Pork Tenderloin with Date and Cilantro Relish

Joe found a luscious loin rib roast for $1.49 a pound, and we cut it into several pieces to last a few meals. I don't know about you, but we don't find deals like this very often. The sweet/savory fruit relish was perfect; lush and flavorful and special enough for Christmas dinner. If you use a tenderloin, it's also quick to make, since the meat only needs to roast a short time to keep it tender and juicy.

Ingredients

2/3 cup dates, finely chopped
3 tbsp orange juice
1 tsp sage
3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped, plus whole leaves for serving
3 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 1/2 lbs pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp garlic powder

Directions

Whisk together dates, orange juice, sage, cilantro, and 2 tbsp olive oil. Set aside.

If you're cooking a tenderloin, heat the oven to 425 degrees. If you have a bigger, thicker rib roast, you'll want to cook it at 350 for a longer time.

Heat the last tbsp of oil in a large ovenproof skillet. Sprinkle the salt, pepper, and garlic all over the roast, then brown it on all sides - about 6 to 8 minutes. 

Place the skillet in the oven and roast the tenderloin at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes, or the pork roast at 350 for about an hour. The meat is done when a meat thermometer stuck in the center reads 140 degrees. Remove from oven and let it rest on a cutting board for 10 minutes.

Drain the oil from the pan drippings, then stir the drippings into the fruit relish mixture. Slice the pork, then spoon the date mixture over the top before serving.

Serves 4.

Read more...

Kale with Bacon and Pine Nuts

Our very last Iron Chef Bacon Cook Off recipe comes from my friend John, our tattooed and Harley-riding church consultant friend who loves his food creation time as a meditative, relaxing practice. We've enjoyed many of his fabulous dishes over the years. This wilted kale salad has all the good benefits of leafy greens, along with buttery pine nuts and of course, good-quality bacon.

This dish can be whipped up quickly and is great for a side dish or a main-meal salad.

Ingredients

1 very large bunch of kale, mustard greens, or other leafy greens, stemmed and washed
8 strips of bacon
1/2 cup chopped green onion
3/4 cups pine nuts
1 small lemon

Instructions

Toast the pine nuts over medium heat in a dry skillet. Be careful not to burn. In a large pot, fry the bacon, remove and let cool on paper towel. When cool, crumble. Save the bacon grease.

Cook the green onion in bacon grease until soft. Add kale to pot; it may not all fit at first. Add 3/4 cup water. Put lid on pot to wilt the kale. Stir/toss occasionally. Add additional kale until all is wilted. Add bacon and toasted pine nuts and toss. Squeeze the juice of 1 small lemon. Toss before serving.

Serves 4.

Read more...

Paul's Pork Wontons

This easy recipe for pork wontons is one that my step dad Paul learned when he was teaching agricultural methods in Vietnam during the war. My mom calls them "little porkies".

In this photo, Paul is grilling with his brother in my parents' annual family barbecue, the August Corn Fest. They set up big tables and chairs on the back acre that was once used as an animal paddock, and grill up a couple hundred ears of corn picked from their fields. He's a good griller as well as a cook.

The wontons in the picture below have been steamed. They can be fried, steamed, boiled in soups, or whatever else your imagination suggests. Here is my Dad's recipe.

Ingredients

1 lb. Ground Pork
1/2 cup green onions, diced

2 tsp ground ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced
Won Ton Skins
Hot Chinese Mustard

Teriyaki or Soy Sauce

Directions

I take a pound of ground pork and cut into 4 sections. This gives us about 12 to 14 pieces per section. Mix diced green onions, ginger, and garlic into the pork.

Take one wonton skin and wet one side with water, place a dash of ground pork on the center of the wet won ton (amount of pork is determined by you) and then fold the wonton and seal. Place on plate to deep fry later.

The original process calls for rice paper instead of wonton skins. Rice paper comes dry but need to be moistened with water so it can be rolled with ground pork in it.

Deep fry the wonton skins with the pork. I use a skillet with frying oil. Caution: warm oil slowly and do not over heat or the little porkies will come out dark brown and raw inside (that’s a no-no). When lightly brown and floating on the oil, turn them over to cook on the other side for about the same time.

Mix to taste, teriyaki or soy sauce with Chinese Hot Mustard. Dip deep fried wontons into the sauce and enjoy. We serve the cooked won tons with a vegetable stir fry over rice. 

Note: The original sauce is fish sauce with nothing added.

Serves 4.

Read more...

Hanoi-Style Pork and Chicken Vermicelli Soup (Bún Chả Hà Nội)

Ah, our jobs keep us too busy to travel in the near future. Instead, Joe and I whipped up a savory bowl of this traditional soup from Hanoi. According to Vietnamese chef Eric Nguyen, this is popular street food in found only in that northern city. People eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

We simplified his original recipe in the cookbook My Vietnam by using chili-garlic paste instead of a bird's eye chili, and instead of pork terrine, we added tofu that we needed to use up. This was fresh-tasting and satisfying, and the leftovers were just as good.

