spice rubbed pork tenderloin

...with spicy peas and garlic-parmesan polenta

The pork:
-Coat the tenderloin in dry spices (I used a pork spice rub that was a gift from my friend Sandra).
-Sear the outside in an oven-proof pan, in just a little bit of olive oil. Then finish cooking it in the oven (my tenderloin was about 1 lb, which took about 25 minutes at 400).
-When the pork is done, put it on a plate to rest, but keep the pan (for the peas).

The polenta:
-Melt a TBSP of butter in a saucepan, add a minced garlic clove, and cook for a couple minutes (just til it gets a little soft, but not brown).
-Add 1 cup chicken stock and bring to a boil, then whisk in 1/3 cup polenta. Keep stirring pretty frequently til it's done (when it gets nice and thick).
-Stir in some parmesan and a pinch of black pepper.

The peas:
-Deglaze the pork pan with a splash of liquid, and scrape up the yummy spice bits from the pork.
-Add some frozen baby peas, and sauté til they're heated through. They'll pick up the flavors from the pan, so seasoning probably isn't necessary.

dark chocolate toffee bark

Perfectly salty, crunchy toffee covered in rich dark chocolate that melts in your mouth, topped with toasted nuts.

I want more.

Made by Michele Lepard Kim.
You can find out more about her wonderful artisanal toffee through her Facebook page (listed under "La Petite Occasion").

happy new year!

salami-ciabatta melt

Simple, but amazingly delicious...

I cut a small loaf of olive ciabatta in half, and layered the following:
-gruyere
-sliced herb-crusted salami
-sun-dried tomatoes (in olive oil)
-fontina
Then stuck it under the broiler, just until the cheese melted and the bread was toasted (only took a few minutes).

I bet this would also be good with things like sliced marinated mushrooms, artichokes, or olives (I would have used olives, if my bread didn't already have them baked in)

christmas dinner

I was in charge of cooking Christmas dinner for my family this year
(no pressure!), and this is what I came up with...

Rosemary pork tenderloin, with bacon on top (click here for recipe)

Horseradish and sour cream mashed potatoes (click here for recipe)

Green beans with bacon, blue cheese, and toasted almonds

(click here for recipe)

Also, not pictured was homemade cranberry sauce (you can see that in one of my previous posts).

sushi

Spicy salmon roll with tuna & avocado on top.
Seaweed salad on the side.
(no, I did not make this myself :-)

almond-ginger biscotti

Click here for the recipe.

tortellini with peas & bacon

Click here for the recipe (I substituted bacon for the prosciutto).

cranberry-apple crisps

buttermilk blueberry pancakes

twice-baked potato

& swiss chard, sautéed with sausage and onion

happy birthday, food porn!

A year ago today, I started Food Porn. So I thought, what better way to celebrate than by returning to its roots: bacon.

Here, we have brown sugar bacon, with brown sugar ice cream.

To make the bacon, coat with a mixture of 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, and a pinch of black pepper. Arrange on a wire rack, set on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet (the grease & some of the sugar will drip down into the pan. The foil makes for an easy cleanup). Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes.

The ice cream is Häagen-Dazs brown sugar. One of the flavors in their new "Five" line. It is so named because they only use 5 ingredients (which means it's...uh...good for you).

brownie sundae

Freshly-baked brownie + mint chocolate chip ice cream = heaven.

pasta with mussels & clams

1/2 a box of pasta shells

2 bunches broccoli

1 package grape tomatoes, roasted

2 lbs mussels

1 dozen littleneck clams

1 c. white wine (I used sauvignon blanc)

garlic

red pepper flakes

Roast the tomatoes: toss a pint of grape tomatoes with olive oil & coarse salt, and spread out on a rimmed baking sheet. Add some stalks of fresh thyme if you have it. Bake in a 450-degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Set aside when done.

Cook pasta in well-salted water. About 5 minutes before the pasta is done, add the broccoli to the pot.

While pasta is cooking, heat a pan with a couple of TBSP olive oil, sliced garlic & red pepper flakes, until fragrant. Add the mussels & clams, and 1 cup white wine. Cover and cook until the shells open (about 5 minutes). Keep an eye on them, because you don't want to overcook them (they're done as soon as they open).

Drain the pasta & broccoli, add to the mussels & clams, and toss. Top with the roasted tomatoes (they'll get crushed if you add them pre-tossing). Season with salt & pepper. Keep in mind that the broth will probably be pretty salty already, so taste before you season.

(made enough to stuff 3 people and have leftovers)

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This was my first time cooking mussels & clams myself, because I always felt intimidated by it (worried about food safety issues). The key is making sure they stay alive until you cook them. Turns out, it's very easy to tell:

Before cooking: discard any whose shells are open or do not shut when you tap on them.

After cooking: discard any that do NOT open.

Recipe based on watching Giada De Laurentiis.

potato rosemary pizza

Whole wheat pizza crust topped with paper-thin slices of red potato, rosemary, olive oil, salt & pepper. Finished off with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar reduction.