As part of our fitness plan for the new year, we participated in the second week of the Good and Good for You Challenge from the National Pork Board and their partner, Publix. We used boneless pork loin chops to make Braised Pork Chops with Peppers and Onions.

I’m moving right along with the 30 Day Shred, too: today was day 14!

This week’s theme is Game Day, but one of my kids requested this recipe and I couldn’t resist the peppers and onions. If you’re looking for a game day recipe, Game Day Pork and Chile Wraps sounds like a winner (pun intended).

This recipe is quick, easy, and a real crowd pleaser. The boneless pork loin chops are lean and cook in no time. I used chicken broth instead of wine in the recipe; I actually used more out of the resealable carton from last week’s Sage Pork Tenderloin Medallions with White Wine Jus.

More time was devoted to photographing the veggies than prepping them.

Braised Pork with Peppers and Onions

4 boneless pork loin chops, about 1-inch thick, trimmed
2 teaspoons olive oil
Salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 small red bell peppers, or yellow bell peppers, quartered and cut into 1/4-inch slices
1 small red or yellow onion, quartered and cut into 1/4-inch slices
4 cloves garlic , thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry red wine, (for non-alcoholic, substitute chicken or vegetable broth)

In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, warm oil. Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper and cook until browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove chops to a plate and set aside.
Add tomato paste to skillet and cook, stirring, for 15 seconds. Add bell peppers and onion to skillet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute.
Add wine and bring to a boil, scraping up and stirring in any browned bits in the skillet. Return chops to skillet, nestling them in the liquid, and reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook 4 minutes. Turn chops, cover, and cook until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees Fahrenheit, followed by a 3-minute rest time. Serve pork with pepper and onion mixture spooned on top. Serves 4

Enter the Love Me Tenderloin giveaway through the Pork Be Inspired Facebook page for your chance to win $50 worth of pork tenderloin, given away daily. Just “like” the page and then click the Win with Pork link on the left for more details.

{I will be compensated for writing this post series and received coupons and a gift card for Publix. Opinions expressed are my own.}

Good and Good for You Challenge: Week 2 is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

I‘m trying to lose some weight using the 30 Day Shred, however it’s apparent that my diet needs to improve, too—a win-win prospect for both me and my family. Lean meat like pork provide the protein we need with less fat. I’m participating in the National Pork Board’s “Good and Good for You Challenge” during the four-week period of January 26-February 22 and I’ll let you know about weekly pork specials at Publix and recipes that you and I can try.

Check out this quote from pork, knife, and spoon:

Consumption of extra-lean protein like the flavorful pork tenderloin has been linked to a greater feeling of fullness, retention of muscle mass and a reduced urge to eat.

That’s exactly what I need!

This week’s special is pork tenderloin and last night I made Sage Pork Tenderloin Medallions with White Wine Jus. I’m a directions-follower and panicked when I realized that I didn’t have the dry white wine, only a sweet red and a sweet white. One of my best friends assured me that you should “cook with wine you’d drink,” so I used the sweet red. Here’s a picture in the middle of the cooking process. It wasn’t until everything was devoured that I realized I’d missed capturing the finished product.

Sage Pork Tenderloin Medallions with White Wine Jus

• 2 tablespoons whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon dried sage
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 1 pork tenderloin, (about 1 1/4 pounds), trimmed if needed
• 1/2 cup chicken broth, reduced sodium or organic
• 1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Chardonnay*
• 2 teaspoons spreadable butter with canola oil, or substitute butter

Stir together flour, sage, salt, pepper and garlic powder in a shallow dish or plate, and preheat a large skillet over medium heat. Slice pork crosswise into 3/4-inch thick medallions and arrange flat on a cutting board. Pound with a mallet to 1/2-inch thickness and coat pork in flour on all sides.
Add 2 teaspoons oil to the pan. Once the oil shimmers, place the pork in a single layer. You may need to divide the pork into two batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. Brown on one side for 2 to 3 minutes and turn to brown the other side. Remove pork onto a plate and scrape the brown bits up from the bottom of pan with a wooden spoon, putting them into the measured broth or wine. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil to pan and repeat the cooking procedure. Add the pork to the plate.
Remove pan from heat, add wine, place back on heat, and simmer for 4 minutes or until wine reduces down to a couple of tablespoons. Add broth and simmer 3 minutes or until reduced by half.
Remove from heat, swirl in butter, and add pork back to the pan to coat. Arrange pork on plates and spoon sauce on top.

