Friday, January 21, 2011

Jalapeno-Honey Pork Tenderloin

Sadly, I have no visual aids showing the finished product, and you can thank Harps & Coop for that omission.  Well, that and the fact that I was making our dinner, trying to feed two kids two different meals, and get a duplicate dinner packed up and out the door for some friends down the road.  How many hands do I have?  Yep, still only the two I started out with twenty-five (okay, thirty...) years ago.  ;)  You will just have to take my word on the deliciousness of this entree.  Mmmm, mmm, good!

The marinade.  If only smell-a-vision were a real thing!


Jalapeno-Honey Pork Tenderloin

You will need:
2 12-oz pork tenderloins
1/3 C honey
3TBSP light soy sauce
1 TBSP sesame oil
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped
1 TBSP fresh grated ginger
1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

Now get to work:
Trim the fat from the meat.  Place meat in a resealable plastic bag and set aside.  For marinade, in a small bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, chopped jalapenos, ginger and crushed red pepper.  Pour marinade over meat.  Seal bag; turn to coat meat.  Marinate in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours, turning bag occasionally.

Drain meat, reserving marinade.  Place meat on a rack in roasting pan.  Roast in a 425 degree oven for 25 to 35 minutes or until juices run clear (internal temp of 160 degree F), brushing once with reserved marinade after 10 minutes of roasting.  Discard any remaining marinade.  Remove from oven; cover with foil.  Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Couscous or quinoa would make a great match for this dish.  Or if you are like my mother, you'll pair it (and by "it" I mean everything) with rice.  Garnish with a sprig of cilantro if desired.

Enjoy!

In case you care:
205 cal, 5 g total fat (1 g sat. fat), 330 mg sodium, 16 g carb, 0 g fiber, 23 g protein.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Time for a remodel

...of my kitchen.  (I wish!)  I don't like the look or layout of this blog.  As Harper would say, "it's yucky."  Eloquent, I know.  Gonna have to work on this space - like I don't have enough legitimately important tasks on my to-do list that should come waaaaaay before a blog remodel.  Like that's gonna stop me. ;)

Time to get back to the aforementioned kitchen.  And really, if you are looking for an amazingly good deed with which to start the year, feel free to donate new countertops, a double oven with warming drawer, range, an over-the-range microwave and backsplash to spruce up the Peelton Cafe.  Thanks in advance!

A recipe, and a blog revolution.

As I've finally given up on the idea of sleeping "normally" for at least the next eighteen years, perhaps I can return to my happy state of blogging.  Perhaps this blog is on the brink of having a growth spurt.  Or a remodel?  Whereas I once focused solely on Harper and all but completely skipped over Cooper, now we expect a little dash of this and a heaping spoonful of that.  Oh, this could really be fun for me!  (It is truly the little things for me these days!)

The following recipe is out of Fresh: Healthy Cooking and Living from Lake Austin Spa Resort.  The moment I stole borrowed this cookbook from my mother, I tabbed at least 30 recipes that I intended to photocopy; when I saw how many pages were tabbed, I decided the cookbook ought to make its permanent home with me.  My Pad Thai recipe hails from this delightful book as well.


New Orleans-style Barbecue Shrimp

You will need:
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp dried leaf oregano
1/2 tsp salt
16 oz medium to garlic shrimp, shells on
 2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 C minced onion
2 TBSP flour
1/4 C beer at room temperature
2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 C seafood stock or clam juice
4 TBSP light butter, cut into four pieces
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley
French bread for dipping

Now get to work:
Mix the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, white pepper, thyme, oregano and salt in a bowl; set aside.  Spray a nonstick skillet with nonstick cooking spray and place over medium high heat.  Add the shrimp and saute just until the shrimp begin to turn pink.  Add the spice mixture, garlic and onion.  Cook, stirring constantly, for 30 seconds.  Whisk the flour, beer, Worcestershire and stock in a bowl.  Pour into the skillet and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.  Reduce the heat and add the butter, 1 piece at a time.  Shake the skillet gently just until the butter melts.  Divide the shrimp and sauce among 4 wide-bottom soup bowls.  Garnish with parsley and serve with bread for dunking.

A few minor admissions:
Since my husband and I are addicted to love, er, spice, I doubled the cayenne to 1/2 tsp.  The dish came out spicy enough to omit our obligatory splash of Sriracha, but not hot enough to hurt.  Perfect.

Also, as a SAHM of two little bits, I never know how long they will allow me to work in the kitchen before one begins screaming and the other scatters upwards of one million toys over every inch of the house.  In other words, I have to work fast and in stages.  To increase the likelihood that I would complete this recipe without completely blowing it, I prepped with a handful of small bowls.  One for the spice mixture, one for the garlic and onion, a third for the stock, Worcestershire and beer, and a tiny one containing the flour.  Whisk the flour into the liquid right before you heat up your pan, so you'll be locked and loaded when it's time to go live.

What else, what else?  Oh, I had chicken broth in my cupboard, and I subbed that for the seafood stock.  Gotta make due with what you have on hand when a trip to the grocery store with two ankle-biters in tow is out of the question.  Use whatever beer you fancy - I went with Real Ale Full Moon Pale Rye Ale, and I sure didn't mind drinking the remaining 14 ounces of it later that evening.  Cilantro pinch hit for parsley last night, too.  Forgo the garnish if you have neither available.  Lastly, I paired this with one of those time-saving microwave in 90-seconds bags of rice and beans (Santa Fe medley, if you must know) from my dear Uncle Ben rather than splurging the calories and carbs on the French bread.  Honestly, I would have splurged on the bread if I could trust myself to not devour entire said loaf before the cooking session even began.  Alas, I could not, and I did not.

Enjoy!