Ingredients

8 cups hot chicken broth
2 tsp sugar
1/4 cup fish sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp chili-garlic paste
2 tsp salt
3 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
3 oz pork fillet, cut into matchstick slices
4 oz firm tofu, cubed
9 oz dried rice vermicelli noodles
2 eggs
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp green onions, cut into matchstick slices
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
1/2 cup mint leaves
1 cup mung bean sprouts
Shrimp paste, to taste

Directions

In a large pot, stir together the chicken broth, sugar, fish sauce, garlic, chili-garlic paste, and salt. Bring to a boil, then drop in the chicken, tofu, and pork. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the meat and tofu to a bowl and keep it warm; keep the broth simmering until ready to serve.

Cook the vermicelli according to package directions, until it is barely tender. Rinse in cold water and allow it to drain, stirring to prevent it from sticking. Add a little oil if the noodles start to clump - rice noodles can be very sticky.

Slightly beat the eggs. Place a large non-stick frying pan on the stove and warm the oil. Pour about 1/4 of the egg into the pan in a thin layer. Cook for one minute, until just set, then flip it over and cook the other side. The egg should be very tender. Slide the egg off onto a cutting board. Repeat with the rest of the egg mixture, stacking the egg "pancakes" on the cutting board. Then roll the egg stack into a cylinder and cut it into thin slices.

Ladle the broth into each person's bowl. At the table, let each guest add vermicelli, then the meats, then the egg strips. If desired, stir a little shrimp paste into the bowl. Top with green onions, mint, and bean sprouts, and provide extra fish sauce for dipping. Store leftovers separately so that the tofu and rice vermicelli don't get gummy by soaking in the broth.

Serves 4-6.

Read more...

Sausage & Apple Skewers with Honey-Mustard Glaze

A few days later, one of my friends gave me an enormous bouquet of sage and kale from her garden. I fried up some of the sage, Italian-fashion, but saved some for these luscious fall-flavored sausage skewers. We used firm honeycrisp apples, as they hold their shape well when cooking, along with curls of white onion and slices of those fresh sage leaves. A super-easy honey-mustard sauce goes over the top - so delicious.

Ingredients

10-12 wooden skewers

1 pound mild Italian Sausage, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pound hot Italian Sausage, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups firm tart apples, like Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, or Jonathan, cored and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 cup onion, cut into quarters, then separated into leaves or curls
5 large sage leaves, torn into small pieces
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup stone ground mustard
3 tbsp apple cider viegar
2 tsp garlic powder

Directions

Soak the wooden skewers for about 15 minutes, to prevent burning. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, or the grill to medium heat.

Thread the sausage, apple chunks, onion, and sage pieces onto the skewers. Whisk together the honey, mustard, vinegar, and garlic powder, then drizzle half over the skewers.

If roasting in the oven, place the skewers on a baking sheet and cook for 15 minutes. Flip them over, drizzle with the remaining glaze, then roast until the sausage is fully cooked, about 15 to 20 minutes more.

If grilling the skewers, place directly on the grill and cook them, turning frequently, for about 30 minutes, basting them with the honey-mustard glaze occasionally.

Serves 4.

Read more...

Pork Chop Valdostano (stuffed pork chop)

Joe and I were looking through cookbooks for some new recipe ideas, and I pulled down a cookbook from Rao's, a famous Italian restaurant in New York City. The original recipe was made with veal chops, prosciutto, and golden raisins, but we made it a little more budget-friendly with Virginia ham, black raisins, and boneless pork chops. Joe gave the recipe a few more tweaks for our taste, and he says that next time he makes this, he'll try a bone-in chop for ease of stuffing, and golden raisins for a prettier presentation.

Ingredients
6 6 oz, 1 1/2 inch thick pork chops, trimmed of all fat
12 pieces of ham or prosciutto, thinly sliced
1/2 cup black or golden raisins
6 thin slices of mozzarella cheese
2 cups flour
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sliced white mushrooms
1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp. butter
2 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup Marsala wine
1/4 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
3 tbsp. chopped Italian parsley

For the egg batter:
2 large eggs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
2 tbsp. minced Italian parsley
dash of salt and pepper

Directions
Cut each chop open horizontally to the bone, splitting it open like a hamburger bun. Pound the meat very thin. Layer the inside of each chop with a slice of ham,  a spoonful of raisins, a slice of mozzarella, and another slice of ham. Fold the top of the chop down and pound the edges together until sealed.

Heat oil in a large saucepan on medium heat. Dredge each chop in flour and then dip the chops into the egg batter. Cook the chops five minutes on each side, then place on a platter and keep warm in the oven.

