Honey-Hoisin Pork Tenderloin

This is another fabulous recipe from my new Cooking Light cookbook.  It was easy (although a little sticky/messy) and really delicious.  I'm not a huge pork fan, but Ryan loves it, so I try new recipes every now and then.  I definitely like the tenderloin the best.  This was really juicy and tender, so I was pretty pleased.  I served it with a spring greens salad (with almonds, mandarin oranges and ginger dressing) and a side of sauteed green beans.   Sorry for more stock pictures...hopefully my camera will be fixed soon!

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons sliced green onions
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sage honey
• 1 tablespoon hot water
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Cooking spray
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl. Pour 1/4 cup honey mixture into a large zip-top plastic bag; reserve remaining honey mixture. Add pork to bag; seal and marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes, turning bag occasionally.

Remove pork from bag; discard marinade. Sprinkle pork with salt. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork; cook 2 minutes, browning on all sides. Brush 1 tablespoon reserved honey mixture over pork; sprinkle with sesame seeds. Place skillet in oven. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160° (slightly pink) or until desired degree of doneness.

Place pork on a platter; let stand 5 minutes. Cut pork across the grain into thin slices. Drizzle with the remaining honey mixture.

* Hoisin sauce can be found in the Asian section of your market.

** Regular honey would work for this dish if you can't find sage honey.  (I used regular honey.)

 

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3 ounces pork and about 2 teaspoons honey mixture)

 

CALORIES 195 (20% from fat); FAT 4.3g; IRON 1.7mg; CHOLESTEROL 74mg; CALCIUM 12mg; CARBOHYDRATE 13.6g; SODIUM 633mg; PROTEIN 24.7g; FIBER 0.5g 

 

This is a seriously good cookbook...I suggest buying it immediately. 

Cypress Wedding Album

The amazing and talented (and pregnant!) Carrie Patterson and I have been working on finalizing our wedding album for the last few weeks so it would be ready by the holidays.  Included in Carrie's photography package, is a 40 page Cypress wedding album.  Hard covered with thick pages and bound with a beautiful ribbon, it's really stunning!  Similar to the one pictured below (from Carrie's website), we chose a green fabric outer covering with an ivory ribbon. 

It took me forever to pick only 60 pictures from the 300+ images she took at our wedding.  They were all so amazing.  On my first round through picking, I choose 240...and that was still really hard!  My next round, I probably only cut another 30 or so.  Ugh.  See why it took me forever?!  So I had to make some tough choices.  Finally, I got it pared down to the basics and 60 (plus a few more) of our most fabulous and favorite pictures.  Carrie arranged them in a way that told the story of the day as your flipped through the book.  I cried when I saw the PDF proof, I can't imagine the bawling that's going to happen when I get the actual book.

I'm not going to show you the whole thing...I don't want to ruin the surprise!  Next time you come over to the house, hopefully it will be there waiting for you to look through!  Here is a sneak peek at a couple pages...

Shopping for a Red Dress

New York was a blast!  I spent most of the day Saturday shopping up and down 5th, Lexington and Madison Avenues.  I spent about 2 hours in Saks, 2 hours in Bloomindales, 30 minutes in tears pining over the shoes at Bergdorf's, and was in and out of a hundred more stores.  Most of the time I was looking for 1 particular item -- a hot red dress.  I want a red dress to wear to Ryan's firm holiday party next month.  It has to be fancy (it's a black tie event), a little bit sexy (but definitely not too much, you know how lawyers are, plus I'm a pilgrim), preferably not strapless or super plain, and within my budget (which isn't much since I'm trying to save for Belize).  I found about 20+ that were unbelievably gorgeous...but way over budget (I'm talking well over $500 - ouch!).  So, the search continues...  But now that I'm back home, I have considerably less options.  Luckily, there's this thing called the internet which make shopping at all the best stores possible, from the convenience of your desk at work!  Yay!

So, I've been doing a little searching and here's what I've come up with.  Let me know what you think...

ABS Strapless Bow (below)

Not crazy about being strapless, but the bow is super cute

Aidan Mattox (below)

Like the ruffle, but not sure about the rouching.  Can't imagine it's flattering.

