Garlic Balsamic Pork Roast with Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Green Beans

Balsamic vinegar. Do you like it? Have you used it in your recipes? I have a big 17 oz bottle of it and am trying to use it up, and well like it. I find the flavor very strong. So when I came across a post from a blog I frequent for this pork roast I thought I'd give it a try. It only has 2 tablespoons of balsamic in it so I knew it wouldn't be too strong. I put this together the night before (my youngest daughter watched me, and said it smelled good) and let it marinate. I roasted it up and stole a tiny piece, and man o man was it good. The recipe did call for 2 1/2 tsp of salt, which I did, but I found it to be a little salty so I wrote a less amount below. I loved this marinade, and will be keeping this recipe to use again and again. Mmm. I'm also thinking this would be great on grilled chicken.

Garlic Balsamic Pork Roast
adapted from Kitchen Confidante

4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced or crushed
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pork roast

Stir together garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and olive oil and place in a large ziploc baggie. Add the pork roast and allow to marinate over night.

Roast in a 400' convection oven (or 425' regular) for about 1 hour, until the internal temp reaches 155'. Allow to rest for 10 minutes, then slice.

For the mashed sweet potatoes, I cut up a few large yams (the orange ones), boiled in water for 15 minutes until tender. Added to my stand mixer bowl with some butter, salt a little nutmeg and some milk then whipped them up.

For the green beans, I used fresh green beans that I had froze, sauteed in a little oil and butter, salt, pepper and garlic until tender.

3/5/12 I tried this out on some thick cut pork loin chops then grilled them, OH MY! So good!

(with pureed apple & pear sauce, mashed yams (w/marshmallows for them) & sauteed squash & brussles sprouts)

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enjoy,

Griddled Chicken Burritos

These chicken wrap burritos were great. Even Mr. agreed (that's my cue to keep the recipe and blog it). You can use leftovers for this to make the recipe quicker and get the biggest tortillas you can find, we had some 12" ones here. You'll want big ones so you can wrap up the ends and keep the warm filling inside while griddling them. Since ours were so huge we split them, and I froze the rest of the filling for later use.

Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps
from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

1 cup cooked rice, warm or at room temperature
1 cup cooked, shredded chicken
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 green onion, finely sliced (white and green parts)
1/2 red or green pepper, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
juice of 1 lime
1/2 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
2 cups shredded cheese
Sour cream
Burrito-sized flour tortillas ( I used grande 12" size)

Mix rice together with chili powder, cumin and garlic salt. Add remaining ingredients except for cheese and sour cream. Sprinkle cheese over tortillas, leaving 1/2-inch border around edges, then arrange chicken and rice mixture down the center of each tortilla. Add a little sour cream. Roll stuffed tortillas, folding in the edges. Spray the tortillas all over with cooking spray.

Heat a large non-stick skillet (or griddle) over medium heat for 1 minute. Arrange 2 wraps, seam-side down, in pan and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining wraps. Serve.

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Fajita Marinade

We love fajitas here, and since there was so much talk of them on a cooking group I'm in on Facebook, I decided I would make them, now. Good old allrecipes brought me to this recipe, and the rave reviews got me to make it. I used half amount of chicken tenders and half amount of tri tip steak, sliced. The marinade didn't smell like anything when I made it so I was worried I either forgot something in it, or hoped it would turn out. Boy did it turn out. 3 hours of marinating time was fine for this. I was too lazy to grill the meat so I just cooked it in a hot pan with a little oil. Next time I will grill it. Serve with some cooked up bell peppers and onions, sour cream and cilantro wrapped in a tortilla. These were awesome. Everyone ate it and didn't leave much for leftovers. I'm keeping this one.

Fajita Marinade
from allrecipes
1/4 cup lime juice
1/3 cup water
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons soy sauce (Tamari for gluten free)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke flavoring (use gluten free brand)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound steak or chicken

In a large resealable plastic bag, mix together the lime juice, water, olive oil, garlic, soy sauce, salt, and liquid smoke flavoring. Stir in cayenne and black pepper.

Place desired meat in the marinade, and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight. Cook as desired.

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enjoy,

A Peanut Butter Pie for Mikey

This is a special post for a fellow food blogger, Jennifer Perillo of In Jennie's Kitchen. Her Husband suddenly passed away last week leaving behind two beautiful little girls and Jennifer. I don't know Jennifer personally, and I only first heard of her a week before of some good news that came her way, then sadly the next I heard was this sad terrible news. News spread fast in the blogging community through Facebook and Twitter. She posted a beautiful sweet home video of her Husband dancing with his little girl, and my heart broke as I watched. My heart goes out to Jennifer and her girls, she has been in my thoughts all week.

