Barn quilt and dining al fresco

Scott has been keeping himself busy recently by painting an awesome barn quilt for our porch!  I love it!  I actually found the design on the interest (sorry I do not know the creator) and I think that Scott's rendition turned out great.  Thanks, Scott!

Scott had extra time at home due to a positive Covid test earlier this month.  This was a first for either of us, as we have been so careful the past two years.  So far, I have not tested positive. 

I love those colors!

It looks great up close and from a distance too. 

We have had nice weather this month, so we've been eating outside a lot. We have the choice of eating on the back yard patio (above, with grilled brats)...  

...or eating out on our front porch.  We enjoy the front porch because we can greet our neighbors as they walk by.   You can see our garden in the background - it looks so great right now with the alium bulbs blooming and some fresh mulch showing off our hostas. 

This was another patio dinner - Pesto chicken, rice, and broccoli, and a nice cool Tom Collins.  Cheers! 

 

Puzzle Fun

During this past year of hunkering down at home, lots of folks did lots of jigsaw puzzles, and we found this fun one!  Then, we decided to try making several of the cocktails featured on the puzzle as a little research project!

Mai Tai Cocktail - we rated it 4 out of 5.

The classic - Tequila Sunrise.  I remember this as being very special as a twenty-something!  We rated it 4.5 out of 5.  

Bootleg Cocktail.  This was described on the puzzle as one of the signature cocktails of Minnesota, although we are both from Minnesota and had never heard of it.  Refreshing and tasty, we rated it 4 out of 5. 

 

New Recipe - It's a Keeper!

Just tried a new recipe (found in the Chicago Tribune) - Spiced Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Apples - and all I can say is wow, you must try this!  If you had this at a restaurant, you would go back!

As you can see, Scott and devoured half of one the tenderloins for lunch today! 

SPICED PORK TENDERLOIN WITH ROASTED APPLES

3 T. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
3/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg
1/2 t. ginger
1/4 t. allspice
1 1/2 t. salt
1 T. maple syrup
2 pork tenderloins, about 1 pound each ( bought one package, about 2-3/4 pounds, and it had 2 tenderloins inside)

4 tart apples (I used 3 large Gala apples))
1/4 c. white wine
1 cup chicken broth
2 T. butter, cut into small pieces

1.    Oven to 425. Combine olive oil, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, salt and maple syrup in a large bowl. Add tenderloins and toss to coat.
2. Heat large oven proof skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add enough oil to just coat the surface; then brown tenderloins on all sides.
3. Meanwhile, toss apples in the bowl with any remaining spice coat. When meat is seared, remove pan from heat. Scatter apples around tenderloins.
4. Put pan in oven; roast 20-25 minutes or until desired doneness.
5. Remove pan from oven and transfer meat and apples to platter or cutting board to rest. Place pan on stove over medium heat. Deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping the bottom of the pan to dislodge any browned bits. Stir in chicken broth and simmer until reduced by about 2/3 and slightly thickened, about 3-4 minutes. Removed pan from heat; stir in butter bits to further thicken sauce and add a nice sheen.
6. Gently toss apples with sauce to coat; place apples on platter. Slice tenderloins; arrange with apples.

NOTE: I doubled all of the spices because, after I mixed them in the bowl, it didn’t look like enough.  The result was great! Also:  I omitted the salt, because of my dietary limitations, and I did not miss it. Scott added a bit of salt to his plate at the table.