Fall into the kitchen

For me, fall is the best time to be in the kitchen. The seasonal ingredients lend themselves to simple but hearty dishes. Standing over the stove on a cold and rainy day is a warm treat.

Below are the recipes for a complete fall meal. All of the ingredients were purchased at the Outpost Co-op or the G. Groppi Food Market, both in Bay View. These portions are enough for two, but the recipes can easily be altered to accommodate more.

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Pepper Crusted Pork Tenderloin

½ pound pork tenderloin
¼ cup of coarsely ground peppercorns
2 tablespoons of olive oil, seperated
1 peeled garlic clove

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prep the tenderloin by slicing a peeled garlic clove in half, and rubbing the interior side on the surface of the tenderloin. Then rub 1 tablespoon of olive oil all over the tenderloin. Press the ground pepper into the olive oil so that it sticks. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Brown on each side (about three minutes per side). Then place the skillet in the preheated oven and cook until the interior temperature reaches 145 degrees. About 25-30 minutes for a half pound.

Remove from oven and let it sit for at least 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

Optional: Make a pan sauce using ½ cup of chicken stock, ¼ cup of red wine, 1 tablespoon of mustard and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. Add the stock, wine, and mustard to the hot pan you cooked the tenderloin in. Scrape the brown tenderloin and peppercorn pieces from the bottom of the pan. Reduce to desired consistency, add the cream, and serve.

 

Yukon and Sweet Potato Hash

1 large or 2 medium sweet potatoes
1 large or 2 medium Yukon gold potatoes
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Peel and dice the potatoes into ½ inch cubes. Heat the olive oil and butter in a large skillet. Drop the potato cubes in the pan and toss to coat in the olive oil and butter mixture. Place the skillet in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes to soften the potatoes. Then put the skillet on the stovetop on medium high heat to brown and crisp the potatoes.

 

Red Chard and Pancetta

1 bunch of fresh red chard
1 ½ thick slice of pancetta
1 small garlic clove

Dice the pancetta into cubes and brown over medium heat in a nonstick skillet until the pancetta releases its fats. Finely chop the garlic and add to the pancetta. Roughly chop the chard and remove any thick pieces of the red rib since it won’t soften in the pan (Small pieces of the rib are just fine). Add the chard to the pan in batches. Toss the chard with garlic and pancetta until it wilts then add a fresh batch until all is wilted. Season with salt and pepper and serve.