Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Grilled Pepper, Peach, and Sweet Onion Topping

Last summer I cut out this recipe from Our State magazine for a grilled pork tenderloin. Somehow I never made it, but when we got a batch of peaches from the CSA this past week I dug it back out to make for my mom, who was in town this weekend.

Since I was getting home a little late from picking my mom up at the airport, Matt started the prep work, dressing the pork tenderloins in olive oil, brown sugar, and cumin.

I cut the red pepper, peaches, and sweet onion into quarters and tossed them in olive oil for Matt to grill, which he did beautifully.

While he put the meat on the grill I waited for the fruits and veggies to cool down so that I could chop them into a salsa.

Once the meat was cooked we let it rest for a few minutes and then served it with the now cooled and chopped salsa.

It's a bad last photo, but this was absolutely delicious. We loved the sweetness of the peaches and the meat, and the smokiness of the vegetables gave the whole meal a really wonderful flavor. We ate this with corn on the cob, and gobbled up leftovers the next day. Tenderloin is kind of expensive, but I would definitely make this again.

Paella (p. 238)

I love paella -- to me, it's a pretty perfect dish. Luckily, this recipe kept me believing that, and this will definitely be added to the list of recipes to make again some day.

Paella is pretty time consuming (this took me about an hour and 45 minutes) but, I think, worth the time.

Start your pre-soaked white beans at a low simmer and cook them until they're done. Start this at the very beginning because it takes a while for them to cook, and you can work on preparing everything else during that time.

You can use a variety of different meats for paella. I used chicken legs, chicken thighs,  pork spare ribs, and shrimp, browning each (or in the case of the shrimp, pinkening) in olive oil and then setting aside.

In the same olive oil, sauté chopped onion until soft, and then add chopped tomatoes. Cook this down into a sauce. Add green beans and the white beans with their cooking water. Stir in a healthy does of paprika and cook until everything has become thick.

Now all the meats (except the shrimp) go back into the pan, and this is where things get tricky. You really need a super huge pan to make paella. Even after cutting the recipe in half, my 12 inch sauté pan was really too small, as evidenced by upcoming pictures.

Pour simmering chicken stock into the pan and add lots of coarse sea salt and rosemary. Pour the rice in around the meat, so that it is fully immersed in the stock. Cook until the rice is completely done (I took mine off the heat a few minutes too early because I was worried that everything was going to overflow the pan.) Add the reserved shrimp, set aside for a few minutes, and serve.

Despite the rice being a tad bit crunchy, this was super delicious. Changes I'd make next time would be cutting down the quantities even more, and using cut pieces of meat instead of meat on the bone -- I think that would make it easier to cook and eat.

pork ribs -- $4.58

chicken stock -- $3.49

shrimp -- $4.16

chicken -- $4.69

onions -- $.65

green beans -- $.56

Total Cost of Paella: $18.13

($3.02 per serving)

Arroz al Horno (p. 233) and Fricassee of WIld Mushrooms (p. 326)

Arroz al Horno is Rice Baked in the Oven and includes a recipe for the cocido (the stock) which I opted not to do because a) I've already made homemade chicken stock before and b) I wasn't entirely sure that it was worth the process. So, I just used Fresh Market stock and hoped for the best.

Begin by simmering chickpeas in chicken stock to soften them up -- this process takes about forty minutes. In the mean time, you've got about a billion things (or maybe just four) to brown (separately) in olive oil; potato chunks, peeled garlic, halved tomatoes, and cubes of lean pork. As each ingredient browns remove it from the oil. Once the pork is done, add in chopped tomato and simmer down for just a couple of minutes and then stir in rice, salt and pepper, and paprika.

I got lazy and browned multiple ingredients at once.

When all the ingredients are cooked, assemble the recipe. Place the garlic in the middle of an oven dish and surround it with the pork and rice mixture. Pour the chickpeas (along with their remaining broth) over the top, pushing the beans down into the rice. Settle the tomato halves on top with the potatoes all around them. Lastly, pour more simmering chicken stock over everything; this is how the rice will cook.

Bake for about 20 minutes until most of the stock is absorbed and then set aside covered in aluminum foil for an additional five minutes before serving.

