Pork Loin With Pearl Onions and Grapes

A great wine to drink with the pork loin is the Cotes de Tablas by Tablas Creek Vineyard. It has a wonderful blend of 43% Grenache, 24% Mourved, 18% Syrah and 15% Counoise. It's similar to a French Rhone. It's not too fruity and has a nice peppery spice flavor on the palate.

Servings: Serves 4.

Ingredients:

1 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
10 fresh thyme sprigs plus 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 cloves garlic chopped
1 tsp red pepper flake
¼ cup red wine
3 tablespoons warm clarified butter (recipe follows)
1 pound small pearl onions
3 pound boneless pork loin
1 pound red seedless grapes (about 3 cups)
For clarified butter
unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

Preparation:

Prepare the pork loin by trimming off any excess fat except for about 1/8-inch layer on the outside. Salt and pepper pork on both sides. Combine vinegar, honey, garlic, red pepper and thyme in a small bowl.
Marinate pork in ingredients for 4 hours up to overnight.

Clarify butter:

In a heavy saucepan melt butter over low heat. Remove pan from heat and let butter stand 3 minutes. Skim froth and strain butter through a sieve lined with a double thickness of rinsed and squeezed cheesecloth into a bowl, leaving milky solids in bottom of pan. Pour clarified butter into a jar or crock and chill, covered. Butter keeps, covered and chilled, indefinitely. When clarified, butter loses about one fourth its original volume.

When ready to cook pork drain marinade and add ¼ cup red wine into a small saucepan and boil over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Pour glaze through a fine sieve into a small bowl, discarding thyme, and reserve. In another small bowl stir together 2 tablespoons reserved glaze and 2 tablespoons clarified butter. In a saucepan of boiling salted water blanch onions 3 minutes. Drain onions and peel.

Heat a flameproof roasting pan, 15 by 10 by 2 inches, in oven 10 minutes at 350. In heated pan toss onions with remaining tablespoon clarified butter, and salt and pepper to taste and roast
in upper third of oven, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Take onions out.

While onions are roasting, prepare pork loin. Brush pork loin with about one third glaze-butter mixture. Roast pork loin for 15 minutes at 350. Add grapes and onions to the roasting pan. Arrange pork loin, over onions and grapes and roast 15 minutes. Turn pork loin over and baste with about half of remaining glaze-butter mixture. Roast pork loin, basting with remaining glaze-
butter mixture, 10 minutes more.

Transfer to a platter. Arrange grapes and onions around pork loin. To pan add reserved glaze and on stovetop boil over high heat 5 minutes, or until thickened and reduced to about 1/2 cup. Season sauce with salt and pepper and drizzle over pork loin.

Thanks to Michele Scott!

Spicy Lamb Burgers with Marquis Philips Sarah's Blend 2006

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground lamb
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon sherry
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon molasses
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 pita bread rounds
• 4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Directions:

1. Preheat grill for medium heat.
2. Place the lamb in a large bowl, and mix with the mint, cilantro, oregano, garlic, sherry, vinegar, and molasses. Season with cumin, allspice, red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper, and mix
well. Shape into 4 patties.
3. Brush grill grate with oil. Grill burgers 5 minutes on each side, or until well done. Heat the pita pocket briefly on the grill.
Serve burgers wrapped in pitas with feta cheese.

Thanks to Michele Scott!

BACKYARD BEER BURGERS

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef
1 small onion, finely chopped (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup regular or nonalcoholic beer
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
6 rye or whole wheat hamburger buns, split
Ketchup, if desired
Pickle planks, if desired

Directions:

1. Heat gas or charcoal grill. In medium bowl, mix all ingredients except buns, ketchup and
pickles. Shape mixture into 6 patties, about 3/4 inch thick.
2. Place patties on grill rack over medium heat.
Cover grill; cook 10 to 15 minutes, turning once, until meat thermometer inserted in center of
patties reads 160ºF. Add buns, cut sides down, for last 4 minutes of grilling or until toasted.
3. Top burgers with ketchup and pickle planks; serve on buns.

Thanks to Pamela K. Kinney!

Meat Dish...Friccadillie s (a flemish name)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef
2 eggs beaten
2 or 3 slices of bread
1 cup milk
1 tsp. salt
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 can water
flour

Directions:

Mix milk and eggs together add ground beef and bread, mix well.
Make patties about as big as an egg, flatten and brown in a skillet. Place them into a casserole.
add water to soup, stir, then pour over the patties. Bake at 350 degrees about 25 minutes (in the summer, to reduce the possibility of a hot kitchen, I use a crockpot)

Thanks to Laurie Sorensen!

