Gina's Stuffed Pork

My sister Gina has this delicious recipe, most would deem a comfort food. This dish is best served with veggies and rice, but is already chock full of carbs and veggies so you may want to make a traditional garden salad instead. By the time you finish this dish you will have a whole pork loin stuffed with spinach and bread stuffing. It is so yummy!

This recipe will feed about 7 (depending on the size of the pork you buy)



What you will need:

1 whole Loin of Pork (about 3lbs)

1 bag Frozen or 4 bags of fresh Spinach

1 bag of Peppridge Farm Chicken or Pork flavored stuffing (any kind will do)

1 can of College Inn Low sodium chicken broth

3 Celery Stalks

1 stick of butter

1 whole onion (medium sized)

6 cloves of garlic

Olive Oil

Salt

Pepper

1 large bowl

Roasting Pan

Cooking string

2 Large Skillets

Wine Recommendation: Cakebread Cellars 'Napa Valley' Sauvignon Blanc 2006

Preparation Time: 10 - 15 minutes

Mince the onions, finely chop the celery for the stuffing. Set to the side. Chop the garlic as you like, either chunky or minced. That will be used for the Spinach. For your Loin of Pork, remove from the package and make an incision through the center so that you create a pocket, do not cut through the entire Loin, only about 3/4 of the way, starting the incision about 1/2 an inch from the end so a true pocket can be formed. I usually do this on a cutting board. Once that cut has been completed set to the side. Pre heat your oven to 425 degrees

Ok let's get cooking:

In one large skillet set your heat to medium and throw in your stick of butter, at the same time start heating your other skillet, lining that skillet with olive oil.

Once the butter has melted, throw in your minced onions and chopped celery. In the other skillet you should also be ready to throw in your garlic. Both will start to sizzle sizzle in about 4 minutes! Once you hear the sizzle on the skillet with garlic, throw in your spinach, either frozen or raw, and place a cover on top of the skillet so that the spinach will wilt. In your other skillet the onions and the celery should be soft enough and you can now add the can of chicken broth and the actual stuffing, cover that as well. You should be stirring each skillet occasionally. Add salt and pepper for taste on to both skillets.

After about 15 minutes the spinach should be done. After about 20 minutes, your stuffing should be done. In a large bowl combine both the spinach and the stuffing together. Mix well. Let this mixture cool down so that you can work easier with it, about 8 minutes.

Time to stuff the pork! Take your mixture and start stuffing inside of the incision area on the pork. Press down well so that it is packed together in there, make sure it is not seeping out the sides too much.

Tip - If there is any left over stuffing (all of it won't fit inside the pork), freeze it for filling in chicken or any other type of meat later in the week.

Take your cooking string and start closing up your pork. Depending on what size the pork is will depend on how much string you will need. Rub olive oil, salt and pepper all over the pork (top and bottom) once you have tied it up securely. Spray non stick spray in the roasting pan. Now place in your roasting pan. Do not cover.

The Pork is going to sear inside the oven for about 20 minutes, that's why we preheated the oven so high. After this time, bring the temp down to 375 degrees, add in about 1/2 cup of chicken broth and you can now cover the pork and let cook for about 1/2 an hour per lb. So in this case with a 3lb pork, you would cook for 2 hours.

You should check your pork occasionally to make sure there is enough moisture in the pan for cooking, if there isn't natural moisture being formed, add in a 1/2 cup of broth as needed.

Once cooked, remove from pan (onto a cutting board is best). Remove the string and start slicing, about a 1/2 an inch thick, ready to serve!

Bon Apetito!

Split Second Marinara Sauce

Each and every sunday my family cooks the same meal! Every once in a while we'll throw a curve ball and cook a turkey or throw in some steaks, but the one staple is always Macaroni with Sauce no matter what. My mom or dad will make the sauce starting real early in the morning and make it with the usual, brasiole, meatballs, pork etc, but not everyone has that kind of time. SOOO, how do you make a sauce in minutes? That's easy! And all you need are six ingredients.


This dish will serve at least 6 with 1 1/2 lbs of pasta. If you want to pour over Chicken or Eggplant or Lasagna, it will be enough for a full tray.

Ingredients:

2 Cans of Redpack Crushed Tomato Sauce (that's my familys' favorite)

Olive Oil

1 small onion

Pinch of sugar

4 Pinches of Salt

2 Pinches of Pepper

Medium sized pot

Optional: Basil and garlic

Wine Recommendation: Barolo 2003 (dry and earthy) ($27 - $33)

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Slice Onions somewhat thin, put to the side. Open the cans of tomato sauce.

Ok, let's get cooking:

In a medium sized pot, pour in 1/2 cup of olive oil. Once the oil is heated (about 3 - 4 minutes) throw in your onions. Let them get a nice golden brown color and then you are ready to pour in your 2 cans of tomato sauce. Stir. Then add your sugar, salt and pepper. Cover and set to medium heat and let cook for about 25 minutes. You are done!

