Spaghetti with Swiss Chard & Bacon

My mother came to visit this past weekend on her way to my sisters. Normally when she visits I make one of my standards. This time however I decided to try something new and slightly more healthier.

I’ve never cooked with ‘collard’ greens before and Swiss Chard is definitely in the ‘collard’ greens family. I have watched a couple of shows on FoodNetwork where the chef used Swiss Chard though so sorta knew what to expect.  When you get the Swiss Chard be sure to rinse it a couple of warm baths, draining the water each time. Aside from the particulates the water in the bowl turned a lovely shade of green as I rinsed the Swiss Chard.

There are surprisingly few actual ingredients in this recipe. Most of the flavor comes from the chicken stock and the bacon and pepper (Don’t forget the pepper!) While the recipe calls for you to use the stems I used very few of them. And the next time I make this (I was told this should go into rotation) I think I will cut back on the chicken stock as it seemed to be a bit much.

I really enjoyed the dish. Within 30 minutes I had a meal that would feed 6 people. I had the left overs the next day for lunch and it held up very well.

Dry-Rubbed Baby-back Ribs

I live in a state where it could concievably be considered a cardinal sin not to like bbq. While my husband adores bbq. I truely do not care for it. Which is why it is rather surprising to me that I really really like this particular recipe.  I like it so much that I have used the rub on chicken as well as porkchops.

Initially, the recipe came to me via a magazine-Real Simple. A magazine that already gave me my all-time favorite recipe. (see: Fettuccine with Bolognese Sauce ) When I saw it I mentioned it to my husband and he merely said “Cool.”

A month or so after that, my husband decided that he wanted to bbq some Baby-back pork ribs. Naturally images of meat slathered in bbq sauce filled my mind and I really wasn’t looking forward to it. Then I remembered this recipe. I suggested that he try a dry-rub instead of a sauce.  He looked the recipe over and decided-because we had everything in the pantry-that he would. While I chopped the garlic, he gathered everything else.

He baked them instead of grilled because we don’t actually have a grill other than our little George Foreman grill. The house smelled quite nice while they were in the oven.

Again, I remind you that I am not a bbq person. I swear I ate more ribs than my husband did. This rub is bold, just as promised:

“Big and bold, Texas is a region unto itself, and its flavorful barbecue is unique, too…” -Real Simple, July 2008

But Lordy there was some heat to this, and just a hint of sweetness. I honestly couldn’t eat enough. [It seems as if after several years of living in the actual state of Texas my tolerance for 'hot' things has increased.]

This recipe calls for two racks…we originally only used one and that may have contributed to the amount of heat. I’ve also used the same amount of rub for chicken tenders/chicken breast/pork chops (portions for two people and then some leftovers for lunch)

Apricot Pork With Rice OR Soba Noodles

I mentioned in my previous post that I had a pork and rice dish that I absolutely adore. Well now it’s a pork and Soba noodle dish that I absolutely adore. My idea for this recipe came from having quite a bit of left over pork roast and coming up with interesting ways to have the leftovers. The second time I made this pork dish I substituted the rice with Soba Noodles (which I have come to realize that I love love love them) which I stir fried with the pork once they were softened. If you don’t have any leftover pork roast you can always use pork stew meat.

This dish doesn’t really have precise measurements as it’s very much a “to taste” kind of thing.  I used Sambal Oelek to give it just a touch of heat to go with the sweetness of the apricots. And while I didn’t have any vegetables in it, I think that some broccoli would work really well with it…

Apricot Pork with Soba Noodles

Roast Pork Loin and Potatoes

This last weekend I picked up a pork loin at the market.  I searched and searched for a pork loin recipe that wasn’t Bavarian in style and came across this Italian version.

I was skeptical at first, as I normally don’t make roasts this large for just two people. (It was a 4 lb pork loin) But it was surprisingly easy to prepare. I prepped the roast in the morning and left it in the fridge to chill until I needed to put it in the oven.

Now I will say right now that I didn’t have any sage on hand-I think my husband may have given my lone spice jar to a friend not too long ago and never went to retrieve it. (There is a hole in my spice rack where it should be.) And while I had rosemary I decided to substitute both the rosemary and sage  with 1 1/2 Tbsp of “Savory” spice blend.

I think I may have baked it a little too long (keeping it warm for my husband-who had decided that day to come home late from work and didn’t tell me ahead of time) and I felt it was a little on the dry side. And this roast has no reason to be dry with the method of cooking used. But the flavor was phenomenal. I really liked the way the potatoes turned out and the next time I make this I am going to increase the amount simply because I enjoyed them.

