Category Archives: Main Course

Roasted Pork Tenderloin

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Uncategorized, , , , , , ,

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I have to say on the day I prepared this recipe I was really stopped up and couldn’t enjoy the normal aromas surrounding me when I cook. But, the Roasted Pork Loin smell came through loud and clear. The pork smelled heavenly with the onions and jalapeno peppers I added to the dish. All of a sudden I felt my mouth watering and I realized it was because of the delicious smell coming from the oven. It is nice when good food evokes that kind of reaction. The smell is great, your mouth waters and you just cannot wait to eat!

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Not everyone enjoys pork but if you are willing to serve it to family and friends this will be a crowd pleaser. Pork loin is a tender piece of meat but like with any meat it can dry out if you are not careful. I think surrounding the pork loin with lots of onions and peppers along with a little water then wrapping it up tight helps to lock in the juices and the flavors.

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Roasted Pork Loin is excellent as a sandwich or paired with fried apples and mashed potatoes. No matter what you decide to make as a side dish the Roasted Pork Loin with be the star on your table. “Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up”.

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Roasted Pork Loin

Ingredients:
1 – 2 pork loins
1 large onion sliced
1 jalapeno pepper sliced
1 cup of water
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tsp onion powder
½ tsp ground ginger
paprika

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Season pork loins with all seasonings and place in a roasting pan. Cover with onions and jalapeno peppers. Pour water into the pan and wrap tightly with foil. Bake for 1 ½ hours until cooked and tender. Slice for a meal or sandwiches.

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Shrimp with Crab Grits

Main Course, Seafood/ Fish, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, , , , , , , ,

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I recently went to a fantastic restaurant in Maryland with my daughter and youngest son. We were doing an overnight visit with baby girl so I treated us all to dinner. The restaurant was eclectic with modern tables, a small library of books to purchase, great artwork, a stage for poetry readings and wonderful service. The crowd was diverse and so was the food.

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I was amazed at the variety of dishes on the small menu which had a basic organic theme but offered foods anyone could enjoy. I decided to try a shrimp dish that was layered over crab grits and smothered in a light sauce with crisp veggies. After the first bite I knew I would have to try and re-create this dish when I got home.

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What I created does not taste exactly like the wonderful dish in Maryland but it comes pretty close. The key was to make sure each layer of flavor complimented the next. The grits were nice and creamy with the subtle hint of crab. The veggies were crisp and naturally sweet. The shrimp added their own layer of flavor along with an underlying level of spicy heat just enough to make your taste buds tingle. Although I used jumbo shrimp for the recipe, I think scallops or a nice grilled fillet of salmon or cod would be enjoyable too.

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Shrimp with Crab Grits

Ingredients:
1 lb lump crab meat shelled
2 shallots diced
2 cloves garlic sliced
1 tomato seeded diced
1 cup coarsely ground grits
1 cup thin asparagus chopped
2 cups water
¼ cup heavy cream
½ cup half and half
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp fresh parsley
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
juice from ½ lemon
Bring water and 1 teaspoon of salt to a boil. Stir in half and half then add grits and reduce to medium heat. Cook until thick and tender approximately 15 to 20 minutes. Add cheese and stir until melted and well blended. Gently stir in crab and try not to break up the lumps of meat. Set aside and keep warm. Add a little milk if needed to thin out grits.

In a medium pan melt 1 tbsp butter with 1 tbsp olive oil. When heated add shrimp and sprinkle with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Cook until shrimp are pink and remove from heat. Set aside.

In a large pan saute shallots in olive oil and 1 tbsp butter until slightly browned. Stir in garlic then add asparagus, tomatoes, parsley and seasonings. Let simmer for 3 minutes then remove from heat.

Place grits into a bowl then spoon veggie mixture over the grits. Top with shrimp and sprinkle a little fresh parsley over the top. Yummy!

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Mixed Baked Beans

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Side Dish, Uncategorized, Vegetables, , , , , , , ,

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Summertime is usually the time when folks make baked beans for every picnic, bar-b-que (yes, there is a difference between the two) or outdoor kids birthday party. But, we like to have baked beans year round because they taste so darn good. Plus, baked beans pair well with a lot of different meats like hot dogs, kielbasa, hot sausages and burgers. The list goes on and on.