Sprinkle the onions with flour and then saute in the saucepan until soft. Add the mushrooms and saute until tender, about five minutes. Stir in butter, and when it is melted, return the chops to the pan.

Pour in the broth and wine and bring to a boil. Cover the pan and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Place a chop on each plate and pour several spoonfuls of sauce over the top. Sprinkle with parsley and Parmesan before serving.

Serves 6.

Find more of Rao's recipes here.

Read more...

Pork Medallions and Mushrooms in Brandy Cream Sauce

This is one of those absolutely exquisite dishes that I dream about for weeks after tasting it. If you really want to make a special meal for someone, this is the one to make. I made it for Joe's birthday this year and it was a very happy birthday for him!

The New German Cookbook, where we got the inspiration for this recipe, translates the dish as Schweinemedaillons en Weinbrand-Sauce. I confess I don't know how to pronounce this, though I should know more German than how to be polite and order a beer.

Anyway, the sauce is the most exquisite part of this dish. Once I cleaned my plate, I ran my finger over the dish to get the last bits of gravy. The night we made this, I intended to make fresh egg spaetzle (tiny German dumpling-noodles), but it was getting late, so I just cooked up some rotini. It was a mistake. Please, please go all the way and make the spaetzle, which is more tender than pasta and will soak up the luscious sauce. It's really not hard to make spaetzle. My family recipe is here: Detzner Spaetzle Recipe.

This would also be good over mashed potatoes or rice, instead of spaetzle.

Ingredients

1 pound pork tenderloin, sliced 1/2" thick
4 tbsp butter
1/4 cup brandy
1/4 cup white wine
1/2 cup beef broth
1 pound mushrooms, cleaned and thinly sliced (the recipe book called for Black Forest or Polish black mushrooms; we used baby portobellos)
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
2 cups half-and-half
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.

Melt 2 tbsp of the butter in a large skillet, then brown the pork on both sides over a medium-high heat. Set in a baking dish and cover with foil, then keep it warm in the oven.

Pour the brandy and wine into the skillet and simmer over medium heat, scraping up the browned bits. Add the broth and boil, uncovered, until reduced by half. Pour the brandy mixture over the pork and return it to the oven.

Melt the last 2 tbsp of butter in the skillet, then saute the mushrooms, onion, and garlic until soft. Add the pork and sauce back into the skillet, then stir in the half-and-half. Simmer on low for 10-15 minutes, until the cream sauce thickens and reduces by half. Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve with rice, noodles, or potatoes.

Serves 4-6.

Read more...

Pizza-Stuffed Squash Boats

A few days ago I received a giant zucchini squash from a friend - I mean, this was a monster, 15 inches long and about 4 inches wide. Immediately I thought of stuffing it with something, and rummaged through the pantry for inspiration. Some good Italian sausage rounded it out nicely, and we had a carb-free pizza dinner.

One year growing up in the country, our family tried the Great Zucchini Experiment. We decided to cultivate a half acre of squash to sell at the farmer's market. Farmer's markets in that place and time were not filled with trendy gourmet and organic premium vendors; these were farmers selling directly to the produce buyers for canneries, factories, and grocery stores.

Our family plan was to work together on the zucchini plot and split the profits based on the amount of work we each put in. Being the baby and somewhat babied, I am sure I put in the least amount of work, but every Saturday before dawn I'd load up baskets of the squash into the old pickup and we'd sit with the other farmers in our folding lawn chairs while the buyers browsed.

Week after week, no one bought from us. We couldn't understand it. My mom sent me out to scout the competition, and I reported back that we had the biggest squash at the market, way bigger than anyone else's. The squash we weren't selling went week after week into the freezer or onto the table until we all thought we'd die of zucchini poisoning.

Finally mom asked a farmer friend to come take a look at our stock and tell us what we were doing wrong. He picked up a ginormous zucchini. "These are way too big. Seeds get hard in there and they taste bitter; nobody wants to buy them like that." He told us the produce folks were looking for ones about 4 inches long and 2 wide, with evenly green, unblemished skin and a high gloss. They looked for a fresh stem end, too, so we were best off picking them the day of the market if we could.

So that's what makes for the best and freshest squash, and those are the ones I recommend looking for when you're shopping. We took his advice and picked with flashlights in the early morning to get the freshest ones to the market. And it was many years before I could make myself eat zucchini again, after the Williams Zucchini Collective folded.

Ingredients

1 pound Italian sausage
1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 14-oz. can pizza sauce, or 1 can tomato puree with 1 tsp oregano and 2 tsp basil
1/3 cup water
3 squash, 4-5 inches long
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Directions

Take the sausage out of its casing and brown it in a medium skillet until it is crumbly and completely cooked. Set it aside in a bowl, and saute the onion, pepper, and garlic until tender. Add the sausage, sauce, and water, and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice the squashes in half lengthwise and cut off the stem end. Cut out the seeds from the center of each half. Place the squash face-down on a plate and microwave on high for 10 minutes, or until the squash is tender.

