This is a great pork tenderloin with the most delicious peach and almond compote flavored with vermouth. The photo of this dish doesn’t do it justice. It is surprisingly good. I adapted this recipe after seeing it on the Today Show. The Scotto family shared this and two other scrumptious peach recipes perfect for summer. You can find the two other recipes at the link above. One was a warm pasta salad with peaches, heirloom tomatoes and mozzarella and the other was a blueberry peach cobbler with Prosecco vanilla zabaglione. The marinade for the pork was very easy to put together. I put the spices in a mortar and pestle first to help release some of the flavors. You can definitely skip this step if you don’t have a mortar and pestle though. Be careful not to marinate the meat for too long, the vinegar will start to cook the pork. In the original recipe, it said to cook the pork loin in the skillet only, but my pork was already seared, and the internal temperature was not where it should be, so I finished it in the oven.  While it was cooking, I made the peach compote. For the potatoes pictured, I just used olive oil and some of same spices (thyme, rosemary, sage leaves, salt and pepper) that were used in the marinade. I then roasted them at 500 degrees until crispy.(...)
Read the rest of Pork Tenderloin with Peach Compote (251 words)

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I make this about once or twice a year. Summer wouldn’t be complete in our home without this classic comfort food. This is my favorite type of sauce to make, a sweet and tangy tomato based sauce with a touch of heat. After I make it, I keep it warm in the crock-pot. It tastes sort of like that pre-made BBQ in the grocery store, but its actually good. The pre-made kind is edible, if your hungry, but trust me, this is much, much better. When you add the sauce to the pork, you could either opt for one of the many selections at the grocery store, or try this one. This is one of my latest creations. I added smoked paprika to the sauce this time for flavor. It added more flavor without the heat. I try to make foods now with more flavor and less heat. Before having my son, I relied on heat alot of the time for flavor. However, he can’t handle the heat, so I have had to learn new techniques to get flavorful foods.(...)
Read the rest of Pulled Pork Sandwiches (178 words)

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Here is an easy recipe for fast boneless country ribs. Country style ribs aren’t actually ribs at all, but a cut of pork between the ribs and shoulder. They are boneless, low in fat, and tender. They are closer in relation to a pork chop, but are cut in strips. They make perfect, no mess, no fuss “mock ribs” that are easy enough for a fast weeknight meal. You can also make them on the grill, instead of baking them in the oven.(...)
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This is a quick and easy weeknight meal for Italian sausage and pepper pasta. I used red and green bell peppers in this dish, but I also make this dish with Cubanelle peppers. Cubanelle peppers have a wonderful sweet taste. They are a little pricier, but well worth it. Make sure that you use Italian canned tomatoes. They are much tastier than the American brands. I usually buy Italian canned tomatoes that already have basil added. Additionally, I add a large bunch of torn basil right before finishing this dish in the oven. Make sure to wilt the basil in the hot pasta, and cover the basil leaves by placing them in the pasta or under the cheese, so the leaves do not burn. I like to use an Italian cheese blend that is pre-shredded. If you are shredding your own, just use mozzarella, and whatever other Italian cheeses you have on hand like Parmesan and Romano cheeses. My son loves pasta, and of course cheese, so this is a big hit in our home. (...)
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Brown Sugar Mustard Ham Glaze Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 spiral sliced ham
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2 cups ginger snap cookies, crushed
• 1/4 cup brown mustard
• 1 oz bourbon, or water, in a spray bottle

Method

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Remove ham from packaging and rinse well. Place ham, cut side down, in a roasting pan. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake ham until the internal temperature is 130 degrees.
2. Remove ham from oven, and turn oven temperature to 350 degrees. Apply mustard with a brush liberally all over ham. Press brown sugar into the mustard. Spritz the ham with bourbon, or water. Press crushed cookies on ham.
3. Bake at 350 degrees, uncovered, until internal temperature is 150 degrees.

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This is an easy recipe for a simple and delicious Italian bean soup. I love soups in cold weather. Unfortunately, it is still not that cool here in central Florida. Actually it is still so warm, we are running the air conditioner! Many Floridians here say that they cannot get into the spirit with the sweltering heat. I completely disagree though. You can have a wonderful Christmas no matter the weather, even if you are sporting shorts and a t-shirt, rather than a pair of mittens and a warm scarf.