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Now that I have said how wonderful baked beans can be I think I should add that they sometimes need to be “doctored up”. I came up with Mixed Baked Beans because I wanted to make a slightly different side dish to go with some oven baked spare ribs I was fixing for dinner. I had a shelf full of a variety of beans so I decided to mix them all together to see how it would taste. If I do say so myself, they tasted absolutely delicious. The flavors of the cannellini, black beans and the homestyle baked beans blended together very well and were fantastic with the ribs.

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The next time I tried making Mixed Baked Beans  I added some kielbasa and andouille sausage to the beans to kick up the flavors even more. Imagine all those wonderful flavors mixing together all in one simple dish. Hmmm…. I think I know what we are having for dinner tonight. Mixed Baked Beans with a few added surprises. Excellent!

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Mixed Baked Beans

Ingredients:
1 15 oz can cannellini beans drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can black beans drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can homestyle baked beans
1 14 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
½ cup diced onion
½ cup diced green pepper
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp butter
½ tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp salt
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp black pepper
½ diced jalapeno pepper

Optional:
2 slices of bacon diced
kielbalsa sausage
andouille sausage

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Spray casserole dish with cooking spray. Combine all ingredients into the casserole dish. Stir to mix well. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes until hot and bubbly.

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Comfort Stew

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, , , , , , , ,

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Comfort food comes in many shapes, flavors and categories. Some are hot and some are cold. Comfort foods can also be seasonal. During the summer months my comfort foods are homemade potato salad, hand churned ice cream and my mom’s apple pie. In the cooler and down right cold months my comfort foods tend to be homemade soups and stews.

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Just recently my hubby added a new dish I made to his comfort foods list. I think because it was a hearty stew packed with protein, veggies and fiber in the form of beans. Two kinds of beans to be exact. Beans are very rich in fiber as well as protein. I used black beans ( 15 g of fiber in 1 cup) and small white beans (19 g of fiber in 1 cup) to help fill my family up and to provide them with as much nutrition as possible in one dish. That is the great thing about stews. They can be a one pot dish which means easy clean up. At least my son thinks so because he usually does the dishes.

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This Comfort Stew is even better the day after you make it. In my humble opinion, letting a dish sit overnight allows the seasonings and other ingredients to meld together and create an explosion of flavor. Because beans are so filling you will probably have leftovers so you can bet on enjoying another delicious bowl of Comfort Stew the next day. We sure did!

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Comfort Stew

Ingredients:
2 lbs ground turkey (93% lean)
2 14 oz cans small white beans with liquid
1 14 oz can black beans drained and rinsed
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes with jalapenos
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes with sauce
3 scallions sliced
1 onion diced
1 red pepper diced
1 small Napa cabbage shredded
½ green pepper diced
½ cup celery diced
½ cup water

Seasonings:
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp thyme
½ tsp basil

Brown ground turkey on medium high heat in a large pot. Season meat with salt, black pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. Add scallions, red and green peppers. Stir and reduce heat to medium. Cook for 3 -5 minutes. Add tomatoes, cabbage, water, beans and remaining seasonings. Stir and lower heat slightly. Simmer for 20 minutes.

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Sunny Side Burger

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Uncategorized, , , , , , ,

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I wrote my recipe for Sunny Side Burgers back in the fall but I just recently took the time to really try out the recipe. Actually, I forgot that I had not tested the recipe on my family. Mostly, because it takes a little time to make a good burger and on week nights I am rushing to get dinner on the table after work. On the weekends I am also running around or I have some other ideas in my head and just forgot to try out the burger.

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Anyway, I was flipping through the journal I use to do my writing and ran across my Sunny Side Burger recipe so I thought it would be a good time to try it on hubby. I decided to surprise him and make them for lunch rather that pick up a sandwich from our favorite deli. One of the keys to making a good burger is to form a medium sized patty and create a indentation in the middle of the patty. This helps prevent a big bubble from forming in the middle of the patty that you naturally want to mash down. When you press down on your burgers you are releasing all of the wonderful juices which is a no-no.

