Dijon Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Vegetables

Well, you all know how much we love pork tenderloin in this house...this is yet another delicious way to prepare it.  I added fennel to the butternut squash for a little kick, and just like that - a wonderful fall meal.  

Soooo easy!!  Soooo good.

Dijon Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Vegetables

adapted from Tastebook

1 pork tenderloin

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons cracked black pepper

1 large butternut squash, peeled and cubed

1 fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into chunks (fronds and stems removed)

1 large onion, cut into chunks

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Rub mustard all over pork, then cover in pepper.  Place pork in center of roasting pan or baking sheet.

Put squash, fennel and onion in a bowl.  Add oil, salt and pepper and toss to mix evenly.  Spread vegetables all around pork.  Cook for about 40 minutes.  Let pork rest for 5 minutes before cutting.

Winter freshness

How many of you do the Feast of the Seven Fishes for Christmas Eve?  Or, maybe you don't, but would like to start?

I plan on sharing some of our recipes with you...I was going to do one big Christmas Eve roundup post but now I'm not really feeling it.  So, I hope you can be patient, which should be fine...after all, you have just about a year to prepare if you want to make it yourself :)

Today's recipe actually doesn't include fish.  It's one of the best side dishes that we serve every year - a nice, light, fresh salad that compliments the fish and pasta very nicely.  It's so easy to make, and really delicious.  It would go well with just about any main dish, really.

We don't normally add grapefruit to it, but thought we'd try something different this year.  It was great!  This is another one of "those" recipes that doesn't include exact measurements...just taste as you go.  You can do it, I promise :)

Citrus Fennel Salad
2 blood oranges
1 large pink grapefruit
2 meyer lemons
1 fennel bulb
black olives of your choice, left whole (I took the picture before adding the olives!)
1/2 large red onion
extra virgin olive oil
citrus vinegar
a few squeezes of fresh orange juice
a few squeezes of fresh lemon juice
freshly ground black pepper

Cut unpeeled oranges and lemons into very thin round slices.  Lay them on bottom of serving platter.  Peel the grapefruit and section it.  Line pieces around edge of platter.

Cut fronds off fennel bulb and cut bulb into thin pieces.  Lay on top of oranges and lemons.  Peel onion and cut into thin round slices and place on top of fennel.  Add olives.

Squeeze orange and lemon juice on top, then add a few splashes each of oil and vinegar.  Top with pepper and serve.  This can be served cold or at room temp (we serve at room temp).

Linked to: Back to Basics

Thanksgiving stress?

The food blogosphere is chock full o' Thanksgiving posts right now...what to bake, what to cook, how to make it, when to make it, how to eat it as leftovers, how to set the table, how to clear the table, how to label your plates/bowls...it's enough to make your head spin, right?

That's why sometimes it's better to be a guest :)

My first piece of advice - delegate.  In our family, no matter who hosts, we all contribute pretty equally.  It's fair.  It's courteous.  It keeps the peace.

My second piece of advice - simplify.  Easy dishes can be just as delicious as complicated ones, with the upside of having a less stressed host.  So, I bring you this dish.  The flavors are great and it takes just a few minutes to prep.  A bit different from the typical candied carrots offering, but just as good!

You deserve a break on Thursday.

Honey Roasted Fennel & Baby Carrots
1 fennel bulb, cut into chunks (fronds removed)
2 cups baby carrots
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix.  Place on a baking sheet or in a roasting pan and cook for about 35-40 minutes, turning twice during that time.

Serves 4-6.

Linked to: Side Dish Saturdays

Fennel is fantastic.

I always get excited when I see recipes that include fennel.  Fennel makes me happy.  I love when it's roasted or baked, but my all time favorite is eating it SUPER cold all by itself, with some olives.  YUM.

This recipe caught my eye for many reasons, not just because of the fennel.  It's comforting, rustic, EASY (seriously, it doesn't get much easier!), delicious and would even be suitable for company.  Simply put - it's Italian.  That's what it's all about.

Another wonderful one-pot meal :)

Umbrian Sausage Bake

adapted from Italian Food Forever

8 sausage links, hot or mild 

4 medium potatoes, cut into 2 inch chunks

2 fresh fennel bulbs, top & core removed and cut into 2 inch pieces

2 medium onions, peeled and cut into thick wedges

2 red bell peppers, core & seeds removed and cut into 2 inch chunks

6 garlic cloves, peeled & crushed

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

sea salt & cracked black pepper, to taste

crushed red pepper, to taste

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

zest from 2 lemons

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Mix together all the ingredients apart from the sausages in an oven-proof large casserole dish and toss well to coat the vegetables with the oil and seasonings. Place the sausages on top and place in the oven. 

After 20 minutes, pierce the sausages with a fork and turn over. Gently move the vegetables around to ensure they both cook and brown evenly. 

Continue to cook until the vegetables are lightly browned and tender when pierced with a fork, and the sausages are browned, about another 25 minutes or so. To serve, scoop a hearty helping of the vegetables onto each plate, and top with the sausages cut in half. Serve immediately.

Serves 4.


Linked to: What's On Your Plate? hosted by Good (Cheap) Eats

Time to get creative...

You know those days when you look in your fridge and pantry and realize you have items that need to be used up, like, NOW?  Happens to me sometimes.  


I always say I'm going to set weekly meal plans, but it never seems to work out for various reasons.  For one, I never know what I'll be in the mood for, or what I'll feel like cooking.  Or, our plans might change and we may end up somewhere else for dinner.  Not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but then it will sometimes lead to this dilemma.


If the walls could talk, they'd say that today they heard, "what can I do these yams and this fennel before they go bad...and what about all those lemons Clori (my sister) gave me yesterday?"  (yes, I talk to myself often...don't lie - you do too)


Well, here's what I did.

I also made some croutons for our salad, out of the last of the bread given out of neighborly love (FINALLY, lol).

So to all those crazy people who bust down the doors at ShopRite as soon the word "snow" is mentioned, have no fear...you CAN make a good meal out of what's in your kitchen.  No need to panic.  And if you have any problems, just ask me...I'll be glad to help :)

Roasted Chicken Thighs With Yams, Fennel & Lemon
4 chicken thighs, bone in and skin on
3 yams, peeled and cut in large chunks
1 head of fennel, tops and bottom cut, sliced
8 cloves garlic, whole, peeled
2 lemons, quartered
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Put yams in a roasting pan, followed by fennel and garlic.  Add chicken, and drizzle oil over everything.  Season with salt and pepper.  Put in oven for 20 minutes.

Remove pan from oven and shake everything around a bit so the juices are distributed.  Squeeze lemon pieces all over the food, then add them to the pan.  Lower temperature to 425, place pan back in oven, and cook for another 35 minutes, or until chicken is fully cooked.

Serves 2.

Croutons
Italian bread (or whatever bread you like), stale, cut into bite size cubes
extra virgin olive oil
dried oregano
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Toss bread cubes in a bowl with EVOO and other ingredients until fully coated.  Place bread on foil-lined baking pan and cook for about 15 minutes.