Almond-Crusted Pork with Honey-Mustard Dipping Sauce

These are a delicious little snack/dinner. The almonds give them an almost-like-fried-chicken crunch (and I'm not a fan of fried things in general). This is however a fun treat!

1 c. coarse dry breadcrumbs, preferably whole wheat *
1/2 c. almonds
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. ground pepper
1 large egg white, beaten
1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices

Dipping Sauce:
1/4 c. honey
2 T. reduced sodium soy sauce
2 T. Dijon mustard

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Set a wire rack on a baking sheet and coat it with cooking spray.
2. Place breadcrumbs, almond, garlic powder, pepper, and salt in a food processor; pulse until almonds are coarsely chopped. Transfer to shallow bowl.
3. Place egg white in another shallow bowl. Dip both sides of each pork slice in egg white, the coat with almond mixture. Place pork on prepared rack.
4. Bake until golden brown and no longer pink in the center (~16-18 minutes).
5. Meanwhile, whisk honey, soy sauce, and mustard in a small bowl.

*So, whole wheat breadcrumbs are not readily available where I live so I just make my own...Tear firm bread into pieces and then put into a food processor until coarse crumbs form. Spread the breadcrumbs on a baking sheet and bake at 250 degrees until dry and crispy (~15 minutes). One slice of bread makes about 1/3 c. dry whole-wheat breadcrumbs.

Apple Snack Squares

These are a delicious and semi-healthy snack. After all they do have apples in them! It's always fun to add a little seasonal twist with the help of a cookie cutter. Happy Love Day!

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2-1/2 cups self rising flour *
1 t cinnamon

3 cups diced tart apples (I leave the peels on for

extra fiber and deliciousness!)

1 cup chopped walnuts

3/4 cups butterscotch chip (caramel pieces would also be good)

Mix the sugar, eggs, and oil. Add flour and cinnamon. The batter will be very thick.

Stir in apples and nuts. Spread into a greased 13x9 pan. Sprinkle chips on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown/passes the toothpick test. Cool before cutting...if you can wait.

*If using regular flour add 3-3/4 t of baking powder and 1-1/2 t of salt.

Enjoy (:

Popeye Pasta

Casual in looks, good in flavor. Fresh-tasting garlic and tomato with salty feta cheese. A Mediterranean look and taste. Really quick and easy with great flavor (I add diced chicken if I want to make it more filling but it doesn't need it). One of our FAVORITES!

8 oz. spaghetti noodles/angle hair pasta

12 c. boiling water

1 T. olive (or cooking) oil

2 c. diced roma (plum) tomatoes (I just used canned diced tomatoes usually)

3 garlic cloves, minced (or 3/4 t. powder)

2 T. olive (or cooking) oil

3 c. coarsely chopped fresh spinach, lightly packed (I've used 1 lb. frozen spinach)

1 T. balsamic vinegar

1 T. chopped fresh marjoram (or 3/4 t. dried)

1/2 t. salt

granulated sugar, just a pinch

pepper, sprinkle

1 c. crumbled feta cheese

Cook pasta in boiling water in large uncovered pot for 6 minutes until tender but firm. Drain. Return to pot.

Add first amount of olive oil. Toss. Keep warm.

Meanwhile, saute tomato and garlic in second amount of olive oil in large frying pan for about 2 minutes until tomatoes have released their juices.

Add next 6 ingredients. Heat and stir about 1 minute just until spinach is wilted and heated through. Pour over pasta. Add feta cheese (I rarely do). Toss well.

Pumpkin Chipotle Soup

This is a fantastic soup!! It takes real pumpkin (or you can use butternut squash according to the recipe) though so I make it after I make "Dinner in a Pumpkin" to use up the remaining pumpkin. Sorry this has taken me a while to publish (more of an autumn recipe)!

1 t. cumin
1 T. olive oil

1 T. butter

1 1/2 c. diced onion

2 t. minced, seeded serrano or jalepeno pepper

5 c. chicken stock or canned, low-sodium chicken broth

5 c. diced (1/2") fresh pumpkin such as Sugar Pie or Cinderella, or butternut squash

1/2 t. chipotle pepper puree
1/4 c. chopped scallion

Salt

Queso fresco or feta cheese, for garnish

Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish

1. Combine oil and butter in skillet and cook over medium heat until butter melts. Add onion and cook until golden brown, 10 - 12 minutes. Add chili pepper and ground cumin and cook, stirring, 1 minute; set aside.

2. Bring stock to a boil in large saucepan or soup pot. Add onion mixture and pumpkin or squash, cover, and cook until pumpkin or squash is tender when pierced with a fork, about 10 minutes (or if you are making this recipe after "Dinner in a Pumpkin" the pumpkin is already cooked and just needs to be heated up). Stir in chipotle puree, scallion, and 2 teaspoons salt. Ladle hot soup into bowls and garnish each with heaping tablespoon queso fresco or feta cheese and chipotle leaves.

I'm not really sure what chipotle puree is exactly so I just added some "pepper blend" spice from Aldi which was super yummy. Enjoy!