Ja cię kocham…

As soon as these bad boys were done, I stacked them on my plate, added BBQ sauce (Jay added hot sauce), and started shoveling them in my mouth.  Half way through my piggy-fest I realized I didn’t take a picture!  So here you go.  I had to take a picture of Jay’s fries since mine were almost gone.

The reason for my extreme excitement was the fact that I am on a strict diet to get ready for my sister’s April wedding, and I am getting to eat french fries!  No, I’m not going extreme and eating 100 calories a day or eating only cabbage soup.  I’m just allowing myself to consume a certain amount of calories a day based on the metabolic testing I had done at the YMCA.  This testing determined how many calories a day I burn if I were to lay on the couch all day.  It also determined a healthy calorie range for me for to lose the unwanted pounds.  I started on Monday writing every single calorie that I eat and drink and am doing well.  I am refusing to get on the scale for the first few weeks because I don’t want to become either complacent with what I’ve achieved so far or disappointed with how much I still have to lose.

As Oprah has so wisely put it:

Weight isn’t a number.  It’s when you get to the size where you start strutting your stuff.

I want to strut.

So WHY am I making french fries if I’m trying to lose weight?!  Doesn’t that seem hypocritical?

First off, no one can take my french fries from me.  They are far too amazing to take them away so I just made my own and tweaked the recipe to meet my needs.  And they totally met my needs.  I love you, french fries.

Just so you know, organic potatoes seriously last for only a few days.  I JUST bought them this week, and by Friday I knew I had to use them or lose them.  It makes me wonder what is in non-organic potatoes to make them last weeks rather than days.

Okay, we won’t go there.

I have been making french fries for years always being slightly disappointed with the results.  No matter how long I soak them in water and/or sugar, they always end up mushy!  That’s not a french fry, that’s a mashed potato.  And no, I have never used a deep-fryer.  I don’t own a deep-fryer, and if I want deep-fried and greasy french fries (and I get these cravings often), I go to McDonald’s.

Well today I can proudly say that I conquered the squishy french fry!  I now have a recipe that gives me healthy, crispy, and delectable french fries.   I’m so excited.  No more mush, no more potatoes sticking to the baking sheet, no more “bleh” french fries.  Stand back fast food restaurants, I have found your replacement!

Perfect Oven Baked Fries

Source: Slightly adapted from Annie’s Eats and The New Best Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients:
3 russet potatoes (about 24 oz. total), peeled and cut lengthwise into even sized wedges
5 Tbs. vegetable, grapeseed, canola or peanut oil, divided
¾ tsp. kosher salt, plus more to taste
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 475˚ F.  Place the potato wedges in a large mixing bowl.  Cover with hot water; soak for 10-30 minutes.  Put 4 tablespoons of the oil onto a heavy, rimmed baking sheet.  Tilt the sheet side to side to evenly coat the pan with oil (a pastry brush can also help with this).  Sprinkle the pan evenly with the salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Drain the potatoes.  Spread the wedges out on layers of paper towels or on clean kitchen towels.  Pat dry with additional towels. Wipe out the now empty bowl so it is dry.  Return the potatoes to the bowl and toss with the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil.  Arrange the potato wedges on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer.  Cover tightly with foil and bake for 5 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue to bake until the bottoms of the potatoes are spotty golden brown, 15-20 minutes, rotating the baking sheet after 10 minutes.  Using a metal spatula and tongs, flip each potato wedge keeping them in a single layer.  Continue baking until the fries are golden and crisp, 5 -15 minutes.  Rotate the pan as needed to ensure even browning.

When the fries are finished baking, transfer to a paper-towel lined plate to drain some of the grease.  Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.  Serve warm.

It’s a party up in here!  This time last year, I posted for the very first time and had no idea what was going to come of this blog.  Little did I know that I would have so many foodie friends (HUNDREDS of you!) and so much support!  Thank you!

And in celebration of Ja cie kocham’s birthday, I’m making chocolate covered pretzels – a boatload of them.   They are festive, easy to make, and I’m probably going to eat them all within a few days.

I’m also going to use this time to recap on some of my favorite recipes of the year:

Breakfast:

Peanut Butter and Banana French Toast – Heaven on a plate.  ‘Nuff said.

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Appetizer:

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms – What a crowd pleaser!  Make sure to double the recipe because these will be gone in minutes!

