Pork tenderloin with Fresh Tomatoes, Onion and Garlic, and feta

I had a very nice lunch today with hubby and daughter.  We seldom get to have lunch very often in the quiet of our home with our special gal.  She is so busy with the kiddo's there seems to be time to get together for some conversation . 

 Today worked out well so I decided to make something I knew her and her Dad would like.  We all love pork and especially pork tenderloin.  I have lots of recipes and usually have no trouble just putting something together but today I checked out allrecipes.com and found this one.  I adapted it a bit to my liking and it was delish!

  Happy Cooking from my kitchen to yours!

1/10/12

 1 lb. pork tenderloin(their recipe called for 4 pork chops)
1 large onion sliced thin
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
garlic powder to taste
1/2 pint red grape tomatoes
1/2 pint yellow grape tomatoes (I used 3 Roma tomatoes seeded and cut in pieces)
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 1/2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
4 ounces Feta cheese crumbled

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion and cook until golden brown.  Set aside

Heat 1/2 tablespoon oil in skillet.  Season pork with salt, pepper, and garlic powder and place in skillet
Cook until done.  Do not overcook.  Set aside.

Heat remaining oil in skillet.  Return onions to skillet and stir in tomatoes, garlic and basil.  Cook and stir until tomatoes are tender.  Mix in balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper.  Top pork with onions and tomato mixture and sprinkle with feta to serve.. Enjoy!! 

Easy Chicken!

Quick Monday night dinner!

It doesn’t take a chef to create one yummy easy to make week night dinner.

I do it all the time. You can too!



2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (2  thick boneless breasts made 4 thin filets)
2 T olive oil
2 T butter
1 clove minced garlic
Salt and pepper
1T dried parsley
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 cups fresh spinach
1cup cherry tomatoes
Pecorino Romano Cheese to taste

In a large skillet place butter and olive oil.  Add minced garlic and parsley.  Simmer until fragrant.  Add chicken, salt and pepper.  Lightly brown until there isn’t any pink.

Add chicken broth and simmer, add spinach and simmer until spinach is wilted.  Toss in cherry tomatoes and garnish with cheese.  Add a Side salad, rice or potato. Enjoy!

Dessert

1angel food cake mix baked according to directions

1 small package Hershey instant pudding
2 1/2 cups milk

Whisk until smooth.

Topping

1/2 pint heavy cream
1tsp. Vanilla extract
4T powdered sugar
Beat until firm peaks

Apple/Nectarine Fruit Tart

Right now there is plenty of fresh fruit available and I just can't resist buying some and finding something to do with them other than your basic fruit salad..that's fine for some days but not today I'm on fire and baking and cooking up a storm..Here is a creation that I put together with those fabulous Pillsbury crusts..What did I ever do without them?

Wonderful..

8/7/11

1  Pillsbury pie crust (use one crust) pkg. has 2
4 nectarines(peeled and sliced)
1 pink lady apple(peeled and sliced thin)
8 oz. cream cheese softened
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla(or almond) watch the amount if using almond
1/4 cup sliced almonds
Whipped Cream

Roll and place dough in a pie or tart pan...Bake 400 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes..(Cool slightly)..
Beat cream cheese, eggs and sugar..fold in sliced fruit..Spoon onto baked crust..Top with almonds. Place back in oven..Bake 375 degrees for approx. 35 to 40 minutes..Center should be set.  Cool completely before serving. Note: Add a little whipped cream if desired

Lemon vanilla poke cake

Hi everyone!

Poke cakes are so easy.  You can create just about any variety of combinations to make an awesome dessert for parties and family treats.

I made a basic poke cake today because hubby and I were looking for something not rich but a dessert to compliment our dinner. Light and refreshing to satisfy our sweet tooth and not be too rich or overpowering.  This was a good choice .

1 box lemon cake mix baked according to directions.
2 pkgs. vanilla instant pudding
4  cups cold milk
1- 8 oz. Cool Whip or store brand topping

In a 13x9 inch baking pan bake cake according to directions.