This was good but not quite as delicious as I had hoped for. I really liked the flavors of the chickpeas and pork but it seemed to be lacking flavor in the rest of the dish. I'm happy for the leftovers but it's not something I would make again, at least without changing a bunch of the ingredients and seasoning.

Luckily, with this I made a side of Fricassee of WIld Mushrooms to give a little addition to the flavor sector of our meal. It's super simple to make -- just sauté onions in olive oil until soft and then add chopped, cleaned mushrooms. Keep over the heat until the mushrooms have absorbed the olive oil and then rereleased it and have become quite soft. Add salt and pepper and then quickly stir in egg beaten with lemon juice. Mix everything up and serve immediately, on top of toasted bread.

I loved how creamy and flavorful this was, and the toasted bread added a great texture to the dish. I just picked up the bread and ate it that way -- it could almost be considered finger food. Plus, so easy! I'd definitely eat this again.

tomatoes -- $4.12

pork -- $2.88

potato -- $.72

chicken broth -- $3.99 (about 2 cups left)

Total Cost of Arroz al Horno: $11.71

($2.34 per serving)

mushrooms -- $2.50

rolls -- $1.99 (several left) 

onion -- $1.55 (3/4 left over)

Total Cost of Fricassee of Wild Mushrooms: $6.04

($2.01 per serving)

Gratin de Haricots au Porc (p. 436)

This is a recipe you need to set aside a little time for -- I had hoped to make it yesterday before heading in to work around noon but got started too late to make it happen; you need to set aside about 2 hours for all the cooking.

That said, this is a pretty easy recipe. It is, as the recipe states, a "simple Cassoulet."

In a saucepan, cook pre-soaked beans with onions, parsley, garlic, a bay leaf, and olive oil in boiling water. Let this simmer for about 40 minutes. It smells ridiculously amazing. I'm really not sure what accounted for the smell, probably a mixture of the garlic and onion, but whatever it was, I want to capture it in a perfume bottle and wear it around town. Not really, but this smelled good.

At the same time, roast pork (the recipe calls for one large piece to be used, but I had two smaller pieces so I took Tim Gunn's advice and made it work) in the oven. To prep the pork, given it a little bath in olive oil and rub in salt and pepper. Cut some slits in the meat and stick chopped garlic in. Set this on a bed of thinly sliced onions, pour white wine on top, and roast for about 40 minutes. You're supposed to baste every ten minutes, but mine really didn't create the juices to be able to do that, perhaps because I halved the recipe.

The cassoulet is assembled by combining the drained beans with the onions and pork (now cut into small pieces.) Deglaze the roasting pan with more wine and add the brown juices from the pan into the dish. (Have I ever mentioned how much I love deglazing pans? Not only do you get the delicious flavors, but it also cuts down cleaning time!)

Stir in some of the reserved bean-cooking-juices, sprinkle on some bread crumbs, and pop it in the oven. After about half an hour, stir the bread crumbs into the top layer of beans and add more bread crumbs on top.

When it comes out of the oven it should have a sort of crust on top, and the majority of the liquid should be absorbed.

And then serve.

This was really good! The pork was juicy and I really liked the crisp topping. I wouldn't make this again (because it took so long) but I would definitely eat it again.

Also, we ate this with a lovely Greek wine that was a birthday present from a friend -- thanks, Angie!

CSA onion -- $.79

wine -- $2.50 (The price of one Target wine juice box, which leaves enough left over for a full glass of wine for one. Coincidence?)

pork -- $1.25

bay leaf -- $1.99 (I just used one from the package. Does anyone know how long they can last in the fridge?)

Total Cost of Gratin de Haricots au Pork: $6.53

Tuscan Black Cabbage and Pork Soup (p. 129)

It's cold and wet and dreary in Raleigh today, which makes it a perfect day for a hearty soup. I actually used kale for this as a substitute for the black cabbage since I received a large head of it in my CSA box this week.

Set some chicken stock to simmer in a large pot, and, separately, cook small cubes of pork in olive oil until they're nice and brown.

Add the meat to the now simmering stock.