Spray a baking sheet with oil. Place the squash rind-side down and fill with the sausage mixture. Sprinkle with the cheeses, then put it the oven. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the filling is cooked through and the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Serves 4-6.

Read more...

Rosemary and Olive Braised Pork Ribs

Country-style ribs are one of Joe's favorite foods. His version of braised ribs is to cook them slow and low in the oven with tomatoes, white wine, kalamata olives, and plenty of herbs. They're done when they fall off the bone with tenderness.

You can serve these with any side dishes you like, but on top of a pool of creamy polenta, it's blissfully satisfying cool-weather food.

3 pounds thick country-style pork ribs
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 can (1 W500 g) plum (Roma) tomatoes, crushed, with juice
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 fresh rosemary sprig or 2 tsp dry rosemary
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat the oil in a dutch oven. Add the ribs and sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Brown the ribs on all sides. Drain off the fat.

Add the rest of the ingredients, and half the olives. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and cover the pan. Place in the oven and braise for 1 hour, or until the meat is tender and flaky. Stir occasionally and add a little water if the sauce becomes too dry. Sprinkle with the remaining olives before serving.

Serves 4.

Read more...

Pork Ribs in Smoky Pepper Sauce (Mole de Espinazo)

Some of our American friends get a little freaked out when we talk about Mole Espinazo.

"You're eating spines? A spinal cord?"

Hog farmers and Latinos might be a bit less squeamish. They often more familiar with different cuts of meat and are willing to try different parts of the animal. The espinazo, or pork spine cut, is simply a cross-section of the backbone with two sections of tenderloin attached. It's leaner than country-style ribs and cheaper than pork loin. The mole sauce in this recipe is a reddish-brown smoky pepper sauce with a tiny tingle of heat and a ton of flavor.

Ingredients

2 lbs. Pork Espinazo (Pork Spine)*
2 medium white onions
4 cloves garlic
Bunch of Cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste
4 dried pasilla chilies
1 dried arbol chile
1 large tomato, quartered
3 tomatillos, husked and quartered
2 corn tortillas, finely chopped
1/2 tsp cumin seeds – freshly ground
¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper
1 bay leaf
3 medium potatoes, scrubbed
1 cup fresh green beans
2 cups baby spinach or kale, rinsed and chopped
3 tsp sunflower oil (or grape seed oil)


*Can substitute Country Style Pork Ribs, or Rib Chops

Directions

Sear the espinazo meat in a large stockpot with a little oil. Add 2 tbsp of cilantro, salt and pepper, garlic, and one of the onions, quartered. Cover with water and boil over high heat for 15 minutes, skimming off the scum. Cover and reduce heat. Let simmer for at least 1 ½ hours or until the meat is tender. Remove the meat and reserve the broth.

In a large skillet, heat ½ to 1 teaspoon of sunflower oil over medium heat. Add the chilies to the skillet and toast them for a couple of minutes on each side until they are pliable and fragrant, then set them aside.

Chop the remaining onion and sauté until soft and just beginning to brown. Add the garlic, tomatoes, and tomatillos and sauté until tender.

Transfer the mixture to the heatproof bowl with the heated chilies. Cover with 3 - 4 cups of the reserved broth. Let soak for about 15 minutes or until the chilies are soft and tender.

Remove the stems from the chilies and cut into slices. Transfer the chilies, tomatoes, garlic, tomatillos, and tortillas to a blender, and puree the mole ingredients until smooth.

In a large skillet, heat 1 tsp sunflower or grape seed oil over medium-low heat. Strain the mole sauce through cheesecloth into the skillet. The sauce should not be too thin or too thick; it should stick to the back of a wooden spoon. If necessary, pour about 1/2 to 1 1/2 cups of water or remaining broth, 1/4 cup at a time, into the mole sauce until desired consistency.

 Stir in the ground cumin, ground cayenne pepper, salt and black pepper. Cut the potatoes into 1/2" slices and rinse them in cold water. Drain. Add the sliced potatoes and green beans. Reduce heat to low, cover skillet and let simmer about 15 minutes.

Add the meat to the mole mixture in the skillet. Cover and let simmer over low heat for 25 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Add the chopped baby spinach or kale to the mole and cook 5 minutes longer.

Serve with Mexican rice, Chihuahua cheese, warm corn tortillas, and chopped cilantro.

Read more...

Crock Pot Carnitas

Life has changed, friends. My commute is now 40 minutes instead of 30 seconds, and both of us hungry lovers are back in graduate-level night classes. The days are gone when we could spend three hours on a recipe on a Wednesday night, then stage and photograph the leftovers on the next day between client calls. In fact, now that winter is coming, it's rarely bright enough to take a food picture for this blog when we're at home.

