Eggs and Kale in Puff Pastry

Last week we were getting ready to leave town for Christmas, so I didn't want to buy any groceries. That meant I had to get creative with what we had in the house. Luckily, I think I keep a pretty well stocked freezer and pantry. I had a couple eggs and some cheese in the fridge plus bacon, puff pastry and blanched kale in the freezer. The resulting meal was good enough that you would have thought I had planned it.

Actually, this turned out even better than I expected. The kale was a last minute addition (in an attempted to get more green veggies in us) and really turned it into a more substantial dish. The think that really made this so good though was the bacon, that flavor of smoky, saltiness in each bite made it sing. I almost used breakfast sausage instead and am so glad I didn't. It was a great brinner (breakfast for dinner), but would also make for a lovely breakfast or brunch.

Eggs and Kale in Puff Pastry

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
1 strip bacon, chopped
1/2 - 3/4 c grated cheddar
4 oz kale, blanched and chopped
4 eggs
salt
pepper
parmesan

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Cut the sheet of puff pastry into 4 squares. Using a sharp knife score a line 1/2" border on each square, be careful not to cut all the way through (if you do when you fill it the egg will leak through). With a fork poke the inner square, also without going all the way through. Put in the refrigerator to chill for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the bacon until crispy. Remove to a paper towel to drain. Put the kale into the same skillet and sauté a few minutes until completely wilted.

When the pastry is done chilling, divide the bacon and cheese between the four pastries, placing them in the inner square only. Bake for 8 minutes.

Remove from the oven. Press the center squares down to flatten them, leaving the boarders puffed up. Divide the kale between the four pastries. Then top each with an egg. Season with a little salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper. Finally, sprinkle a little parmesan on top. Bake for another 6 - 7 minutes until the whites of the eggs are set. We like it with a soft yoke, but you can cook them as hard as you wish. (You may want to put them under the broiler for a minute.

Makes 4 (We each at two as our whole meal, but with a salad you could serve people one each.)

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2011 Kathy Lewinski

Happy Holidays

Matt and I wish you happy eating and all the best for Christmas and the New Year.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2011 Kathy Lewinski

Bourbon Pork with Apple Cider Syrup

This past weekend Matt and I had a sort of pre-Christmas celebration. We opened the gifts we didn't want to take with us while traveling, had a big leisurely breakfast and a lovely roast for dinner. Matt was in charge of the roast pork tenderloin. He had an idea for it that had been mulling around in his head for awhile.

The idea grew from an article he read about someone who was making and selling apple cider syrup. It sounded so good to him that he bought a gallon of cider to try it himself.

Making the syrup is pretty easy. Basically, put the cider in a pot, one with a large circumference to spread out the heat is best. Let simmer until it reduces and thickens to your desired consistency. It took almost all day to reduce it to a syrup. It'll look cloudy at some points along the way, but ends up beautifully shiny. Watch it carefully towards the end as it can become apple cider caramel pretty quickly. (Ours is actually slightly thicker than we wanted, but heated pours well). It has a wonderful flavor, sweet with a touch of tart. It'll remind you of a caramel apple. We got a little over 1 cup from just under a gallon of cider. This is actually a steal since it was selling for $30 for 3 oz.

The syrup can be used on pancakes or waffles, it would be amazing on vanilla ice cream, but Matt wanted it for a sauce for pork.

The pork is marinaded in bourbon and then roasted with apples and onions. It is a dish that is full of warm comforting winter flavors. And bonus, the apples and onions roasted with it become an easy side dish.

Bourbon Pork with Apple Cider Syrup
The pork needs to marinade for 4 - 6 hours before roasting, so plan ahead.

1/4 c apple cider vinegar
2 T honey
1 t kosher salt
1/8 t cayenne pepper
2 T olive oil
2 T bourbon
1 lb pork tenderloin
1 onion, peeled and quartered
2 apples, cored and quartered (pick an apple that won't get too mushy when cooked)
Apple Cider Syrup

Mix the vinegar and honey together in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave until the honey is softened enough to stir in. Mix in the salt until dissolved. Add the cayenne, olive oil and bourbon. Put in a plastic zipper bag just big enough to hold your tenderloin. Add the pork. Seal the bag removing as much air as possible. Marinade in the refrigerator for 4 - 6 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Put the onion and apples on the bottom of a small roasting pan. Remove the pork from the marinade and place on top. Roast for about 30 minutes, until the pork is 165 F in the middle. Let rest a few minutes before carving.

