This Week's Menu

For the last couple months, I've been gearing up for my baby's first birthday.  And for some reason I thought that life would slow or calm down a little once we got through his birthday party.  Why do I keep thinking things will calm down eventually?  Because they never do.  Now I'm pretty sure that June is going to be even crazier than May.

Well, at least I can make sure we're properly fueled up for the insanity coming up.

• Thursday: Honey Baked Chicken, fresh bread (thank you breadmaker!), and tossed salad.

• Friday: Some form of pizza and popcorn.  Kinda in the mood for some classic Disney but we'll see whose movie vote wins this week.

• Saturday: NEW RECIPE! Comfort meatballs
  

• Sunday: NEW RECIPE! Ham and cheddar quiche with hashbrowns.

• Monday: Leftovers

• Tuesday: Mexican Chicken with rice and corn.

• Wednesday: Spaghetti, garlic bread, and tossed salad or steamed peas.

 Happy planning!!

Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

Those damn mini fruit pizzas are finally out of my house.  AND we're down to only two cupcakes left from Kieran's party.  WOO HOO!!! So what do I go and do today while my boys watch a cartoon?  I bake cookies.  Because I need more sweets in this house?!?!  Oy...

Anyway, speaking of cookies, I realize that I forgot to tell you about the pancakes I made last week.  Cookies as pancakes.  That means we can have cookies for breakfast.  Or dinner. Or lunch.  Or anytime we want!

Gloriousness :)

Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes
Recipe slightly adapted from Rachael Ray

1 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup, chopped walnuts
3/4 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 really ripe bananas, mashed up
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 stick butter melted

1.  Mix dry ingredients, the first 7, in a bowl.

The cinnamon totally makes these.

2.  In a another bowl, mix the wet ingredients, the next 4. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry until just combined, then fold in the mashed up bananas and the raisins. Stir in the melted butter.

Another great way to use up ripe bananas!

3.  Heat a non-stick griddle over medium heat. Cook pancakes, each about 1/4 cup, until bubbles form on the top, then turn. (WARNING: these do not set up firmly as they cook, which makes flipping a trick.  Use a thin flipper/turner/spatula/whateveryoucallthosethings and slide it under the cake quickly.)  Cakes will cook in about 2 minutes on each side. Keep pancakes tented with foil as they come off the griddle to keep them hot. Serve with drizzled honey or maple syrup over the top.

See? Even I had some issues in flipping a couple of these.

Now, some of you out there may be wondering why, out of all the fantastic cookies out there, I chose to keep this recipe as oatmeal cookie pancakes instead of making it chocolate chip. Or peanut butter. Or snickerdoodle.  Why the oft-maligned oatmeal cookie?  Well, because they're my favorite.

No really!  It's true!!  Much as I love chocolate, I actually can fairly easily resist most other cookies.  When offered a soft oatmeal raisin cookie (because it HAS to have raisins in it), I pretty much turn into this puddle of goo.  I cannot resist a good oatmeal raisin cookie.

Bonus with these though... despite having the flavor of an oatmeal raisin cookie, these are quite good for you.  The oats, yogurt, raisins, and bananas all help me to feel much better about drowning my stack of pancakes in butter and syrup. ;)  Oh and they're also REALLY YUMMY with a healthy schmear of peanut butter and folded over, just in case you need to eat on the run. 

Mini Fruit Pizzas

I'm torn about this one.  A big part of me doesn't want to tell you about this recipe.  Because I like you.  I care about you.  I want to save you from these.

But they are so delicious and so dang addictive that I just can't do it.

You HAVE to make these.  Just don't hold it against me, ok?  Ok.

Mini Fruit Pizzas
Recipe from Cooking Ala Mel

Cookie Base:

1 cup butter

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans

2 1/2 cups flour

Sweetened Cream Cheese:

1 (8oz.) pkg cream cheese

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

2 peeled, sliced kiwis (halved)

6-8 sliced strawberries

blueberries (about 2 or 3 per cookie base)

1.  For the cookie base: Preheat the oven to 350ºF.  

2.  Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add the pecans and vanilla until fully incorporated.  Add in the flour and mix until just combined - don't overmix!  

