Friday, October 7, 2011

Spiced Coconut Spinach


1 shallot
1 large clove of garlic
1/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1/4 cup salad/olive oil (or a little of both)
1/4 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
1/4 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 bunch asparagus sliced thinly lengthwise
1 large package baby spinach
1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut, lightly toasted
Place the shallot and garlic on a cutting board, sprinkle with the salt, and chop/mash everything into a paste.
Heat the oil in your largest skillet over medium heat. Add the seeds, cover with a lid, and let them toast a bit. Remove the lid, stir in the red pepper flakes and let cook for a minute. Stir in the asparagus, let cook several minutes, then stir in the garlic-shallot paste and all of the spinach. Keep stirring until the spinach starts collapsing a bit, and brightens up - barely any time at all - perhaps a minute. Finish with the coconut.

Adapted from 101 Cookbooks.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Chimichurri



















Recipe by Ourbestbites.com via Amy Scott

2-3lb pork tenderloin (2 small-med pork loins)
1 1/2 C chopped parsley
1 1/2 C chopped cilantro
1/2 C loosely packed oregano leaves*
2 T fresh lime juice
1 T red wine vinegar
3 T chopped garlic (6-7 cloves)
1 t kosher salt
1/4 t black pepper
1/4 t red pepper flakes
1/2 C extra virgin olive oil

*Fresh is best, but if you don't have access to fresh oregano, you could use fresh cilantro and parsley and add in 1 Tbs plus 1 tea  dried oregano leaves.

Place pork tenderloins in a ziplock bag and set aside.

Place parsley, cilantro, oregano, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, and pepper in a food processor.  Pulse several times until finely chopped.  Remove mixture and place in a bowl.  Add red pepper flakes and then stir in olive oil by hand.

Remove 1/2-3/4 C chimichurri (the herb mixture you just made) and place in bag with pork tenderloins.  You just need enough to coat them well.  Be careful to not cross-contaminate since you will be serving the remaining chimichurri over the top of the finished meat.  Seal bag and set aside to marinade for about an hour or longer if you need to.  Place plastic wrap over the remaining chimichurri and set aside until ready to serve.

When ready to cook, preheat grill.  Remove tenderloins from bag and let excess marinade drip off.  Place on grill and cook for about 5-8 minutes before flipping to the other side.  You want the internal temp to be about 160 degrees, so check with a thermometer and take it off the grill when it reaches 155-158 since it will continue to cook a bit as it sits.  Remove from grill and let stand 5 minutes before cutting.  Slice, and serve with remaining chimichurri drizzled on top.