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Burgers, I think, are a very individualized food. Everyone likes their burgers prepared in a different way whether it is rare, medium rare or well done. We also like to put different toppings on our burgers. The Sunny Side Burger has basic ingredients but can still be customized to your own tastes like any other recipe you find on dmariedining.com. Try making my version then let me know what you think and if you add a little something to it.

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Enjoy!

Sunny Side Burgers

Ingredients:
1 lb ground sirloin (4 burgers)
8 slices crispy bacon
4 eggs
4 slices beefsteak tomatoes
4 slices pepper jack cheese
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp salt
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 ½ tbsp vegetable oil
4 ciabatta rolls sliced

Optional:
shredded lettuce
shredded cheeses

Form ground sirloin into 4 patties. Sprinkle with worcestershire, salt, pepper and onion powder. Make a thumb impression in the middle of the burger.

Place vegetable oil in an iron skillet and heat on medium high heat. Add hamburger patties and brown on one side until a crust is formed. Flip burger and cook on the other side to your desired level of rareness. Do Not flatten the burger or all of the delicious juices will escape. Remove burger from the pan and place on a paper towel to rest.

In a non-stick pan melt butter then add egg. Cook until desired hardness of the egg. Slice ciabatta rolls. Toast slightly (optional). Assemble burgers by placing burger on bottom half of the ciabatta roll. Top burger with slice of cheese, egg, lettuce, tomato then two slices of bacon. Place the remaining bun on top and enjoy.

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Vera Cruz with Tilapia

Main Course, Seafood/ Fish, Uncategorized, , , , , , , ,

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During a conversation with my sister-in-law a while ago she told me about a wonderful fish dish she prepares for her family. I had never heard of Vera Cruz but it seemed interesting and simple to make. I guess I am behind the times because when I told a few of my friends about wanting to try out the dish for the blog they said they often make the dish.

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Since I did not want to be the only one left off of the Vera Cruz boat I thought I would come up with my version of the standard recipe. The only real difference between my version and the standard version my sister-in-law shared are the few additional seasonings I used. As always my crew likes a little heat so I added some to the sauce.

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I was pleasantly surprised at how the Vera Cruz with Tilapia turned out and even more surprised that my youngest son really liked it. Typically, my son likes fried fish versus what he would consider to be baked fish. Once his plate was cleaned from eating the Vera Cruz with Tilapia I could only smile then I let my sister-in-law know what a great recipe Vera Cruz with Tilapia turned out to be.

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Vera Cruz with Tilapia

Ingredients:
4 tilapia fillets
1 small onion sliced
1 small green pepper sliced
2 scallions diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1 jalapeno pepper diced (remove membrane and some seeds)
1 14 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
1 8 oz can tomato puree or sauce
¼ cup capers
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Season fish with a little salt and black pepper. Set aside.

Melt butter along with olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium high heat. Add two pieces of fish and brown lightly on both sides. Place fish in a long casserole dish. Repeat with remaining fish and set aside.

Reduce heat to medium then add onion, scallions, green pepper and garlic to the pan. Season with salt and black pepper. Stir for 1 – 2 minutes until veggies soften a little and watch carefully so that garlic does not burn. Add roasted tomatoes and tomato puree/ sauce along with remaining seasonings. Simmer over medium low heat for 5 minutes. Pour mixture over fish and sprinkle with capers. Place in oven and bake for 15 minutes until fish is fully cooked.

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Beer Battered Fried Fish

Main Course, Seafood/ Fish, , , , , , ,

 

This post is dedicated to my dad who passed away in September.  Today is his birthday and I remember him fondly.  Happy Birthday Daddy! IMG_9622_1

Fried Fish was one thing I could count on my Mom fixing every week when I was growing up. Every Thursday we had fish for dinner. Most of the time it was fish my Mom and Dad (and sometimes me) had caught while going fishing on their days off. The day before a fishing trip my Dad and I would go digging for worms in the compost heap behind our house.

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I learned how to bait a hook but could not bring myself to take the fish off the hook if I caught one. The day my Dad got tired of taking the fish off the hook of my fishing pole was the day I stopped fishing. I guess he felt he was spending more time taking fish off my hook than enjoying fishing himself. I really could not blame him because I may have felt the same way if I had to do it for my kids.

