A Big Hug to You Plus A Sandwich Worth a 10 Year Wait!

Before I even 'talk food', I just want to extend a sincere, from-the-bottom-of-my-heart "thank you and grazie" to all of you (100's of bloggers and social network friends) who wrote to me to offer me your prayers and positive thoughts for the event that took place in my life.  Although the situation hasn't disappeared, my husband and I felt that blogging with my friends about our shared passion for cooking, gardening, and travel  . . . is really tremendous therapy for me.  I started to read your posts last week to see everything that you've been cooking up and I have to still say that you are all some of the best cooks on the planet!!  I will get right back to commenting very soon . . . promise!

So I'm at a point now where I'm ready to return to my community of friends!  I truly believe that all of your prayers and positive thoughts sent my way will be answered in the right way and at the right time!

OK . . . it's foodie time!

New York has it's famous pizza.
Chicago has it's deep-dish pizza and Chicago Vienna Beef hot dugs.
Buffalo, NY has hot wings.
Boston has it's beans.
New Orleans has muffalettas.
San Francisco has it's sour dough bread.
And the South has shrimp and grits and pimento cheese!
So how about the Midwest; what stands out besides corn on the cob, buttery corn-fed beef or the State Fair's butter cow sculpture?

Well, hold on and I'll tell you about something that few people outside of the Midwest know of . . . . and it was recently featured in Cook's Country (Cooks Illustrated) magazine.  It's the Breaded Pork Tenderloin sandwich.

This classic Midwestern sandwich even has it's own web-site created by a dedicated connoisseur:  Pursuing the Pork Tenderloin Sandwich, a discussion/debate on the sandwich on Chowhound, plus a blog, ! The web-site also provides a list of numerous restaurants, diners, and eateries that serve this sandwich.  There is even a DEBATE over where the sandwich originated:  Was it Iowa, Illinois, or Indiana (the three "I" states in the Midwest)?

Well, I have no idea which state it originated from, but I know that there are more hogs in Iowa than there are people, so I'm voting for Iowa as the source . . . I'm just sayin'!  No offense to any of my friends and relatives in Illinois and Indiana!  Besides Iowa doesn't have any professional sports, so give it some credit for something besides Maytag Bleu Cheese and Amana appliances!

Many of you know that my roots are from the Midwest.  My parents' restaurant (Italian and American food) used to have these sammies on their menu and they sold as fast as hot dogs at a baseball game.  Every summer I had to have one when we'd stop at a roadside diner half-way through our 4-hour drive to Lake Okoboji in Iowa (up at the border of Minnesota).

It was a ritual !!

And this year, for the first time during one of my annual summer visits to Iowa, I brought back some super-sized pork tenderloins for this sandwich.  It's been a LONG time, maybe even 10 years since I've had one of these guys!

Now to make these huge sandwiches, there are a few rules to follow:

- It must be huge, twice the size as the bun, and hanging out all over.  "think outside the bun"  ha ha!
- It must be a tenderized piece of pork tenderloin and not some tough pork 'chop'.
- It must be served with mustard and pickles; other condiments are OK, but not necessary (lettuce, mayo, onions, tomatoes).

So here's a great recipe for you:

Breaded Pork Tenderloin Sandwich

For the breading:

Use even amounts of each of the following (start with one cup each):
Flour
Super-fine crushed saltine crackers
Panko bread crumbs or white cornmeal
Depending upon how many tenderloins that you are breading, just make up more breading if you need to.

For the wet batter:

1 cup whole milk (some use buttermilk)
2 jumbo eggs
minced garlic or garlic powder (to taste, I just sprinkle it all over the milk/eggs)
couple shakes of paprika (some use cayenne pepper)
Also depending upon how many tenderloins that you are marinating, just make up more batter if you need to.

Prepare the wet batter.
Pour into a ceramic/glass baking pan.
Place the pork tenderloins in the wet batter.
Cover and marinate in the refrigerator OVERNIGHT --- this really makes them tender, tender!

The next day:

Prepare the dry breading mixture in a large cake pan or something similar because these are BIG and need the space for the breading process.

Remove tenderloins from the marinade and place in the dry breading, lightly pressing down so that the breading gets into all of the crevices of the tenderized pork.
Gently flip over and repeat.

Now if you really want the real deal:  Dip the breaded tenderloins ONCE AGAIN in the marinade and then double-dip them again in the breading!!  It may be messy, but it will really be BREADED thickly!

Heat canola oil to 350 degrees.  The oil MUST be hot.
Deep fry in a deep cast iron pan (I use my Le Crueset) or in a deep fryer (which I don't have).
Fry for 3 minutes.
Serve hot.
Salt to taste.
Place on buns with pickles and mustard.
Enjoy this Midwestern treat!

This bad boy was so big, that Mr. M. and P. (meat and potatoes) split it with me!

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Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake!

Despite that it was Labor Day on Monday, my husband had to go in to work.  However, I was able to enjoy the holiday and had the kitchen all to myself.  So I decided to make an over-the-top, takes-all-day-to-make cheesecake just for my sweetie!

And this is one show stopper, stunning cake!

Hubby ate a thin slice before he even touched dinner and said "this just might be as good as _____ (you fill in the blank ;-D).  And then he said, "Well, not really!"  Now that's a relief!

This is a very light textured cheesecake; not densely thick and heavy as is a New York cheesecake (which I'm a huge fan of).  Freshly squeezed lemon juice in the filling lends just a hint of lemon; it's not overpowering in any way.  I simply love the combination of lemon with raspberries.  I doubled the crust for a stronger cake base (and increased the amount of sugar in the crust).  The crust was just unbelievable and I think that I'll do this from now on when baking cheesecake.  I also added a kick of Chambord, (raspberry liquor) to the topping.  For a delicate, yet flavorful cheesecake, this is one of the best cheesecakes that we've ever bitten into.

