Food Glorious Food

Wherein a pointless post even more so than usual because that is why the internet exists dammit this wherein is also an example of how all future whereins will eschew all punctuation as already practiced whereins having any relationship to the actual post is purely accidental or intentional


Here's a couple items that wound up on our dinner plates this week:

• Sauteed Pork Tenderloin Medallions with Apples and Sage Cream Pan Sauce with baked sweet potatoes and a confetti spinach salad with tomatoes and mandarin oranges. Almost forgot the Chilled Strawberry Soup. The pork medallion recipe was from the September 1997 issue of Cook's Illustrated (If you subscribe to their website, here's the link. Realized this would work well as a cook-ahead and freeze meal. Just freeze before adding the cream, then toss in the cream when you thaw and reheat. Easy.
  
• Took the leftover sauteed pork medallions and cream sauce and served over rice for a second meal.
  
• Roast Pumpkin and Couscous Salad (recipe is below). From the Donna Hay cookbook The New Cook. Not the correct season for pumpkin so I substituted a butternut squash. Wonderful, and worked well as a meal on its own. Lot's of soft textures and I thought it could use something a little crunchy. Maybe some toasted pine nuts or slightly roasted vidalia onions. Pumpkin seeds would be perfect, but I know I have pine nuts in the pantry.
  
• Leftover "pumpkin" salad for tonight. I think I'll try it with the pine nuts. Since there isn't enough for a full meal, I'll probably toss a couple steaks on the grill. Nothing fancy, no marinades, just a little salt and pepper.

Then for Saturday, we're finally going to One.Midtown Kitchen for the Richard Blais experience. I've heard that he will still make the foie gras milkshake, even though it isn't on the menu. If so, I will be ordering it. It's been such a hassle aligning schedules that this is the third restaurant Blais has been at since I first heard of him. Really looking forward to this. Here's a review (with photos) from an earlier restaurant of his.

Roast Pumpkin and Couscous Salad
1 lb pumpkin, sliced
olive oil
sea salt
1 cup couscous
1.25 cups (10 fl oz) boiling water or vegetable stock
2 tablespoons butter
4 oz green beans, trimmed
1/3 cut mint leaves
dressing
1/2 cup (4 oz) yogurt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons chopped mint
1 tablespoon honey

Preheat oven to 400F. Place pumpkin in baking dish and toss with a little oil and salt. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden and soft. Set aside. Place couscous in a bowl and pour over boiling water or stock. Add the butter and allow to stand for 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Blanch the beans. Drain and cool. Place the couscous, squash, beans, and mint in a bowl and toss to combine.

To make the dressing, combine the yogurt, cumin, chopped mint, and honey. To serve, place the salad on plates and pour over the dressing.