You want this a little crumbly.

3.  Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners.  This will make pulling the cookies out later SO MUCH EASIER.  Using a small cookie scoop, drop one scoop into each well of the pan.  Press the dough down firmly so it covers the bottom of each well evenly.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, until lightly golden.

Just use your fingers to smush it down.  Be firm.

 GET AHEAD MOMENT: Keep these in the freezer until you're ready to assemble the pizzas!

4.  For the cream cheese mixture: Blend all ingredients together until light and fluffy.  Store in a resealable plastic bag in the fridge until ready to use.  Pull out of the fridge about an hour before assembly.

Smooth. Creamy. Fluffy.  Where's my spoon?

5.  Assemble the pizzas: Snip the corner off the bag containing the cream cheese.  Squirt a dollup of cream cheese onto the cooled cookies; use the back of a spoon or a knife to spread it around.  Top each with a slice of strawberry, kiwi slice and a few blueberries. 

Whether you start making the cookies and cream cheese mixture a few days ahead of time, or the day of, you don't want to put the pizzas together until the last minute.  You want the cookie to stay nice and crisp.  Because I really packed down the cookie dough into the muffin tin, my cookies actually held up for a couple days, although toward the end the cookies were really getting soft.  

These make the most adorable addition to any party table.  I made them for Kieran's first birthday party, just to have a non-chocolate dessert alternative, and I think Gavin didn't even try the cupcakes.  He just kept going back for more fruit pizza!  And he wasn't the only one either... These were such a big hit!

Ok so I am totally going to reiterate the original poster's disclaimer about this recipe... Just because this dessert involves fruit, it should IN NO WAY be considered a healthy alternative.  Go back up to the list of ingredients for the cookie base.  That first item there is BUTTER.  An entire cup of BUTTER.  There's also CREAM CHEESE (I wouldn't recommend using lowfat or Neufchatel here; you want that fat for creaminess).  And SUGAR.  A couple blueberries and a quarter slice of kiwi will not combat the effects of the more fattening ingredients here.  

This Week's Menu

I'm distracted this week.  I mean REALLY distracted.  Yesterday, my little sweetheart angel baby turned 1 year old.  HOLY CRAP where did the year go???

Anyway, of course we're having family and a few friends over this weekend to celebrate the occasion so I'm utterly consumed with the lunch menu.  And I don't know why because I'm not even making everything!!  But consumed I am so everything else lately has just kind of been an after thought.

• Thursday: Layered Enchilada Bake. My to-do list for Saturday kicks in big time today so I'm treating myself to the half pan I tossed in the freezer last month. Dinner, DONE and it's not even 8:30!

• Friday: Probably Pizza Pockets again, because I'm still obsessed with them, and popcorn to munch on while watching STAR WARS!  WOOHOO!!  We're a proud SW household. ;)

• Saturday: This is the lunch menu actually.  And no, I'm not making dinner after putting all this together!  Pulled pork sandwiches (two different kinds: a spicy and much more normal BBQ one), cole slaw (my mom), pasta salad (Rob's mom), NEW RECIPE! mini fruit pizzas, and chocolate cupcakes
  

• Sunday: Something on the grill.  Maybe a fruit salad using leftovers from the fruit pizzas.  I'll probably be hitting the grocery store with my two wonderful moms, because we like to do that kind of thing, and pick out whatever looks good.

• Monday: Chicken Piccata, rice, and steamed veggies

• Tuesday: Leftovers

• Wednesday: Tator Tot Casserole and probably steamed green beans

 Happy planning!!

Cranberry Pork Tenderloin

One of my all-time favorite food pairs is pork and fruit.  I don't know why exactly but I think there are so many fruits out there that complement pork beautifully!  Apples, pineapples, cherries... I particularly love cranberries with pork.  Must be a family thing.  My brother came up with a cranberry pork chop recipe that is insanely good.  And now that I've said that I'll have to make it again soon so I can share it with you.

