Apple Roasted Pork Tenderloin

So so good!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pork tenderloin (about 1.5 lbs)
• olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 sweet potatoes, sliced
• 2-4 apples, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup apple juice
• salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven. 
3. Brown the pork on both sides, about 3 minutes each. Then remove from the pot.
4. Add chopped apples, onion and garlic and cook until translucent.
5. Put the pork back in and top with salt and pepper.
6. Add sweet potatoes, 1 cup of apple juice and 2 cups of chicken broth, mix well.
7. Cover Dutch oven with foil and place in oven.
8. Bake for about 2 hours, until pork is cooked through.

Hawaiian Braised Chicken with rice

A variation of my easy Hawaiian Chicken recipe :) Even better then the original!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 chicken breasts, sliced
•  1 can pineapple chunks, with juice
• 1/2 can light beer
• 2 tbs Mrs. Dash seasoning
• 1 tsp Cajun seasoning
• rice of choice
• olive oil

DIRECTIONS

1. In a Dutch Oven, heat up olive oil and brown chicken on both sides.
2. Add seasonings, pineapple with juice, and beer.
3. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to low/simmer.
4. Cook for 1 hour, stirring once.
5. Serve over rice.

beer-braised chicken with sweet potatoes

Original recipe from:
http://oishiifood.wordpress.com/2010/11/12/white-wine-braised-chicken-with-sweet-potatoes/

The original recipe calls for a dry white wine (white-wine braised chicken). Of course I didn't check in advance and when I was pulling my ingredients to make dinner, I realized all I had was sweet sparkling white wine. That won't work! So beer-braised it is :)

So glad I decided to make it despite the "wrong" ingredients. It turned out great!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 chicken breasts
• 1/2 cup light beer
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 large leek, chopped
• 4 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1/2 cup pearl onions
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large bay leaf
• garlic powder, to taste
• ground coriander, to taste
• oregano, to taste
• salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. heat olive oil over high heat in a Dutch oven.
2. add onions and chopped leek and cook until soft.
3. Add chicken and brown on both sides. 
4. Add seasonings and mix well.
5. Add beer, broth, bay leaf and sweet potatoes. 
6. Mix and cover. Turn heat to low and simmer for 45mins to an hour, until chicken is cooked through.
7. Serve with rice.

Lamb and Lentil Stew

http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/mediterranean-lamb-and-lentil-stew/Detail.aspx

This recipe was really good! I made it back while I was on my blah-restricted diet over the summer...just never got around to blogging about it. So here it is, with a few minor changes, from allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/2 pounds lamb shoulder arm chops, cubed, round bones reserved
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed
• 2 cups chicken broth, or more as needed
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 2 cups coarsely chopped fresh spinach

Directions

1. Heat oil in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. 
2. Add the lamb cubes and bones and brown on all sides, about 3 minutes. 
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add onion and garlic and continue cooking about 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Stir in the lentils, 2 cups of the chicken broth, tomatoes, carrots and the sage and basil. 
5. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, until the lentils are tender but not quite done, stirring occasionally. Depending on the type and freshness of the lentils, this will take from 15 to 30 minutes. 
6. If the stew seems dry, add more broth (up to one cup additional). 
7. Discard the lamb bones.
8. Add the spinach and cook 5 minutes more