Friday Night Feast: Pork with Mushroom Sauce

Thursdays are a killer for me this semester.  They generally consist of a long day ending with a late night in class.  Thankfully, though, they are followed by Fridays!  That's when I get to go on my time-table, exercising if and when I want, grocery shopping, and (my favorite) cooking a good meal.  Whether it's just the two of us, or we have friends over, Friday night is the best time to relax and enjoy.  We'll just ignore the fact that Saturday is a study day around here. 

I think that this pork loin recipe is perfect for this transitional weather that the whole country seems to be experiencing.  It is comfort food, but it's not overly heavy.  And the best part is, it's mostly hands-off, so you can work on your side dishes or sip your wine while it roasts.  I served it over goat cheese grits with a side of collard greens, but it would be excellent over polenta or rice as well. 

I do hope that you and your family has a fabulous Friday night!

Mushroom Pork Loin

2 pound pork loin roast or tenderloin
1 garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
2 teaspoons paprika
2 tablespoons butter
8 ounces sliced cremini mushrooms
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/2 cup port wine, plus more if needed
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
3/4 cup vegetable broth

Preheat the oven to 375.

Trim the roast and rub with the cut side of the peeled garlic.  Sprinkle with paprika.  In a small bowl, combine the mushrooms, lemon juice, oregano, salt, and pepper.  Mince the garlic clove and add to the bowl.  In a separate bowl, combine the vegetable broth and flour. 

Heat the butter in a large oven-proof skillet over medium high heat.  Brown the pork on all sides.  Add the mushroom mixture to the pan, stirring and turning the pork to coat with the seasonings.  Add the port wine, scraping the bottom of the pan. 

Move the skillet to the preheated oven.  Roast until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees using an instant-read or oven-proof thermometer, around 30 minutes, adding more wine if the skillet becomes dry.  Remove the skillet from oven and move the pork to a cutting board.  Tent with aluminum foil. 

Put the skillet back over medium-high heat.  Stir the flour and broth mixture into the pan juices (with the mushrooms).  Bring to a boil and stir for 2-3 minutes, until thickened.  Slice the pork and serve with the mushroom gravy. 

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Another Pumpkin post, in the form of Perfect Sugar Cookies

Over the past few weeks, I've been looking for some blog inspriation by looking at other blogs in between loads of laundry and homework assignments and classes.  And with fall upon us, there have been more pumpkin-related posts than I can count!  And while I have been right there with them, using butternut squash, acorn squash, and pumpkin whenever I can, I don't want to just replicate what's already out there.  So, until I have some really inspired pumpkin recipe, I'll show you these precious pumpkin cookies which I made for baby shower for a friend of mine who is having a "little pumpkin" of her own. 

The fabulous thing about these basic sugar cookies is that they make excellent cut-out cookies, never spreading even with the most intricate cutters.  And although they don't have any pumpkin in them, I did add a bit of fall spice to the dough, which was wonderful. 

I loved the icing recipe which I used for these, as well.  I'll give the recipe here, and there is an excellent cookie icing tutorial over on Our Best Bites. 

Perfect Sugar Cookies

3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon extract (vanilla, almond, orange, etc.)
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. 

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar with a mixer.  Add the egg, extract, and salt, and blend well.  Add the dry ingredients in three parts, mixing well between each addition. 

Divide the dough in three parts.  Take two pieces of parchment paper, about 15 inches square, and roll out one portion to 1/4 inch between the two pieces of parchment.  Place in the refrigerator.  Repeat with the two remaining portions. 

Beginning with the first portion, cut out cookies and place them on an ungreased cookie sheet, 1/2 inch apart.  Gather scraps, reroll dough and refrigerate while you cut out remaining cookies. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the edges just begin to darken.  Cool cookies on a rack.

Glacé Icing

Our Best Bites, originally from Toba Garrett

1 pound powdered sugar (plus more to thicken icing)
6 tablespoons milk (plus more to thin icing)
6 tablespoons corn syrup
1 teaspoon extract (vanilla, almond, orange, etc.)

In a medium bowl, whisk the powdered sugar to get rid of any lumps.  Whisk in the milk, corn syrup and extract until well blended.  Separate icing into bowls to make various colors with food coloring.  If you are piping icing, add more powdered sugar to thicken the icing.  Use milk to thin icing for spreading with a spoon, if needed. 

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Knock, knock, is anybody there? Plus, Whole Wheat, Oatmeal and Fruit Muffins

After a long summer hiatus, a good and challenging few months at home in the South, we have returned to our home up North and are now in the midst of the fall semester.  I cannot believe that I let so much time go by, but rather than give excuses or all the details of the summer, I'm just going to settle back into what we're doing (and eating) now. 

Although we miss being home with our family and friends who are there, we are happy to be back in "our own space" and schedule.  It is so good to see friends from school and church here after the summer, too!  However, we didn't have much time to make that transition and before we knew it, school was in full swing. 

My husband is taking an incredibly full load this semester, so my job is to make sure he is well-fed and has what he needs to function.  Tough job, no?  Well, add on top of that my own classes, and it is a little more than I had expected.  So far, neither of us have gone without a meal nor have we missed an assignment, so I would say we're doing okay. 

One thing my husband has learned this semester is the wonder of oatmeal.  He had only ever tasted the sugary instant oats from a packet, and had never really cared much for those.  So when I made several days worth of banana raisin oats, he was wowed and won over, and has even learned how to make them himself!  I've come in the kitchen the past few mornings to see all of the ingredients lined up next to the stove, ready to be thrown together for a quick and delicious breakfast. 

He'll have a little surprise tomorrow morning, though.  Today, I made him an equally hearty, yummy, grab-and-go breakfast to help him through his long days of studying!  These are perfect for a school morning.  Even if they are frozen, all that is needed is a short time in the microwave or in the toaster for a quick, healthy breakfast. 

Whole Wheat, Oatmeal and Fruit Muffins

adapted from Cooking Light

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons wheat germ

2 tablespoons wheat bran

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups rolled oats

1 cup chopped dried fruit (the original recipe calls for raisins, cranberries and dates)

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg

1/2 cup boiling water

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients, the oats, and the dried fruit.  In a small bowl, lightly whisk the buttermilk, oil, vanilla and egg.  Add to the dry ingredients and stir until just mixed.  Stir in the boiling water and let the batter sit for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. 

Divide the batter between 12 lined or greased muffin cups.  Bake for 20 minutes, rotating the pan half way through.  Cool the muffins on a rack. 

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