Pork Tenderloin Marsala

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Pork Tenderloin Marsala

I love pretty much anything that’s been Marsala-fied. It’s such an indispensable item to have in your liquor cabinet. It’s got a wonderful, rich depth of flavor when used for cooking, and it’s shelf stable – meaning that you can open it up, and it’ll keep fine un-refrigerated for years (not that a bottle ever makes it that long in our house). It comes in two varieties - sweet & dry. I usually buy the sweet, then balance out that sweetness with lemon juice when I’m doing a dish like this. Sweet Marsala is also great in dessert and other sweet recipes as well. So if you don’t have a bottle, pick one up – it’s handy to have on hand.

Chicken Marsala is pretty much my favorite dinner, and has been for years. But, in an effort to get less chicken – and more “other stuff” into our weekly menu I thought a Marsala twist on a pork tenderloin would be fun. Turned out to be alot easier than chicken marsala too, as the pork didn’t have to be pounded out to an even thickness – then coated and fried. Instead I took cues from this recipe – gave the tenderloin a little soak in the wine, then seared it off in the pan, cooked the mushrooms, added the wine, and finished it all off in the oven. It turned out delicious, and like I said – it was so much easier than the chicken version. And probably healthier too!

Pork Tenderloin Marsala

1 1/2 cups Marsala wine
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 pound pork tenderloin
2 Tbsp olive oil
8 oz sliced mushrooms
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Combine 1 cup Marsala wine, lemon juice, and 1 tsp of salt in a large resealable bag. Add the pork tenderloin and marinate for 30-60 minutes.

In a large ovenproof skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Remove tenderloin from the bag (reserving the marinade), and sear on all sides until browned – about 10 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside on plate.

Add the remaining olive oil to the pan, and add the mushrooms – tossing to coat with the oil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are starting to brown on the edges and release most of their liquid – about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and the tomato paste to the pan and cook for an additional minute.

Slowly pour the remaining Marsala wine to the pan, along with the chicken stock and leftover marinade. Bring to a boil and whisk in the butter until smooth, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Return the tenderloin to the pan, turning once to coat.

Carefully place the skillet in the oven, and bake for about 15-20 minutes – until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 135 degrees.

Remove from the oven and remove tenderloin to cutting board. Let rest 5 minutes before slicing into 3/4-inch slices and serving with the sauce.

BLT Carbonara

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BLT CarbonaraI feel like we’ve been crazy busy lately – it’s always something on our schedules one weekend or another. Poor Jon just got to brew beer for the first time in two months last week! Plus, we’d all been sick for pretty much the entire month of January. Stomach bugs? Check. Coughing up lungs? Check. Faucets for noses? Check.

This has been the first week this month where we’ve all felt good, and I’ve been playing catch-up with house chores that kind of got put by the way-side while I was sick myself, or playing nurse maid. Seriously, where does all this laundry come from? I’d swear I live in a house with 5 teenage girls the way these boys go through clothes! Anyways, with all the housework, I wasn’t feeling cooking dinner the other night. But, I wasn’t feeling anything out either. So, I mustered up some energy and went to the kitchen to make this quick pasta. A few ingredients, and a little bit of time – and you’ve got yourself one terrific and satisfying meal.

If you’re worried about using raw eggs in your pasta – hear me out. It’s not really raw eggs, because the eggs cook (more or less) in the pan with the hot pasta. It transforms into a thick and luxurious sauce that can’t be achieved with any substitutions. If you’re that worried about it, let it cook on the heat for a little bit longer than 2 minutes. But, there really isn’t anything to worry about – you don’t think anything about licking brownie batter off the spatula when you’re done baking, do you?

The original recipe just calls for bacon and tomatoes, but I happened to have a half a bag of baby spinach hanging out in the fridge that I needed to use – and thought that a green leafy component would make it a BLT, which is always a fun twist. I served it with simple green salads and focaccia bread.


BLT Carbonara

2 whole eggs
1/3 cup heavy creamy
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
12 ounces bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 small onion, chopped
3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup white wine
Fresh parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups baby spinach leaves
16 ounces spaghetti

Whisk together the eggs, cream and Parmesan together in a bowl. In a large non stick pan, fry the bacon until crisp and set aside on a paper-towel lined plate to drain. Remove all but one tablespoon of the bacon grease; add the onion, tomatoes, and garlic and sauté over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the white wine; stir in the parsley, salt and black pepper.

