Sherried pineapple pork tenderloin

I've always loved Cooking Light recipes so when I saw their cookbook '5-Ingredient Cookbook: Fresh Food Fast' I just knew I had to have it. Unfortunately it was one of those books I set aside forever - until yesterday...I started browsing and easily bookmarked about 25 or more pages of recipes I can't wait to try. And I also tried 2 out which were fantastic and SO easy - here they are:

Sherried Pineapple Pork Tenderloin
A thick and glossy sauce makes any dish feel elegant, but this one takes all of five minutes to make. The Red Cabbage and Carrot Slaw is a great side with this.

1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed
Cooking spray
1 (6-ounce) can pineapple juice
2 tablespoons sugar - I used brown sugar
2 tablespoons dry sherry
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

1. Sprinkle pepper evenly over pork.
2. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray; add pork. Cook pork 3 to 4 minutes or until browned, turning occasionally. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook 10 minutes. Turn pork over; cook 10 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160° (slightly pink).
3. Place pork on a cutting board; let stand 3 minutes. Cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices.
4. While pork stands, combine pineapple juice and remaining 3 ingredients; add to pan drippings. Bring to a boil; boil 5 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 1/4 cup. Spoon sauce over pork slices.

Red Cabbage and Carrot Slaw
2 cups matchstick-cut carrots
3/4 cup very thinly sliced red cabbage
3 tablespoons unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1/8 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl, tossing gently to coat.

Pork Chops with Horseradish Sauce

Please, I beg of you, do not be afraid of that horseradish in the title. You don't taste it at all when you taste how good these are. I'm visiting my grandparents in Florida and we had these last night, something I had a quite a bit when I lived with them for a summer. YUM.

Pork Chops with Horseradish Sauce from Italian Country Cooking

4 pork chops, 1/2 lb each (can do bone-in or boneless)
Salt
Fresh ground pepper
Flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 T red wine vinegar
1 cup brown stock (beef stock)
Couple good spoonfuls of horseradish (recipe calls for 3 ounces peeled horseradish root, grated, but let's be honest here)
Chopped parsley

Pound pork chops to flatten slightly. Season with salt and pepper.

Place flour, eggs and breadcrumbs in separate dishes. Dredge each chop lightly in flour, dip in egg mixture and coat lightly in breadcrumbs. Refrigerate for 30 minutes so mixture adheres to chops.

In skillet large enough to hold chops, melt five tablespoons of butter. Over medium heat, cook chops about 4 minutes on each side. Remove and keep warm while making the sauce.

Discard grease from skillet. Deglaze with vinegar. Add stock and scrape up anything left on the pan. Cook over high heat until sauce reduce and begins to thicken, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in horseradish and whisk in remaining 3 tablespoons of butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper. To serve, spoon sauce over chops and sprinkle with parsley.

Spice-Rubbed Pork (Tender)loin and Acorn Squash

I should just go-ahead and admit that I get a lot of new recipes from Everyday Food. The recipes are so easy to adapt and I appreciate how each issue is based on what's in season. We liked this recipe quite a bit, and I especially liked cooking two parts of the meal on one baking sheet (one less dish to wash).

Since it was just the two of us, I used a 1 lb tenderloin, halved the basting mixture and did one squash. Next time I think I'll do two squashes and I may not slice them so thin. It was kind of a pain to remove the flesh from the skin. I think it would be great for entertaining!

Spice-Rubbed Pork and Squash
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ancho chile powder or other single chile powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 pounds acorn squash, seeded and cut into 1-inch-thick wedges
1 boneless pork loin (3 pounds), tied
Coarse salt and ground pepper

Preheat oven to 425. In a large bowl, stir together 3 tablespoons oil, sugar, chile powder, cinnamon, cumin, and 2 tablespoons water. Add squash and toss to coat. Set aside.

Generously season pork with salt and pepper. Heat a cast-iron skillet or other heavy pan over high. Add 1 tablespoon oil and swirl to coat. Cook pork on all sides until deep golden brown, about 10 minutes total. Place pork on a rimmed baking sheet; pour oil from skillet onto sheet and spread evenly.

Arrange squash around pork. Brush pork with sugar mixture from bowl. Bake until pork is cooked through (an instant-read thermometer inserted in center should register 135 degrees), 40 to 45 minutes, brushing meat with sugar mixture and turning squash every 15 minutes. Tent pork with foil and let rest 10 minutes before slicing.

Grilled Teriyaki Pork and Dip

I posted this marinade on my other blog, but thought I'd repost with an awesome pork dip. We had friends over last night for a cookout and this was perfect.

Teriyaki [insert meat or veggie]
1/4 C oil
1/4 C soy sauce
2T ketchup
1 T vinegar (cider, white or last time I used rice wine)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 t pepper

Mix together and marinate for at least 2 hours. I usually add some water to mellow it out or make it go further depending on how much I'm marinating. Last night I marinated three pork tenderloins (make sure you get tenderloins, not center loins!) and just doubled the marinade.

Yummy Pork Dip
1 T dry mustard
1 1/2 t vinegar
1/3 C mayo
1/3 c sour cream
chopped green onions

Mix together and serve.

Last night I served it with this salad and this salad. It ended up being an unplanned homage to pork, which was fitting for a going away gathering from this pork-producing state.