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Now I just go to the fish market or grocery store to “catch” my fish. Besides, I prefer boneless fish so I can easily buy fish fillets and not worry about scaling, gutting and chopping off fish heads. Yuck!

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Cod is a great fish to use when making beer battered fried fish. The meat is thick, tender, sweet and holds up well while frying. Although my beer battered fried fish is not quite like my Mom’s Thursday fish fry, it is equally as delicious.

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Beer Battered Fried Fish

Ingredients:
2 – 3 cod fish fillets
1 12 oz bottle Amber Ale beer
6 oz peach beer (optional)
2 cups vegetable oil
¾ cup flour
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
½ tsp seasoned salt
½ tsp cayenne

In a large bowl mix flour, beer and salt. Set aside.

Add vegetable oil to a dutch oven or large frying pan. Heat oil over medium high heat until slightly smoking.

Cut cod into thick slices. Season fish with seasoned salt, pepper and cayenne. Stir batter then dip fish into batter and allow excess batter to drain off. Place fish into hot oil and let brown on each side. Approximately 5-7 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels.

Serve with home fries and a mixed salad.

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Shredded Chicken and Pasta Soup

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Pasta and Grains, Soups/ Salads / Stews, , , , , , ,

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Comfort food is good anytime of the year but fall calls for comfort soup. With slight breezes and the crisp sound of falling leaves, soup is a great way to warm up and snuggle. Chicken noodle soup is a very traditional comfort food which my family loves. But, I wanted to make a traditional chicken soup with a slight twist. That is why I decided to make a Shredded Chicken and Pasta Soup.

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When it came to choosing a pasta for the soup I didn’t want a noodle so I had to search for a type of pasta that would compliment the soup. Ditalini pasta turned out to be the perfect pasta for the Shredded Chicken and Pasta Soup. Ditalini looks like little tubes and they soaked up the chicken broth. Every bite offered an extra burst of broth and flavor.

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One thing I really liked about the Shredded Chicken and Pasta Soup was the fact that including the pasta made the soup very filling. A big bowl of soup makes a full meal with a nice chunk of crusty bread. If you want to have the soup with a meal I would suggest you only have a small cup so that you don’t get full too fast. Either way you will definitely have a smile on your face while eating the soup.

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Think about cooking up a big pot of Shredded Chicken and Pasta Soup the next time you feel a chill in the air. It will warm you up and put a smile on your face. Remember comfort food is good anytime of the year but fall and winter call for comfort soup.

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Shredded Chicken and Pasta Soup

Ingredients:
4 chicken thighs
5 quarts water
3 cups Ditalini pasta (prepare according to package)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced onion
1 cup shredded carrots (rough chop)
3 scallions diced (green part included)
2 tbsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp Adobo seasoning
½ tsp dried dill
¼ tsp thyme
dash of cayenne pepper (optional)

Place water, chicken, ½ cup onions and all seasonings except for dill into a large pot. Cook chicken on medium high for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked all the way through and is tender. Remove chicken from the pot and set aside to cool for shredding. Once cooled, shred chicken with your fingers and set aside.

Strain chicken broth and place back into the pot. Skim some of the chicken grease from the surface of the broth. Reduce heat to medium. Add the additional cup of chicken broth, carrots, celery, green onions, dill and remaining onions to the pot. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add chicken to the broth and simmer for another 10 – 15 minutes. You can either place pasta in individual bowls then ladle soup over the pasta so that the pasta stays al dente. Or, you can add pasta to the soup and remove from heat so that the pasta does not over cook.

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Spicy Meatball Stew

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Soups/ Salads / Stews, Uncategorized, , , , , ,

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I enjoy hearty stews in the winter but I also enjoy them in the warmer months just because I like stews. Since my family doesn’t eat beef too often I decided to create a stew that replaces a typical beef stew using spicy meatballs but still remained hearty.

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When you think meatballs you usually think of beef but meatballs can be made out of ground turkey, chicken or pork. In most recipes that call for a ground meat I use turkey. The one thing about ground turkey is that you must season it really well otherwise it will taste bland. Lately, I prefer baking my meatballs instead of frying them. This eliminates having the meatballs absorb a lot of excess fat. Plus, it is easier to control the heat so the meatballs don’t dry out too much while cooking.

