Day 4: Breaded Pork Tenderloin and Mozzarella Stacks

I didn't grow up on pork. According to my mother, when we were little my dad played the "I'm Jewish so I cannot eat pork" card. Since my dad wouldn't eat it, we couldn't either apparently. Note: I catch my brother playing "the Jewish" card every once in a while in regards to various foods too. Like father, like son. Also note, that my dad eats an abundance of pork now...pulled pork, pork ribs, bacon, prociutto, etc. I guess his love for food won out over his need to be a strict Jew :) Dad, since you're reading this, I want you to know I harbor no hard feelings for not eating pork as a child. You taught me about so many other great foods like tongue and corned beef sandwiches and matzo ball soup.

I wasn't really aware of what I was missing until I started dating Paul and going to his house for dinner. They ate pork. In fact, Paul's favorite recipe is a pork dish his mom makes. I will not disclose any more details because it will appear on the menu at a later date. Any who, I was very enthusiastic about pork once I knew what it was and what could be done with it. Being married to a "pork" man, I have experimented with many recipes that focus on the other white meat. Over the years, I have found a few I loved and others I'd rather not remember.

Being the fabulous mother in law that she is, my mom cut this recipe out of one of her gazillion magazines and to quote her said, "make this for your husband. He loves pork." She was very matter of fact about it. When my mom talks, I listen; I made it for Paul 3 days later and he loved it. Thus, adding another pork recipe to my repertoire. I realize I just may have given Paul's rating away, but I'm interested to see whether he goes with a 4 or 5.

Breaded Pork and Mozzarella Stacks

1/4 lb mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced

8 pork cutlets(about 2lbs)

salt/pepper

1/4 cup flour

2 large eggs, beaten

1/4 cup french baguette, finely ground

1/2 cup olive oil

Step 1: Put french bread in food processor to create 3 cups of breadcrumbs

Step 2: Using a mallet, pound cutlets to the thickness of your choice

Step 3: Salt and pepper pork and divide cheese among 4 cutlets. Top with remaining cutlets.

Step 4: Place flour, egg and breadcrumbs in three separate bowls. Coat the stacked cutlets 1) in flour 2) in egg 3) in breadcrumbs

Step 5: Heat olive oil in skillet over med-high heat

Step 6: Add stacks and cook, turning once. Cooking time varies depending on thickness of cutlets.

Step 7: Put cutlets in 250 degree oven to keep warm while you cook the remaining cutlets.

Kitchen Play by Play: Creating your own breadcrumbs is the only way to go for this recipe; it makes a huge difference in taste and texture. I do, however, leave some decent size chunks rather than grind them to the point of powder. It is worth the extra 2 minutes for sure. Plus for those of you who are breadaholics like me you'll enjoy having half a loaf of crusty french bread leftover :) I like my pork tenderloins a little meaty so I don't quite beat it down as much as others. You can't see through my pieces, but if that's how you like it...cool. I do think that the thinner these are, the more difficult it is to coat them. Since mine are a little thicker, I usually follow the 4-6 minute rule on the skillet to get them crunchy on the outside, but finish them off in the oven at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes. They come out PERFECT!!

Austin's vegetable of choice tonight was broccoli. He can eat his weight in broccoli. It makes me so happy!

The Finished Product(plus a few extra pics from tonight's meal)

The Verdict:

Nicole- We were out of applesauce so the meal started off on a bad note for me. Paul could care less, but as a fairly new pork eater I still associate pork with applesauce. I huffed and puffed as I sat down to eat convinced I would not enjoy this meal tonight as much as I have in the past, but as I cut into the crunchy outside of the pork and watched as the mozzerella cheese oozed out I found myself a little giddy. The first bite was miraculous; it was super crunchy(thank you fresh breadcrumbs) and unbelievably tender. Add the saltiness of the cheese and who needs the flippin applesauce. This came from a magazine, but tonight after its third appearence...Congratulations Pork and Mozz stacks you are officially being transfered onto a recipe card and staying with the Fraser family forever. Rating-4.

Paul- gives it a 3. I'm shocked. But he just said that compared to the other recipes so far in this challenge, he doesn't feel that the pork stacks had as much "zip."

Austin- Thought the pork was good. He ate 1/2 of a stack. But for him the brocolli was where it was at. He easily ate 1/4 of a head, if not more.