Sauté thinly cut onions in the remaining olive oil. I got four small onions from my CSA and they're beautiful, so I was excited to use them.

I have a huge head of local garlic that has been adding great flavor to all my dishes, so I tossed some of that in too, along with a crumbled dried chili. Once everything was softened it went into the stock as well.

Lastly, stir in salt, pepper, chopped parsley, and the slivered kale. Cover the dish and leave for about 15 minutes, until the kale is completely cooked. Serve with a little cheese on top.

This was great -- I wasn't expecting to really enjoy it but I did. The garlic and chili pepper added a great kick. I only made half the recipe, which I don't recommend -- there wasn't really enough stock to make that quantity, so my soup doesn't have a huge liquid base to it, but it's still scrumptious.

CSA kale -- $1.58

pork -- $1.50

CSA onion -- $.79

parsley -- $.89

Total Cost of Tuscan Black Cabbage and Pork Soup: $4.76

($1.59 per serving)

Spanish Cassola with Pasta and Pork (p. 216)

This is also called Fideus a la Cassola and kind of reminds me of Bertolli's Skillet Sensations, but in a good way.

Dice the pork and sauté it in olive oil until lightly browned, then add in chopped onions and a thinly sliced red pepper.

Continue cooking until the pepper has softened  and then add in peeled and seeded chopped tomatoes. Cook these down until they have become a thick sauce and then add in peas (I used frozen because I knew I wouldn't have time to shell any.)

Next up is making the picada, which is a sort of coarse paste that adds a lot of flavor to the dish. Roast hazelnuts in the oven until golden -- I used the pre-chopped nuts sold in the cooking section, so I didn't bother chopping them down further after that. Fry a slice of country-style bread (crusts removed) in olive oil until it is golden on both sides.

Add the bread, nuts, and chopped garlic and parsley to a food processor and mix until the ingredients are well combined to a thick paste.

Pour dry, uncooked pasta into the tomato and pork mixture. The recipe calls for noodles -- something long and thin -- but I used a combination of penne and shells because that's what was in my pantry. This part of the recipe is similar to how you make risotto; slowly add simmering chicken stock in stages to the pan. As the pasta absorbs the stock add more in. I used more stock than the recipe called for to make sure the pasta was thoroughly cooked. After the last of the stock has been added, stir in the picada.

Let the dish sit for about five minutes and then serve topped with grated cheese.

This was delicious and we'll totally make it again. The pork absorbs the flavors of the sauce and the picada added a really unexpected nutty flavor. This was a win for both of us.

pork -- $2.38

onion -- $.76

tomatoes -- $1.57

frozen peas -- $3.99 (used 1/2 a cup)

hazelnuts -- $1.99 (used about 1/2 the package)

bread -- $2.19 (used 1 of the four rolls -- we ate the others with dinner and leftovers)

chicken stock -- $2.69 (used about 3/4)

Total Cost of Spanish Cassola with Pasta and Pork: $15.57

Afelia (p. 434)

Afelia is Cypriote Braised Pork with Wine, Cinnamon, and Coriander, and it is a tasty thing.

The pork needs to marinate for at least 8 hours, so this is one that requires a little advance planning. Cut it into 1 to 2 -inch pieces and toss all the pieces with red wine (a California Cabernet Sauvignon is recommended), crushed coriander seeds, and a cinnamon stick. Place this covered in the fridge to marinate.

When you're ready to cook the dish drain the pork from the marinade, but reserve the liquid for later use. 

Pat the meat dry and toss it in a pot along with olive oil, cooking it until the pork is browned on all sides. This is a little difficult to tell, since the pork is purple from the red wine. I just guesstimated when it was finished and then pulled the pork pieces out and set them aside.

Next up, put peeled small white onions into the oil and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Add the meat back into the pot along with the marinade that had been set aside, and salt and pepper. Cover the pot tightly and set at a low simmer for about 2 hours, until the pork is tender and the sauce is syrupy.

I made polenta to serve the pork on top of, and it was lovely.

