Roast Pork Tenderloin with Pan Sauce

This tender and flavorful pork tenderloin 

roast is made even more delicious with a 

simple pan sauce. Just marinade and roast. 

 Add all the marinade ingredients to a
zip bag and smoosh to mix. Add the pork and
smoosh to coat it all over. Press out the air and
 close the bag. Refrigerate for a few hours.

 Remove the pork from the bag and
save the remaining marinade. Roast @400º
for about 30 minutes. I like to use my
cast iron skillet. It gives it a good sear.

 There are always 2 tenderloins in a package and
one is always bigger than the other, so if yours is
the smaller one, just roast for a little less time.
Once it's nice and browned, remove it to a warm
platter. Let it rest while you make the pan sauce.

Place the skillet on medium heat; add the broth

and whisk to scrape up all the browned pieces. 

Add the reserved marinade and bring to a 

 simmer and let reduce for 2-3 minutes.  

 Whisk in the  butter and keep warm on low.

 Slice the tenderloin and spoon on the sauce.

Be sure to spoon extra sauce on each serving.

I served this with sweet potatoes and
oven-roasted brussel sprouts.

For the sweet potatoes I just microwaved
them for 4-6 minutes until tender. Then
I topped with  butter and brown sugar.
The brussel sprouts  were tossed with a little
olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted along with
 the tenderloin for the last 20  minutes,
shake the pan halfway to toss.

I used my cast iron pans for the tenderloin and
the brussel sprouts. 

Roast Pork Tenderloin with Pan Sauce

 1-lb pork tenderloin

2 T olive oil

2 T soy sauce

1 T brown sugar

1 T red wine vinegar

1 T lemon juice

1 T Worcestershire saauce

1 t dried parsley flakes

1 t dry mustard

1 t garlic powder

1/4 t pepper

Add all the marinade ingredients to a Ziplock bag. 

Add the pork tenderloin and toss to coat. Seal 

and refrigerate for 3-4 hours. Remove the pork 

from the bag and reserve the marinade. Roast in
 a large skillet @400º oven for 25-30 minutes.
Remove and let rest 5-10 minutes while you
 make pan sauce. Slice the roast and put
 on a platter. Spoon on sauce.

Pan Sauce:

1/2 C chicken broth

reserved marinade

A pat of butter about 1/2 T

Place the skillet on medium heat; add the broth

and scrape up all the browned pieces. Add the 

reserved marinade and bring to a simmer and let 

reduce for 2-3 minutes. Whisk in the butter. 

Remove from heat. Pour over the pork 

tenderloin slices in the platter. 

Enjoy!

Find me on Facebook too!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch

Blue Cheese Sauce for Steak

 Whip up this simple blue cheese sauce 

the next time you are grilling steaks. 

It's so easy and takes your steak dinner to a 

new level. It's great when you're having company. 

Also keep it in  mind for one of your

holiday family dinners. Here goes...

 Mince the garlic and add to the cream.

 Let simmer on low until reduced and thickened.

This takes about 30 minutes, stir occasionally.

 Stir in the cheese, salt, pepper, and W-sauce.

 Whisk in to allow the cheese to melt slightly.

 Add chopped fresh parsley-good if you have it. 

It's so good on steaks- rib eye and filet mignon are

my favorite. I swirl my vegetables and potatoes in

the sauce that's on my plate too. It's also great on 

burgers, grilled salmon, spicy shrimp, and of 

course, a dip for  buffalo wings.

Leftover sauce is good to have for a dinner later in

the week. It's good on almost everything.

Blue Cheese Sauce

1 C heavy cream

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

4 oz (about 1/2C) crumbled blue cheese

1/4 t salt & 1/4 t pepper

1 t Worcestershire sauce- a good dash

1-2 T chopped parsley

Combine the cream and garlic in a small saucepan

and let simmer on low until thickened, about 30

minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk

to melt the cheese. Stir in the chopped parsley.

Keep warm. Serves 4-6

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch,
Rattlebridge Farm, My Romantic Home,
Facebook, 

Sea Scallops Piccata with Caramelized Spaghetti Squash

When you want a special dinner sea scallops are
 a nice choice. In this recipe they are served on
 top of spaghetti squash. I showed  how easy it
is to make it in my previous post.

 Break the recipe down into small steps and
it's simple, easy, and done in 20 minutes.

 First, make the squash as shown HERE
and set that aside.

 Have the other ingredients ready

because it goes quickly from here.

 Blot dry the scallops with a paper towel

and season with salt and pepper.

Next make the lemon piccata sauce.

Whisk to emulsify. 

 Add the capers and chives and

 set that aside while you cook the scallops.

 Brown the scallops on both sides in olive oil
 and remove to a heated plate and keep warm
 with the other dinner plates in a low oven.

 Now, add the butter and sage to the pan .

 Saute until the butter is a golden brown.

 Add the spaghetti squash to the pan.

