Here you will find my new (mostly) recipes that I havent yet created a full menu around.
Pork With Roasted Red Pepper and Balsamic Sauce
The idea for this recipe comes from a salad that I often make with roasted red peppers, lots of garlic, balsamic vinegar and feta cheese. Feel free to use this combination (although not with this dish) but I haven't really found a good low fat feta. This recipe (both the simple and the sensational versions) is admittedly a little labour intensive, but I can truthfully say that the first time I made it was a on a Tuesday after I worked all day and shopped on the way home. My point here is that whilst the recipe may look a little over the top, it really isn't that bad.
NOTE When I refer to 'Meat Seasoning' in the recipe below I really mean any spice rub that you like. Either make a rub yourself, or do what I do and take the easy way out and buy one at the store.
Pork with Roasted Red Pepper and Balsamic Sauce
(Serves four) Ingredients
16 oz Pork Tenderloin 2 Teaspoons Meat Seasoning 4 Red Bell Peppers 4 Tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar 2 Tablespoons Orange Juice 4 Cloves Garlic 1 Tablespoon Sherry 1 Tablespoon Ketchup Manis (or Dark Soy Sauce) 1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste 1 Teaspoon Olive Oil 1 Teaspoon Sugar Pinch Salt 1/2 cup polenta 2 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese Cooking spray
Method
Put the peppers in a tray under the broiler and roast until the skins turn black, turning so that they are pretty much black on all sides (a word of warning here, the juice that comes from red peppers is very sticky and if you leave it too long is cooks to the consistency of concrete and you have to thrown your pan away. Line the tray with aluminium foil first and save the stress). When the peppers skin is black and blistered put them into a bowl and cover with cling film. Boil 1 cup of water. When the water has boiled add the polenta in a thin stream and wisk quickly so at not to form lumps. Add the parmesan cheese and spread over the bottom of a square pan. refrigerate until set.
If the tenderloin tapers at one end, cut the tapered end off and then lay it along the rest of the loin so that you have a more consistent size. Basically what you are looking for here is a long 'log' of park that is pretty much a consistent size all the way along. Tie with kitchen twine. Rub the pork with the meat rub and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roast the pork for about 25 minutes or until done. I have to admit I am really really bad at giving accurate times for cooking meat. Everyone's oven is different. If you are not confident, invest in a meat thermometer and save yourself alot of grief.
When the peppers are cooled (or in my case because I am always rushing, when they are no longer hot enough to give me third degree burns), skin the peppers and remove the stalks and seeds. Put the peppers in a blender and puree until smooth. Put the olive oil in a pan and cook the garlic until just done, this wont take long. Add the balsamic, sherry, orange juice and ketchup manis and cook until it reduced slightly. Add the pureed peppers and cook for about five minutes. Strain the sauce through a very fine sieve and discard the solids. Return the sauce to the pan and add sugar and salt (if the peppers are very sweet you may not need the sugar....taste first) and the tomato puree.
When the pork is done remove from the oven and leave to rest for five minutes. While the meat is resting cut the polenta into sixteen slices (to be perfectly honest I usually cut mine into way more slices than that because I need to allow for screw ups). Spray a fry pan with a little cooking spray and fry the polenta until golden. Slice the Pork into eight slices.
Place two strips of polenta on a plate, then a piece of pork, two more strips of polenta and top with another piece of pork. Drizzle the pork and plate with a little sauce and serve the rest in a jug (looks prettier that way but your guests will defiantly want more sauce).
Per Serve.
Calories
Fat
Sodium
Carbs
Fiber
Protein
262
6.9 g
291 mg
35.9 g
3.25 g
28.3 g
I think this is the highest calorie recipe on my site, but it is really really good. If you want to cut the calories further, reduce the sausage by half and you will save 40 Calories and 1g of fat. Another thing to bear in mind is that I used a pasta that has 280 calories and 1.5 g of fat per serve, which is the bulk of the calories in this dish. If you hunt around and find a lower calorie pasta then reduce the calories accordingly. Conversely if you don't care about the calories, bulk up the pasta, thrown in more sausage, top with lots of cheese and enjoy...
Linguini with Spicy Sausage
Linguine with mushrooms, olives and spicy sausage
(Serves four) Ingredients
1 medium onion finely chopped 3 Cloves garlic 75 g spicy dry Italian sausage cut into small cubes 250 g mushrooms roughly chopped handful of chopped basil 2 cups good tomato sauce 350g Linguine
Method
Spray the bottom of a saucepan with a with cooking spray. Sauté Onions and garlic until transparent. Add the sausage and sauté until the sausage begins to colour, add olives and mushrooms and sauté for a further three minutes, or until the mushrooms begin to wilt. Add the sauce and simmer gently for five - seven minutes. Stir in 2/3 of the basil.
Meanwhile bring a large pot of water to the boil and cook the pasta until done ( I say done, because let's face it people go on and on about how pasta should be 'al dente' ....it's your dinner, bite it, thrown it against the wall, do whatever you do to check that it is done the way you like it).
Divide between four pasta bowls and top with the remaining basil
Below information is per serve
Calories
Fat
Sodium
Carbs
Fiber
Protein
400
7 g
800 mg
60 g
4.5g
21.8 g
Serving Suggestions
Wonderful with grated parmesan, but then you are really getting into fat territory. For a more responsible option try a sprinkle of chili flakes