Meanwhile, prepare the pasta according to the instructions on the box. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta and while still warm, add to the onions and tomatoes. Add the baby spinach. Pour cream mixture into the spaghetti, and toss over low heat for one to two minutes using tongs. If it seems a little dry, add a splash of the reserved cooking water from the pasta. Serve in warm bowls, top with bacon and serve with additional Parmesan.

Source: adapted from So Tasty, So Yummy

Penne with Sausage & Olive Sauce

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Olive Sauce

It’s no secret that I love those dear Housewives of New Jersey. When my favorite matriarch of the Manzo family, Caroline, talked about an olive tomato sauce that her family always had on Christmas Eve – I immediately put that on my “to-do” list in the kitchen. Her recipe is top-secret of course, but in the scene it showed her slicing up fennel so I knew that went into the mix. So, I started there and just kind of winged it.

I added some sliced up Italian sausage, two kinds of olives, and fennel – as well as all the other standard tomato sauce fare. The brininess of the olives add such a different twist from a standard tomato sauce. Also, a greater depth of flavor. And, as most pasta dishes go, it didn’t take long to throw together. If you wanted to make this a vegetarian dish, it would be just as delicious without the sausage.

If you’re like me, and find yourself in a rut when it comes to new pasta dishes – give this one a try!


Penne with Sausage & Olive Sauce

1 lb Italian sausage links (I used hot)
1 can black olives, drained and roughly chopped
1 can green olives, drained and roughly chopped
2 (28) oz cans whole tomatoes, lightly crushed with clean hands
1 onion, diced
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. penne pasta
olive oil
kosher salt
fresh chopped parsley, for garnish
Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Add 1 tbsp olive oil to a large, heavy bottomoed saucepan (I used a dutch oven) and place over medium-high heat. Add the sausage links, and brown well on all sides. Don’t worry if they’re not cooked all the way through, they’ll finish cooking in the sauce. Remove from pan to a plate, and set aside.

Add the onion and the fennel, and saute until starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook for an additional minute. Add in the tomatoes, and olives and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt, I add about 1 tsp.

Slice the sausage into 1-inch pieces and add slices to the sauce. Reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer for 40 minutes – stirring occasionally.

Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water before draining. Add the drained pasta to olive sauce, stirring to combine. If it seems dry, add a splash of the pasta water to help loosen up the sauce a bit.

Garnish with chopped parsley and grated Parmesan cheese before serving.

Source: inspired by The Real Housewives of New Jersey’s Caroline Manzo

Homemade Pan Pizza

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Pan PizzaPan pizza is one of my favorite guilty pleasures. But, so often when it comes from a chain in a pizza box – it’s a grease festival. I first made this recipe years ago, when I saw it on Alex Guarnaschelli’s show (love her!) and it was an immediate hit with our family.

The crust is thick and chewy, as well as crispy. Can hold up to any toppings you throw on it. And, isn’t effusively greasy. The crust just absorbs the olive oil to create a wonderfully flavored crust. I went all out fake out take-out style here, creating our own meat lover’s pizza at home. Bacon, ham, and pepperoni – we’ve dubbed it “Porkapalooza”.

Our family never gets tired of pizza night, and this is something different to throw into the rotation. A little more heartier of a pizza for these cold winter months we have ahead of us!


Homemade Pan Pizza

1 batch pizza dough (enough for two 12-inch pizzas)
1/2 cup olive oil, divided
1 1/2 cups pizza sauce
8 oz whole milk mozzarella cheese, shredded
Additional toppings (I used pepperoni, ham, and bacon – it’s been dubbed “Porkapalooza”)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

In a 12 inch round cast iron skillet, heat about 4 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Using your hands, gently stretch out your pizza dough to a 12-inch circle. Carefully transfer it to the hot skillet, being careful not to burn yourself. Use a spatula to press gently on the top of the round to keep it relatively flat as it cooks. Cook for 3 minutes.

When you see it is slightly brown on the underside, season the top lightly with salt and flip. Remove from heat. Spread about 3/4 cup sauce evenly over the dough. Sprinkle with half of the mozzarella. Then, top with whatever toppings you like. Place in pre-heated oven for about 10 minutes or so, until cheese is nice and melty.

Repeat with remaining dough and topping. Slice and serve.

Source: adapted from Alex Guarnaschelli