ preserves, I would do so.
If You’re buying a tenderloin that comes in vacuum sealed plastic, You can make the brine/marinade with half of the quantity listed above. Cut a slit at one end of the packaging, drain the extra liquids and pour in the salted wine marinade, tying the end shut again with string, or twist ties. This is the most effective method for spreading the flavor, as well as using the least amount of wine/water/salt. On the other hand, those buying from a butcher, hunter or farmer will likely have to use a large bowl or cooking pot/pan of some variety. Which will require much more of the marinade to be made. If You have a ‘food saver’ or vacuum sealer, this might be a nice time to get some use out of it..
A Tale of Two Feasts
Thanksgiving, the gathering of foods and families that many of us look forward to year after year. Followed by Turkey Day, which is the Saturday following the traditional American holiday, as observed by My family and a few friends. While others are still picking over their left-overs, We proceed to make another whole Thanksgiving style meal. This works for us, since Thanksgiving is often done at other relatives houses and many have 2 or 3 gatherings to attend on the ‘Thursday of Fattening.’ Fortunately, just about every one in our extended family is a cook. There are a few chefs as well, so no matter who’s home You go to for the holidays, the food is always amazing!
On Thursday, I woke up, plucked My second of the five lemons from My little tree and the one next to it dropped down into the pot below. So I brought two lemons with, as My contribution to the feast to be enjoyed. As such, We rounded up the immediate family and headed across town to My Aunt and Uncle’s, where We consumed a delicious meal. Anchored by a fresh turkey, as juicy and tender as can be, wonderfully done. Happily, They already had a bit of a citrus theme going. My Uncle rapidly applied one of the freshly picked lemons to the asparagus He had going, then placed nice, thin slices into water goblets, to be filled with sparkling water, using the last bits to garnish the asparagus. It went well with the sweet potato and pear casserole type thing and it’s very citrus laden flavor.
Among the rest of the meal, was a ginger, orange chutney sauce. A nice suprise, as I loathe the canned cranberry sauce so many of us encounter on such a day. This may have looked like something similar, I assume it had cranberry as well, but was so much more. Thanks, given.
My Mom did all of the cooking for Turkey Day this year. Brining and then smoking the turkey, as has become the method for Us. Proper mashed potatoes, boiled, buttered and hand beaten to a chunky, but mashed state, skin on. Homemade gravy, thick and delicious, to tie everything together. The traditional green bean casserole, with crunchy fried onions atop of it. Along with one of Her best recipes, STUFFING, or dressing as some call it. Piles of intentionally stale, dry’ish wheat bread and cornbread, a mound of chopped mushrooms, onions and celery, many bowls worth of stock(or broth?) and several handfuls of herbs, mixed up and baked.. Then, two pies emerged, can’t leave with out a slice of that in My belly, right? Pumpkin, or apple? Both? Yeah, yummy stuff!
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