"I didn't choose the cube life, the cube life chose me."

Like most of the rest of the world, we're now on a quest for fast and cheap meals. We also want to do it with a little style, too.

But even though Joe's glorious recipe for carnitas, shredded pork simmered with full of Mexican spices, turned out to be amazing and easy in the crock pot, it didn't photograph well. So I took it for lunch and tried to set up a photo at my desk. When I sliced into an avocado to top the plate, the pit flew out and ping-ponged around my desk and I had to crawl underneath to get it out.

Rogue avocado pit. So much for "style".

Anyway, a great sale on boneless pork butt and a clean crock pot were the inspiration for this plug-in morning, eat-at-night version of his usual recipe. It's about as simple as you can get. Though the recipe looks long, a lot of the ingredients are optional toppings so that you can choose what you like.

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs pork butt roast or pork shoulder, cut into 2" cubes
1 bay leaf
2 tsp lime zest
1 tbsp ground cumin
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp oregano (we used fresh oregano from our windowsill plant)
1 medium onion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
12-16 tortillas

Toppings:
Sliced avocado
Shredded lettuce or cabbage
Chopped tomato
Chopped cilantro
Chopped onions
Salsa (if you were lucky enough to make jalapeno-peach salsa this summer, then by all means use it here)

Instructions

Place the meat cubes in the crock pot, then add all the rest of the main ingredients. Cover with water. We did this step on Sunday afternoon while we were working on that night's dinner, then put the slow cooker in the fridge for the next day.

Cook on high heat for 8-10 hours, depending on how your cooker works. If it tends to run hot, you might want to cook this on low heat all day. When we came home that night, the meat was perfectly shredded, but we like some crispy chunks of meat, so we fried it up a bit on the stove before eating.

When ready to serve, heat up the tortilla on a hot griddle, then serve with your favorite toppings. 

Serves 4-6.

Read more...

Pork Chops in Adobo Sauce

Have you ever been shopping and you couldn't remember if you had a certain ingredient for a meal, so you buy some more, and then find when you get home that you already had plenty?

Joe and I kept forgetting whether we had ancho chilies, which are dried or smoked poblano peppers. So we ended up with three packages of anchos, and let me tell you, a little of these smoky-sweet peppers goes a long way.

Luckily, we were also looking for new ways to cook porkchops, so the adobo sauce Joe whipped up was perfect for the meat. Since then we've tweaked our recipe and I'm sure it would also be excellent on rabbit, chicken, or duck.

Adobo is not a spicy-hot sauce; Mexicans call such chiles "sweet". We served the pork chops with sweet potatoes poached in orange juice, butter, and a little garlic. Yum!

Note: start this recipe the day before and let the meat marinate overnight. The sauce can be made well ahead of time and then refrigerated. It will last up to a month in the fridge after it is made.

Ingredients

 Adobo Sauce
2 tbsp canola oil
4 large dried ancho chiles (about the size of your palm)
5 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp fresh oregano, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 cup white vinegar

Directions

For the Adobo sauce

Remove the seeds from the anchos and tear them into large pieces. Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the anchos when the oil is shimmering. Fry until they begin to darken and blister, then place them in a bowl. Pour hot water over the peppers and let them soak for about 15 minutes. It helps if you weigh them down with a plate or something heavy.

Put the chiles in a blender along with 1/2 cup of the soaking water. Add all other ingredients and blend until it is a smooth paste.

For the Chops

1/2 cup adobo sauce
6 1-inch thick pork chops, bone removed
1/2 cup white onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves

Spread the adobo sauce on both sides of each chop and allow to marinate for at least 4 hours. I would recommend marinating overnight. Grill the chops or fry them in vegetable oil until just done - if you overcook them, they will be dry.

If you use a meat thermometer, take them off the heat when the thermometer reads 145 degrees in the center of the chop, and cover them with foil for a few minutes, until the temperature reaches 150 degrees. This makes them warm and juicy.

Garnish with sliced onion and fresh cilantro and serve immediately.

Serves 6 with plenty of sauce for another night. If you're following Weight Watchers, a 4 oz. portion is only 6 points.

Read more...

Cheesy Sweet Pea Spread with Bacon Dust

We made this crostini spread for our big Labor Day family BBQ in Iowa and it was a hit! Out in Clear Lake and Ventura IA, they take their holidays seriously (Clear Lake's fourth of July celebration makes many lists of  "-- Things to do Before You Die").

Summer in Iowa. Peaceful.

We spent part of the weekend at a picnic in an old maple grove next to Joe's family's cattle ranch. The rest of the time we boated around Clear Lake and watched the weekend sailboat Regatta. What a wonderful way to relax!

We tried a first version of this pea spread before making some tweaks. It's wonderfully different with the sweetness of the green peas and the garlic/parmesan combination. If you're fortunate enough to have fresh green peas - say, if you grow them yourself - it will be even better!

