My Mom's Tabbouleh

To this day, my mom's tabbouleh is the best I've ever had. So, to honor my wonderful mother, I made it for Mother's Day.

This is another easy, 1-hour dish, packed with whole ingredients, lots of nutrition and great flavors. 

1 cup bulghur  
1 cup boiling water
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 - 2 cups minced parsley
1/2 cup minced mint leaves
1/3 cup minced onion
1 or 2  tomatoes, chopped
 (or 12 grape tomatoes, halved)
Optional additions:
chopped radishes
chopped cucumber

In a small bowl combine bulghur & hot water. Cover with plate. Let sit 20-30 minutes.
Meanwhile make dressing in a small measuring pitcher or bowl:
oil, lemon juice, allspice, garlic, salt, pepper and start chopping parsley and all the rest.

Combine bulghur and remaining ingredients in large bowl. Mix.
Stir dressing and drizzle over bulghur mixture, stirring to coat.
Refrigerate until 1/2 hour before serving.

Serve with Romaine scoops and/or pita bread.

Thanks, Mom!

Braised Pork Tenderloin

 

I made braised pork tenderloin last night. It's one of my default meat meals because it's easy to cook and hard to screw up. Pork tenderloin is, well, tender, even if you cook it a little too long (as I did last night). You can treat it like a red meat (in red wine and rosemary, for example), or you can season it with restraint, using just white wine and tarragon. It always works.

This time, I coated the pork tenderloin in olive oil, a little salt, pepper and Penzeys Bouquet Garni (a great seasoning resource). I then heated up diced onions in olive oil for a few minutes in a large skillet on low-med heat added the pork, turned up the heat to med-high to brown, turned over the pork and continued to brown (just a few minutes each side). Next I added about 1/3 cup red wine, 2 cloves garlic (crushed or diced), covered and reduced heat to simmer for about 35 minutes. Cooking time will depend upon size of tenderloin, but 30-40 minutes usually covers it.

Remove cover, transfer pork to plate, and cut into medallions while turning up heat in pan to cook down sauce. After 2-3 minutes, add medallions back to pan and coat with sauce for 1 minute. Turn off heat. Great with rice or potatoes and something green.

Onion and Pepper and Garlic

I often start dinner this way:

Saute onion and bell pepper in oil for 10 minutes on low heat, add fresh garlic, either crushed or minced, saute for a few more minutes.

From there, baby, you can go anyplace. I often go to a pasta place. In fact, you could boil some water, cook some pasta, add salt, pepper, and parmesan to taste, and have a simple meal in 15-20 minutes.

The secret to making a dish like this successful is having enough liquid. In this case, the liquid is oil, and you don't need a ton, but enough to coat the pasta and keep it from drying out. A way to cut back on the oil is to add a splash of white wine or lemon juice. You could also use chicken or veggie broth.

Make it more interesting: Add fresh spinach (frozen works, too) and/or diced tomatoes, to the peppers and onions, just before adding the garlic. If you have a lemon--and it's always a good idea to have a lemon--grate a little lemon zest into the sauce to brighten it up.

A Word or Two about Herbs and Spices

Fresh Herbs
I don't have a green thumb. My mom gave me a beautiful, thriving rosemary plant, and I managed to kill it in a week and a half. And I love rosemary. I hear that basil is easy to grow, but I haven't tried, yet. I've resided in urban spaces for a lot of years, now, and though it isn't a good excuse, it's mine. If you aren't growing your own herbs, then you can buy them at a grocery store or farmer's market. They are lovely and subtle, and they can be the most important ingredient in many a beautiful dish. When you have them, use them! All other times, dried herbs are great.

Dried Herbs and Spices
I stock a few dried herbs and spices, and since most of my cooking tends toward Mediterranean food, you'll see a theme: bay leaves, basil, oregano, parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary, dill, tarragon. I've recently added anise, cinnamon and cloves (needed to make pho). I find that I can achieve a lot with these. You can usually find cheap herbs and spices in the bulk section of your grocery store. With the above, you can season various pasta sauces, rice and bean dishes, soups, and meat, fish and poultry. In other words, just about anything you may want for dinner. Many recipes will call for others, but I wanted to begin by sharing my basic seasoning inventory. 

Welcome!

Welcome to my recipe/cooking/food blog. I'm new to this, so I'm just going to start up.

Cooking has long been a love of mine, and though I'm no master chef, I know my way around a kitchen. I'm especially inspired by how the best flavors can come from the simplest ingredients. I grew up in a household that was light on the processed food. This is mainly due to my mom's food knowledge and thoughtfulness and partly due to the fact that both of my parents are really good cooks.  I'm no food saint, though, by any means, and this blog is not a pulpit. 

 My favorite cooking genre is Mediterranean food. My other food passions include: cheap, nutritious, simple and accessible. I'm going to share recipes here that cover those bases and more, and I hope to start up discussions about anything involving food. I think most people have strong opinions about food, reaching far beyond likes and dislikes, and since it's something we can't live without, it's worth discussing (and enjoying!). I welcome your comments and questions.

Here are some basics I keep on-hand: garlic cloves, onions (white or yellow), carrots, celery, olive oil, (cheaper) cooking oil, rice, pasta, beans (legumes), dried herbs and spices, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar. With these ingredients, alone, you have a great dish. Add one or two other things - tomatoes, bell peppers, greens, meat or fish, and you have an amazing meal.

Next post, a basic red sauce.