Makes 4 servings

*or substitute with 1/2 cup apple juice + 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

On the right is a picture of it from the Pork Be Inspired website, because apparently they have the patience to photograph the food before someone eats it.

I’ve also had a request for Roast Pork Tenderloin with Asian Dry Rub and I’d like to try the Apple-Pecan Tenderloin Medallions. I tend to get in a rut in the kitchen, so I’m thankful for the fresh inspiration.

Do you cook with pork? Are you trying to eat healthier this year?

{I am being compensated for writing this post series and received coupons and a gift card for Publix. All shopping, cooking, eating, and opinions were done or made by me.}

The “Good and Good for You Challenge” is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

Feeding a family our size provides a constant challenge. Breakfast is fairly easy (cereal or bagels anyone?) and supper requires some planning, but it’s really lunch that sneaks up on me most days. We get busy and before I know it it’s early afternoon.

Everyone wants something different and we usually have sandwiches, pancakes, Ramen noodles, or mac ‘n’ cheese. I’ve well exceeded the quota of PB&Js that a grown woman should have eaten in her lifetime. By a long shot.

Honestly, sometimes I get tired of what the kids want for lunch, so taste testing Healthy Choice’s new line of Top Chef inspired Café Steamers was a welcome change. The two I received were Grilled Chicken Pesto with Vegetables and Chicken Margherita with Balsamic (check out the full line-up here).

The packaging surprised me: no peeling back a corner or cutting slits in the film on top. Instead, Healthy Choice uses a unique steaming technology separates the sauce from the rest of the entrée to steam the meal in the microwave, allowing for crisp vegetables, tender meats and al dente pastas. You just stick the bowl in the microwave (it’s really a bowl stacked inside a bowl) and then pour the sauce on top of the entree—surprisingly good and easy!

I felt spoiled, as if one of the Bravo’s Top Chefs whipped up those meals just for me. I’m sure you understand if you’re the one who usually cooks for your family. Cooking can be satisfying and a lot of fun, but occasionally I need a break. The Top Chef Café Steamers were a real treat.

Today was actually easy: we got home last night and discovered that the slow cooker of chili that should have been simmering all day was actually unplugged. It cooked overnight and made a delicious (and on time, for once!) lunch today. Sadly enough, it took a supper fail to make a lunch success. {sigh}

Do you struggle to find fresh, healthy lunch options for your family? Do you eat frozen meals? If you’re a mom, are you able to shed the mommy guilt and make something separate for you.

{Disclosure: I received two frozen meals and will be compensated for writing this post. Opinions expressed are my own.}

Daily Lunch Dilemmas and a Solution from Healthy Choice is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

It’s really strange not having a baby any more. Our youngest turned six in June, this weekend the second youngest turned eight, and Tuesday the third youngest turns ten. We’ve had a big birthday weekend: the new Winnie the Pooh movie and Cracker Barrel on Friday evening; Moe’s lunch and pizza night on Saturday; church and friends over to swim on Sunday. Our church Labor Day picnic was cancelled because of the 100% chance of rain in our forecast, but really I’m loving the chance to slow down and spend the day at home.

[A note about the new Winnie the Pooh movie: it looks old—like it could have been made years ago—and it's slow and charming and gentle. My 10-year-old-tomorrow son wanted to see it (as much as I did) rather than the other slick stuff in the theaters; that boy's a keeper.]

We made homemade pizza Saturday night using some new Better Homes and Gardens kitchen utensils from Walmart.

This scraper is firm, which keeps the cook happy. I like the happy red and the little notch cut out on one side (although I’m not sure what it does).

When I’m in a hurry I use this quick pizza dough recipe that I printed in 2006 from Full Bellies, Happy Kids (obviously Sandra and I are ancient in blog years). We like it a little thinner (and this is still good and thick) so I multiply the original recipe 1 1/2 times to make two pizzas.

This new brush worked perfectly for spreading olive oil on the crust. I like the taste of olive oil and it gives the crust a hint of crispness when it’s cooked. After the olive oil, I press a generous amount of garlic on top of the dough.