Ingredients

4 slices of bacon, cooked crisp
1 loaf baguette bread
2 tbsp oil

For the crostini spread
10-ounce package frozen peas, thawed
1/2 cup ricotta
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 stalk green onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp chopped basil
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice the baguette into 1/2 inch thick rounds and place on a baking sheet. Brush oil on the crostini slices, then bake 15 minutes, or until slightly crisp. Finely chop the bacon slices.

In a blender or food processor, process the sweet pea crostini spread until smooth. Spread onto the bread slices, then top with a sprinkle of bacon crumbs.

We liked this best at room temperature. We made it a day ahead of time since we were traveling to Iowa, and it tasted better the second day.

Serves 10 as an appetizer.

Read more...

Garlic and Fennel-seed Studded Pork Roast

Jenn and Jessie, one of these days you'll probably want to make a pork roast for a special dinner or a holiday. In fact, you could invite your parents over for Mother's Day (second Sunday in May) and serve them this wonderful roast with gravy, and of course, plenty of mashed potatoes.

Fennel seed is the fragrant seasoning in many sausages. It seems to naturally pair up with pork. Adding ground ginger and mustard gives the meat a bit of tang.

Ingredients

1 3-4 pound pork roast
2 garlic cloves, slivered
2 tsp fennel seed
1 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp dry mustard
2 tsp ground black pepper
2 1/2 cups beef broth, divided
1 tbsp corn starch
2 tbsp cold water

Directions

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

With a sharp knife, deeply pierce the fat layer in one or two inch rows all over the pork roast. Insert a sliver of garlic and one or two fennel seeds into each piercing. Stir together the mustard and ginger and sprinkle it all over the meat.

In an oven proof pan, brown the meat on all sides. Pour one cup of hot beef broth over the roast, cover, and put it in the oven. Roast it for 30 minutes per pound, basting occasionally. Add more liquid if it boils away. The roast is done when it is no longer pink deep in the middle, or when a meat thermometer inserted in the center of the meat reads 160-170 degrees. You do have a meat thermometer, don't you? If you do, make sure you don't roast the plastic meat thermometer sleeve, like I did the first time I used one.

Remove the meat from the pan, place it on a cutting board, and cover with foil. Put the roasting pan on the stove and turn on medium heat. Pour the rest of the beef broth into the pan and bring it to a boil, scraping off the rich crusty bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir together the corn starch and water, then slowly pour it into the sauce while stirring constantly. Allow it to simmer until thickened into gravy.

Carve the roast and pour any juices from the cutting board back into the gravy. Serve with the gravy on the side.

Serves 6-8, depending on the size of the roast.

Read more...

Cranberry-Bourbon Glazed Ham

This recipe came about accidentally, when an afternoon of cooking with friends turned a little boozy and silly. What was left was a jar of bourbon-soaked cranberries and some tamales that went terribly wrong.

Luckily we found a way to use both the tamales and the leftover cranberries, which had become little red booze bombs. If you want a more authentic moonshiner taste, use some kind of real moonshine and make sure you add dark molasses to the glaze. It magnifies the sweet smokiness of the ham like you wouldn't believe.

Note: start your cranberries marinating in bourbon a week ahead if you can. If not, just whip it all up together and let the oven sort it out.

Ingredients

1 cup of your favorite bourbon

2/3 cup fresh cranberries
1 – 12-16 lb. bone-in ham

¼ cup honey

¼ cup molasses (or dark brown sugar dissolved in a little very hot water)

¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp dry mustard

Instructions

Soak the cranberries in the bourbon in a jar in the refrigerator for several days to one week.

Preheat the oven to 325°. In a blender puree the cranberries with a little of the bourbon until they are all pureed. Whisk together the bourbon, pureed cranberries, honey, brown sugar, red pepper flakes and black pepper.

Remove any skin from the ham and score the fat with ½” deep cuts about 1” apart. Put the ham, cut side down, in a large roasting pan with 2 cups of water in the bottom. I like to put it on a low rack in the roaster. Baste about ¼ of the glaze on the ham and bake with no lid.

About every 30 minutes baste the ham with the liquid and drippings in the pan, and then baste with more of the glaze. Make a foil tent over the ham if it begins to brown too quickly.

Bake for about 2 to 2 ½ hours until it reaches a temperature of 155° with a meat thermometer in the meaty part of the ham, not near the bone. Remove and let rest 15 minutes before carving and serving. Save the pan drippings and mix with the ham bone and vegetable scraps to make a delicious ham stock for soups or other recipes.

Serves about 8 hungry people.

Read more...

Stacked Bacon-Pecan Pear Salads

For our Iron Chef Bacon Cook Off, Joe and I put together this salad. The inspiration for this salad had some heavier, more powerfully flavored ingredients like blue cheese and raspberry vinaigrette. We practiced the night before by making the salad that way - we had no idea if we could stack up pears like that, and I needed a good daytime photo for the blog.

