Pork Tenderloin Medallions and Balsamic Reduction Recipe

 

I made this the other night when I was off and was able to spend time cooking. This is a quick recipe and very good. I got this recipe from the Cooking Light Magazine, July 2011 issue. Here is what you will need for this recipe and the directions on how to fix it.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon minced shallots (I didn't have shallots, so I used a green onion instead)

1 garlic clove, minced.

1 cup balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary (I didn't have fresh, so I used dried)

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

cooking spray

1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, cut into 12 slices

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Add vinegar and next three ingredients; cook until reduced to 1/2 cup.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper. Place pork in pan; cook 2 minutes on each side. Add balsamic reduction; cook 1 minute, turning pork to coat.

As you can see, I made asparagus and white and wild rice to go along with it. We really enjoyed this meal and hope you will give a try. It felt great to be able to get back to cooking.

Cherry Cheese Cake

 

                                Cherry Cheesecake Recipe

Sorry I thought I already did this recipe, so this is the only photo I took.

Here is the recipe and directions to make this dessert. I got the recipe a long time ago from the can of Bordon's Sweet Condense Milk.

1 (9") Graham Cracker Crumb Crust

1 (8oz) package cream cheese, softened

1 (14 oz can) sweetened Condensed Milk

1/3 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla

canned pie filling (sometimes I use two cans depending on the amount of fruit is in each one)

In a large mixing bowl, beat cheese until fluffy. Beat in milk until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Pour into crust and chill for at least 3 hours or until set. Top with pie filling and put back into the refrigerator to finish chilling.

this is one of the family's favorites. I have also used canned strawberry pie filling.

Christmas 2022

I know I haven't posted in a while. I am going to try to do better. Here is the Christmas with the few gifts that we got for the boys. Mike and I really don't buy for each other. We just get what we want through out the year.

I know David looks really excited, doesn't he. He is here with his unopened gifts.

Thomas isn't much better. Here he is with his unopened gifts.

David with all of his gifts. This year his secret Santa was his older brother, who lives in Utah. When I told him he thought his brother sent him a doll and was greatly relieve that he pulled the graphic novel of The Hobbit and a game. We gave him a gift card for his Xbox, two Mangas for the collection he is reading and the huge box of slim Jims. He really enjoyed what he received. He also got some gift cards and cash.

 Thomas with all of his gifts. We gave him a year of AAA, the duology by Patricia Briggs that he wanted and the big thing of Beef jerky. His secret Santa this year was his youngest older sister who lives in Utah, and she got him a laser lighter. He tried it out by burning a piece of tissue paper. Man, that lighted up that paper really quick. Now Mike wants one. He also got some gift cards and cash. He also enjoyed his gifts.

We actually are celebrating today since, both Mike and Thomas worked yesterday. Yesterday I did get to zoom with the family and really had a great time talking and visiting with everyone.

We hope everyone had a great holiday and got what you wanted.

Beef and Bean BBQ Recipe

 

Beef and Bean BBQ Casserole

I am not sure where I got this recipe, so I don't know who to thank. This is a quick and an easy recipe.

Ingredients you will need for this recipe

1 pound of ground beef

1/2 cup diced onions

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 1-lb 15 oz can pork and beans

1/2 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon worcershire sauce

2 tablespoons vinegar

5 drops Tabasco sauce

Put the ground beef, onion, salt and pepper in a skillet and brown. Drain off all the fat. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into a casserole dish and bake at 350-degree oven for 30 minutes.

I hope you decide to try this dish. If you do, please let me know what you think in the comments.

Frito Pie and Chili Recipe

 

These two recipes were inspired by my son-in-law. He has never heard of Frito pie and so I decided that I needed to add them to this blog. The chili recipe I grew up with and got it from my mom and she got it from a recipe book. I am not sure what the book is called but it has something to do with several different recipes using ground beef.

Easy Chili

1 cup chopped onions

4 pounds hamburger

2 (8oz) cans tomato sauce

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon Worchester sauce

1 tablespoon vinegar

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

Kidney beans (dry or canned)

Chili powder to taste

46 oz can tomato juice.

Brown your hamburger with the onions. I just everything together after the meat and onions are cooked.

I let everything simmer for most of the day. It is better if you let it set a day in the refrigerator and eat it the next day.

This is a very simple recipe and easy to double.

Frito Pie.

There is no wrong way to make this. You can do what I did in the picture and just put chili in the bowl and surround it with Frito's and cheese or you can put the Frito's on the bottom and chili on top. Or you can have the chili on the bottom and the Frito's on top. 

Like I said there is no wrong way and probably ways I haven't thought of.

I hope you try these recipes and let me know what you think.

Until next time, enjoy your day.

January 2022

 This will hopefully get you up to date with the family. This blog post is for the whole month of January. Pictures will be coming soon. I didn't take a whole of them because the computer was in the shop for most of the month.

January 1st, we had our normal gathering of friends come over to bring in the new year. We fix a big breakfast and then spend the time together just shooting the breeze. It is a fun time, and we enjoy doing it every year. This year it snowed but they still came.

January 6th was my birthday. I ended up working and Mike was working the late shift, so we went out on the weekend.

January 10th, I got my booster shot. Not a big reaction was able to work without any issues.

January 18th and 19th David took his driving test. He failed on the first day but passed on the second day. He is so happy.

January 21st was my oldest son's birthday

January 25th the library started handing out these masks. The state of Colorado sent them to the all the libraries to hand out to their customer. We are still handing them out. We do this on a first come first service status. You get 5 masks.

January 26th David was able to get his license. We had to schedule to get him in because we can't do walk-ins. His testing was done by the driving school we used.

Throughout the whole month Mike and David were working on the small bathroom redoing the floors.

January 30th was my oldest Grandchild's birthday.

That is, it for the month of January. Not much happening but we manage to stay busy.

Oatmeal Cookies With Toffee Recipe

                                   Oatmeal Cookies with Toffee Recipe

This cookie is nice and soft, and everyone loves them. I got the recipe from creationsbykara.com

This is what you will need to make this recipe.

1 cup butter softened                             2 cups brown sugar

2 eggs                                                     2 tsp. vanilla

1 3/4 cups flour                                       1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder                            1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon                                        3 cups oats

1 package Health Bits O'Brickle Toffee Bits (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 cup coconut (optional)

Cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl; beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients, oats, toffee, and coconut. Drop by rounded spoonful's onto lightly greased sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes. Let sit on cookie sheets for 3-4 minutes before removing to cooling racks.

Makes about 4 dozen

Notes:

Make sure you let the cookies sit on the cookie sheets for a few minutes or they will fall apart when you transfer them to the cooling rack.

This last time I made these cookies I didn't have coconut and they tasted as good. 

I hope you will give these cookies a try and let me know what you think of them.