There’s no such thing as too much cheese on pizza. I start with cheddar; followed by Parmigiano-Reggiano, which I buy in block and grate myself; and finish by adding mozzarella before the final five minutes of cooking time. Mozzarella is a soft cheese that will burn if cooked too long.

Check out this new hand grater—I’ve always wanted one of these.

What’s a pizza without mushrooms?

We grew these tomatoes in front of our house in our garden. (This makes me sound so much more domestic than I am. Don’t be fooled.)

Pizzas seem to cook best one at a time. I put the three cheese pizza in the oven first while I keep working on the other one.

Unfortunately, I forgot the fresh Italian parsley until the cheese pizza was almost cooked. It looks a little crispy sitting there on top.

Here’s the mushroom and tomato pizza.

Live entertainment: ballet dancing!

Look who’s eight!

Check out this selection of Better Homes and Gardens kitchen utensils we found at Walmart:

[For those of you interested in better indoor/night photography, these two shots of the white balance card (one taken in the kitchen light and one in the dining room) are two of the most important shots I took. They enabled me to remove the yellow tones and make the colors look more natural.]

{Disclosure: This shop/project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias.}

Big Birthday Weekend and Homemade Pizza Night is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

Last week I got together with fellow Atlanta bloggers as part of “A Fabulous Summer of Flavor,” a contest sponsored by Lawry’s. Our theme is “On Vacation” and our mission is to cook our way to victory by submitting the tastiest or most interesting recipes in the competition.

My partners—Piera at Jolly Mom (our hostess), Lisa at Life with Lisa, Meghan at JaMonkey, Renee at Cutie Booty Cakes, and Diane at Turning the Clock Back—and I are competing against teams of bloggers in ten other cities.

As good as our food tasted, I feel like our chances are good!

We had so much fun cooking, talking, and laughing. I love spending time with other bloggers and getting to know them. Atlanta is a great place to blog because there are so many neat ladies doing it!

Here are our recipes, which make up a meal: Balsamic Herb Tomato Salad (salad), Garlic Knots (bread), and White Chicken Pizza (main course). We would totally make pizza as a family on vacation—what a great way to involve the whole family in the kitchen!

I would really appreciate your help. We want our team to win! Twenty-five percent of the scoring is based on overall community engagement with blog readers and Twitter followers

White Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:
2 chicken breasts
Lawry’s Seasoned Salt Marinade
5 cloves of garlic, finely minced
3 Tbsp of olive oil
1 large bunch fresh spinach
1/2 small red onion, sliced thinly
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 recipe homemade pizza dough

Directions:
Marinade chicken in Lawry’s Seasoned Salt Marinade (overnight is best, but a few fours will work).
Cook chicken on grill pan until done and then shred.
Roll out pizza dough very thin and brush the top with olive oil and add minced garlic. Add fresh spinach, mozzarella cheese, red onion, and chicken. Don’t overload your pizza with toppings–it’s best to keep it light.
Cook your pizza on a pizza stone or quarry tiles in an oven that’s been preheated to 500 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown around the edges.

Recipe makes 2-3 pizzas, depending on how thin you roll out your pizza.

Balsamic Herb Tomato Salad

Ingredients:
2 pounds tomatoes, cut into wedges
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
1/3 cup Lawry’s Balsamic Herb Marinade
Parmigiano Reggiano

Directions:
Combine the tomatoes, scallions and marinade in a large salad bowl and toss to coat. Top with freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Garlic Knots

Ingredients:

Dough
1 3/4 cup warm water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp active dry yeast
5 1/2 cups all-pupose, unbleached flour

Garlic Coating
1/4 cup olive oil
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
6 cloves garlic, finely crushed
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh Italian parsley
Parmigiano Reggiano
Lawry’s Seasoned Salt to taste