Menu Week 2: April 12-18

Screwy week. I'll be out for dinner on the 12th(previously planned) but will be leaving a casserole for Paul, his mom, and Austin. Also, Peyton's baptism is the 18th, and we are having lunch after at 2:00ish, so instead of dinner I will make breakfast for us plus my dad and Angie who will be our house guests and guinea pigs for three days. Therefore, this week look for ratings from our guest judges :)


In no particular order:

Beef Stew(Childhood favorite)

Pulled Pork with Rootbeer BBQ Sauce(Crock pot/new recipe)

Honey Mustard Crusted Chicken(Five ingredients/new recipe)

French Toast Casserole w/ omelets in a bag(Casserole)

Low fat Carmel and Apple Bread Pudding(dessert/new recipe)

Deviled Steak(Meat/new recipe)

Spaghetti and Meatballs(Pasta/childhood favorite)

Buffalo Chicken Casserole(chicken)

Still need some more ideas...please keep them coming!

Day 3: Spinach and Mushroom Frittata

This vegetarian friendly recipe is another pick from my recipe box that I have never tried. Ever since a not so pretty incident after eating a spinach pizza at Gino's East, I've struggled with spinach. I make a pretty good spinach dip which I eat on Hawaiian bread to help mask the spinach taste, but other than that I usually try to steer away from anything spinach. The smell of cooked spinach makes me a little nauseous too.

But I decided to take one for the team because Paul LOVES spinach, and I know it is good for Austin. In fact, Paul was very surprised by this choice of recipe since 3 of the ingredients I claim to loathe(Parmesan, Ricotta, Spinach). I used to hate Parmesan so much that I would lie to the waiter and say I was allergic so that they didn't just pick it off the top of my caesar salad. I make my mom cook half of her incredible lasagna without ricotta cheese and won't take a piece that shares a border with ricotta. But again the whole idea is to challenge myself this month so regardless of all the obstacles, I still chose to add this to the menu.

Spinach and Mushroom Fritatta

10 oz pkg. frozen chopped spinach(thawed and squeezed of all liquid)
4 eggs
1 cup part skim ricotta
3/4 freshly grated parmesean
3/4 chopped portobello mushrooms
1/2 cup finely chopped scallions(with some green)
1/4 teas. dried Italian seasoning
salt/pepper to taste

Step 1: Whisk together all ingredients until well mixed

Step 2: Spray 9 inch pie plate and fill with spinach mixture

Step 3: Bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees( top should be golden brown)

Step 4: Cover with foil and let cool on top of stove for 5-10 minutes

Kitchen Play by Play: I was worried. It sure seemed like a lot of ingreidents, and I was leary as to whether it would really only take 20 minutes to prepare so I set the timer. Two minutes in Laura called. I was so excited to talk to her but assumed it would now take me longer to prepare the dish since I'd be distracted. It was a risk I was willing to take because we needed a gossip fest. So while we talked about our beautiful children, I chopped, measured and whisked away. Without even realizing it, I was putting the fritatta in the oven with 7 minutes left on the clock. Not too shabby. Only 13 miuntes of prep while on the phone!!! I also threw some McCain's Frozen Potato Baby Cakes in the oven to accompany the frittata. Paul eats them with sour cream; I eat them with applesauce.

Finished Product(Please excuse the half eaten fritatta. I forgot to take a picture before eating)
The Verdict:
Nicole- Spinach...ewww! Ricotta...gag. Parmesean...no thank you. Spinach, ricotta, and parmesean all wrapped up in a fritatta...HELL YEA!! This was through the roof fantastic!! Upon first bite, I actually told Paul it tasted like there was bacon it to which he gave me a weird look. But I really think the saltiness of the cheeses made it taste slightly baconesk(made up word). I really think I could have taken down half of the fritatta myself. I would serve it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. As a spinach dish I give it a 5. Overall, I give it a VERY strong 4.

Paul- gives it a 4. When I asked Austin if he liked it, Paul told Austin, "MMMM...daddy likes it" Paul did want me to note that he gives the frozen potato cakes a 5. Thank you McCains.

Austin- Was really tired and crabby today so he asked for a PB&J at 4:30 and proceeded to eat 1 1/2 sandwiches. Therefore, by dinner time he didn't really want to eat, but he did take a bite and said, "mmm...good."

Budget Update

Finished shopping for week 1. I went to Super Target and Jewel for my items. They were soo nice to have several of the ingredients I needed on sale. Because of their terrific sales I am happy to report that this week's groceries cost: $42.16

If my math is correct that is almost the PERFECT number to keep me on track for my $175 monthly budget.