But anyway, it's my brother's recipe that gave me the inspiration for this one.  Now, he uses cranberry juice for his sauce, which is great but I very rarely buy juice.  (I know, I'm weird.)  I do try to keep cranberry sauce around though.... and this dish was born:

Cranberry Pork Tenderloin
Recipe inspired by my brother

One 1lb pork tenderloin
1/2 cup whole berry cranberry sauce*
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

*If it's feasible for you, because I know we're all busy, I'd strongly recommend using some homemade cranberry sauce.  Maybe you stashed some in the freezer after Thanksgiving?  No?  Oh.  Well, if you don't have any leftovers hiding in the back corner of your deep freezer, consider grating a little fresh ginger and orange zest into the canned kind to jazz it up. Just a thought...

1.  Preheat oven to 375.  Spray a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

2.  Combine the cranberry sauce and mustard and season to taste with salt and pepper.

3.  Lay the pork in the greased baking dish and pour the cranberry mixture over it, making sure the whole tenderloin is coated.  Bake for 25-30 minutes.  LET REST 10-15 MINUTES before slicing.

It doesn't take a mountain of ingredients to make a tasty, flavorful dish.  Sometimes things taste even better because of the simplicity!  I love dishes like this.  Easy.  Throw it in the oven.  Bake some potatoes, steam some veggies and I've got dinner done with very little hands-on time put into it.  I think I spent less than 10 minutes getting everything together.  Gotta love that on a busy night!

Crazy Oatmeal

This is totally the wrong time of year now for oatmeal.  I know that.  But try telling Gavin that.  He continues to ask for oatmeal most mornings, and this is one of his favorite versions.

For a long time I had no name for it but when Gavin kept requesting it, I finally just christened it Crazy Oatmeal.  Mostly because Rob thinks I'm absolutely looney for loving this concoction.

Crazy Oatmeal
Recipe adapted from Rachael Ray

1/3 cup quick cooking oats
2/3 cup water
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1 heaping tbsp creamy peanut butter
1/4-1/2 cup plain yogurt (depends on much you love yogurt)
2 tbsp honey

1. In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the oatmeal, water and dried cranberries.  Microwave on High for 1 minute.

Quick oatmeal is a 1:2 ratio.  So if you want less, use 1/4c oats and 1/2c water.

2.  Stir the peanut butter into the hot, slightly-too-soupy-still oatmeal.  Don't worry; the peanut butter thickens it up.

You don't want this too thick before adding the peanut butter

3.  Top with the plain yogurt and drizzle with honey.

Yes, I was generous.  We like yogurt here.

Yes, I love to eat a crazy concoction of oatmeal that a very famous cook developed for dogs.  And I'm not ashamed.  Because it's really good!  And ohmyGRACIOUS is it hearty!!  Eat this in the morning and I promise you will not be hungry for hours.  I've even been known to eat this at night.  It's just a hearty bowl of comfort and who doesn't love that?!

Pizza Pocket

I've made variations of this before.  Always, always, ALWAYS with messy results.  And can I just say that I really hate dealing with egg wash?  Does that make me a bad cook?  If so, so be it.  But the egg wash makes the edge slimy, so they're difficult to seal.  And then they never actually do seem to seal because my filling starts to leak out.  And then there's the vent holes, which never seem to do their job.  Oh they vent the steam alright, along with half the filling.

So yeah, I haven't made pizza pockets too much because they're just frustrating for me to deal with.

Until now.

Pizza Pockets
Recipe from Jeff Mauro

All-purpose flour, for dusting
1 pound pizza dough, divided into 4 balls [NOTE: Buy this in the store or make it yourself.  Whichever is easiest for you]
2 cups shredded  mozzarella
12 ounces pepperoni, thinly sliced
Grated Parmesan, to taste
Marinara or pizza sauce

1.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2.  Roll out the dough balls on a lightly floured surface into 4 equal rounds. On half of each round, layer some mozzarella, and then some pepperoni slices.

I like to add a little cheddar and pizza seasoning to mine too

3.  Fold in half, covering the filling, and then fold the outer edges up and crimp the edges with your fingers to seal.

No messy egg wash!!  Just fold the bottom up and over the edge, crimping as you go.

