Pork Tenderloin Stir-Fry

A few nights ago we threw a pork tenderloin on the grill, not realizing it was only going to end up being two of us eating this huge piece of meat.  We ended up with a ton of leftover pork tenderloin and after eating it for lunch the next day, I decided that for dinner I was going to change it up a bit.  I knew that I had some ingredients for making a stir-fry and even though I have only ever used chicken or steak I decided that I was going to try to make Pork Tenderloin Stir-Fry. As usual with any recipe concoction that I am unsure of, I always check to make sure I have a pizza in the freezer just in case the new recipe is a disaster.  After a quick look I saw the pizza and decided to trudge forward with my Stir-Fry.  I kept grabbing things out of the refrigerator and cabinet until I was satisfied that I had the ingredients I needed to make this “soon to be” yummy dish.    What I ended up with was a surprisingly delicious treat!  I think that I might have enjoyed the Pork Tenderloin Stir-Fry more than I do when I use Chicken!  I was so excited that it turned out great that I just had to share it with you!  I hope that if you ever find yourself in the dilemma of having crazy amounts of Pork Tenderloin leftover that you will find solace in knowing you can just whip up a quick stir-fry to delight your palate.  Enjoy!

Pork Tenderloin Stir-Fry

What you will need:

Pork Tenderloin (cooked and diced into small pieces), enough for 2 people

1 bag of Brown Rice (I used Uncle Ben’s Instant Rice), ½  a bag per person

1 can of Stir Fry Vegetables, drained (yes, they actually sell this, how easy huh?)

1 can Bamboo Shoots, drained

1/3 Onion, cut into strips

1/3 Bell Pepper or Red Bell Pepper, cut into strips

Stir Fry Sauce (any kind you like)

Sriracha Sauce (for added kick if you like spicy things)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

a Wok or big saute pan

What you can do first to make it super easy on you is go ahead and get your water boiling for the rice according to the package instructions. 

Next grab your Wok and put in on the stove and add about 2 tbsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  Heat the oil on medium to high heat and add the drained can of Stir Fry Vegetables, Onion, Bell Pepper, and Bamboo Shoots.  Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently so the veggies don’t stick. 

While the veggies are cooking, add your rice to the boiling water and follow the instructions on the box. 

Once you veggies are cooked, add your chopped Pork Tenderloin and mix through.  Then add about 3-4 tbsp of your stir-fry sauce, just kind of eye it so it is not too dry and add more if needed.  If you like spicy you can drizzle a bit of the Sriracha sauce on it.  Mix it all together and cook on low heat for another 5 minutes or so. 

Now, put some rice on a plate and top it with a couple scoops of the Stir-Fry and you are ready to eat!  Enjoy!

Goat Cheese Bruschetta

On Sunday night I decided to make an easy dinner but wanted something really yummy.  I was originally planning on making Chicken Fettucini Alfredo and Feta Bruschetta (recipe is one here for you :).  When I went to the grocery store to get some ingredients I found Crumbled Goat Cheese by the Feta and decided to give it a whirl.  What happened later was delicious!  I had so much fun making these two really simple dishes.  I poured a glass of my new favorite Red Velvet wine by Cupcake Vineyards and got to cooking.  It was so nice to be in and out of the kitchen in under an hour and able to just relax, eat, and watch a movie...my ideal Sunday night!  You should try it, really!

Goat Cheese Bruschetta

What you will need:
1 pkg Crumbled Goat Cheese
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3-4 Roma Tomatoes diced
6-7 Green Onions chopped
Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
Greek Seasoning
Black Pepper
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Sea Salt
Wheat French Bread

This is really just a tiny variation from my Feta Bruschetta that I have previously written about.  Both are so tasty that I can't even decide which one I like better.  The biggest difference is obviously the cheese, Goat Cheese verses Feta but another difference is the textures and softness of the two cheeses.  The goat cheese is way softer so I decided to mix all of the ingredients in a bowl first and then put them in a shallow dish to chill in the fridge and marry all the flavors together.

First, pour olive oil into your dish so it covers the entire bottom...just enough to cover the bottom will work great.  Shake several dashes of the greek seasoning all over the olive oil.

