Apple Butter Pork Loin

I got this recipe from the Rachel Ray magazine. It caught my attention because it was a 1 pot dish for the pork with just a few ingredients. The rice is probably one of the most delicious rice recipes I've ever tasted. It was so creamy. I had to keep stirring every minute (give or take) to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning, but it was well worth it!!! I also used the light coconut milk in the can, and I had to keep adding more water since I kept lifting the lid to stir allowing the steam to escape. The pork was so moist, and the apple butter mixture was the perfect addition.

Ingredients:
One 2-pound boneless pork loin roast
1 TBSP olive oil
1 and 1/2 cups apple butter
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 cup long-grain rice
1 and 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350. Season the pork with salt. In a large ovenproof skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat, then brown the pork. In a small bowl, combine the apple butter and cayenne; slather the mixture onto the pork. Roast until a thermometer inserted into the center registers 145 degrees, about 45 minutes.... I cooked mine for a little over an hour because my meat thermometer says that pork should be at 170 degrees for well done.... and I like my pork to be well done! Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring the rice, coconut milk, water, and salt to a boil. Cover and cook over low heat for 25 minutes (see my note above the picture about having to stir the rice and add more water). Fluff the rice with a fork and serve with the pork.
The pineapple/pound cake skewers make the perfect dessert after this meal.

Dessert Skewers

This recipe also came from the Rachel Ray magazine. I thought these would make a good ending to the pork and rice. It all reminded me of being on a tropical island. These were super easy and quick. The pound cake is actually left over from Easter. Aubrey's mom made a yummy pound cake, and I took some home to freeze so I could make this. I cut the recipe in half and used a small container of "already cubed" pineapple. I also used my grill pan instead of the outdoor grill.

Ingredients:
1 pineapple, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 frozen pound cake, slightly thawed, cut into 1-inch cubes
Honey for drizzling

Directions:
Soak 8 wood skewers in water. Preheat an outdoor grill or grill pan to medium-high. Alternately thread 4 cubes each of pineapple and pound cake on each skewer. I think mine had 3 of each. Grill turning once, until lightly charred, about 1 minute per side. Drizzle with honey.

Veggie Stir Fry with Peanut Sauce

Aubrey and I ate out this weekend, and we were served vegetable stir-fry with peanut sauce for our side item. We loved it so much, and I was inspired to try to make it myself. I chose my own vegetables, and I got a recipe for the peanut sauce from http://www.recipezaar.com/. Next time I'll probably use 1/2 of the soy sauce. I served this over brown rice.

Ingredients:
Stir-fry
1-2 TBSP peanut oil
1 bunch of asparagus (cut the ends off and discard; cut the remainder in half)
1/2 bag of fresh broccoli
2 large carrots, sliced lengthwise
1/2 bag snow peas

Peanut Sauce
2 TBSP creamy peanut butter
2 TBSP rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce (I'll use 1 TBSP next time)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
cayenne pepper

Directions:
Stir fry
Heat oil in a wok on high heat. Stir fry the vegetables until tender but still crispy.

Peanut Sauce
Combine all ingredients and stir until creamy. (It helps to soften the peanut butter in the microwave.)
Add sauce to the stir-fry during the last minute of cooking, stirring to coat food evenly (I added the sauce to the individual dishes instead. I did this because I only like a little bit of sauce).

Famous Caramel Cake

I call this the "famous" caramel cake because it really is a famous dessert in our family. The recipe is from my grandmother's cookbook, but Hannah is the one that would make the cake. "Sugar" is my grandmother. My brother was the first grandchild, and she would call him "sugar" as a little child name. He turned it around and started calling her "Sugar." Needless to say, this name stuck, and that's what her name is now.

Hannah is a God-send. Sugar and Papa have 6 children (one of which is my mom), and Hannah helped practically raise them. She's not around much

anymore since her health is declining, but she's been a part of our family for around 50 years. This is Hannah and me icing the cakes to the right....

Hannah is the best cook I've ever met, and it was such a treat learning how to cook this caramel cake straight from the pro.

My sister (Catherine) and I drove to Sugar and Papa's house this past weekend to learn how to make this cake. We brought Riley (our nephew) with us so he could visit while we cooked. He obviously loved the icing as you can see in the pictures below.

Sugar watched us cook while Papa played with Riley. Papa usually gets a nap after lunch, but not that day. Riley had too much curiosity, and Papa was just the one to take him around the house and outside.

So now I leave you with the recipe for the famous caramel cake. You can make it layered if you like or just one big rectangle. I'm looking forward to making cupcakes out of this recipe once I get comfortable with it. I do have a slight obsession with cupcakes.

