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.

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Watermelon-Feta Salad

This light, fresh salad is easy to whip up and perfect for a Labor Day picnic. You can also add cucumber cut into a one-inch dice, if you like. This is even quicker if you buy precut watermelon and crumbled feta.

Ingredients

6 cups watermelon, cut in 2" cubes

2 cups arugula

2/3 cup feta, crumbled

1/3 cup orange vinaigrette

1 tbsp. fresh basil, snipped

Instructions

Drain the cut watermelon in a colander for 15 minutes so that the salad doesn't become too juicy. Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl. Top with the basil, if desired. Let sit for 15-30 minutes before serving.

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Ranch Crash Baby Potatoes

You might have noticed that Joe and I love potatoes. Really love them! It's a culinary fact that if there's potatoes involved, it's going to be a good dish. And if you add cheese and oil and other good things to the potatoes, it's a guarantee that there will be no leftovers in this house.

Last time I made these cheesy smashed potatoes, I looked for the leftovers that I was SURE were there. I wanted them for breakfast. But it's true that the early bird gets the - well, the potatoes - because Joe had gotten up an hour earlier and they were all gone.

He's notorious for eating odd things for breakfast, so he probably topped them with leftover marinated chicken from the stacks of BBQ chicken pizza I'd made for the homeless shelter. The BBQ chicken was gone too, you see.

Tender new potatoes, or very small ones, are perfect for smashing because they crisp up so well in the last step. If you don't like ranch flavoring, or prefer some other seasoning, add whatever snipped herbs and spices you like.

Ingredients

12-15 baby potatoes (we used 2" round ones from my mom's fall harvest)
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 packet powdered Ranch dressing mix

1/4 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese

2 tbsp snipped chives (optional)

Directions

Scrub potatoes, then put them in a large pot of salted water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until tender. Drain and allow to cool slightly.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Drizzle a cookie sheet with half the oil. Place the potatoes on the pan, and smash each one with a potato masher or the bottom of a strong cup. The potatoes should be about 1/2 inch thick when completely crushed.

Stir together the salt, pepper, ranch dressing, cheese, and chives. Sprinkle over the tops of the potatoes, then drizzle with the rest of the oil. Bake in a 450 degree oven for 20-25 minutes until crispy and golden brown.

Serves 4-6.

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Black Bean Mango Salad with Shrimp

A few weeks ago, our friends John and Peg invited us over to dinner and a play down at the Goodman Theater in Chicago. John is a fabulous cook who was working on a tropical theme - this mango and black bean salad, chicken with mango, papaya, and coconut, and a dessert of chocolate ice cream balls coated in toasted coconut.

John peeled and deveined raw shrimp, marinated them in the lime juice, then grilled them before adding to the salad. We went a less expensive route with frozen precooked tiny shrimp, but if it's in your budget, I'd really recommend cooking the shrimp fresh for the best taste.

Ingredients

For the shrimp:

10-12 oz. cooked salad shrimp
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
Salt and pepper to taste

For the salad:

1 ripe mango
2 cups canned black beans, drained and rinsed
4 tbsp finely chopped mint
4 scallions, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp fresh lime juice

Directions

Stir together the shrimp ingredients and let them marinade in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Peel the mango and cut into 1/2" pieces. Saute the shrimp for 2 minutes, then mix into the rest of the ingredients. Let set for 10-15 minutes before serving.

Serves 4.

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Too-Hot-To-Cook Veggie Pizza

This recipe has been around for a while, but it's still an easy favorite for me and my daughter to make together. We first tasted this when a dear friend brought it to a potluck as an appetizer and shared the recipe all around. When Jessie moved into her first apartment and asked for recipes for her favorite foods, I bought her a cookbook and hand-wrote the recipes she loved best, including this one. We recently made this pizza together in her kitchen.

This is an easy dinner to make when it's too hot to cook, because it only requires a few minutes in the oven and then it cools in the fridge.

Cool Veggie Pizza

Ingredients

1 tube of crescent rolls
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 package Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped
1 cup broccoli, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 cucumber, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup black olives, sliced
(add any other chopped vegetables that you like)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Unroll the cresecent roll dough and flatten into a greased 9x11 pan, pressing the dough up the sides of the pan and sealing the pre-cut seams between each roll. Bake the dough according to the package directions until golden brown. Allow to cool.

Mix together the cream cheese, mayo, and ranch seasoning. Spread on top of the crust in the pan.  Sprinkle with all the veggies and top with the shredded cheese. Refrigerate before serving.

Serves 4-6

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