Over the weekend we had the opportunity to visit Ice at the Gaylord Palm’s here in Orlando. It is a magnificent display of beautiful ice sculptures in a brisk 9 degrees. We were so excited to be attending, we bought our tickets for 6:30 on Saturday evening, and I made plans on how many layers each of us would be wearing. I dressed my toddler in his fluffy footed pajamas, added a pair of pants and a sweater, and the thickest winter coat I could find. I added mittens and a hat to my son. I wore 2 pairs of pants, a long sleeved t-shirt, a sweater, a cardigan, a heavy leather jacket, boot socks, and leather boots. My husband had a t-shirt, his jeans, a mock neck sweater, a fur lined hoodie, and a thick leather jacket. We rode with the a/c blasting all the way there and in only part of our clothing that we planned to wear. When we arrived, we finished dressing and went inside. To our disbelief, they was a line, it ended up being a 2 hour line! Not so easy with a screaming toddler in blistering heat with layer upon layer of clothing.

When we finally got through the line, we were all soaked with sweat, I thought we would all catch pneumonia if we went into the cold and were wet, so we all then took the additional winter parkas that they give out to wear. We all continued to sweat profusely through the whole exhibit, but were afraid to take the parkas off, for fear of being cold and wet! My point is silly southerners don’t have a clue what 9 degrees feels like. We dressed as if we were going to Alaska or something. The nine degrees we experienced in the Ice exhibit had no humidity or wind either, so it really didn’t feel that cold.

The whole experience was too funny though, because we thought we were going to experience a chilly Christmas event at the Gaylord Palm’s Ice, when in fact we experienced a typically all too warm Florida Christmas.

Here is a great recipe for a light soup you can easily enjoy in the winter or on a warmer day. It is filled with nutritious kale and cannellini beans. Sweet Italian sausage give this soup the best flavor. I added a large can of Italian tomatoes. You can buy the ones with basil or basil and oregano already added. This is a great quick cooking soup that tastes delicious, and has beautiful Christmas colors, perfect for this time of year.

A quick tip for washing greens: Wash them 3 times in your sink. In the first wash add a little salt and vinegar. Rub the leaves between your fingers gently, and wash them well.

Italian Sausage, Kale, and Cannellini Bean Soup Recipe

Ingredients

• 5 links fresh Italian sweet sausage, cut in chunks
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 lb fresh kale, washed and chopped
• 1 35 oz can Italian tomatoes
• 1 15.5 oz can Cannellini Beans
• 1 quart chicken stock

Method

1. Preheat a large soup pot. Drizzle with olive oil. Brown the Italian sausage. Add the onions and garlic, and saute until tender.
2. Then add the chopped kale, chicken stock, and tomatoes.
3. To get the right consistency, you may want to add a little more water, but don’t do this until the greens have wilted so you know what you are working with.

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This is a delicious southern comfort food. Fried pork chops were a staple in my family when I was growing up, and continue to be a part of our regular family meals now. I like to use bone in chops for more flavor, but you can use boneless pork chops also. I use my southern spice blend for this recipe, you could also use another Cajun seasoning. I like to make my own seasoning salt recipe, so that I can control the amount and type of salt that goes into it.  Serve this along side mashed potatoes and gravy with steamed or roasted potatoes.(...)
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This recipe is one of my favorite dishes, pulled pork simmered in barbecue sauce. This is what I use to think Alabama Barbecue was, I did not learn about the mayonnaise barbecue until much later in life. My mom always made barbecued pulled pork this way, and it was such a treat.

For this recipe, you can use your favorite barbecue sauce, or make your own.  I do not have a particular favorite sauce, but I do like to try different ones, or combine different sauces to achieve different tastes. This time, I used Country Bob’s all purpose sauce to create a wonderful barbecue sauce (which has been the best I’ve had yet). You should use a whole bone in boston butt for this dish, using a boneless will save time, but the end result will not be as tender. Note: Using a whole shoulder takes a long, long time to come to temperature. I start this recipe 3 days prior. I also use an oven thermometer with a probe that is on a wire, this way you check the temperature on the digital read outside of the oven without ever having to disturb your meat.

(...)
Read the rest of Slow Roasted and Simmered Pulled Pork (214 words)

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