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Pizza:

Pear and Blue Cheese Pizza – Wish I would have thought of this one sooner!  Seriously melted in my mouth.  I could have eaten the whole pizza by myself.

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Sandwich:

Grilled Vegetable, Herb, and Goat Cheese Sandwich – Perfect for a picnic and requires no refrigeration!

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Chicken Dish:

North African Grilled Chicken Paillards – Add ethnic flare to your chicken with a few pantry staples!

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Lime Chile Steaks with Pico de Gallo and Homemade Guacamole – Home run dish.  Bursting with flavor and super healthy to boot!

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Vegetarian:

Lemon Chickpea Stir-fry – AMAZING.  Nothing is more gratifying than making a very healthy meal that is so full of flavor.  I had several people ask for the recipe because they loved it so much.

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Pasta:

Linguine with Bacon, Baby Spinach, and Sage – I found this recipe on the back of the pasta box.  Always check the back of boxes for recipes.  They tend to be real winners!

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Side Dish:

Grilled Pineapple with Agave Nectar (or Honey) and Coconut – Elegant, healthy, delicious!

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Cookie:

The best Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER.  They were huge, fat, chewy, and absolutely sinful!

Thank you for spending time with me in my little corner of cyberworld this year.  Here’s to many more years together!

These ribs are always a huge hit with our family and friends, and I cannot take one ounce of credit.  These are made by my grill master husband, Jay.   If something needs to be grilled, he is always ready to go, beer and cigar in hand.  It’s so funny because on our teeny, tiny patio outside we have a huge Weber grill, a charcoal grill, and a smoker.  Do we have enough??  Apparently not because we’re thinking about getting a tailgate grill for when we go to sports events, too.  Ha.  We love our food in this house.

We pretty much always get our meats from the super wholesale store, Costco.  Their meats are outta this world.  Honestly, a lot of Costco’s stuff is pretty amazing.  (Their birthday cakes are unbelievable!)  If we don’t go to Costco, then we go to our local Amish farmer’s markets for meats.  They, too, have great stuff for great prices.  And I have to just give a shout out to Trader Joe’s because it’s my favorite grocery store.  I can’t talk about good food and prices without mentioning TJ’s.

So…. the superbowl is about a month away and you need a great recipe for a party, don’t you?  I suggest you try these ribs.  They can be cooked in the oven, on a grill, or in a smoker.  Does not matter.  We’ve done it all and they are always a huge hit.  HUGE hit.

My only critique is the price of the food to make this meal, but it is important to know before you get to the grocery store.  Bobby Flay uses 2 different types of chili powder both of which are expensive (and hard to find) in addition to a whole lot of maple syrup, which is also expensive. It’s totally fine to use any chili powder and syrup you have in the house.  Yes, the specific kinds that are chosen do make these ribs particularly yummy, but using any chili powder and syrup still tastes amazing and you will still rock the house in grilling.

For New Years we served these babies with Sauerkraut with Bacon and apples (recipe follows).  Mmmmmmm…..

Spice Rubbed Smoked Ribs with Maple-Horseradish Baste

Source: Bobby Flay

Serves 8

Prep Time: 15 min

Inactive Prep Time: 30 min

Cook Time: 1 hr 30 min

Ingredients:

Maple-Horseradish Glaze:

2 cups pure maple syrup
1/2 cup prepared horseradish, drained
2 heaping tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Ribs:

1/3 cup Spanish paprika
3 tablespoons ancho chili powder
3 tablespoons New Mexican chili powder
2 tablespoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
3 cups wood chips (hickory, mesquite, or applewood)
4 racks pork ribs (3 pounds each)

Directions:

Glaze:

Whisk all ingredients together in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ribs:

Stir spices together in a medium bowl.

About 1/2 hour before cooking time, soak hickory chips in enough water to cover. Drain chips. In a covered grill, place slow burning charcoal in both sides of a drip pan. Sprinkle coals with wood chips.

Rub top side of each rack of ribs with about 3 tablespoons of the rub. Place ribs, bone side down, on grill. Close cover or place cover on the smoker. Grill about 1 1/2 hours, adding chips every 20 minutes. During the last 10 minutes of grilling, brush liberally with the Maple-Horseradish Glaze.