Tip - Always add your fresh herbs right before you serve the dish. So in this case, if you wanted to add in your basil, wait till the end for a high intense flavor from the herb.

Bon Apetito!

Baby Arugala Salad

I heard it turned to spring today in NY, I head back tomorrow morning from Florida so hopefully the temperature sticks!
I went to Whole Foods this past weekend in search for something refreshing and light to eat and stumbled upon Baby Arugula, which every time I hear that word "arugula" I can't help but imitate Steve Martin in "My blue heaven". My choice for dinner was to either pair it with a pasta or eat it raw, I chose the latter.

This dish will serve 2
Preparation Time: 10 minutes ( a bit longer if you prepare with meat)

What you will need:
1/2 Lemon
1 bunch of baby arugula
1 cup shaved pecorino romano (or really any type of yummy italian cheese)
1 heirloom tomato or a bunch of cherry tomatoes
2 pinches of salt
2 pinches of pepper
1 Anise bulb (Finocchio)
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 scallion stalk
1 large serving bowl

Wine Recommendation: Clos Du Bois Chardonnay 2006 ($12 - $18) or Hess Select Cabernet ($18 - $23)

Ok, let's get cooking:

Real Simple. Rinse the arugula, spin it dry and toss into the large serving bowl. After rinsing the Anise, chop julienne style, add to the salad bowl. Slice the tomato and add to the bowl. Chop the scallion and yes, add to the bowl. Squeeze the lemon so that only the juice sprays on top of the salad. Add the olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix all together really well and you are done! Just don't forget to add the Cheese... sliced, shaved or even sprinkled on, it makes no difference it's all delicious.

If you, unlike me, are a meat eater, feel free to grill some tuna or chicken and mix with this dish, after all, barbecue season is upon us!

Tip - If you don't have a salad spinner use a colander to drain the arugula and then drop in a dry cloth, pat dry.

Bon Apetito!

Linguine & Clams Marichiare Style

I'll start my first entry on this blog with my take on Linguine with Clams prepared Marichiare style. Being Napolitano, it is a dish that I grew up with & learned from my dad. What is Marichiare? It is a very light tomato sauce in it's simplest definition, usually prepared with fresh tomatoes vs pre-cooked.

With this semi-seafood hearty dish, one might immediately pair it with a white wine, but again, let the mood, time of day and weather outside dictate that!


Check out the recipe (serves 5) and some suggestions on what type of wine to pair this delicious dish with.

What you will need:

1 pound of Linguine (you can use spaghetti)
2 pounds of Little Neck Clams
1 cup of white wine (chardonnay or sauvignon blanc)
5 sprigs of parsley
6 cloves of garlic
1 pack of cherry tomatoes
Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper (red if you like it with a kick)
Saute Pan (big enough to fit all that linguine and clams)
Deep Pot to fit 1lb of Linguine

Wine Recommendations: Luna Di Luna Pinot Grigio 2003 ($15 - $20 a bottle) or Tiziano Chianti 2003 ($10 - $12 a bottle)

Preparation Time: 10 minutes

Start off by filling your deep pot with cold water, add a generous amount of salt to that water (about 1 table spoon, the more pasta, the more salt). Start the boiling process for the linguine.

Soak your clams in water and let sit for about 5 minutes so that the excess sand is released. If you have find that any of your clams are open, discard them immediately in the trash, those should not be eaten. Rinse Clams under cold water and put to the side.

Chop your garlic gloves any way you like to taste the garlic, big chunks or very fine, whatever! Throw the garlic in the hot oil.

Slice each of your cherry tomatoes in half.

OK let's get cooking:

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Line your Saute Pan with Olive oil and start heating that up. Once it's hot, throw the chopped garlic in the pan. Once you've got a very light brown color on the garlic, you are ready to send in the tomatoes and the clams! You'll hear quite a sizzle, so be careful, oil may splatter. I usually immediately cover the saute pan at that point. after about 5 minutes or so, the clams should begin to open up and the tomatoes will begin to wilt. That's a good sign.

Lift your cover and pour in the white wine. Add 4 pinches of salt and about 2 pinches of pepper. by this time your water should be boiling and the linguine should be cooking. Be sure to stir the linguine once its in the water every 2 minutes or so.

How do you know when your linguine is cooked?

Tip - DO TRY THIS AT HOME - if the linguine sticks to your cupboard/cabinet, then it's done. I know this may sound nuts, but it works and you can wipe down your cabinet, no big deal! And yes you literally throw your linguine at the cabinet :)

Once the linguine is done, strain in a colander, make sure all the water is completely drained and toss the linguine into the saute pan, heat on low. Mix well, add the parsley and it is ready to be served!

Bon Apetito!

Welcome to my Blog

I have a lot of favorite dishes, depending on the time of year, the weather outside and of course what I'm craving at the moment! I also have favorite wines. And my taste in wine always depends on the mood I am in, and not exactly what I am eating (or not eating!). My blogging is centered around all of this and how food and wine have combined with some really interesting times with my friends and family.