Ann Taylor (below)

I'm not sure if this is going to be unique or fancy enough. 

Would hate to have someone else at the party wearing the same dress.

Banana Republic Sheath (below)

I tried this on and it just didn't blow me away.  Kinda plain and boring. 

Maybe I just needed fun jewelry.

BCBG (below)

I think this bow and bubble hem might dwarf me.  If only I was 5'10 (and had those legs!).

BCBG Laser Cut Sheath (below)

Perhaps this is a little too "come hither" for a law firm party?

BCBG Pleat Neck Halter (below)

Super cute, but I already own this in yellow. 

BCBG Ruffle Sleeve (below)

I have a feeling the shoulder ruffles are not going to work for me.

Elie Tahari Ruffle Jersey (below)

It's cute, but jersey might feel a little too dressed down.

Eliza J Ruffle Front (below)

I've tried this on in black and it's cute, but maybe a little too cutesy?

Kate Spade (below)

Love it.  Not very sexy though..kinda goody-two-shoes (which is so me!).  And a little pricey.

Kay Unger (below)

Boring?

Laundry (below)

Love the ruffles, but not crazy about strapless or chiffon.

Max & Cleo One Shoulder Asymetrical (below)

I like this one, but Tim Gunn said asymetrical was so "out" on Project Runway a few weeks ago.  Hmmm.

Nicole Miller (below)

This one's a contender.  It's a little tight, but that's what Spanx are for, right?

Adrianna Rosette Taffeta (below)

Cute.  I like.  Too plain?

Shoshanna One Shoulder (below)

Again with the aysmetrical.  I like it, but would Tim Gunn approve?

Amsale (below)

Similar to above, but chiffon. 

Elie Tahari (below)

I like the dress, but I wish the color was a brighter holly red.

So, what do you think?  Which ones do you like?  What ever will I do?!

Turkey-Jasmine Rice Meatballs with Baby Bok Choy

So, I made this recipe last week from my new Cooking Light cookbook.  Delicious!!!  It took a bit of time and a ton of different ingredients, but was well worth it.  Sorry, I forgot to take pictures, so this is the one from CL magazine.  Please note that this recipe calls for steaming the bok choy, so make sure you have a steamer (or a dutch oven and a steamer basket)...I didn't and overcooked it, but it was still good.

 

Meatballs:

• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup uncooked jasmine rice*
• 1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 1/4 pounds ground turkey
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Cooking spray

Bok choy:

• 6 baby bok choy (about 1 1/3 pounds)**
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 1 tablespoon shredded peeled fresh ginger
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dry sherry
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

To prepare meatballs, bring 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in jasmine rice; reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until rice is almost tender. Drain; cool. Combine rice, breadcrumbs, and next 6 ingredients (through 1 garlic clove). Shape mixture into 18 meatballs.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; coat pan with cooking spray. Add meatballs; cook 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Cover and reduce heat to medium; cook for 10 minutes or until done, turning often. Remove from heat; keep warm.

While the meatballs cook, prepare bok choy. Cut each bok choy in half lengthwise. Rinse under cold running water; drain well. Arrange bok choy in a steamer basket, overlapping pieces.

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add 1/4 cup onions, ginger, and 1 garlic clove; sauté 30 seconds. Place steamer basket in pan. Combine water and next 4 ingredients (through red pepper); pour over bok choy. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and steam over medium-low heat 20 minutes or until bok choy is tender, rearranging bok choy after 10 minutes. Remove the bok choy and steamer basket from pan; cover and keep warm.

Combine sherry and cornstarch; add to pan. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute or until slightly thick.  Serve sauce over meatballs and baby bok choy.

* Jasmine rice has a pleasant aroma that underscores the other Asian ingredients, but any long-grain white rice will work to help keep the meatballs moist and add a bit of texture.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 3 meatballs, 2 bok choy halves, and 3 tablespoons sauce)

CALORIES 251 (35% from fat); FAT 9.8g; IRON 2.6mg; CHOLESTEROL 75mg; CALCIUM 135mg; CARBOHYDRATE 18g; SODIUM 832mg; PROTEIN 21.3g; FIBER 1.9g

 

By the way, I think baby bok choy may be the cutest vegetable ever!  I mean, they're adorable.  They just make me smile!