Top with heated Apple Cider Syrup.

4 servings.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2011 Kathy Lewinski

Our Day on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives

Over Thanksgiving weekend, Matt and I received a rather cryptic email from our favorite local pizza place, Pizzeria Lola. They wanted to know if we were available to be part of a shoot for a national television program the following week. Well, we were too intrigued to say no. We were told to show up Tuesday at 2:15 sharp prepared to be on filmed and interviewed and to keep the whole thing a secret. We went through the list of shows we thought it could be and in the end we guessed right with Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. If you haven't seen the show it features Guy Fieri visiting places around the country, cooking with the chef, trying the food and talking to the customers.

(Andrew Zimmern of Bizarre Foods, Guy Fieri and Ann Kim of Pizzeria Lola. Photo from Pizzeria Lola)

We, along with twelve other people, were chosen to be the customers. This was our first time on a show like this and it was really interesting to see how it all works. First of all let me say, the photo above is a little misleading. We never say Guy Fieri. Each restaurant featured on the show is filmed two different days with Guy only there on the second day. We were there for the first day of filming.

When we arrived, we were asked to tiptoe in and quietly take a seat while they finished filming chef Ann Kim make pizza after pizza. It was 2:15pm and they crew had been there since 7:30am working with Ann. It was kind of funny hearing her call pizza after pizza out to an empty restaurant.

Next it was time for the "customers." The day we were there there were about 8 of us. I was so surprised because if you watch the show it always looks like it is happening in a restaurant that is busy and open for business. Apparently, they do this with a bit of tricky camera work. As the film crew filmed each group of people we were moved around to be background tables. Oh, it was tempting to ham it up in the background.

Our table was the first up. We were given drinks and allowed to chose our favorite pizzas. First they filmed the sequence of pizzas being delivered to our table, and delivered, and delivered until it was just right. Next, we had to eat, completely with close-ups of us taking bites of hot cheesy pizza. I'm so not sure I want to see that shot!

Then it was time for our interviews. As Guy isn't there, a producer asks us questions off camera. We are given instructions to answer making sure to include the question in the answer so viewers will know what we are talking about. That is so much tricker than you think. We ended up having to answer the same question a few times to get it right. Luckily, the crew was a lot of fun and kept us laughing and in good spirits (the free wine and beer helped too). The funniest bit was when we were each asked to take a bite of pizza and describe what we tasted. You really get a good idea of how hard it is for tv hosts to do that take a bite and talk right away thing.

We spent about two hours eating pizza, drinking and being filmed. Then the shoot was wrapped up for the day. The crew got to eat all those pizzas Ann made and she got to get ready for dinner service. She had to do another day of filming on Thursday and then we hear the crew came back for more shots on Saturday.

We'll hear about four weeks before the episode runs, so we'll be sure to let you all know. I would have loved to have take more pictures of the actual filming for you, but it really wasn't possible since we were on camera most of the time. We don't know if they'll use any footage of us, but it was certainly interesting seeing it all from the other.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2011 Kathy Lewinski

Weekly Menu 12/5 - 12/10/11

Well, look who's finally back. Yes, it has been a crazy couple of weeks.

I survived my first craft fair this weekend quite successfully, but oh did preparing for it take over my life for a month or so.

We also spent an afternoon on the set of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives at Pizzeria Lola. I'll tell you that whole story later this week...

(photo from Pizzeria Lola)

On to Menu Planning Monday...

Roast Chicken with leftover roast brussels sprouts and squash from Pizzeria Lola

Lasagna with Red Pepper Sauce

Tortilla Soup - Using the leftover chicken

Falafel - Using the falafel we bought from Foxy Falafel at the Kingfield Holiday Market.

Pork Roast and Squash with homemade Apple Cider Syrup - If we don't go out to eat.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted. © 2007-2011 Kathy Lewinski