*Side Note- While the “white” meat portions of the roast were somewhat dry, the “dark” meat portions were amazingly moist, something I found out the next day when I cut some of the roast up for a quick “Apricot Pork and Rice” dish [Recipe will appear once I remember what the measurements were - hazards of not writing things down as you concoct stuff]

Roast Pork Loin With Potatoes

Hackbraten mit Speck und Kartoffelkruste

Okay, this is a recipe I found in one of the German cookbooks. (The recipe translates to: Meatloaf with Bacon and a Potato crust) The moment I saw it I knew that I had to make it. I mean really what is not to love about it? It’s meatloaf wrapped in bacon and topped with mashed potatoes.

As is my usual MO we had friends over for dinner the night I made it.

For all the translation that I had to do in my head the recipe was in fact fairly simple. I made the potatoes in advance and reheated them in the microwave just prior to topping the meatloaf. This allowed me to get around having to time everything just right.

Normally I make meatloaf with a bread crumb mixture but this one called for milk soaked slices of a day old baguette. I had never used this method before, but I must say that it worked wonderfully and I was pleased with the cohesion of the meatloaf as well as the amount of moisture it retained. Because the meatloaf was topped with mashed potatoes and I really didn’t need a starchy side to go along with it, I made some French-cut green beans to go along with it. They were a nice compliment to the mustard foam/sauce that I made just before serving.

Pork Tenderloin with Herb Crumb Crust

I don’t make pork tenderloin very often. It’s too much like a roast for me and I have yet to perfect that particular dish either. The balance between a moist and dry roast is sometimes rather elusive. I came across this recipe in Concert in the Kitchen. I thought that it was an interesting take on the Pork Tenderloin as I had never seen one that was breaded before. Surely the tenderloin would retain its moisture with a crumb crust. So I tried it.

As I gathered the ingredients I felt that the amount of bread crumbs was a bit much, but then again I chose a smaller tenderloin as it was just for two people so the amount could have been correct for an average sized tenderloin. And I used dried rosemary (1/2 tsp) instead of fresh rosemary. The entire process was quick and relatively easy to do. It was completely done within 20 minutes of putting it in the oven. I served it with mashed turnips and potatoes.

Teufelssuppe

Teufelssupe translates from the German to Devil’s Soup. The reason they call it the Devil’s Soup does not only come from its red coloring, but the kick in heat that it has from Sambal Oelek. Sambal Oelek is a fresh red chilie paste that you can find in most supermarkets in the “asian/indian” isle. It can be used on just about anything that you want to give a kick of heat to. Just use it sparingly as a little goes a really long way. I used 1 tsp to start then after tasting it added another. That second tsp increased the heat of the soup by quite a bit.

Sambal Oelek--hot hot hot!

The soup is also made with Gulasch meat (a mixture of pork and beef stew meats) which when I think about it isn’t all that surprising since it is very much like a German Gulasch just with some vegetables and a kick.

The preparation is super simple and the whole thing cooks for about an hour depending on how tender you want the beef to be. It thickens up over time but doesn’t quite get as thick as a stew would.

Penne With Sausage, Peppers & Tomato Sauce

I made Penne with Sausage, Peppers & Tomato Sauce on Friday last week. It was one of the many recipes that I collected over the years from different magazines that I had yet to actually get into the kitchen to make. I am really glad that I decided to try this one.

I’m all about simplicity and this is the epitome of a simple Italian dish. I used Johnsonville Mild Italian sausage, the next time I may try the hot version. I only used two bell peppers, a yellow and a green. They added just the right texture. I may try using an orange pepper as well the next time I make it.

It saves well, though I haven’t tried to freeze it. I would imagine that the peppers would break down a bit too much and become really limp.

The recipe serves six (at least that is what they suggest) and I think this would make a wonderful meal to invite friends over for dinner. It really doesn’t take much time at all.

Bavarian Pork Roast

I made the Bavarian Pork Roast this week. I didn’t use the exact cut of pork that it called for, but it didn’t really seem to matter much. This has got to be one of the better recipes I have tried for a pork roast. It was amazingly moist and tender. It fell apart simply using a fork. I made mashed potatoes as a side dish to go with it.

The sour cream sauce was decent enough, though I have made better. I don’t think that I will make it the next time. Instead I will use one of the more traditional sauces that I know how to make.

I’m constantly looking for recipes to use my Crockpot with and this is definitely one that I am going to keep.