I must admit this cheesecake is simply delicious!

Lemon Raspberry Cheesecake

For the crust:

3 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
1-1/2 sticks salted butter, melted

For the filling:

2-1/2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups sugar
5 jumbo eggs, room temperature
2 jumbo egg yolks only, room temperature
2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the raspberry topping:
1 cup red seedless raspberry or strawberry jelly
3 half-pints fresh raspberries
1 tsp. Chambord (raspberry liquor)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the graham crackers, sugar, and melted butter until moistened.
Pour into a 9-inch spring form pan.
Press the crumbs into the bottom of the pan and about 1-inch up the sides.
Bake for 10 minutes.
Cool to room temperature.
Raise the oven temperature to 450 degrees.
Cream the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy for 5 minutes.
Reduce the speed of the mixer to medium and add the eggs and egg yolks, 2 at a time, mixing well.
Scrape down the bowl and beater.
With the mixer on low, add the lemon juice and vanilla.
Mix thoroughly and pour into the cooled crust.
Bake for 15 minutes.

Turn the oven temperature down to 225 degrees F and bake for another 1 hour and 30 minutes.
The cake will still be a little wiggly in the middle so:
Turn the oven off and open the door slightly.
Keep the cake in the oven with the door ajar for 30 minutes.
Take the cake out of the oven and allow it to sit at room temperature for another 3 hours, until completely cooled.
Wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Remove the cake from the spring form pan by carefully running a hot knife around the outside of the cake.
Leave the cake on the bottom of the springform pan for serving.
For the raspberry topping, melt the jelly in a small pan over low heat.
In a bowl, gently toss the raspberries, warm jelly, and Chambord until well mixed.
Arrange the berry mixture on top of the cake.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note: I place a large shallow baking pan filled with water on the bottom of the oven to keep the cheesecake more moist.

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Seasonal Saturday and Fresh Food Friday!

September has finally arrived, but yet at 93 degrees today, it still feels the same as August.  I could really handle some 80 degree temps right now, but I think I'm dreaming.  College football games begin this Saturday and my students are all 'amped' to the max over it.  Even though Mr. M. and P. and I stopped going to the all-day-long affairs of college games, we sure do miss the fun of tailgating . . . so why not tailgate at home in front of the tube in some blissful air-conditioning?  I'm a heat wimp, remember?

So now is the time to share any recipe, or 2 or 3 recipes if you like, including those tailgating recipes if you have some.  It's a long weekend and Friday party time!

Here are the 10 Featured Posts from last week:

Cheers and Salute' to the Labor Day Weekend!    These Lemon Drop Martinis that Donna made from The Slow Roasted Italian are perfect to lift our spirits and let the party begin!

Click on 'read more' below to link up your recipe (or 2 or 3) and to read all of the other recipes and featured posts.
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Tomato Basil Risotto!

The choices for using garden-fresh veggies and herbs in our recipes are almost endless and cooks can be as resourceful and creative at the same time when using their bounty!   I discovered a nice recipe for Tomato and Basil Risotto from "Vegetables From An Italian Garden ~ Season By Season Recipes".  The recipe for this risotto is a spin-off of the classic Caprese Salad of tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil . . . only blended into creamy risotto.

Risotto is so easy to make and such a cooking ritual of love with the stirring and adding, tasting, stirring more and more until a creamy consistency results.  You do need to use Arborio rice because of this variety's characteristic of creating creaminess from the constant stirring and release of starches while at the same time absorbing the liquid.

Although it is very common to serve risotto as a main dish for many people, for Mr. Meat and Potatoes, I simply baked some thick-cut, boneless pork chops sprinkled with a basic dried Italian seasoning blend for the entree.  They are so brainless to prepare;  just make sure that you don't over-cook the chops beyond a half hour in a 350 degree oven.

Another thing that I need to mention is that this risotto is more mildly flavored due to the mozzarella, whereas most risotto recipes don't use mozzarella.  Again, this recipe is a take on Caprese salad, so the mozzarella cheese was necessary for this version.  Even though we prefer risotto with a stronger cheese bite, we still enjoyed this delightful risotto using fresh tomatoes and basil.

Tomato and Basil Risotto

(adapted from 'Vegetables From An Italian Garden")

5 cups vegetable stock

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 yellow onion, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced (my addition)

1-2/3 cups Arborio rice

3 cups peeled, diced, ripe tomatoes

10 large basil leaves, torn into pieces (I doubled the basil from 5 leaves)

6 Tbsp. butter (I doubled the butter from 3 Tbsp.)

5 oz. buffalo mozzarella (the soft cheese, not the hard variety), cut into cubes

1/2 freshly grated Parmigiana Regiano (use the good stuff for this recipe)

1 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp. freshly ground pepper

Pour stock into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil.

Heat the olive oil in a large, deep pot.

Add the chopped onion and saute over low heat for 5 minutes, until softened.

Add the minced garlic and saute for one more minute; do not burn.

Stir in the arborio rice and cook, all the while stirring continuously, for 2 minutes until all of the rice are coated with oil.

Stir in the chopped tomatoes.

Add a ladleful of the hot stock and cook, stirring continuously until absorbed.

Continue to add the hot stock, a ladleful at a time, stirring continuously until each addition of stock is absorbed, for about 20 minutes.

When the rice is nearly cooked, add the torn basil leaves.

Season generously with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Remove from the heat.

Stir in the butter.

Stir in the buffalo mozzarella.

Stir in the Parmigiana

Transfer to a warm serving dish.

Garnish with basil leaves.

Serve immediately.

Just look at the creamy, white mozzarella melting and oozing into the risotto!

Gorgeous . . . full of summer-fresh flavors . . . and delicious!

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