Jennifer announced in a recent blog post that we should all make a Peanut Butter Pie in honor of him. Everyone came together and there was a Facebook event made for Mikey's memory and hundreds joined in. I reckon the grocery shelves are bare of peanut butter and chocolate tonight, for you Mikey.

Come and check out the growing list of bloggers who also made a pie for Mikey or read along on Twitter hashtag #apieformikey.

I made Jennifer's Peanut Butter Pie today to share with my family. You may find the recipe for this Peanut Butter Pie at Jennifer's blog.

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enjoy,

Mom's Sloppy Joes

These are mentioned on my other URL but had to bring them here in case anyone is looking for them. These are a tried and true recipe, a fave around here. A simply recipe I grew up with, even Mr. loves them.

Mom's Sloppy Joe's

2 lbs ground beef or ground turkey
2 TBLwhite vinegar
2 TBL water
2 TBL mustard
2 TBL Worcestershire sauce (gluten free)
2 TBL granulated sugar
24 oz. bottle of ketchup

Brown meat and drain. Mix in remaining ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes. Serve on buns (gluten free).


Sharing these at Everyday Sisters.

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Cheesy Macaroni and Cheese

I am going to call this our go-to mac and cheese. This has been the creamiest one I've made, and that's how I like it. Other baked mac n cheeses tend to come out dry and are horrible for leftovers, not this. I have to say I think it's the Velveeta in it, even though I'm not real keen on it, I'll use it for this recipe. I have made this a couple of times now and even the kids gobble it up. This recipe will make a big 9x13 pan, so I suggest halving it to fit either an 8x8 or round casserole for your side dish to dinner. Sadly I cannot give credit to where I found this, I always save the link in my Faves, but I can't find it there, and I had to hand write it since I don't have a printer now. SO, if I ever happen upon it, I'll add the link in.

Cheesy Macaroni and Cheese

16 oz macaroni pasta (any shape pasta you like, gluten free)
1/2 C unsalted butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 C flour (gluten free blend)
3 1/2 C milk, warmed
1/4 C white wine (or sub w/chicken broth)
1/2 lb Velveeta cheese, cubed
1/2 lb cheddar, cubed

Topping:
1/2 C panko bread crumbs (gluten free bread crumbs)
1 Tbl parsley
2 Tbl butter, melted

Heat 350' oven. Grease 9x13 glass dish ( 8x8 or round casserole, if making half the recipe).
Cook pasta for about 2-3 minutes less than called for, drain, set aside.
In a saucepan, melt 1/2 C butter, salt pepper, once melted add flour, stir until smooth. Let cook for 1 minute. Add milk, wine, bring to a boil, whisking. Add cheeses and stir until melted. Pour over cooked pasta and add to greased dish.

Combine the panko, parsley and melted butter in a small bowl. Sprinkle macaroni with panko topping, bake uncovered 30 minutes.

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Yakitori

Asian recipes are my favorite lately well always, and when I saw this posted I knew what was for dinner that night. Yakitori. Luckily for me my trip to the Asian market paid off, I had everything I needed (sake, mirin, lots of fresh (frozen) ginger...). I let this marinade a few hours, and I soaked the bamboo skewers for an hour, but you know, they still burned. I think I'll use my metal ones for now on. These came out SOOO good. Served over rice with some sauce drizzled over it, yum. Hey it's hot out, get your grill on.

 

Chicken Yakitori
slightly adapted from Jennifer Chandler's recipe

3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin
1/2 cup sake
2 tbsp. finely grated fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
11/2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
Green onions cut 1" long
Sesame seeds for garnish
Skewers (if using bamboo, soak in water for 30 minutes or longer)
Vegetable oil, for the grates

In a medium saucepan combine the soy sauce, mirin, sake, ginger, garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. Over high heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

Put the chicken in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup of the marinade and toss to coat. Cover, place in the refrigerator, and marinate for 30 minutes or longer.

Preheat a clean grill to medium-high with the lid closed for 8 to 10 minutes. Lightly brush the grates with oil.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and shake off the excess. Discard the marinade. Thread the chicken and green onions onto the skewers.

Place the chicken on the grill. Close the lid and cook, basting with the remaining marinade and turning frequently to prevent scorching, until no longer pink the middle, about 3 to 5 minutes on each side. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

 

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enjoy,