4.  Place the pockets on a baking sheet, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with grated Parmesan. Bake until golden, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve with your favorite marinara or pizza sauce on the side.

Yummy yummy!

Oh my goodness gracious are these good!!  And SOOOO EASY TO MAKE!!!  It seriously just takes a few minutes to put them together, and then they can just hang out on the pan until you're ready to bake them.  My next step with this is to see how they freeze.  Looooove a Get Ahead opportunity!!

p.s. Remember when I made that jam?  Put a tablespoon or two of that with mozzarella cheese in these; dip into a roasted tomato dipping sauce.  Feel free to call me when your taste buds have recovered to tell me how awesome that flavor combo is. ;)

This Week's Menu

You know how life is full of surprises?  Yeah, well, imagine our surprise when Rob learns laaaate Sunday that he's heading out a business trip Monday night.  Weee!  So my apologies for slow posting this week, but it's been lots of play time and running around and not so much time to write about my cooking these last few days.  I did finally get a meal plan figured out though, thanks to some inspirational help from my friend (thank you Jenni!!)

• Thursday: Leftovers. Yes, again.  My fridge is EXTRA stocked with all kinds of food since Rob hasn't been here to help eat them for lunches. 

• Friday: Some kind of pizza and popcorn for Movie Night.

• Saturday: Cranberry Pork Tenderloin.  Take two!  Thanks to my surprise dinner out on Mother's Day, this meal idea got moved to another night.

• Sunday: Chicken Azteca

• Monday: Hot dogs with pretzel buns, some kind of potato and tossed salad

• Tuesday: Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

• Wednesday: Leftovers

 Happy planning!!

Bacon Jam

No, the title is not a typo.  I really did make bacon jam.  In a slow cooker.  And angels began singing.

The world is now a better place.

Bacon Jam
Recipe from Martha Stewart

1 1/2 lbs sliced bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
2 medium yellow onions, diced small
3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup brewed coffee

1.  In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high, stirring occasionally, until fat is rendered and bacon is lightly browned, about 20 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels to drain.

Let us pause a moment to savor this truly glorious sight.

2.  Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet (reserve for another use); add onions and garlic, and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes.

3.  Add vinegar, brown sugar, maple syrup, and coffee and bring to a boil, stirring and scraping up browned bits from skillet with a wooden spoon, about 2 minutes. Add bacon and stir to combine.

I know, it doesn't look like much at this point.

4.  Transfer mixture to a 6-quart slow cooker and cook on high, uncovered, until liquid is syrupy, 3 1/2 to 4 hours. Transfer to a food processor; pulse until coarsely chopped. Let cool; the liquid will thicken as it cools.  Refrigerate in airtight containers, up to 6 weeks.

Pulse a few times to break it down, but not too much.  Still want some bacon bits!

Ok so let's just first talk about the elephant in the room here: this sounds WEIRD.  I'm totally not disputing that one.  I mean, come on, jam has always been associated with fruit; a sweet treat to put on toast and sandwiches.  Jam is peanut butter's best friend.  But BACON jam???  Whoa.

I was intrigued.  Not only because I happen to LOVELOVELOVE the combination of sweet and salty, but also I've always said that everything is better with bacon.  How could I not at least give this recipe a whirl?

My taste buds are THRILLED with this whirl.  Of course it's salty from the bacon, with little bits of that wonderful bacon-y crunch.  You also get this sweetness from the brown sugar, maple syrup, AND the caramelized onions.  That's right, the onions really come through with that sweet glorious flavor they get from getting happy in bacon fat.  I can also taste the cider vinegar in this, which helps to balance out the sweet and salty with just an edge of a bite.  This has such FANTASTIC flavor!!

So now begs the question, what do I do with this?  I could let myself be intimidated by the weirdness of this condiment.  Or I could take a step back and ask, well, what dishes do I like with bacon?  This is awesome on an English muffin with some egg and a little hot sauce.  Spread a little of this on your cheeseburger for a new twist on a bacon cheeseburger.  This would make a creative addition to a cheese platter.  Use it on a grilled cheese sandwich.  Or how about trying this in place of traditional strips of bacon on a BALT (bacon-avocado-lettuce-tomato) sandwich?  When you take the time to think about it, there really are lots of options for this jam.