I do need to grab a mini french baguette the day I make the breaded pork tederloins, so the number will increase by a buck or two, but for the most part I am very pleased with my shopping and money saving skills thus far.

However, I did get suckered into two fabulous deals at Jewel this week:

1) Coffeemate Creamer 10 for $10. They are usually $3.29 and never on sale for less than $2.50. Without hesitation or regret I bought 16. In my defense, for those of you who think I'm nuts, it stays good until August and they actually had Peppermint Mocha(my absolute fav) in stock. I also bought Paul his fav, Belgian Chocolate.

2) Pop. Four 12 packs for $8...when you buy four. All Coke, Pepsi and 7-up products.
I bought 8. Seriously $2.00...You NEVER get pop that cheap anymore. I was very proud of my $16 purchase.

I will admit to a little bit of shame when Paul helped me unload the car and eyed the bags of cream and boxes of pop and then looked at me with a blank stare. But he just put them away never questioning me or my insane purchases because he knows me by now. He knows that one of the greatest thrills in my life is a good sale :)

Day two: Russian Chicken

Paul and I will be married 6 years this June and at my Fraser family wedding shower they asked each guest to bring his/her favorite recipe to add to the amazing recipe box they bought me. Six years later and I have not tried half of the recipes I was given that day...until now.

Russian Chicken here I come!!! What is so great about this never tried before recipe is that it fits into three of my categories: chicken, new, and five ingredients. Reading the recipe it seems impossible to screw up but given my cooking background I wouldn't put it past me to figure out a way to ruin an "as simple as it gets" recipe. So did I?

Russian Chicken


6 Boneless Chicken Breasts


1 can whole cranberry sauce(not jelly)

1 8oz bottle Russian salad dressing

1 envelope dry onion soup mix


Step 1: Place chicken in 9X13 baking dish


Step 2: Combine ingredients and pour over chicken


Step 3: Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour COVERED

Step 4: UNCOVER and bake for 15 minutes

** Serve over white or brown rice


Play by Play in the kitchen: Open cranberries at 3:45pm. Chicken in the oven by 3:37pm. I shit you not...two flippin minutes to prepare. My first thought was, " This is going to taste like crap. How can something this easy possibly be good."

I did make a few small changes though. I only used 3 chicken breasts since I have been concerned about the amount of leftovers now that I'm cooking every night. We already have last night's pasta in the fridge, and it didn't get eaten at lunch today. I don't want to be wasteful, and I don't have the freezer space.

I did serve it with green beans as well due to the required vegetable rule.

The Finished Product

The Verdict:

Nicole- I'm still puzzled why I chose this recipe in the first place because at Thanksgiving the only thing I do not eat is the cranberries. But, I can take down an entire bag of Craisins by myself...in one sitting. I'm not going to lie based on my excitement for the lack of prep work, I was probably going to add this to my "speciality" list even if it did end up tasting like garbage. So I was thrilled to taste the first bite of what I will now rename "Two Minute Chicken" and realize that it was DELICIOUS. The chicken was so incredibly tender that it broke apart with a fork. This is huge for me because I am so worried about getting salmonella that I ALWAYS over cook chicken and it ends up resembling dental floss. The sauce was awesome. There was a slight taste of cranberry but not overbearing. I would recommend using a generous portion of sauce over the chicken and rice so that every bite is drenched in its gooey yumminess which is why if I was to make 6 breasts like the recipe calls for, I'd double the sauce. We had very little sauce left which is my only complaint about this recipe. So if you have not already guessed, I rate this dish a VERY high 4.

Paul-Rates it a 4 as well. This time it was even worthy of a comment. To quote him, " it is the perfect blend of sweet and savory."

Austin- Ate it which makes it 10 times better than last night's meal. No flying chicken tonight. He even called the sauce yummy.



































Kitchen Recap

















Ratings











Nicole:











Paul:











Austin:

Day One: Asparagus Pasta

While this is by far one of the easiest recipes I've ever tried, I always end up screwing it up some how. In the past I've burned the garlic, undercooked the asparagus, overcooked the pasta, added too little or too much red pepper or forgot an ingredient completely. That is why I was determined to add this specific recipe to my challenge.