Toss around in the browned butter until lightly

 golden, about 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, 

and lemon juice

To give it a special ta-da! presentation,

 arrange the squash in a long line

 on a heated plate and top with the 

scallops. Spoon on the reserved warm 

piccata sauce and serve.

Sea Scallops Piccata with 

Caramelized Spaghetti Squash

1 spaghetti squash cooked ~ as seen HERE.

1 lb sea scallops

2 T olive oil

1 stick butter (8 T)

2 T lemon juice

2 T capers

2 T chopped chives

10 fresh sage leaves

salt and pepper

Piccata Sauce:

In a small sauce pan bring 2 T water to a  boil.

Turn off heat and add 6 T butter, cut up. 

Whisk to incorporate into an emulsified  melted

butter sauce. Add 1 T lemon juice and 

chives. Set aside.

Scallops:

Heat a large saute pan over medium-high and

add the 2 T olive oil. Season the scallops with 

salt and pepper. Add to the hot oil and brown

for about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate

in a warm oven while you finish the squash.

Squash: 

In the same saute pan add the remaining 2 T 

butter and the sage leaves. When the butter

begins to brown add the spaghetti squash and 

toss it in the browned butter until lightly golden,

about 5 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and

the remaining 1 T lemon juice. 

To Serve:

Arrange the squash in a straight line on the heated

plates. Place the scallops on top of the squash. 

Spoon on the reserved piccata sauce. 

Serve immediately. Serves 4

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch, Facebook,
Rattlebridge Farm, Common Ground,
The Charm Of Home,

How To Cook Spaghetti Squash

Don't let that big yellow spaghetti squash at

 the Farmers Market intimidate you!

It's one of the easiest vegetables to make.

No peeling, no dicing, just pop it into the oven 

or microwave. When it's tender, cut and scrape

out the seeds. Then rake the inside with a fork 

into long strands. 

How can you resist that happy, 

sunshiny yellow color? 

The easiest way for me to make it is
 in the microwave. Three big reasons: 

1. It takes only 10-15 minutes.

2. It doesn't use that much oven power

or heat up the kitchen.

3. Most important; it's easier to cut when it's

 softened up a bit. Too dangerous and

 hard to cut when it's raw.

Pierce all over about 10-15 times.

 Microwave for 5 minutes to soften.

 Now it's easy to cut in half.
Cutting in half horizontally will give
you longer spaghetti-like strands.

 Scrape out only the seeds.

 Put in a dish with 1/4" water and return

 to the microwave for another 5-7 minutes.

 Start shredding with a fork.

Spaghetti Squash~ Easy Method

Pierce all over with the tip of a sharp paring

knife. Put it in the microwave for 5 minutes.

That will soften it enough so that you can cut

it in half easily. Scrape out only the seeds. 

Put cut-side down in a shallow casserole and 

add abut 1/4 inch of water to the bottom.

return to the microwave for another 5-7

minuted until tender. Remove and let cool 

so that it's easier to handle. Hold with a 

kitchen towel and use a fork to rake out

the inside into spaghetti-like strands.

Alternative: 
~ You can bake it whole for 1 hour @375º.

Then it's easy to cut and scrape out the seeds.

~ You can cut it in half, scrape out the seeds, 

drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and 

pepper and roast cut side down @425º for 

30 minutes, until fork tender, then

~ Simply season with salt, pepper, butter

~ Use in place of pasta.

~ Saute 2 minced garlic cloves in 2 T butter. 

Add 1/4 C minced fresh parsley

 and 1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese. 

Add the squash strands.

Toss to heat through. Salt and pepper.

~ Add sauteed spinach, bacon, and feta cheese.

~ Saute with butter and fresh herbs, like sage.
~ or...try the recipe I'll be posting next!

Enjoy!

Links: Facebook, Between Naps On The Porch,

Baked Lemon, Garlic, Butter Tilapia

Here's another favorite tilapia recipe. 

It's fast, flavorful, and so easy.

A good one to add to your recipe rotation.

 Use real butter and fresh parsley. Fresh lemons
are best, but bottled will do.

If you don't have garlic cloves, just use lots 

of garlic salt in place of the regular salt.

 Add it all to the melted butter in the pan.

Bale for 15 minutes. That's It! Easy!
I served it with purple potatoes, and
fresh green beans for lots of flavor and color.

 Lemon Garlic Butter Tilapia

3 tilapia filets

3 T butter

2 T lemon juice

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 T minced fresh parsley

salt and pepper

Put the butter in a 9x13 baking dish 

and put in a 400º oven while it preheats.

Remove the pan from the oven and add

the lemon juice and garlic to the melted 

butter. Shake the pan to blend. Add the 

tilapia and turn over once to coat with butter

Season well with salt and pepper. Sprinkle

the parsley over the top. Bake for 15 minutes

until opaque. Serve and drizzle with extra

butter sauce from the pan.

serves 2-3

Enjoy!

Links: Between Naps On The Porch,
Facebook, Rattlebridge Farm,
Common Ground