Fig and Goat Cheese Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

Despite appearances, this recipe was fairly simple and easy to make, not to mention everything just kind of flowed. My mom gave me an oven-safe digital meat thermometer for Christmas, so I was anxious to get home and try it. It was so simple and I didn't have to worry about overcooking the pork!

Fig and Goat Cheese Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

1 pork tenderloin (1 - 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 cup fig jam
3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
5 fresh basil leaves, torn
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice pork tenderloin lengthwise almost the whole way through (stopping just before the edge, like you would a sandwich). Place the tenderloin between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound it until it's about 1/2 inches thin. Spread the fig jam over one side of the pork, then top with crumbled goat cheese, torn basil leaves and salt and pepper to taste.

Now, roll up the pork and fasten with kitchen twine or toothpicks. Now brush the outside with the oil and season with additional salt and pepper.

Insert your meat thermometer if you have it and let it bake about 30 minutes or so until it reaches an internal temperature of 155 degrees.

Remove and let set for about 10 minutes, then slice and serve! I served with simple sides including roasted potatoes seasoned with dried rosemary, salt and pepper tossed in olive oil and green beans with a smidge of butter, salt and pepper and more torn basil.

Chicken, Mango and Grapefruit Salad with Almonds and Goat Cheese

Like many, I've resolved to lean more towards my healthy habits with the start of the new year. One way I'm doing that is with a bento box my sister gave me for Christmas so I can better plan out my lunches and work snacks to make sure I'm getting all my fruits and veggies :) It's been a blast so far!

Another resolution is to get back to trying new foods. I recently discovered I actually DO like grapefruit, so I decided to not only eat it on its own, but incorporate into a fun salad!

Chicken, Mango and Grapefruit Salad with Almonds and Goat Cheese

6 ounces arugula (or other greens of your choice)
2 cups grilled chicken, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (mine was seasoned with salt and pepper)
2 ripe mangos, peeled, pitted and cubed
2 grapefruit, peeled, sectioned and cut into large pieces
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons basalmic vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Toss the arugula, chicken, mango, grapefruit, goat cheese crumbles and almonds in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, vinegar, sugar and salt and pepper. Toss the dressing with the salad and serve!

Note, while I do enjoy grapefruit, I need a little sugar which is why I added it to the dressing. Feel free to exclude that from the recipe :)

Tis the Season

Hello! Now that we're in full-swing holiday party mode, I want to know, what are your favorite holiday entertaining dishes? Appetizers? Desserts? I'll be posting some soon, but would love some feedback on what you love, or what you want to see!

Pork Stew

What do you do when you buy an 8 pound pork butt for (delicious) pulled pork, but you can only fit 5 pounds in your crock pot? Why, you save 3 pounds and make pork stew another day! This recipe was SO simple since I chopped all the veggies the night before. Threw it in the crock pot Monday morning and came home to a delicious Monday night meal!

Pork Stew

3-4 pounds pork butt

1 onion, chopped into large pieces

1 bell pepper, chopped

4 large carrots, chopped

3 cups mushrooms, cleaned and roughly chopped

1 cup red wine

1 cup beef or chicken broth

1 cup water

1 tablespoon dried oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low 8-10 hours. Remove pork to a large platter, shred with two forks, then put it back in the crock pot with juices. I served over white rice, although it'd be great with pasta, crusty bread, or nothing at all!

Pineapple Turkey Burgers

I love reading my friend and coworker Emily's blog, Cooking Inside the Lines. We both share a passion for cookbooks and food magazines, but she actually takes the time and diligence to follow recipes and rate them. Thankfully, we have similar food tastes, so she does test runs of all the recipes I want to try. Lately she's been on a pineapple jam kick, which I thought would be the perfect topping for one of my favorites, turkey burgers! This one is a bit decadent and not for the weak-hearted :)

Pineapple Turkey Burgers

Burgers:
2 pounds lean ground turkey
2 tablespoons minced red onion
2 tablespoons minced bell pepper
1 tablespoon basalmic vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
2 ounces goat cheese

Toppings:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 red onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 poblano pepper, sliced
1 tablespoon basalmic vinegar
6 whole wheat hamburger buns
1/2 cup pineapple jam
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

