Eighty-first Post ~ Turkey Tenderloin with Savory Sautéed Veggies

This was a simple meal that satisfied my craving for veggies.  Walking through Wegmans the other day, I found that I kept gravitating toward the produce department and all the yummy, fresh foods therein.  This meal includes all the spoils of that shopping trip!

Here's what you'll need:

~ Mushrooms (cleaned and sliced Bellas)

~ Small orange pepper

~ Scallions

~ Roasted tomatoes (from the Mediterranean Bar from the last post - I had three left over!)

~ Avocado

~ Butter

~ Garlic (jarred will work!)

~ Turkey tenderloin

~ Dash white wine

In a stickfree pan, start a tablespoon or so of butter and some garlic sizzlin'.  Add the turkey tenderloins.  I bought a pack of three and sautéed all of them at once so I'd have some leftovers.  Put them to the side.  In the same pan, toss in some mushrooms, sliced pepper, leftover roasted tomatoes, splash of white wine and a dash of coarse-ground sea salt.  Sautée until tender.

While the veggies are cooking, slice up some avocado.  An easy trick I learned at a cooking seminar on my trip: Slice the avocado in half and then use a tablespoon to scoop each half out of the skin.  I'm not sure if this is standard operating procedure for avocados and I've just not caught on up to now or what, but this is easy AND mess-free.  A double-plus!  Arrange the avocado on the plate, set the turkey tenderloin alongside it and scoop the veggies over it.  Snip some scallions over the top of the whole thing to add a crisp, zesty finish.  Bon apetit!

I enjoyed this meal with more of the wonderful Portal Roble from earlier this week.  It heated up the flavors a little, giving the peppers a little bit of bite and the garlic a little more heat.  It was wonderful!

Yours in the love of good food and wine,

AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.

Eightieth Post ~ Salmon Caprese

Due to an outpouring of requests for the return of the Accidental Chef (thanks Arun!) I'm back in the kitchen and back online!  After an awesome trip to Mexico (full of inspirational food!) I'm refreshed, rejuvenated, and excited about kicking things off with Post #80!

This dinner was easy, delicious, and fast.  I would, however, recommend baking the salmon after the initial sauté rather that continuing to cook it on the stovetop.  While this meal turned out yummy, I feel that a few minutes in the oven would have melted the cheese a little more.

Here's what you'll need for this easy, breezy aquatic Caprese:

From the Mediterranean Bar at Wegmans:
~ Oven roasted tomatoes
~ Roasted garlic cloves
~ Mozzarella ball

: : PAUSE : :

Now, I know what you're thinking.  "CHEATER!"  Sure, sure - this is a little bit of a cheater's dish.  I could have roasted the tomatoes and garlic myself, but honestly, when a busy day and late evening forced me to choose between Not Cooking and Cheating a Little, I choose the latter.

: : UNPAUSE : :

~ One salmon fillet
~ Prepared basil pesto
~ EVOO
~ Italian breadcrumbs
~ Veggie side of your choice

Open the paper that's wrapping  the salmon and sprinkle on the breadcrumbs.  Maximum flavor, minimum clean-up.  Start some EVOO smokin' and set the salmon carefully into the oil.  Let it sauté until it's nicely browned (but not necessarily cooked all the way through).  Arrange the mozzarella, tomatoes, garlic cloves and pesto over the top of the fish.  Here's where I'd recommend transferring it to a pan and baking it for about five minutes on 350 or so, or until the cheese is melted and the fish is cooked to your liking.  It turned out great on the stove, but as I said, it could have been a little more melted for my taste.

I paired this savory dish with Portal Roble from Spain (a cab, garnacha, merlot, tempranillo and syrah blend) and it balanced out the savory tones with deep berry flavors and cleansed the palate with a balanced finish.

All in all, a great dinner to kick off another great semester of studies AND cooking adventures!

Yours in the love of good food and wine,
AL

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The blogger is not an experienced chef. She takes no responsibility for the quality of the meals prepared while following her advice. Use your own judgment regarding cooking times and proper food handling.