Directions:
Combine water, olive oil, sea salt, sugar, and active dry yeast in a large bowl. Mix to dissolve yeast.
Add flour and mix until well combined. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a lint free towel and set in a warm spot to proof until doubled in size. At this point, you can refrigerate the dough for a few days if you want to make it ahead of time or go ahead and begin making the knots.
Divide the dough in two balls to make it easier to handle. Roll the dough into a rectangle about 5″x16″ and 1/2 inch thick. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut the rectangle into 1/2? x 5? strips.
With floured hands, roll each strip back and forth to create a rope. Tie into a knot–over, under, and through– and place on sheet pan lined with a silpat or parchment paper.
Make the rest of the knots, cover pans loosely with a towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot to rise before baking. You want the knots to double in size (approx.)
Preheat oven to 500° F. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly golden.
While knots are baking, make garlic coating. Gently warm olive oil, butter, and garlic in a small saucepan. Add chopped parsley and set aside.
Remove knots from oven, place in a large bowl and toss with garlic coating OR brush the coating on. Season with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt to taste and freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Help us win? (and you could win the 3 Lawry’s products we used!)

As I mentioned, 25% of the scoring is based on overall community engagement with blog readers and Twitter followers. Please leave a comment on this post and tweet it, too. It’s easy to tweet by clicking Tweetmeme button at the bottom of this post (it looks like this —->)

One commenter or tweeter will receive a sample pack with a 16-oz jar of Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, Lawry’s Balsamic Herb Marinade, and Lawry’s Seasoned Salt Marinade.

What’s your favorite way to use Lawry’s?

Lawry’s “A Fabulous Summer of Flavor” — Team Atlanta! is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

Have you heard the term homegating? Whether you have or not, chances are you’re doing it. Homegating is tailgating on your home turf: the activities, recipes, hoopla, and traditions associated with game day without ticket costs or bathroom lines. Access to air conditioning certainly cannot be overrated, either.

Homegating can be a family affair or an occasion to welcome friends or neighbors into your home. We invited two families, so there were 19 of us total. We’re a baseball family and the Braves are our Atlanta hometown team, so they were the theme of our homegate party.

Easy or pre-prepared foods are key for keeping you in the party instead of in the kitchen. I marinaded the wings, sliced the veggies, and made the dessert a day ahead of time. Here is the menu and activities that our family used this weekend.

The Menu

We started with a selection of DiGiorno pizzas, both Cheese (which my littles like best) and Three Meat (pepperoni, sausage, beef). Tipsy Wings (recipe below), a veggie tray, fresh fruit, a layered ice cream sandwich dessert (recipe below), sweet tea, and assorted soft drinks rounded out the menu.

Here are the marinade ingredients for the Tipsy Wings: beer, soy sauce, olive oil, garlic salt, fresh garlic, and pepper (missing from the photo). I poured everything straight into a one gallon zipper storage bag, sealed and shook it up, and then added three pounds of raw wings, turning to coat. I even pressed the garlic straight into the bag.

The wings marinated overnight; I flipped the bags every time I opened the refrigerator. I prepped two bags, six pounds total, but I could have made more and they would have been devoured.

The pizza and the wings cooked at the same temperature, so we alternated between baking a tray of wings (cover the tray in foil for easier clean up) and two pizzas. Thankfully DiGiorno includes directions for cooking two pizzas at a time.

This ice cream sandwich dessert is so easy. Although you can get fancy and add cookie crumbs, etc., this recipe can be made quite simply in just a few minutes with only 3 ingredients.

(Of course, you have to unwrap the sandwiches. I place them in the dish at first to get a count and plan the layout.)

Pretty fancy, huh?

The Hoopla

Not only did we get our game on in the kitchen, but also we enjoyed traditional game day activities such as team apparel, face painting, tomahawk chopping, and doing the wave.

I had some fun in iMovie, too.

Although tailgating is primarily sports-related, I think homegating transcends sports. If the season premier or finale of your favorite TV show ignites a similar passion in your family, then that could easily be your focus instead of cheering on your favorite team.

{Disclosure: This post is part of a campaign for Collective Bias and DiGiorno. Opinions expressed are my own.}

Homegating: This is How We Do It is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

One of my favorite snow day childhood memories is the ice cream my grandmother made from snow. She never used the first snow of the season, believing it was full of impurities from the air. Here in Atlanta, I’m sure we restock our impurities daily. Still, this week’s was our second snow.

A friend posted to Facebook that she made snow ice cream, using Paula Deen’s recipe. It tastes like my grandmother’s. The kids loved it so much we made it twice on Wednesday.

