Roasted Mustard and Rosemary Pork Tenderloin

I don't start teaching for another week, so I have some time to post good recipes before the daily grind starts again. What I love about this pork recipe is that it is super easy to prepare and I can let it sit for a few hours in the refrigerator and it just gets better. We used a lean pork tenderloin, but I'm sure you could do this with any cut of pork, or chicken for that matter. I stole the recipe from Epicurious and paired it with Angela's easy risotto.

6 T coarse ground dijon mustard

1 T fresh rosemary (I added more because our rosemary plant is huge)

2 T balsamic vinegar

2 T olive oil

6 cloves garlic

1/2 t crushed bay leaves

1 to 1 1/2 lb pork tenderloin

Preheat oven to 375. Mix first 6 ingredients in a small bowl. Pat pork tenderloin dry. Salt and pepper pork. Rub marinade on pork.

I let the pork sit in the refrigerator for two hours, but you can bake it right away. I baked the pork right in the baking dish as you can see above but you could also put it on a rack in the baking dish--that would probably give you a better crust.

Place pork in oven. We baked ours for 45 minutes and it was perfectly done, but depending on the size the time would need to be adjusted. The internal temp (we are food thermometer people) should be about 150.

As I mentioned before, this was wonderfully paired with Angela's easy parmesan risotto.

Easy Risotto, Take Two!

I was so (hungry/) excited about Angela's post that I had to make that risotto tonight, with a few additions and alterations based on what was floating about in my kitchen. Then I watched Julie and Julia, despite the fact that I said I wouldn't. And I kind of enjoyed it. Oh man, my husband, who was elsewhere tonight, is going to be mad! At least there's some leftovers. [My computer refuses to post the photo the right way round, but you get the idea.]

Here are my additions/alterations: I only had about 1/2 to 3/4 cup rice and it worked just fine. I used 2 cups water and 1 cup chicken broth, since I had chicken broth in the fridge that needed using. My major divergence is the addition of some sauteed yellow summer squash, which also needed using - sauteed in the cast iron skillet (dirty - the good kind of dirty - with a few past dinners' accumulated bacon/pork chop/steak fat) with a little roughly chopped garlic and a dash of the broth (so that the garlic didn't burn) - over low while the rice was simmering. I added the squash in the last step with the cheese, as well as some julienned basil from the plant on the window sill.

Thanks, Angela/Horvathia! Totally delicious!

Easy Risotto

This one's from the wonderful chefs in the Horvath household.  I love it.  I keep trying new risotto recipes (butternut squash and prosciutto risotto! risotto with spring vegetables!) and always come back to this one.  I do admit it's ruined me for new risottos because of its simplicity.  There's none of that standing over a steaming pot stirring for 20-40 minutes (Ina Garten romanticizes this labor by pairing it with a glass of wine, but after trying this with a toddler, it's just not worth it to me).  It's simple and uses only ingredients you probably already have on hand.  I have made it with a varying combination of cheese: Peccorino Romano, Peccorino Romano and Parmesan, Parmesan, Romano, Romano and Parmesan, etc.  Any of those delicious hard Italian cheeses seem to work, adjusting the salt amount accordingly (if any-- I find Peccorino provides enough salt).

Serves 4

Ingredients
3 c water
1 c arborio rice
4 tbsp butter (1/2 stick)
1 chicken bouillon cube
1/2-2/3 c grated Romano
salt to taste

1. Bring water to boil in medium saucepan and add butter, bouillon and rice.  Cover and turn heat to low and simmer 20 minutes.

2. Uncover and turn heat to med, stirring until rice is goopy but not wet, about 5 minutes.  You must be stirring constantly.

3. Add Romano and salt to taste and stir until combined.  Serve warm and enjoy!