** Chopped bok choy can substitute for whole baby bok choy, but they won't be nearly as cute.

New York, New York

Tomorrow I'm going to New York!  I'm totally pumped.  My bestie is in New Jersey for the next two weeks taking training courses for her new job.  She's never been to the city, so I decided to hop on a plane, meet her in Manhattan and be her personal tour guide for the weekend.  It's been a couple years since I've been to New York and I cannot wait to be a tourist again! 

Our hotel is basically in the middle of Times Square.  Not a bad cental location for us tourists.  Checking out the scene in Times Square is a must for any tourist.  And I think it'd be great if we could find some time to catch a show while we're there. 

Central Park is definitely on the list.  Not sure if we'll just walk around and take in the sites, or go ice skating, or go to the zoo.  Maybe lunch at the Boathouse.  However, I can't see Kasey being all that excited about the carousel, so that's probably out. 

Maybe we'll be in a cultural mood, wanting to enrich our minds at some of the best museums in the world.

Or perhaps we might even take the opportunity to visit some of the classic NYC landmarks.

This might take some work on my part, but I'm going to try to convince Kasey to visit some of my favorite NYC places and let me make a few quick pit stops here...

and here...

and here...

After a long day walking around (and hopefully shopping), we're definitely going to need to replace all those burned calories...enter this NYC favorite.

We can split one of these.

As for dinner, since I'm obsessed with Top Chef, I figured it was only appropriate to dine with Tom Colicchio himself.  We've got reservations at Craftsteak.  Not the original Craft, but it'll do.  I'm a total sucker for bald heads and Ryan's already warned me that I'm not allowed to make out with TC.  He said it'd be ok if Kasey did though, so I'm going to have to live vicariously through her.

Am I missing anything?  What are your favorite things to do in NYC?

6 Weeks 'Til Belize

Today marks 6 weeks from the date we leave for our honeymoon!  Woo hoo!  I'm so ready for Belize!  Well, at least my mind is...can't say as much for the rest of my body.  I was really hoping to keep up a little tiny bit of that wedding weight loss all the way through the next couple months to the honeymoon.  Yeah, right!  Not so much.  With the stresses of wedding planning gone, I've resorted to filling my time with cooking and eating and eating and cooking and eating.  It's been wonderful.  But now that I've surpassed the Newlywed 10, I think it's time to put a stop to this before donning a bikini on the beach next month.  Ryan and I both have fitness/weight loss goals that we'd like to meet by the time we fly away, so we're planning to team up and get this done together.  We thought about making it a competition, but that didn't seem fair, since he can pretty much lose weight by just thinking about it.  Why is it so easy for guys?  Anyway, we want to motivate ourselves with a reward, but we haven't been able to come up with anything really great.  Preferably, it'd be something in Belize...but we've never been there, so we don't know what to expect.  Any ideas?

Our goal is to look like this in 6 weeks:

Damn!  Right?  Ha ha!  Ok, I know...ain't gonna happen.  Whatev.  However, I probably can drop an lb or two with a couple minor lifestyle sacrifices changes.  Here are a couple ideas...

1. No more Diet Coke (well, maybe I could just cut back a little)

2. Cut back on cheese and dairy (including all that pumpkin spice creamer in my 4+ daily coffees)

(Damn you Coffeemate!)

3. Cut back on said 4+ daily coffees

4. Drink more water!  (I wish they had Diet Coke flavored water.)

5. Eat more lean (and mercury-free) fish

6. Eat more veggies (this one's easy, I love me some veggies)

7. Stop eating crap (I have a serious weakness for gummy bears and Twizzlers)

8. Become besties with Jillian (it'd be way easier if she wasn't such a mean bitch!)

9. Replace white bread and pasta with whole grain (yuck)

10. Stop obsessing over the scale

Now, if I can just follow my own advice.  Easier said than done.  Anyone else have suggestions?  Any weight loss secrets or advice you could share?  Come on, help a girl out!  I'll keep you updated on the progress. 

PSA - Kate Spade Sample Sale!