 While cake is baking mix vanilla pudding and milk together using a wire whisk.  Set aside.

When baked remove from oven and poke holes immediately into cake with either the end of a wire whisk or a wooden spoon.  Let cool to at least warm. It  does not have to be completely cooled.  It will be fine.  Pour pudding onto cake making sure to get as much as you can get into the holes.  Any pudding left place on top and spread.

  Refrigerate until completely cooled and top with cool whip or desired topping or you can eat it as is.

 Yummy dessert and so many variations of it you can make.  Just add what your family like to the pudding or use another flavor pudding. Chocolate chips or coconut or use lemon pie filling or another flavor you choose.  It's a great take with you cake.  Everyone likes this cake.  

*** Note: An idea would be flavor it with almond and add some toasted almonds to top and you'll have a great Almond torte cake.  

**This is the way the cake will look after the holes are poked into it.
 I used the base of my whisk to make my holes because I wanted lots of pudding to seep in those holes.

If you are using jello you can use the end of a wooden spoon or straw.  Jello is lighter and will seep through the cake easier. Follow instructions on package of jello for exact amount.

Happy Baking! Enjoy!

From my kitchen to yours,

Peach Muffins

Recipe repost 👍
Hi everyone:  I felt like making some muffins today and had 4 beautiful peaches that quite honestly didn't look like they should be used in muffins but since my desire for muffins was overpowering I peeled them and thinking I had all the right ingredients found out I didn't have any flour so I decided to try this recipe using Bisquick. It does cut some steps so I was hoping that I wasn't going to compromise these muffins by substituting.

Note about Bisquick:

According to General Mills, Bisquick was invented in 1930 after one of their top sales executives met an innovative train dining car chef on a business trip. After the sales executive complimented the chef on his deliciously fresh biscuits, the dining car chef shared that he used a pre-mixed biscuit batter he created consisting of lard, flour, baking powder and salt. The chef then stored his pre-mixed biscuit batter on ice in his kitchen ahead of time, enabling him to bake fresh biscuits quickly on the train every day. As soon as the sales executive returned from that business trip, he stole the chef's idea and created Bisquick.
The recipe was adapted, using hydrogenated oil, thus eliminating the need for refrigeration. (Sesame oil was originally used as a preservative, identified on the box as "Ingredient S" over the years.^{[citation needed]}) Bisquick was officially introduced on grocers' shelves in 1931.
Although first promoted for making just biscuits ("90 seconds from package to oven," the slogan read), Bisquick was soon used to prepare a wide variety of baked goods from pizza dough to pancakes to dumplings to snickerdoodle cookies.

Here are the results and how I managed to make a very good muffin incorporating a recipe (mommy's kitchen.net) and adapting it to what I had available in my kitchen. You can do it too!  You just have to take a chance.

They actually turned out wonderful!  Light, sweet and using  fresh peaches this has already been added to my summer dessert list.

2 cups Bisquick
pinch salt
2 eggs slightly beaten
3/4 cup sugar (divided)
1 cup buttermilk (Use 1tsp. vinegar or 1 tsp. lemon juice to 1 cup milk to make buttermilk substitute)set for several minutes before using
6 T butter melted
1 1/2 cups diced fresh peaches(diced canned peaches can be used but make sure to drain thoroughly)
1 tsp. vanilla
 Cinnamon or cinnamon sugar to sprinkle on top before baking.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Either grease muffin cups generously or use muffin liners.

In a bowl place diced peaches and 1/4 cup sugar, stir and set aside.

Stir together Bisquick and pinch of salt.

In another bowl place eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, vanilla, buttermilk and melted butter. Fold in peaches.

Add peach mixture to dry ingredients. Fill 3/4 full muffin cups and Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon or cinnamon sugar

Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool completely

These muffins are very light,tasty and very moist so allow to cool and cover lightly overnight and store in a cool area.

Note:  These muffins can be made without using a mixer.  Large spoon to mix will do just fine.  Batter will be slightly lumpy and that is OK!