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SERVED WITH:

Image courtesy of Simply Recipes

Sauerkraut with Bacon and Apples

Source: Simply recipes

Serves 8-10

For Christmas my parents got me this awesome cookbook – Simply Salads by Jennifer Chandler.  Now my Ma knows that I LOVE when my cookbooks have pictures to go with each recipe.  Lucky for me, these cookbooks tend to be less expensive than the ones without pictures.  Not sure why, but it works for me!

Perusing this book, I had no idea that it would be an inspiration for using up MORE of my leftover ham.  The recipe calls for pancetta, which is a dry cured meat that reminds me of bacon.  Instead of buying pancetta, I just used my Christmas ham.  Ham doesn’t create the same drippings in the skillet as bacon when you cook it, but a little olive oil solves that problem.  You still get the flavor, you just need a little assistance from the oil.

We had this salad right after church.  It hit the spot!  We wanted something light, but we wanted something that felt like a meal.  We served this salad with my homemade Ham and Cheddar Biscuits.  Home run, I tell you!  Never thought to warm wild mushrooms and place them on a salad.  Good call, Jennifer!

Warm Wild Mushroom Salad

Serves 4 for a meal or 6 for an appetizer

Source: Simply Salads by Jennifer Chandler, pg. 128 (& pg. 106 for salad dressing)

Ingredients:

Salad:

1/4 cup Sherry Vinaigrette – *recipe follows
1/4 pound pancetta, bacon, or ham ** if using ham, add 1-2 Tbs. olive oil
1 shallot, minced
1/2 lb. assorted wild mushrooms (I used oyster, porcini, and shiitake), ends trimmed
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
1 bag (8oz) Field Greens

Sherry Vinaigrette:

(I doubled this recipe for my salads)

1 shallot, minced
1 tsp. dijon mustard
2 Tbs. sherry wine vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
6 Tbs. olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Prepare the Sherry Vinaigrette - In a small bowl whisk together shallot, mustard, and vinegar.  Slowly add the olive oil in a stream, whisking to emulsify.  Season with salt and pepper.  (Makes about 1/4 cup)

In a medium skillet, over medium-low heat, cook the ham (with olive oil) or pancetta/bacon without oil.  Cook until outside is crisp, about 4 minutes.  Transfer ham to paper-towel lined plate to drain, reserving the drippings in the pan.

Increase the heat to medium.  Add the shallot and cook, stirring often, until tender, 3-5 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl.

Add the ham and pine nuts to the mushroom mixture and toss.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a large salad bowl, toss the Field Greens with the vinaigrette to taste.  Divide the salad among individual plates. Top with mushrooms.  Serve immediately!  (Otherwise the greens will get droopy!)

I have so much leftover ham from Christmas Dinner!  I could feed a family of 15 or 20 with the ham that I have left!  This means that it’s time to get creative.  Sure I could just reheat the ham and eat it, but that gets boring by the end of the second day.  I want to feel as if this is an entirely different meal and not just reheated leftovers.

The day after Christmas I made Jay and I homemade biscuits using left over ham.  Boy these were good.  I’m not exactly the best baker in the world, but I managed to bake biscuits while still throwing in ingredients allowing me to feel as if my personality shines through.  Normally when I do this with baking I end up with disastrous results, but not this time!  This time there was much success!!

Ham and Cheddar Biscuits with Lemon and Chives

Yields 12-14 biscuits

Mildly adapted from: Thibeault’s Table

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 Tbs. baking powder
1 Tbs. paprika (I used smoked paprika)
1-2 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup milk, cream, or buttermilk*
*if using buttermilk add 1/2 tsp. baking soda
zest of 1/4 lemon
handful chives, finely chopped
handful cooked ham, cubed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Mix the flour with the baking powder, paprika and salt. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse sand.

Add lemon zest, ham, cheese, and chives.  Stir milk or cream in to flour mixture.  Mix quickly with fork until dough comes together. Using hands gently pat the ingredients together. Do not over mix. Pat out to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick on a lightly floured board. Cut with biscuit cutters and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes.

Then you can make a delicious breakfast sandwich out of your biscuits using MORE leftover ham, cheese and eggs!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!  Here is a quick peek at the gorgeous table scape courtesy of my beautiful mother, Patti.

Hi, Mom!

My pictures are a little fuzzy and dark because I was making sure to keep an eye on the food.  Post-picture taking, I realized that my lens was covered with steam.  So I apologize for the lack of crisp pictures.  (I am a bit of a perfectionist…)

I am so thrilled to report that dinner was a hit, and I didn’t serve cold macaroni and cheese!  My biggest fear was the timing of all of the food because I didn’t want to serve my loved ones cold ham and crusty macaroni and cheese.  With help from Ma and Papa Zigs, dinner went without a hitch!  Thank you, Ma and Paps!!