Easy Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:

1 box macaroni noodles
1 cup milk
1 egg
1 bag shredded cheddar
1 medium size block of Colby cheese
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Cut your colby cheese up into thin slices
Boil your noodles and drain them
Mix milk, egg, shredded cheese, and salt and pepper in a bowl
Add noodles and stir
Poor a little of your noodles into a casserole dish at a time and layer
colby cheese throughout dish, making sure you have plenty left over to cover the top
Cover with foil and bake for about 40 minutes, depending on your oven.
You'll know it's done when the cheese is golden brown and melty on top. :)

This will serve about 6 people, unless you have a husband who eats his weight in food like mine does. :)

Thanks to Amanda Young!

Boiled Dinner

Ingredients:

5 pounds of Corned beef brisket

1 large onion with 6 cloves embedded

6 peeled and sliced carrots

8 new potatoes, peeled and cubed

Some dried thyme

A bunch of Parsley

2 Heads of Cabbage, quartered

Sauce: half pint of whipping cream

3 tablespoons of prepared horseradish

Directions:

Boil the beef, onion, carrots, potatoes, thyme and parsleyin a pot of water. Simmer anc cook for 3 hours. Remove sediment and the thyme, parsley and onion. Add the cabbage and simmer for a further 20 minutes or until the cabbage is cooked. Remove the meat and divide into pieces.
Remove and season the cabbage heavily with black pepper.

Thanks to Deb!

Poor Man's Chicken and Bacon Pasta

Ingredients:

1 pkg bacon
1 pkg Boneless skinless chicken breast
1 Jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
Salt and Pepper
A bit of sugar
Pasta Noodles any of your favorite kind, we use spag because our
children will eat those.

Directions:

Start the bacon frying and the water boiling for the noodles.

Once the bacon is all cooked, leave the grease in the pan and add your chicken breast sprinkled with salt and pepper into the hot grease and cook thoroughly. (you can add a pat of butter- I usually do)

Once the chicken is cooked, remove from pan and drain the grease.
Wipe down the skillet with a paper towel and then pour in your spaghetti sauce and your dash of sugar and stir well.

Cube your chicken and add that to the sauce and then crumble the bacon
and stir it in.

Serve over your noodles.

It's a family favorite here, one we all will eat. I usually add some extras to the sauce if I have them around - chopped onion, red and yellow bell-type peppers, garlic... You can be
as creative as you wish.

It's delicious and even though bacon and chicken and spagheti don't sound like they go together, they do!

This one is thanks to me! I am so proud of myself, but I do accept gifts of appreciation *G*

Steak & Guinness Pie

Ingredients:

1 kg of steak

1 tablespoon cream flour

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon raisins

5x onions

300ml Guinness

8 slices Donnelly's bacon

3 oz lard

Pie crust

Directions:

Cut steak into bite sized cubes, Put the steak into the flour and make sure it is all covered.
In a pan gently melt the lard, Add the steak, bacon and cook until it starts to brown.
Peel and chop the onion and add to the pan. Place steak, bacon and onion in a casserole dish.
Add the raisins and brown sugar,
Pour in the Guinness.
Cover tightly and simmer over a low heat or in a very moderate oven (325-350F) for 2 1/2 hours.
Stir occasionally.
Add more Guinness or water if the rich brown gravy gets too thick.
Line a deep pie dish with half the pie crust (bake it blind).
Then add the Guinness and steak mixture.
Cover with a layer of pie crust
bake until finished about another 10 minutes.

Thanks to the FABULOUS DeNita! Aka D L Edwards!

Coltoge Potato Soup

Ingredients:

1 large onion, peeled and diced
2 T butter
3 1/2 C potatoes, peeled and diced
5 C clear fat-free chicken stock
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tsp caraway seed
2 C light cream

Directions:

In a soup kettle, cook onions in butter until soft. Add potatoes, stock, salt, pepper and caraway seeds. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 1 hour. Stir in cream and let cook without boiling for a final 8 minutes. Serve very hot.

Thanks to ctgmom86!

Spring Ravioli with Pesto Cream

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons Olive Oil
8 oz fresh snap peas (can also use grean beans or asparagus, cut into
1-inch pieces)
1/2 medium yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (1/2 cup)
3 roma tomatoes, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt
16 oz cheese-filled ravioli
1/2 cup sour cream
3 Tablespoons Basil Pesto
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
Fresh basil leaves, optional

Directions:

1. Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Cook snap peas and bell pepper in oil about 5 minutes, stirring freguently, until crisp-tender. Stir in tomatoes and salt. Cook 3 minutes.