 

Next you can begin dicing your tomatoes into small pieces and add them to the olive oil as you go.  No need to stir yet.  Chop your green onions into small pieces and add them to the dish.  Now you can put the entire package of Goat cheese crumbles on top of the tomatoes and green onions.  

Now for the spices, I used several more dashes of the greek seasoning and several dashes of Tony Chachere's seasoning.  I then used about 1 tsp of black pepper and a couple dashes of sea salt.  Do a few sprinkles of garlic powder and onion powder and then mix it all together.  Stir gently because the goat cheese has a tendency to mush and become very creamy.  Move the mixture into a shallow dish so the flavors have a chance to marry together.

After you have placed the mixture in the dish, cover it with saran wrap and let it sit in the fridge for about an hour or more.

When the bruschetta was ready I scooped a heaping spoonful onto each piece of freshly toasted Wheat French Bread.

I served this dish as both an appetizer and a side dish to my yummy Chicken Fettucini Alfredo. They were awesome together!

I hope you enjoy it!

Chicken Fettucini Alfredo, Easiest Ever!

I absolutely love figuring out dinners to make that are super fast and easy yet still delicious!  To me, Chicken Fettucini Alfredo is one of the fastest and easiest things that I make.  Don't get me wrong, I love spending lots of time in the kitchen but sometimes I don't have the luxury of having all that time so I like to have "go to meals" that I can just whip up in a flash.  This meal literally has 4 main ingredients and then 2 garnishes if you desire.  How easy is that?!  I loved serving this with my Goat Cheese Bruschetta (recipe to follow)!  It is super hearty and comforting!  We love having a relaxing Sunday night to start the week! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Chicken Fettucini Alfredo


What you will need:
1 pkg Chicken Breasts (thin sliced worked great because it cooked faster)
1 jar Bertolli Mushroom Alfredo, or any jar of Alfredo sauce that you prefer
3 servings of Fettucini Noodles
Tony Chachere's Spice N' Herbs Seasoning

Suggested Garnishes: chopped Green Onions and Diced Tomatoes

First thing to do is to lay your chicken breasts out on a plate where they are not overlapping.  Sprinkle Tony Chachere's Spice N' Herbs Seasoning generously over all the pieces.  Using a fork, flip each piece of chicken over and sprinkle the other side generously as well.   We decided to grill the chicken in "The Big Green Egg" grill for fun but you can sauté it in a bit of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.  Either way you choose, it will turn out delicious.

While the chicken is cooking, cook your noodles according to the package instructions.

After your chicken and noodles are cooked.  You can warm up about 1/2 to 2/3 jar of the Alfredo Sauce on low in a sauce pan on the stove.  It doesn't take long to warm so be sure to watch and stir it. Then cut your chicken into strips or however you prefer to serve it.

Then serve a nest of noodles with the Alfredo sauce on top of it and top it with your chicken breast.  I love to sprinkle on a few pinches of green onions and tomatoes.  I hope you enjoy!

American Cancer Society Chili Cook-off

On Saturday, I was honored to be part of a team competing in the 23rd Annual American Cancer Society Chili Cook-Off in Mobile, Alabama.  What an amazing cause to cook for!  We had a great time cooking all morning and fellowshipping with old friends and making new friends.  The team that I got to join used my Cream Cheese Chicken Chili Recipe and we had people coming back for seconds, thirds, and even fourths!  Tons of people kept coming by and telling us that they had heard that they needed to come try our chili because it was the best!  How cool is that?!  We even ran out of 18 gallons of chili by 1pm and we only started serving around 11am!  We had such a great time!  Our team placed in the top 20 but didn't win when it came down to it, but it was such an honor to be in the top 20 that winning didn't seem to matter!  I had to increase my recipe by 18 because my normal recipe yields about 1 gallon of chili...that meant we had 36 chicken breasts in there! Crazy huh?  Below are some fun pictures from the day.

Above is the pot after we added all the veggies but before the chicken and cream cheese

Lots and lots of cream cheese went into this!

This is after the cream cheese had started to melt :)

Looking delicious!  Cream cheese was almost melted!

It was such a hit that we completely ran out!