Prior to the main meal, I made some “snicky snacks” or as my Polish Poppy used to refer to them as “hordy doors”.  Ja cie kocham, Poppy!!  Miss you.

A cookie display filled with Nigella’s Chocolate Christmas Cookies, shortbread, gingerbread, homemade chocolate covered pretzels, and caramel bites.  I added a little Chocolate Soynut Butter (sadly, I couldn’t find Nutella, but this work just as well) for the shortbread.

Tzatziki made with my Homemade Greek Yogurt served with Crudites lovingly prepared by my sister and Cleanliness is Next to Godliness Food blogger, Emmy.

We also offered piping hot coffee and warmed mulled apple wine.

Here is my hubby, Jay, partaking in the warmed beverage.  Hi, honey!

And here I am just loving life and my 14 year old doggie, Cricket.

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And now for the main course all served on my Nana’s China:

Holiday Glazed Ham prepared by me and Smoked Turkey prepared by Papa Zigs

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Pineapple Filling

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Homemade Scalloped Potatoes made by Mama Zigs

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Simply Baked Macaroni and Cheese

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Cucumber Salad (one of Poppy’s specialties)

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Roasted Carrots and Parsnips with Sage of which I totally forgot to take a picture!

Photo courtesy of www.jewcy.com

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Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Apples and Ginger

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And also – plain green beans for Mom Mom.  She loves her green beans!

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To avoid complete carb-overload, Mom made me a fresh fruit salad.

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And for dessert….

… a semi-homemade ice cream cake!

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Recipes of our Christmas bounty will come in the very near future.   For now, I am going to make a delicious breakfast with the leftovers…

Until we meet again, I again wish you health, wealth, and a big belly from good food!

Merry Christmas Ja cie kocham readers!

As you may know from reading my previous posts, I am the cooker and baker of this year’s Christmas Dinner!  And oh boy, this will be my FIRST sit down holiday meal for more than 6 people.  I’m not concerned about the food turning out, I’m more concerned about the timing.  I know some of you are with me on this.  Being that I’m not fortunate enough to own two ovens, I have to carefully plan how to bake several things for one dinner using one oven while keeping everything from getting cold or drying out.  I will let you know how THAT goes.

To make things a little easier for me, I’ve been prepping for the past week with a detailed schedule of things to be made so that I’m not frantic an hour before dinner.  On today’s to-do list, I made the macaroni and cheese.   This is such a tease!!!  The aroma of white cheddar and nutmeg is swirling through my home making my mouth begin to water and my tummy is now growling fiercely.  *Roar*

I have to say that this recipe was so simple, tastes so good (I HAD to test it!!), and left me with minimal dishes.  Solid deal.  Can’t ask for anything better than that!!  Plus the most of the ingredients should already be in your cupboard, and if they’re not, you can find them with no problem and spend next to nothing on them.  Merry Christmas to me!  Simple, cheap, and goooood.

I will be sure to post the rest of my holiday menu within the next few days.  Let’s just hope I remember to take pictures!

I wish you all safe travels and good eats!!

Simply Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Source: Smitten Kitchen
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup cottage cheese
2 cups milk (not skim)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Pinch cayenne
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pound sharp or extra-sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 pound elbow pasta, uncooked.

Directions:

Heat oven to 375°F and position an oven rack in upper third of oven. Use one tablespoon butter to grease a 9-inch round or square baking pan.

In a blender, purée cottage cheese, milk, mustard, cayenne, nutmeg and salt and pepper together.  Reserve 1/4 cup grated cheese for topping. In a large bowl, combine remaining grated cheese, milk mixture and uncooked pasta. Pour into prepared pan, cover tightly with foil and bake 30 minutes.

Uncover pan, stir gently, sprinkle with reserved cheese and dot with remaining tablespoon butter. Bake, uncovered, 30 minutes more, until browned. Let cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

Hazelnut Pesto and Grilled Vegetable Pizza

I really wasn’t going to post these dishes because pizza and nachos are easy to make, and you don’t need me to tell you how to make pizza or nachos.   But I decided to pay tribute to fun, festive food consumed when I’m watching football with the hubby.