I realize that this picture makes the meal look a little gross, but it really wasn't. The pork in its sauce is almost like a stew, and very rich. We needed to add a little extra salt and pepper, so don't feel afraid to really add some spices to stew in the pot.

wine -- $7.99 (about 2 cups were used in the recipe and we drank the rest with dinner)

pork -- $11.69

onions -- $2.99

Total Cost of Afelia: $22.67

Turkish Beans with Potatoes and Celery Root (p. 252) and Andalucian Spiced Mini-Kebabs (p. 101)

So this Turkish bean recipe is actually entitled Turkish Beans with Potatoes, Celery Root, and Carrots, but by this point I think we all know how I feel about carrots in any form other than raw raw raw. So I ditched them and decided that would be okay.

I started soaking the dried white beans last night so that this evening after work I just needed to drain them and start simmering them on the stove. The beans take about an hour to cook, but they're only alone in the pot for the first half hour. During that time I sauteed garlic and onion in olive oil. Once they were soft, I added in the peeled and chopped potato and celery root for about 15 minutes.

At this point the root veggies were starting to soften but not yet browning. I tossed them into the pot with the beans along with some salt and left them to simmer together for the last half hour.

When the bean dish was removed from the heat and ready to go I stirred in chopped parsley and served.

This is a really hearty and filling dish, and I liked the little bit of sweetness that the celery root brought to it.

The mini-kebabs are really more of an appetizer and are also called Pinchos Morunos. The only prep work they require is mixing together some spices for the marinade; minced garlic, salt, coriander seeds, cumin, turmeric (which I had to buy), and paprika combined with olive oil and lemon juice. Stir this all together, first grounding the garlic into the salt with a pestle, and then add the pork, cut into small pieces. Make sure all the meat is covered in the marinade and set aside in the fridge for about an hour.

I cooked mine under the broiler of the oven, but it could also be done on a grill. Thread the meat onto skewers that have been soaked for about a half hour.

Cook for 6 minutes, flipping once, and serve immediately.

These were incredibly delicious. I would make them again in a heartbeat, though I might leave out the coriander seeds because I don't love their flavor. Still, everything else -- exactly the same. The pork was cooked perfectly and it was super good. Make this one.

beans -- $1.29

celery root -- $4.99

potatoes -- $1.17 (CSA price)

Total Cost of Turkish Beans with Potatoes and Celery Root: $7.45

turmeric -- $1.82

pork -- $4.49

Total Cost of Andalucian Spiced Mini-Kebabs: $6.31

Mita's Tuscan Sugo (p. 201)

I was all alone this weekend while Matt was at the beach with his parents and sister, but I still wanted to do some cooking. Pasta has always been a comfort food of mine -- we ate it at least once a week growing up, so I chose Mita's Tuscan Sugo, a tomato sauce with a little bit of ground meat poured over a long, thin pasta.

With olive oil at the bottom of my sauté pan I slowly cooked chopped parsley, celery, and onion until they were soft. I accidentally left out the garlic. Whoops. If you make this -- add garlic.

I added a small amount of ground pork to the pan and kept if over the heat until the meat was thoroughly cooked. A little white wine was poured in and boiled down, just for flavor, and then I added chopped tomatoes (juices included) and cooked until the majority of the liquid had been absorbed and the tomatoes had lost most of their form.

I mixed in some slivered  basil (which is growing like gangbusters in my herb pot) and salt and pepper and then spooned the sauce over linguini.

I also forgot to put parmesan on top of the pasta, but I was okay with that. The dish didn't blow me away, but it's a very solid pasta dish and relatively easy to to make. I liked how it had meat in it, but the meat didn't overpower the rest of the tomato sauce in any way, it just added a nice flavor. I wouldn't necessarily make this again, just because there are so many delicious pasta sauces out there, but I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the leftovers!

parsley -- $1.69 (tons left)

celery -- $1.69 (tons left)

onion -- $ .94 (half left)

ground pork -- $.42

tomatoes -- $1.57 (CSA price)
linguini -- $1.99

Total Cost of Mita's Tuscan Sugo: $8.28

Braised Pork with Sweet and Hot Peppers (p.435) and Cumin-Scented Lentils and Rice (p. 259)

Matt and I enjoyed the pork roast I made last week so much that I decided to try out another pork dish -- this time made on the stove instead of in the oven.