This Week's Menu

I got caught up yesterday in a craft project (repurposing a diaper box into an attractive lined basket) and baking cookies with Gavin.  But I still scribbled out a meal plan!  Lots of new dishes I want to try...

• Thursday: EXPERIMENT! Chicken Masala and rice  UPDATE: This was good but I'd like to play with it a bit more.  Stay tuned!

• Friday: EXPERIMENT! Pizza pockets, and Popcorn. 

• Saturday: Burgers, baked potato, and tossed salad. 

• Sunday: EXPERIMENT! Cranberry Pork Tenderloin. Yes, my current intent is to cook on Mother's Day.  I have absolutely no problem with this, however if Rob wants to surprise me with a family dinner out I'm happy to put this one on hold for another night. UPDATE: We went out to eat!  So yeah, saving this one for another night. :)

• Monday: Mac & Cheese and steamed green beans

• Tuesday: Pancakes with a strawberry, peach, and banana topping (PSST! Make this even healthier by swapping half the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour.)

• Wednesday: Leftovers

 Happy planning!!

Unfried Chicken

You lose some, and then you turn around and win some.  Big time. 

I was feeling a little discouraged after my disastrous mac & cheese on Sunday.  But at least this recipe, though still an experiment, was not something completely new to me.  I'd made it before and already had some ideas on how to make it better.

Boy did those ideas work!!

Unfried Chicken
Recipe adapted from Bobby Deen

1 tbsp canola oil
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp hot sauce
Zest of one lemon
2 cups cornflakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1.  THE NIGHT BEFORE: Combine the buttermilk, garlic powder, onion powder, hot sauce, and lemon zest in a resealable plastic bag.  Add chicken and smush around to make sure everything is coated.  Refrigerate overnight. 

Buttermilk does AMAZING things to chicken.

2.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Heat oil in a large skillet (cast iron would be awesome if you have it) over medium-high heat.

Work out some frustration on the cereal.

3.  Crush cornflakes in a resealable plastic bag using your hands, a rolling pin, or kitchen mallet.  Pour the cornflake crumbs into a large bowl. Dip the chicken into the crumbs, pressing to adhere, and then place in the skillet. Brown chicken on both sides and move the skillet to the oven. Bake until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through or an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees F, 30-40 minutes.

Crunchy good chicken!

Not only does the buttermilk tenderize the chicken, but the other flavors in the marinade work sooo well together!  You can serve this with some cornbread and a tossed salad, mashed potatoes and steamed veggies, a good fruit salad... whatever you like!

Crockpot Fail

Well, my good luck streak has come to an end... I was feeling really good about all the new recipes I've been trying lately, and then WHAM-OH!

Usually, if a dish doesn't turn out quite like I'd hoped, I'm able to find the good in it and work to make it better the next time.  This crockpot mac & cheese though was so bad, it's the first time in a LOOOONG time that I just dumped it in the garbage.  Yeah, it was inedible.

Sorry folks!  Though I'm even more skeptical now of crockpot pasta recipes, I am willing to try again should another interesting one cross my path.  For now though, it's time to do the dishes.

This Week's Menu

Rob is out of town for the weekend so I need to keep things as SIMPLE as possible for the next few days.  These are the times where I realize how much I rely on him to keep our boys entertained so I can put meals together.

• Thursday: Leftovers. I know my last meal plan had us eating leftovers on Monday, but a crazy weekend of sickies had my schedule totally jumbled.  Rest assured, we don't need to clean out our fridge that often!

• Friday: Pizza and Popcorn. I am absolutely taking advantage of a pizza all to myself and experimenting with toppings. 

• Saturday: Tacos. Happy Cinco de Mayo!