Ingredients:
Cake
1 box 18 oz. Duncan Hines Butter Golden cake mix

1 carton 8 oz. dairy sour cream

1/2 c. Crisco oil

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1/4 c. water

4 eggs

Icing (makes enough to cover 2 rectangular cakes, as shown)

3 cups sugar, divided

2 sticks butter

1 c. evaporated milk

1 TBSP vanilla


Directions:

Cake (you can make 2 of these so you don't have a bunch of icing left over... or not)

Mix together cake ingredients and bake according to directions on back of cake mix.

Icing

Fill sink with ice.
In a large, heavy pot/saucepan, pour 2 and 1/2 cups sugar, butter, and milk and bring to a rolling boil.
In the meantime, continually stir 1/2 cup sugar in small iron skillet until caramelized (be careful not to burn).
Once the sugar/butter/milk mixture has come to a rolling boil, pour caramel into the mixture while stirring continually.

**Note: (If the sugar caramelizes before the milk mixture comes to a boil, take caramel off heat so it doesn't burn. You can always set it back on the heat to loosen it back up.)
Let temperature climb to soft ball stage (235-240 degrees F on a candy termometer), then add the vanilla. Put large pot in sink over the ice. Beat mixture with a wooden spoon back and forth (do not stir) until it's the right consistency for icing (beat for about 10 minutes... it works your muscles).
**Note: (If the caramel is too thick, you can add the remainder of the milk in the can. If the caramel is too runny, you can add some confectioner's sugar to help thicken it.)
Spread the caramel icing on the cakes. If the caramel drips off too much, you can use a knife or spatula to pick up icing and place it back on the cake.

Ground Beef Stroganoff

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light

Today was a really long and hard day at work, so I'm really glad I had the ingredients to make this quick and easy meal.... well, almost all of the ingredients. I didn't have mushrooms, which would have made this even more wonderful. I got home at 6:30, and I had to get supper ready before American Idol came on at 7:00.... Yes, I'm obsessed. I'm typing during commercials. Anyway, I'll definitely make this again.

Ingredients:
8 ounces egg noodles, uncooked
1 pound ground round
3 green onions, sliced or 1 cup chopped onion
1 (8-ounce) package sliced fresh mushrooms
1 (12-ounce) jar fat-free beef gravy
1 (8-ounce) carton fat-free sour cream
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 TBSP dry sherry (optional)

Directions:
Prepare noodles according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.
While noodles cook, cook meat, green onions and mushrooms in a large nonstick skillet until meat is browned, stirring until it crumbles; drain.
Return meat mixture to skillet; add gravy and next 3 ingredients, stirring well. Cook over medium heat 3-5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Stir in sherry, if desired. Serve over drained noodles.
Yield: 5 servings.

Per Serving: Calories 367 (19% from fat); Fat 7.6g (sat 2.4g); Protein 31.1g; Carbohydrate 42.9g; Fiber 3.9g; Cholesterol 98mg; Sodium611mg. Exchanges: 3 starch, 3 lean meat.

Pizza

Recipe adapted from foodnetork.com

I do like the cheesy pepperoni pizzas, but sometimes it's nice to have something that's "fresh." Aubrey and I had fun cooking this tonight. He really likes working with anything that involves dough.... and he's good at it, too! We used fresh mozzarella medallions, fresh basil leaves, and freshly sliced tomatoes.

Ingredients:
Dough:
1 package active dry yeast (1/4 oz)
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
1 and 1/2 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 and 1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if necessary
Toppings:
You can put any topping you want on the pizza, but we used the following.....
4-6 ounces pizza sauce
12 small basil leaves or 6 large leaves cut in half lengthwise
1 package of fresh mozzarella medallions (found in the gourmet cheese section)
3 Campari tomatoes (or any small tomato), thinly sliced

Directions:
In a large bowl combine yeast with water, olive oil, salt and stir well to proof. After 5 minutes, add half of the flour and mix well to thoroughly incorporate. Add all remaining flour except 1/2 cup and mix well with your hands.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead dough for at least 5 and up to 7 minutes, adding enough additional flour, as necessary, to form a smooth and elastic dough. Dough should not be sticky.

Transfer dough to a lightly oiled 2 or 3 quart bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp towel or saran wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size,(1 to 1.5 hours).

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F and if you have a pizza stone place it on the bottom rack of the oven. Divide dough into 2 portions and form into balls. Place on a lightly oiled baking sheet and cover with a damp towel. Let rest for 15 minutes, then transfer to a lightly floured surface, shape as desired and roll out to a thickness of 1/4-inch. Transfer dough to a pizza peel and top with toppings of choice.

Transfer to the preheated pizza stone and bake until crispy and golden brown, usually 12 to 18 minutes (depending on the toppings). Remove from the oven with a metal peel or spatula and serve immediately.