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Spicy Meatball Stew was somewhat of a surprise for my family. I received a few strange glances when I placed a bowl full of stew on the table for dinner. They were use to seeing meatballs floating around in a nice tomato sauce not swimming with veggies and gravy. However, it did not take long for them to trust I had worked my cooking magic so they lunged into their bowls and came up saying “Hmmm… not bad”. The second and third bites had them totally convinced that Spicy Meatball Stew was fantastic and produced smiling faces. It is always nice when the family requests a second helping.

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Spicy Meatball Stew

Ingredients:

Meatballs
1 lb ground turkey
1 lb ground spicy sausage
2 eggs beaten
½ cup panko bread crumbs
¼ cup half and half
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp onion powder
½ tsp parsley chopped
½ tsp Adobo
cooking spray

Stew
1 jar beef au jus
1 small bag baby carrots cut in half
1 small bag frozen peas
1 small onion diced
2 stalks celery dice
2 cloves garlic chopped
2 red potatoes cubed
1 cup beef broth
½ cup water
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp thyme

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl mix ground turkey, ground sausage, seasonings and worcestershire. Form meatballs and place on a rimmed baking sheeting sprayed with cooking spray. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes. If not quite done, meatballs will finish cooking in the stew.

While the meatballs are cooking heat olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add onions, celery, salt and pepper. Saute for 2 – 3 minutes to let veggies sweat. Add garlic and stir for 1 – 2 minutes. Be careful not to let garlic burn. If necessary, reduce heat. Add remaining ingredients except for peas. Reduce heat to medium and let simmer for 15 minutes. Add meatballs and peas. Cook for an additional 20 – 25 minutes. May be eaten alone or served over egg noodles, mashed potatoes or rice.

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Naan Style Pizza

Main Course, Meat/ Poultry, Uncategorized, , , , ,

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Tonight I made Naan Style Pizzas. I found small individual sized Naan at Trader Joes’s. I was looking for small regular flatbread but spotted the Naan flatbread instead. I wanted to make something quick for dinner and thought homestyle pizzas would be a good choice for a quick meal. Hubby and my youngest son are pizza lovers so they usually like any kind of pizza you throw in front of them. I on the other hand prefer non traditional style pizzas.

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Passing by the deli meats and cheeses I had a light bulb moment and decided to make a variety of pizza toppings like pre-cooked chicken, prosciutto, salami and capicola instead of pepperoni or sausage. Since the pizzas were individual sized we were each able to try a different type of topping. To make the pizzas even more non-traditional I slathered the Naan with pesto instead of a basic pizza sauce. This gave the pizzas more of a savory taste rather than the acidic flavor you get with tomato sauce.

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The best thing about pulling together the Naan Style Pizzas is that it took all of 15 minutes. That is my kind of recipe. Baking took about another 15 minutes to melt the cheese and make it golden brown. Total time for me to get dinner on the table was about 45 minutes which included me explaining to my hubby what I was making.

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After a few bites and a couple of umm hmmm’s I knew the Naan Style Pizzas were blog worthy. So there you have it. Another quick and easy meal with a healthy twist. Try it and I am sure you and others will like it.

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Naan Style Pizza

Ingredients:
1 small jar pesto
1 pkg Tandoori Naan flatbread (Trader Joe’s)
1 pkg pre-cooked slices of chicken
8 slices salami
8 slices prosciutto
8 slices capicola
1 bag baby leaf spinach
4 small tomatoes sliced
6 slices of jalapeno pepper cheese
¼ cup buffalo wing sauce
1 tbsp oregano

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pull cheese apart and set aside. Place pre-cooked chicken in a bowl and drizzle buffalo chicken wing sauce over chicken. Toss until chicken is well coated with sauce. Set aside.

Spread about 1 tbsp of pesto on each slice of Naan flatbread then layer with baby spinach leaves. Next on 1 -2 pieces of flatbread layer the chicken then a few slices of tomato and sprinkle with oregano. Top with cheese.

Follow the same steps creating the salami flatbread pizza. Alternate the prosciutto and capicola together on one flatbread when layering.

Place Naan Style Pizzas on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes until cheese melts and is golden brown.

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