2. While vegetables are cooking, prepare ravioli as directed on package. Mix sour cream, pesto and grated lemon peel in small bowl.

3. Toss hot cooked ravioli with vegetable mixture and sour cream mixture. Garnish with Basil and lemon peal if desired.

Thanks to Larenda!

Loetha's Beef Stew

Ingredients:

3 cups hot mushroom soup (or cheat using 2 cans of condensed mushroom soup to make life easier)
3 cups hot tomato soup (or cheat using 2 cans of condensed tomato soup)
1 cup dry Bellan wine (that would be red wine)
4 cups chopped cooked roast beef
4 heaping handfuls of chopped, steamed vegetables (or cheat and use two 16-ounce bags of frozen cut broccoli, carrots, etc.)
1 teaspoon crushed, dried thyme

If using Sandy's cheating version, add 4 cups of water (Sandy actually prefers her stew a little less "brothy" and only adds about 1 cup of water)

You put everything in a huge Dutch oven and cook on medium heat until boiling, stirring frequently. Then lower the heat a bit (not a lot), uncover it and stir it once in a while for another four or five minutes until the vegetables feel the way you like 'em!

Now, this recipe is for 10 people. Loetha would double it when cooking for the crew at Arcana. Ya'll might want to cut it in half. So you'd only use 1 can each of the condensed soups, 1 bag of frozen veggies, etc., thus feeding a family of five on a cold winter's eve, which we still have a few of this season...


Thanks to Sandy Lender!

Slow-Cooker Lasagna

(No-Cook noodles speed up prep time)

Ingredients:

12 lasagna noodles, uncooked, divided
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
1 (28-ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup water
1 (16-ounce) container cottage cheese (or Ricotta), divided
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese, divided

Directions:

Grease bottom of a 4-quart slow cooker. Break noodle in half. Place half the noodles in bottom of prepared slow cooker.

Stir Italian seasoning into browned ground beef and spread half over the noodles in the slow cooker.

Combine spaghetti sauce and water. Layer half over the meat. Then layer half the cottage cheese and half the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers. Cover and cook on low for 4 to 5 hours. Do not cook over 5 hours!(I cook at least 6 'cause my cooker seems to be slow!!)

Serves 4-6.

Thanks to Kim!

Tangy Flank Steak

Ingredients:

1 Beef Flank Steak(1-1 1/2 lbs.)
2 Tbs. vegetable oil(or Pam)
1 large onion, quartered & sliced
1 4 oz. can green chilies
1/2 cup water
2 Tbs. vinegar
1 1/2 Tsp. chili powder
1 Tsp. garlic powder
1/2 Tsp. sugar
1/2 Tsp. salt
1/8 Tsp. pepper

Directions:

1. Cut the flank steak in half if needed to fit in the slow cooker. In a large skillet over medium heat; brown flank steak in oil.(or Pam) Place in slow cooker.

2. In the skillet place the liquid ingredients, then the dry ingredients and lastly the onion. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to loosen brown bits from the bottom of the skillet. Pour
over meat in slow cooker.

3. Cover and cook for 3-3 1/2 hours on High, or 6-7 hours on Low. Or until very tender.

4. Transfer meat to warm platter. Slice meat diagonally. Remove onion from slow cooker with a slotted spoon and arrange around meat. If desired, baste with juices.

Thanks to Kim!

Crock Pot Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:

3 pounds lean ground beef
1 to 2 onions, finely chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 (8-ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 cup water 2 packages Sloppy Joe seasoning mix
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions:

In a large skillet brown the hamburger. Remove from heat and drain.
Place the meat into crock pot. Add the onions, green pepper, tomato sauce, water, seasoning mix and sugar.
Stir thoroughly to mix well.
Cover. Cook on Low for 8-10 hours, or on High for 3-4 hours.

Thanks to Pamela K. Kinney!