The recipe is from my Aunt Christine who lives in Kentucky. She made it for my mom and Aunt Caryn when they visited for the first time. My mom loved it so much she cooked it for us as soon as she got home. Several years later and out of all the AMAZING dishes my mom cooks, my step dad, Dan, still requests Asparagus Pasta every time my mom asks what he wants for dinner. He has recently added Salmon Patties to that list too but that meal will certainly not be showing its face on my menu :)

So needless to say I felt a lot of pressure going into the first day of the challenge as well as this dish that kicks my ass EVERY time, but I did it and here is what happened...

Execution of the recipe was damn near perfect. My asparagus was cooked to perfection, my garlic was still its natural color, and the pasta was exactly how it should be...al dente. I did cut the red pepper down to half a teaspoon to keep the dish kid friendly since the garlic adds spice as well. I used closer to a third of a cup of oil to ensure that every noodle would be covered. To appeal to Austin, I used mini penne. I started the boiling water while preparing the asparagus and chopping the garlic. Right after I added the noodles to the water, I began to saute the asparagus in the already warmed oil, garlic and red pepper. Because I like tender asparagus, I sauteed them until the noodles were ready. I also had garlic bread in the oven. I drained the noodles and poured the entire contents of the saute pan over the noodles. I topped the whole dish with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. I FORGOT TO TOSS THE PASTA WITH THE SAUCE.

The finished product

The Verdict:

Nicole- Thank goodness for Peyton because after five bites of food she decided she was so exhausted I could not take another bite before whisking her off to bed. I say thank goodness because before going upstairs with her I probably would have rated the dinner a 2. To me, it had absolutely no flavor. Again, textures were great, but taste was lacking. However, when I came back down to finish, aggravated, I moved the noodles around my bowl. To my complete surprise, it tasted 10 times better than the first five bites. I attribute this vast difference to really tossing the noodles around and letting the little penne fill themselves with garlicky oil and red pepper. With all this said, it still didn't knock my socks off proven by the fact that I was not a member of the clean plate club this evening. But...I do think it has potential to be great with some tweaking. I would use the correct amount of red pepper and more garlic next time. So after a very long winded explanation I give Asparagus Pasta a 3.

Paul- Gives it a 4. No other comments. So sweet, no matter how much I tell him I won't be offended by his response I'm pretty sure he thinks it is a loaded question.

Austin- I was afraid that even with less red pepper it would still be too spicy for him so I started by just giving him a piece of asparagus. His rating: Whipping the piece across the table at me when I wasn't looking and replying with, " No want to try it."

Side note: My very sweet little boy has never thrown food at me before; therefore, no number rating needed from him. Actions speak louder than words.

Asparagus Pasta

1 lb Penne Pasta

5 cloves garlic(chopped)
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/4- 1/3 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

Asparagus(as much or as little as desired)

Step 1: Wash and cut asparagus in 1-2 inch pieces

Step 2: In a saute pan, saute mixture(garlic,red pepper,olive oil, butter) on low for 2-3 minutes

Step 3: Add cut asparagus; Saute on low 8-10 minutes

Step 4: Pour mixture over noodles and toss well. Serve with Parmesan cheese(freshly grated works best)

**Serve with garlic bread and some great red wine

Week 1 Grocery List

Some of the ingredients in this week's recipes are common household items(ketchup, sugar, etc); so though they will appear in the recipe, they will not be on my shopping list or accounted for in my budget.

Please let me know if you see sales or coupons for any of the items listed :) I will be shopping on Saturday night.



Meat
1 lb 80% lean ground beef
8 pork cutlets(about 2 lbs)
6 Chicken breasts

Dairy
1/4 sliced Mozzarella Cheese
1 lb Imperial Margarine
Shredded Mexican Blend Cheese
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
sour cream
Part skim ricotta cheese
Grated Parmesan cheese(Fresh)

Frozen
10oz Corn
Diced Green Peppers
Diced onions
10 0z chopped spinach
Pizza dough

Refrigerated
eggs

Produce
Portobello Mushrooms
2 garlic(Fresh)
scallions
broccoli
green beans
onion
Asparagus

Canned Goods
32 oz chicken broth
10 0z enchilada sauce
7 oz green chiles
28oz whole tomatoes
whole cranberries(not jelly)

Other
Cake Flour
Conf Sugar
Penne Noodles
Rice
Wavy Lays
small french baguette

Already in my house, but you may need

Hamburger Buns
Ketchup/Mustard

Worsteshire
vinegar

vanilla
crushed red pepper

olive oil
cumin/bay leaves/italian seasoning
Russian dressing
Lipton Onion soup mix