You’ll need a can of sweetened condensed milk and a teaspoon of vanilla.

And snow: eight cups of it.

Pour the milk and vanilla on top and stir well. Throw out any chunks of ice.

Enjoy!

Got Snow? How to Make Snow Ice Cream is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

{Entries to this giveaway are now closed. The winner is Kristie J.}

Slow Cookers are a necessity of life for busy families. Happy are the evenings when I take the time to fill ours in the morning, letting it do the cooking for me. It makes me feel smart—like my act is together—to smell supper simmering all day, knowing all I have to do later is serve.

Owning two or more slow cookers is helpful, especially during the Christmas season. I was down to one at Thanksgiving (a mouse in our garage this summer chewed the cord on my second, but that is a story for another day), which made it tricky keeping both soup and apple cider warm.

A new, silver Hamilton Beach 5-Quart Portable Slow Cooker arrived today. As soon as I opened it, I knew we were having chili for supper.

My other slow cooker is also a Hamilton Beach. Two of my favorite features are the Lid Latch strap and the keep warm setting, both of which are handy when traveling. This new model has combined a gasket lid with the Lid Latch strap, helpful for reducing messy spills.

The Hamilton Beach 5-Quart Portable Slow Cooker is on Rollback at Walmart now for $14.88, but you can also win one here!

Enter to Win (do one or all, leave a separate comment for each)

1. Leave a comment. How would this slow cooker simplify your routine?
2. Spread the word – tweet it! Include @dawnMHSH, the #hambeach hashtag, and a link to this post http://bit.ly/hidgAU
3. Share on Facebook. It’s easy – just click the “Like” button at the bottom of this post!

This giveaway ends on Monday, December 6.

{Disclosure: Slow cookers provided for review and giveaway by Collective Bias.}

Two other giveaways are coming as soon as I can get them posted!

Slow Cookin’ with Hamilton Beach: A Review and Giveaway is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

I have two posts with gifts for you at (in)courage!

• December’s Desktop Wallpaper – decorate your desktop for Christmas
• ‘Tis the Season for Comfort Food – favorite holiday recipes

Christmas Gifts for You Today at (in)courage is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved

The first time I ate this dessert, I had no idea it was made from ice cream sandwiches; I thought it was something amazing and complex in its multi-layered glory. I’m going to walk you through preparing this delicious and extremely simple dish, guaranteed to win friends and influence people. It respects your precious time: I put it together in only 13 minutes, including the photographs along the way.

Here’s the cast of characters, only three ingredients:

[You will not need 42 ice cream sandwiches. I buy in bulk.]

This is actually the first time I’ve used Reddi Whip; I usually use Cool Whip. Either is fine. If we’re out of Hershey’s syrup, I make a homemade chocolate sauce. Here’s an easy recipe.

Anything that says “Made with Real Cream” is welcome in my kitchen.

The first thing you want to do is determine how many sandwiches you’ll need and the layout for your dish. Arrange them, wrapped. You’ll need two layers. The one sticking out on the side will be broken in half and stacked to fit the small spot in the corner.

It doesn’t matter if the sandwiches don’t touch the edges of the dish. These are BJ’s brand and they’re kind of skinny. I needed 19 of them for a 9″x13″ dish.

Unwrap and place the first layer of sandwiches in your dish, and then cover with Reddi Whip, Cool Whip, or whipped cream.

Drizzle Hershey syrup or other chocolate sauce on top.

Repeat the layers of ice cream sandwiches, whipped cream, and chocolate sauce.

Feel free to drizzle some down the sides. It will look fancier and disguise the fact that you made this impressive dessert with three ingredients in less than 15 minutes.

Did you count the layers? TEN!

Each ice cream sandwich has three layers, plus two each of whipped cream and chocolate sauce.

When you’re finished, just cover and store in the freezer until ready to eat. Don’t mess up the chocolate sauce on top; stick toothpicks in the top to hold up foil or plastic wrap if you don’t have a cover for your dish.

Enjoy!

Visit Jen at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam for more Tasty Tuesdays.

Easy Layered Ice Cream Sandwich Dessert is a post from: My Home Sweet Home
© 2012 My Home Sweet Home | All rights reserved