There is nothing better (well, ALMOST nothing better) than piling on the couch in sweatpants and your favorite sports team’s jersey, turning on ESPN and watching the game with real sports food – pizza, nachos, chips & dip, hoagies, etc.

Yes, I said hoagies.  I’m a Philly girl.  It’s not a sub or a hero.  It’s a hoagie.

As much as I love lazy days when I can go less than a mile down the road and order a pizza, nachos, or a hoagie, I also love the days when I can have my favorite sports meals made with a little lovin’ from my own kitchen.  And I use lotsa lovin’.

The pizza in the first picture – we’ll call it Hazelnut Pesto & Grilled Vegetable Pizza – was made using whatever I had in the fridge.  I did this before when I made my Everything But the Kitchen Sink Pizza.  I enjoy these types of recipes because I get to use up all the leftover veggies lingering in my fridge before they go funky on me.  I don’t do funky veggies.  And I get so upset when I have a few slices of bell pepper in the fridge with no purpose.  I can’t just throw it out.  I’ll just put it on my pizza…

Hazelnut Pesto & Grilled Vegetable Pizza

Ingredients:

Pizza dough
olive oil

For the pesto:
2 LARGE handful of basil leaves, stems removed
handful of hazelnuts
1 Tbs. Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

4 slices of bacon
1/4 cup eggplant, diced
1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup orange bell pepper
1/4 sweet onion, chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
your favorite cheese, shredded

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Put all pesto ingredients except for the olive oil into a food processor and start pulsing it.  While pulsing, add the olive oil.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside.

Place a medium skillet on medium-high heat.  Add bacon slices.  Cook until crispy.  Set aside.  Leave drippings in pan.

Still on medium-high, add vegetable toppings (except garlic) to skillet.  Saute for 4 to 5 minutes or until softened.

Roll out your pizza dough on a floured surface and brush lightly with olive oil.  Spread pesto onto pizza surface.  Then add sauteed vegetables, garlic, and cheese.

Place in oven for about 10-15 minutes or until edges brown and cheese melts.

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Ja Cie Kocham’s Loaded Nachos

My family has a thing for nachos.  We’re known to order them as our main meal at a restaurant and eat the whole thing by ourselves.

What?  Nachos are AWESOME.  I bet you do it, too.

Nachos can be zapped in the microwave…. I have seen a few friends put tortilla chips on a plate with salsa and cheese and microwave them for 30 seconds, which is totally acceptable but I wanted some pizazz for these babies.

I wanted the works – the salsa, the fresh tomatoes, the scallions, the avocado, the refried beans, the bacon, the beef, and most importantly THE CHEESE.  I seriously made enough for 8 people for Jay and I, and we almost polished off the entire thing on our own.  I couldn’t breathe when I was done and I was even full the next morning… now that’s what I call loaded nachos!

Ja Cie Kocham’s Loaded Nachos

Ingredients:

1 bag of corn tortilla chips
4 slices of bacon
1 – 1.5 lbs. hamburger
1 15 oz. can refried beans
1 jar chipotle salsa
your favorite shredded cheese
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1 avocado, diced
2 scallions, chopped

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a medium skillet placed on medium-high heat, cook your bacon.  Once bacon is crispy, remove it and keep the drippings in the pan.  Add the hamburger.  Cook until brown.

On a large cookie sheet covered in nonstick spray, spread out the nachos.  Add the hamburger, refried beans, salsa and cheese.  Bake for 10 minutes or until refried beans and salsa are hot and cheese is melted.

Crumble up bacon that you have set aside.

Take out of oven and add the remainder of the ingredients, including the bacon that you have reserved.  Serve immediately.

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Other fun recipes for sports watching at home:

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms

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Hot Bean and Cheese Dip

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Petite Pineapple and Prosciutto Pizzas

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White Bean and Roasted Red Pepper Dip

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Enjoy yourself and give your sports food a little lovin’ from your kitchen…

This picture that is way better than mine is courtesy of the New York Times Fitness and Nutrition section.

Ready to see mine?  Hahaha.  It makes me laugh.

AHHHHH!  The time change has made the evenings dark SOOO early that I can’t get a good picture in when it’s light out!  Dang you, Ben Franklin!!

Anyway, this side dish is a part of the pre-Thanksgiving meal that I have been talking about for 3 consecutive posts now.  OH MY LORD was this meal good.  Now I am a HUGE mashed potato-lover, but these were also really good.  It’s nice to change things up.  The coconut and cayenne definitely stood out.  Mmmmm!!