Preheat a large grill pan or skillet on medium heat. Combine turkey, onion, pepper, vinegar, lemon, parsley and salt and pepper in a bowl. Form into 6 even-sized patties. Divide goat cheese into 6 portions and roll into balls. Place one ball in the middle of each patty and pull meat around it so that the cheese is hidden in the middle. Grill turkey burgers about 10 minutes on each side, or until the inside is no longer pink.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet and saute onion and peppers on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add basalmic vinegar and cook another 3 minutes. Toast hamburger buns and spread pineapple jam on each side. Top with a burger patty and basalmic glazed vegetables. Finally, add some crumbled bacon. Then listen to all the yummy noises made at your table :)

I served these with Guy Fieri's Sofrito Mashed Potatoes- love them!

Lemony Shrimp Pasta

Apron's baaack! Sorry dear readers for the long blogging hiatus. Frankly, I was feeling less than inspired lately in the kitchen, and mostly following recipes. Well, I'm back and feeling more creative than ever, so be on the lookout for more tasty recipes!

Warming our tushes by the fire!

Friday was Christine's birthday, and there's nothing like a birthday to celebrate to get me in the mood to cook. We celebrated with a gentle roommate dinner, some spiked hot chocolate, a hot fire and some Muppets videos. A great night!

Lemony Shrimp Pasta

2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
24 ounces spaghetti
1 bunch kale
4 tablespoons butter, divided
1 1/2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt and pepper
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup minced shallot
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 - 1/2 cup dry white wine, room temperature
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Italian parsley, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place cherry tomatoes on a baking sheet lined with foil, and drizzle with oil. Bake in oven 20-30 minutes, until blistering. Remove from heat and keep wrapped in foil.

While tomatoes cook, heat two large pots of water to boiling. Cook spaghetti in boiling water until al dente and set aside. Cut kale into pieces and boil about 5 minutes, also removing and keeping warm.

For the shrimp, heat a large skillet on medium high heat and melt 2 tablespoons butter. Season shrimp with salt and pepper to taste and red pepper flakes. Cook in skillet 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and keep warm. Reduce heat to medium, melt additional 2 tablespoons butter and cook shallots about two minutes. Add lemon juice, zest and wine to skillet and stir, scraping up any brown bits, simmering about 5 minutes. Add cornstarch, if needed, to thicken. Mix in shrimp, tomatoes and kale and serve over cooked spaghetti. Garnish with parsley if desired. I served with crusty bread to sop up the delicious lemony wine juice.

Apple and Pecan Salad

1 head lettuce
1 apple, halved, cored and sliced
1/3 cup pecan halves
1 orange, zested and juiced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Tear lettuce into bite-sized pieces and place in a large bowl with apple slices and pecan halves. For the dressing, combined orange zest and juice in a bowl and stream in olive oil while whisking. Season with salt and pepper to taste and toss with salad.

The birthday girl enjoying her meal!

Moroccan Stuffed Acorn Squash

I accumulated a few acorn squashes during the end of October, and I decided that today they'd met their match. I've never actually prepared acorn squash before, so after some poking around online, I found a few recipes that inspired the concoction below. It was a great mix of flavors that you don't usually find on my table- the roommates loved it!

Moroccan Stuffed Acorn Squash
2 acorn squash
1 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 red onion
5 cloves garlic
2 cups couscous
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup parmesan, shredded

Half acorn squash and remove seeds. Place in a baking dish face down and cook in a 400 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from heat and scoop out flesh and place in a large bowl, keeping shell in tact.

While squash is cooking, heat a large skillet on medium heat and cook beef until cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain and set aside in the bowl with the squash. Warm oil in the same skillet and cook onions and garlic about 5 minutes. Cook couscous to directions and add to bowl. Stir in pecans, basil, cilantro, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and pepper.

Add mixture into squash shells and top with parmesan cheese. Bake another 5 to 10 minutes. then serve.

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

3 pounds sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Salt to taste

Place in inch of water in a large saucepan and place a steamer basket in it; bring water to a simmer. Peel potatoes and dice into 1 inch pieces. Steam about 20 minutes, then drain. Add potatoes back to warm pot and add in remaining ingredients and mash to desired smoothness. Enjoy!

I served with a grape salad that included about 4 cups red seedless grapes, 1 ounce crumbled feta and 4-5 torn basil leaves.