The salad was wonderful with the original ingredients, but we realized that the bacon theme lent itself to lots of rich and flavorful foods, and we didn't want to overload our taste buds. We went lighter and fresher by brightening up the vinaigrette with sherry vinegar and lemon juice. Celery also added some crunch and freshness. Although we are crazy about blue cheese and it naturally goes with pears, we chose an aged Spanish cheese to give the salad a little sharpness.

Our friends commented on how the salad complimented the bacon ravioli, stuffed pork chops, and kale and bacon saute, rather than competing with them. That's what we were hoping to do!

Ingredients

For the vinaigrette

1/2 cup canola oil

1/3 cup sherry vinegar

1/4 cup lemon juice plus 1 tbsp

1 tsp marjoram

1 tsp ground fennel seeds 

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp white pepper

For the salad

4 ripe pears
2 cups baby field greens or spinach
3 slices bacon, fried crisp
1/2 cup toasted pecans
1/2 cup celery, cut into matchstick pieces
1/4 cup manchego or Romano cheese, finely shredded

Instructions

Whisk together the vinaigrette ingredients and keep at room temperature.

Cut each pear into four slices, horizontally. Cut the core out of each slice, but leave the stem on the top of the pears. Brush each slice with lemon juice to keep them from browning, and try to remember which slices belong to the same pear - they will stack better this way.

Chop the greens and bacon together and toss with the nuts and vinaigrette. To assemble, place a layer of salad mixture on the bottom slice of pear, add slices of celery and a sprinkle of cheese, then continue layering each pear.

You can see in the above photo that we only layered two pears vertically. That's because in the hubbub of people chopping and assembling and sauteing, we knew for sure someone was going to bump into the platter and they'd all come tumbling down. The pears arranged horizontally are actually buttressing the two standing pears like the arches of an old cathedral.

Really, that's the best I could come up with as a simile.

In any case, the salad was fantastic and we won a prize for "Best Presentation". The prize? A pink spatula with a piggy face.

Serves 4-5.

Read more...

Bacon-Bourbon Brownies with Pecans

My friend Jena made these chocolatey, gooey, bacon-y brownies for our Iron Chef Bacon Cook Off a few weeks ago. Her inspiration was a recipe from Food & Wine. I'm a lover of the entire genre of brownies; I've never met a brownie I didn't like except the first batch I ever made. Those somehow ended up as flat cookie bars with burnt edges. It was a long time ago, so I no longer remember what I did to make them so horribly wrong.

These, though, are so delicious that you must find some reason to whip up a batch right away. She served them with vanilla ice cream and sprinkled everything with bacon. Oh, my stomach is growling right now. Wonder how many sit-ups I'd have to do to work off a whole pan of these?

Ingredients

1/2 cup chopped pecans
2/3 pound sliced bacon
10 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 stick of butter plus 2 tbsp
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp bourbon
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups flour

Vanilla ice cream (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, giving about 2 inches of extra paper hanging over each side. This will help you lift out the brownies once they have cooled. Spray the paper with oil. 

In a small dry frying pan, toast the pecans lightly over medium heat. Let cool. Cook the bacon until crisp and let it drain on paper towels. Set aside 3 tbsp of the bacon fat.

In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and chocolate together. Stir constantly so that it doesn't burn. Pour into a mixer bowl, add the white and brown sugar, bacon fat, and bourbon, and mix well. Beat in the eggs and salt until smooth. While the mixer is running, slowly add the cocoa and flour and scrape down the sides while the mixture blends until completely mixed.

Pour the batter into the pan, then sprinkle with the pecans and all but 1/4 cup of the bacon. Bake 45-50 minutes, until the brownies are firm at the edges but still a bit loose in the middle. Test by sticking a toothpick or cake tester into the center - it should come out with a bit of batter stuck to it.

Let the brownies cool on a wire rack. Cut into squares without cutting through the parchment paper, then lift out to serve. Serve topped with vanilla ice cream and a sprinkle of the reserved bacon bits.

Makes 9-12 brownies.

Read more...

Bacon-filled Ravioli with Mushroom Sauce

These bacon and ricotta filled ravioli were one of my favorite dishes of the evening. Our ravioli chef, Mark Borghetti, whips these out faster than you can imagine. "I'm Italian," he says in his suburban Chicago accent. "You oughta see my mom make ravioli."

Mark uses this pasta roller that clamps to a table or counter and the sheets come out smooth and even. If you don't have this, or a pasta machine, a rolling pin will do. He also has this round ravioli cutter that crimps the edges while it cuts through two layers of pasta, as you can see above. Alas, we don't have this tool either, so next time we make this recipe, we'll be cutting these into squares with a knife.