Coconut Cardamom Sweet Potatoes

Source: Clean Eating Magazine Nov/Dec 2009

Serves a huge crowd!

Ingredients:

5 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
3/4 cup light coconut milk
2 tsp. cardamom, ground
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/3 cup unsalted pecan halves, chopped (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add sweet potatoes, return to a boil and cook until soft, about 10 minutes.  Drain.

In a large mixing bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer), add potatoes and remaining ingredients (except pecans).  Mix on medium speed until smooth.  Transfer to a 9×9 baking dish.  Sprinkle pecans on top.

Bake 45-50 minutes, or until edges are slightly browned.  Cool on rack for 10 minutes and serve

Remember I told you that we need to move on from my crappy pictures?  Apply that thought right now.  It was dark, I was hungry, and I just took a quick pic of a fabulous dish.  Please don’t let the picture fool you!!  This portion of my pre-Thanksgiving meal along with my Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Apples with Ginger and another side dish a dessert soon to be revealed were awesome!

Again, the stuffing came from my Clean Eating Magazine.  The pork was a recipe that I created on the fly.  It is all healthy, simple, inexpensive, and has explosive flavor.  Sweet deal.   Trust me, you can’t go wrong with these recipes.  I wish that I had these ideas sooner!

Sweet Apple Cider Pork

Serves 4

4 4oz. pieces of pork tenderloin, 1 1/2 inch-thick (preferably)
2 1/2 cups apple cider for marinade + 1 cup for cooking
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. butter
1 tsp. cornstarch

Directions:

In a large ziplock bag, add pork, cider for marinade, cloves, ginger, and salt.  Let marinate for 30 minutes.

Once the pork is done marinating, heat a large skillet on medium-high heat.  Add olive oil and butter and distribute throughout the skillet.  Add pork and brown each side (about 2 minutes each side).  Add the remaining apple cider, bring to a boil, and reduce to a simmer.  Cover with lid and cook for about 8 minutes more.  Be sure to keep a close eye on it to make sure the cider doesn’t completely evaporate.

Then add the cornstarch and stir until the cider thickens.

Place pork on a serving plate and drizzle sauce over top.
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Mushroom and Leek Stuffing

Source: Clean Eating Magazine, Nov/Dec 2009

Serves a huge crowd (enough to stuff a turkey if desired)

Ingredients:

1 680g whole-wheat sourdough bread or regular whole wheat bread
1 Tbs. olive oil, divided
1 lb. portobello mushrooms, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (4 cups)
1 cup carrots, finely chopped
1 cup celery, finely chopped
1 large leek, trimmed, halved lengthwise and chopped
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. chile powder
1 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt

Directions: You can do this one of two ways –

1 – The oven-baked traditional method – Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Decrust and cube bread into 3/4-inch cubes.  Spread bread cubes out in a single layer on 2 rimmed baking sheets and bake for 10 minutes or until lightly toasted.  Transfer to a very large bowl.

Heat 1/2 tsp. oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add mushrooms and cooking, stirring until tender and lightly browned (8-10 minutes).  Add mushrooms to bowl with bread.  Wipe out skillet with paper towel and heat remaining oil on medium-high.  Add carrots, celery, and leeks and cook until tender and lightly browned (again, 8-10 minutes).  Add to bread bowl.

Add remaining ingredients to bowl and stir gently.  Bread should be moist, but not soggy.  Allow to cool.

Coat a 9×13 inch baking dish with olive oil cooking spray and add stuffing.  Cover tightly with foil and bake for 20 minutes.  Them remove foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

OR

2 – The weeknight, I don’t have time to do all that work method – Tear bread into bite-sized chunks.  In a large skillet heated to medium, add 1/2 tsp. oil (I cheated and added a little tab of butter, too) and mushrooms, cook until tender and lightly brown (8-10 minutes).  Remove from skillet.  Wipe down skillet with paper towel.

Add remaining oil, carrots, celery, and leeks to skillet heated to medium-high and cook until tender and lightly brown (8-10 minutes).  Add mushrooms back into skillet along with the remaining ingredients.  Stir until bread is completely moist, but not soggy.  Once bread is completely moist, crank up the heat to high and stir stuffing for a minute or two until the bread begins to toast.  Serve immediately.