Chicken Crostina

Ingredients:

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cups & 1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp salt
1 Tbsp pepper
1 Tbsp Italian seasoning
1 Tbsp roasted garlic, minced
1 cup white wine
1 ½ cups heavy cream
5 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb linguine
1 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 cup roma tomatoes, cored & diced
2 Tbsp parsley, chopped

Potato Crust
1 ½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
¼ cup melted butter
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ cup parsley, chopped
1 small potato, peeled & grated
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

MIX all ingredients for Potato Crust in a bowl and set aside.
MIX 1 ½ cups flour, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning in a shallow dish. Dredge chicken in the mixture, shaking off any excess. Heat 3 Tbsp oil in a large skillet. Cook chicken breasts 2 at a time over medium-high heat until golden brown and crisp, or until internal temperature reaches 165° F. Add more oil for each batch as necessary.
PLACE cooked chicken breasts on a baking sheet or dish and top with
potato crust mixture. Transfer baking sheet to a pre-heated broiler until golden brown (1-2 minutes).
COOK pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
HEAT 2 Tbsp oil in a sauce pan. Add roasted garlic, cook for 1 minute. Stir in 1 Tbsp of flour and wine and bring to a boil. Add cream, parmesan cheese, 1 Tbsp parsley, and tomatoes. Sauce is done when it is bubbling throughout and begins to thicken.
COAT pasta with sauce, then top with chicken and remaining sauce.
Garnish with chopped parsley. Serves 6.

Thanks to Pamela K. Kinney!

Burrito Casserole

Preheat over to 350

Sautee onions and green bell peppers in a touch of butter.
When the onions and peppers are tender, add two pounds of ground beef and brown. Drain the meat.
Salt as desired. Add 1 taco seasoning package.

While meat is cooking, layer a large cake pan with flour tortilla shells. Spread refried beans over the shells.Add 1/2 can of Rotel (green chilis and tomatoes), spread over beans.
Cover with shredded cheese (I use 1 package). Spread meat, onion, pepper mixture over the cheese. Add the other 1/2 can of Rotel over the meat mixture. Cover with shredded cheese (that makes 2 packages for me, lol, but you can use less or more as desired). OPTIONAL: Add
black olives to the top of the casserole before cooking the final layer of cheese.

Place in oven for about five-ten minutes, or until cheese melts to desired consistency.

Serve with sour cream if desired.

Thanks to Pamela K. Kinney!

Mushroom Pork Chops

from the Kitchen of Laurie Sorensen

Ingredients:

8 Pork Chops (bone in or boneless which ever you prefer)
2 cans Campbell's cream of mushroom soup
Italian flavored bread crumbs
6 eggs

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Whip your eggs in a good sized bowl, wash your pork chops (some people like to use pork steaks, I use sirloin boneless chops), dip each pork chop in the egg, completely coating it...then you cover the egg dipped chop in the italian flavored bread crumbs...you then fry each pork chop 2 minutes on each side, using whatever oil you prefer...You once both sides have been fried for two minutes each, place chops in a deep baking dish, its ok to over lap the chops...You then open the cans of Cream of mushroom soup, pour them into a bowl, add two cans of water....whisk it until blended, then pour the soup mixture over the cops. You do not need to cover the baking dish, in
fact it is better if you don't...back the soup covered chops in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour...depending on thickness of chops...once it is done, remove chops from soup mixture, which will be fairly thickened... use the soup mixture if you like as gravy for your mashed potatoes side dish. Serve hot.

Feeds 8 people (one chop each)

Thanks to Laura!

Cheese Dogs

Ingredients:

1 can refrigerated Wiener wraps(or Crescent rolls
8 wieners
cheese slices
Condiments

Directions:

Take the wraps and pull them apart; make a slit in each weiner from top to bottom lengthwise.
Take a wrap and place wiener on; fold a half slice of cheese lengthwise and put in slit and wrap the wiener.
Place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for app. 12-14 min. or until golden brown. Serve with mustard or relish. Enjoy.

Thanks to Robyn L!

Okonomiyaki aka Japanese Pizza

Note from Charity: The post this link was from can be found here. As I am unsure of the rules to posting the recipe instead of the link, I've opted to be safe and post the link. Just click the name of the recipe below and you'll be taken to it!

Okonomiyaki aka Japanese Pizza

Thanks to D. Renee Bagby!

Easy Sweet Turkey Thigh Dinner

What you need:

Two turkey thighs
One cup maple syrup
Two tablespoons spicy brown mustard
Two tablespoons dry tapioca (size really doesn't matter)

What you do:
Place turkey thighs bone-side down in a Crockpot.
Mix other ingredients in measuring cup and pour over turkey parts.
Cover and cook on low setting for 4 to 6 hours.

I usually serve it with a garden salad, and because I'm a health-food nut, I use natural maple syrup, organic mustard, organic tapioca, and free-range turkey. It's very tasty, and takes all of
three or four minutes to prepare. Clean-up is quick, too, once the Crockpot cools down. For a family, it's an easy recipe to double. Just add an extra hour or two to the cook-time while you're doing the thousand other things on your to-do list!

Thanks to Sandy Lender!