I hear there's also a thing called a ravioli mold that helps the ravioli-making process in some way. I shouldn't hear about things like this - my kitchen is way too small for any other gadgets or utensils.

Mark says he got the original recipe from The Food Network.

Ingredients

For the dough

4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
6 large eggs, beaten

For the filling

1 cup sliced yellow onion
8 slices thick-cut bacon, roughly chopped
4 carrots, diced
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups fresh parsley, chopped
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
3 ounces gruyere or swiss cheese, grated
2 large egg yolks

For the sauce

4 tbsp butter
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound assorted mushrooms, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
4 green onions, chopped
2 pints grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped

Instructions

To make the dough

Put the flour and eggs in a food processor or mixer. Process until the dough clings to the beaters or blades. Turn out the dough on a floured surface and shape into a rectangle. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside 30 minutes at room temperature.

Let's eat!

To make the filling

In a food processor or blender, blend the onions, raw bacon, and carrots until finely chopped and well mixed. Pour 1 cup of water in a large skillet and heat until boiling. Add the bacon mixture, nutmeg, salt, and pepper, reduce heat to medium, and cook until the water is evaporated and the vegetables start to brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the parsley, then place in a bowl and let it cool about 15 minutes. Mix in the rest of the filling ingredients and refrigerate until ready to stuff the ravioli. Note: this can be made one or two days ahead of time.

To make the ravioli

Sprinkle the dough with flour and divide into 6 pieces. Shape each piece into a 4" by 2" rectangle. If using a pasta machine, adjust it to the widest setting then roll the pasta through several times, reducing the setting until the pasta is about 1/16th inch thick. If using a rolling pin, turn the dough out on a floured surface and roll it until it is 1/16th inch thick and about 3" wide. Repeat with the rest of the dough.

On a floured surface, lay out one sheet of dough. Scoop out tablespoons of the ricotta filling and place them two inches apart on the sheet of dough, making sure you leave 2 inches along the edges of the dough as well. Place another sheet of dough over the top of the ravioli. Using a ravioli cutter, knife, or pizza wheel, cut out the ravioli. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.

At this point, you can freeze the ravioli for later (no, eat it now!) or put it in a covered container and refrigerate for another day. Since we weren't going to eat for another hour or so, Mark put his raviolis on a cookie sheet and placed them in the freezer so they would hold together much better when he boiled them.

To make the sauce

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the mushrooms, salt, and pepper, and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and green onions, and cook and stir for one minute. Add the tomatoes, basil, and parsley, and cook for 3-5 minutes, until the tomatoes are softened.

Boil the ravioli in a large pot for 10 minutes, then remove to a serving platter. Stir 1 1/2 cups of the ravioli cooking water to the sauce, and simmer 5 minutes. Serve with the sauce drizzled over the ravioli or passed in a separate bowl.

Serves 6-8.

Read more...

Bacon and Tomato Bruschetta with Gorgonzola

Last weekend a group of my talented foodie friends got together for an Iron Chef Bacon Cook Off party. This quick appetizer was the opening to our meal, from my friends John and Peg. Delicious!

Ingredients

1 loaf French bread
1 jar sun-dried tomatoes
2 plum tomatoes
4 slices bacon, fried crisp
1 cup fresh basil
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped Gorgonzola

Instructions

Slice the bread into 1/2" thick rounds and place on a baking sheet. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Chop the tomatoes, bacon, and fresh basil, then mix with the olive oil. You can make this up to a day in advance, but let sit for 10 minutes at room temperature.. Pile the mixture evenly on the bread rounds, then sprinkle with the Gorgonzola.

Bake for 10-15 minutes, until the bread is toasted and the topping is hot. Serve immediately.

Makes about 36 bruschette.

Read more...

Iron Chef Bacon Cookoff Party

When you've been craving bacon - which is always, in our home - the best thing you can do is round up a bunch of friends who love to cook and have a massive Iron Chef Bacon Cook Off. This is how we spent last weekend.

Our friends John and Peg hosted, and twelve of us sipped bacon-infused old fashioneds and chopped and baked and rolled our way to a glorious dinner. I love it when dinner takes a couple of hours and we all giggle and sprawl around the table in a food coma, taking just one more bite and a bit more wine.

We're ready to eat!

I'll be sharing a bunch of my talented friends' recipes over the next month, You'll have these to look forward to:

Bacon and Tomato Bruschetta

Bacon-stuffed ravioli in mushroom sauce

Stacked Bacon-Pecan Pear Salads

Goat Cheese Fruit Salad in Parmesan nests

Chocolate-caramel cheesecake with bacon

Bacon-bourbon brownies with pecans

Chocolate chip candied bacon cookies with bourbon cream

With all the bacon and a healthy helping of wine, we were all a little sluggish and dehydrated the next day, but it was worth every bite.

Read more...