Just in time for the beginning of holiday shopping season, Kate Spade is having a sample sale!  You all know how much I heart Kate.  Now through Friday, November 13th you can find handbags, jewelry, shoes, accessories and home goods up to 75% off!!  Woo hoo!!  Did you know that the new designer for KS is coming directly to them from BURBERRY!!  I die.  You know you have a couple people on your holiday gift list that would love a little KS in their life (i.e. me!).  Here are some of my favs...

Snow Mass Stevie - $139 (below)

Fun, puffy, hot pink, ski-inspired.  Perfect for the winter season.

Tuileries Necklace - $98 (below)

Comes in pink or topaz.  Matching bracelet, rings and earrings available too!

Bennington Lori - $139 (below)

Classic black leather hobo.  You can't go wrong with this one.

Chantily Single Row Bracelet - $44 (below)

Shut up!  $44!  Remember this bracelet from this post?  Great gift idea!

Austin Small Coal - $119 (below)

Versitle, goes with black or brown!

Tortola Paola - $89 (below)

Perfect gold shiny clutch for the holdiay season.  Someone please buy this for me!

Chantilly Waterfall Necklace - $109 (below)

This is gorgeous!

Tarrytown Quinn - $189 (below)

I own this bag in black and brown.  It's classic and very durable.  It also comes in orange, blue and midnight.

Earmuffs - $33

Perfect for the winter snows that are coming our way.

Tarrytown Shino - $99 (below)

Simple little shoulder bag that will match everything.

Coal - $69

Perfect tote to carry to the gym, on errands or to the store. (I gave these as hostess gifts to my bridesmaids for hosting my bridal shower and they loved them!)

Deco Lace Dangle Earrings - $48 (below)

Available in pink or green.

Bleeker Streed Rudy - $119 (below)

I love the red!  Everyone needs a fun red bag for the holidays! 

All pictures from katespade.com.

Click HERE to be taken to the sample sale site.

Who would play you?

I was chatting with some friends last week and this question came up: "Which actress would play you in the movie of your life?"  I thought about it for a minute, but couldn't really come up with a perfect answer.  However, I was really surprised how many people knew right away which actress they wanted to play them on the big screen.  Answers were anywhere from a young Meryl Streep to Lindsey Lohan...quite a big difference there.  So, this past week, I've given it a bit more thought.  In order to play the character of ME, I'd need someone smart (most of the time), blonde (although not necessarily naturally), a little quirky (in a good way), outgoing (at times), slightly bitchy (regularly), bossy (all the time), stylish (in a conservative way), athletic (yet clumsy), and smoking hot (of course).  I decided to only consider actresses that are "around" my age, just for good measure.  Here are my favorite contenders...

10. Kate Hudson

Now that I think about it, Kate is WAY too cool to ever be me.  She's got a funky, sexy, bohemian fashion sense that makes me want to put on a turtleneck (although she can totally get away with it).  She's also WAY too smoking hot.  Although I do believe that Ryan would consider himself directly on par with A-Rod as a suitor. 

9. Amanda Bynes

Although she's a little younger than me, Amanda Bynes is definitely smart, quirky and athletic (yet clumsy).  From hosting her own comedy sketch show (The Amanda Show) to starring in numerous sitcoms and comedies, I think Amanda is WAY more funny and outgoing than I could ever possibly hope to be.  I think she'd be bored out of her mind with playing me.  

8. Brittany Murphy

From the made-over girl in Clueless to the babysitting rock star's daughter in Uptown Girls, Brittany is definitely blonde, quirky, and stylish.  Although, I think she might actually be a little too clueless for me. 

7. Sarah Michelle Geller

She's smoking hot, stylish, blonde, bitchy and bossy.  A really great combination!   But, from kissing a girl in Cruel Intentions to killing vampires in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I think Sarah Michelle might be a bit too badass for me. 

6. Kirsten Dunst

I don't even like Kirsten Dunst, so I don't know why I'm even including her on here.  Never mind.

5. Claire Danes

Claire Danes is definitely smart (she went to Yale), blonde, hot and stylish.  She's starred in the movie adaptation of some of my favorite books (Romeo & Juliet and Little Women).  And yet, sometimes I just don't know what to think about her.  Boring?  Serious?  Conservative?  Maybe she would be perfect to play me! 