In a skillet, I sauteed onion and garlic for about 15 minutes before pushing them out of the way and adding pork tenderloins to the pan. The pork is browned on both sides in the pan, and then flavored with salt, pepper, and rosemary.

Once the meat had been seasoned, I added a mixture of water, red wine, and balsamic vinegar to the pan, and placed thin strips of sweet and hot peppers (I used jalapeno, anaheim, and a bunch of super tiny colorful sweet peppers) over the whole mixture. Cover the pan for about 20 minutes, until the peppers are soft, and then serve.

Meanwhile, I was also working on Cumin-Scented Lentils and Rice, or Mujaddarah. I have never done anything with lentils before. Including eating them, I think. In fact, when I went to the store, I first looked in the produce section. Whoops. Next time I know, rice aisle.

The rinsed lentils are added to a cup of boiling water, along with a couple of bay leaves. These cook until all the water has been absorbed, and then another cup of boiling water and rinsed rise is added. The whole mixture simmers with salt, pepper, and cumin for another 20 or so minutes, until the water is again absorbed.

In another pan, I very slowly sauteed thin slices of yellow onion for about 15 minutes.

The onions are poured (along with any extra olive oil in the pan) over the lentils and served immediately.

Both of these recipes turned out really well. The pork was delicious -- you could really taste the wine and the outside was beautifully browned.

The lentils were really flavorful as well. We both added a little extra salt and pepper to them, and I enjoyed them mixed with a little of the sauce from the pork.

Both of us agreed that this is one of the best complete meals we've had from the book so far. Both parts were great individually, but they also paired together nicely.

pork tenderloins -- $1.93 (on super sale at Harris Teeter)

red wine -- $9.99 (plenty left to drink)

peppers -- $4.75 (a few left over)

Total Cost of Braised Pork with Sweet and Hot Peppers: $16.67

lentils -- $1.49 (most of the bag is left)

rice -- $2.39 (most of the bag is left)

sweet onion -- $.96

Total Cost of Cumin-Scented Lentils and Rice: $4.84 (with tons of leftovers)

Arista di Maiale (p. 432)

There's a neat little story about this dish at the beginning of the recipe, about how it was served at a church council meeting in Florence in 1430 to try to mend differences between the Roman and Greek Churches. The Greek bishops, upon eating it, said "Arista!, Arista!," which means, apparently, "this is really terrific!" 

And it is. 

In English, we would call this Florentine Roast Loin of Pork, and it's roasted pork with a very basic sauce all up in it. The recipe actually calls for a pork loin that has the undercut attached so that it is two similarly sized pieces connected at one side. I couldn't find this, so I cut my piece down the middle leaving one end attached.

Also, the recipe calls for a 4 pound pork loin but two people really don't need that much pork. I bought one about half that size.

I created a rub for the inside of the meat with a lot of garlic, fresh rosemary, salt, pepper, and olive oil. It looked and smelled pretty amazing.

This is rubbed all over the inside of the pork roast, and then I closed the two sides back together, tying them with butcher's twine (which I own, incredibly.) Sprigs of rosemary are stuffed underneath the twine, and then the whole of it is brushed down with olive oil and salt. 

Here it is prepped and ready to go into the oven.

The recipe said it would take one and a half to two hours to cook, but since my piece of pork was half the size of what the recipe called for I wanted to be very careful about not overcooking. Instead of going by time, I used a meat thermometer to wait for the internal temperature to reach 160 degrees. Every twenty minutes or so, I basted the meat with dry white wine and its own juices.

It ended up taking about an hour and 20 minutes to reach the correct temperature, and smelled wonderful. The meat was really tender and flavorful, and the skin was nice and crispy around the edges. Matt said this is one of his favorite dishes so far, and that I'll have to make it again.

We have plenty leftover for several days worth of sandwiches, and according to the cookbook the pork is even better the next day. We already have ours cut up in thin slices to take for lunch tomorrow along with homemade bread. Yum.

dry white wine -- $6.99 (only needed a 1/2 cup for basting)

pork roast -- $10.06

Total Cost of Arista di Maiale: $ 17.05