• Sunday: Hot dogs, steamed carrots, and Crock pot Mac & Cheese.  (I'm totally stealing this menu idea from a friend of mine. Thanks Jenny!) [Update: The mac & cheese did not turn out well at all so I'll keep looking for other slow cooker variations]

• Monday: NEW RECIPE! Unfried Chicken, cornbread, and tossed salad

• Tuesday: Spaghetti, some kind of veggie, and garlic bread

• Wednesday: Freezer Find. This is when I reacquaint myself with my freezer's contents and pretty much give myself a pseudo-break from cooking.  There's a reason why I cook ahead as often as possible, but it doesn't work unless I make the time to take advantage of it.

 Happy planning!!

Chicken Rosemary

When Rob and I were dating, I wanted to let him know that I was a good cook.  The best way I knew how to do that was to make one of my mom's most fool-proof recipes.  You know the kind.. the one that's SO EASY, with SO FEW INGREDIENTS that even the most Non-Cooks of Cooks can put together.

And bonus that this one also happens to be a long-marinating, slow-cooking kind of meal that perfumes the whole house with it's incredible aromas.

Chicken Rosemary
Recipe from my mom

3 lbs chicken pieces*
1 (16oz) bottle Zesty Italian salad dressing
Garlic powder, optional
Crushed, dried rosemary
2-3 potatoes, cubed

*My mom always used bone-in, skin-on chicken legs and thighs, however I tend to use boneless, skinless breasts because I always have them handy.  Follow the recipe exactly if you prefer bone-in, skin-on chicken; reduce the cooking time a bit for boneless, skinless pieces.

1.  Lay out chicken pieces in a 9x13 pan.  Sprinkle each piece with a little garlic powder, if desired, and pour dressing over all chicken.  Cover and let marinate in the fridge at least 3 hours.

Just a little sprinkle of garlic powder

2.  Preheat oven to 325.  Pull the chicken out of the fridge and turn the chicken in the marinade.  Sprinkle each piece with rosemary.

I think I used about 1 1/2 tsp of dried rosemary

3.  Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes.  Add the potatoes to the pan, stirring a little to make sure the cubes get covered in the marinade.  Return to the oven for another 45 minutes. TOTAL COOK TIME IS 1 HOUR, 30 MINUTES.

Keep chopped potatoes in a bowl of cold water until ready to use to keep them from turning brown.

 
If you're going to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts, I'd recommend adding the potatoes after about 20-30 minutes, and then returning to the oven for at least 40 more minutes.

When I was little, I was always a one-chicken-leg kind of girl.  But the first time my mom made this, I ate 3-4 legs and I don't know how many scoops of potatoes.  The chicken is tender and juicy, the potatoes are soft and comforting....this is just an amazingly flavorful dish.  And best of all, you only need to add a vegetable, like steamed green beans or a tossed salad, to round out this meal.

Indonesian Pork Tenderloin

It doesn't matter if the Family Cook is sick or not, we still need to eat.  So some meals over the weekend got shuffled around in my plan, and take out did get ordered at one point.  But I was DETERMINED to find enough energy to put this one together.  Soooo glad I did!

And it's truly amazing how much flavor there is in such few ingredients...

Indonesian Pork Tenderloin
Recipe only slightly adapted from Kitchen Confidante

1 1-lb pork tenderloin
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp creamy peanut butter
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
Vegetable cooking spray
1/4 cup mango chutney


1.  Preheat oven to 375°F.

Don't we all have these ingredients in our pantries?

2.  Combine soy sauce, peanut butter, red pepper flakes and garlic, stirring well. Spread mixture over tenderloin. Place in a 9x13 baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Thick coating

3.  Brush tenderloin with mango chutney and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until meat thermometer registers 160°F with a meat thermometer, basting often with chutney [Note: I hovered over the oven and basted every 2-3 minutes]. Remove from oven, cover lightly with foil, and let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Quite possibly my new favorite condiment.

I may have been extra stuffed up when I made this but I still could smell the amazing aromas wafting from the kitchen.  And the flavor of this was INCREDIBLE!!  I'd never worked with mango chutney before, but I kept hearing about it so wanted to give it a try.  WOW!  The ginger especially came through and helped to balance the sweet mango and salty peanut butter.

We devoured this with some baked potatoes and a tossed salad.