4. Naiomi Watts

I'm only including Naiomi Watts because Ryan thinks she looks like me.  I don't see it (but am flattered, nonetheless). 

3. Amy Adams

Amy Adams is freaking adorable.  I want to be a fairy princess in a Disney movie.  I want to be Julie making Julia Child dishes.  I want that black dress she wore to the Oscars.  I want her gorgeous red hair!  Ok, maybe I should play her in a movie of her life. 

2. Rachel McAdams

Love her!  From Regina in Mean Girls, to Allie in The Notebook, to Clare in The Time Traveler's Wife...I'm a huge huge fan.  I have no idea what color her natural hair is (who cares), but she can definitely pull off blonde.  And I think Ryan would approve, although he'll insist on playing himself.

1. Reese Witherspoon

I super-mega-heart Reese Witherspoon.  Mad girl crush right here.   I honestly think we'd be besties in real life.  She's funny, quirky, smart, stylish and legally blonde.  I'm sure she can also be pretty bossy and bitchy when necessary (she owns her own production company, Type A Films).  Tracy Flick and Elle Woods put together!  And she seems to be a loving mom and has that girl-next-door sweetness about her.  I'm not worthy!

What do you think?  Please post a comment with your choice.  And let me know who would play YOU in a movie about your life.

Pumpkin Roll

I'm blaming crediting that beautiful blonde over at "For the Love" for tempting me with this delicious dessert.  She shares my love of all things pumpkin, Jeopardy (we both think we could kick ass on that show), tailgating at college football games, boots, books, J. Crew, cooking, In Style magazine, Halloween, diet Coke, Michelle Obama, and fun cheap accessories.  I love this girl. 

A few weeks ago, she posted a Libby's recipe for Pumpkin Roll that spoke to the very depths of my soul.  I have not been able to stop thinking about it and drooling over it.  A friend's mother used to make pumpkin roll for us when we were kids, but I haven't had it in ages.  So, yesterday I went out and bought a jelly roll pan and last night I made my very first pumpkin roll (actually, I made 2).  And they are delicious!!  I was slightly intimidated by the recipe (I've never made a jelly roll), but it was actually pretty easy and turned out really well.  Thank you For the Love!!

Libby's recipe can be found online HERE.

Ingredients:

CAKE

• 1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

FILLING

• 1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 6 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

Directions:

FOR CAKE:

1. PREHEAT oven to 375° F. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan; line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper. Sprinkle a thin, cotton kitchen towel with powdered sugar.
2. COMBINE flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt in small bowl. Beat eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Beat in pumpkin. Stir in flour mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.
3. BAKE for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.) Immediately loosen and turn cake onto prepared towel. Carefully peel off paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with narrow end. Cool on wire rack.  

FOR FILLING:

1. BEAT cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl until smooth. Carefully unroll cake.
2. Spread cream cheese mixture over cake. Reroll cake.
3. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.
   

 COOKING TIP:

 Be sure to put enough powdered sugar on the towel when rolling up the cake so it will not stick.

Justin & Christine's Wedding

What a great wedding and a wonderful weekend! The families had a blast at dinner.  The rehearsal dinner was so much fun. The decorations were great. The toasts were hilarious. The video slideshow was a big hit. The weather on Saturday was perfect - a sunny, crisp fall day. The bride was stunning! The dress was to-die-for.  The groom was glowing. The wine was flowing. The band was rocking. The parents were dancing machines.  The groomsmen were dead.  And the party lasted ALL night long! Here are a couple pictures.

The bridesmaids.

The groomsmen.

The rehearsal.

The tables.

The best man and maid of honor.

The baby I tried to steal.

The soon-to-be sisters.

The brothers.

The girls.

The happy couple.

The Party McCarty.

The groom's cake.

The toasting.

The roasting.

The after-rehearsal dance party.

The girls getting ready.

The hair getting did.

The bride!

The DRESS.

The first dance.

The proud parents.

The centerpieces.

The moms.

The joy.

The husband and the wife.

The Maid of Honor.

The ring bearer.

The MIL and DIL.

The McCarty family.

The DeCaro family.

The cake.

The sweethearts table.

The father-daughter dance.

The room.

The second dress.

The party!

The groomsmen in costume!

The singer.

The end.