On Friday evening we traveled to the nearest 'bright lights' section of Thibodeaux for some amazingly delicious sushi, probably some of the best I've had, and I've had a lot, at Geaux Fish. If you're ever down there, you should definitely have a try. If you're into a frozen alcoholic beverage, there's also a Daiquiri Explosion on the way into Thibodeaux, but we were nice and full from the sushi so we didn't venture to test how volatile the daiquiris were. Though we did venture to the Rouses (which I thought seemed very rotunda-like) for some other 'supplies', of which was a Turtle King Cake, a new and wonderful experience.
On Saturday morning we enjoyed delicious coffee from his fancy shmancy Keurig brewing contraption (if you haven't seen one, check it out, very cool; makes tea and hot chocolate too!). That afternoon, we were thinking of going to Oak Alley (the plantation has a restaurant) for lunch, but the weather decided to go all 'hurricane' on us, so we searched for a place with a bit of an overhang. Upon Father's suggestion, we went for B & D's Seafood Market and Cajun Restaurant (market on one side, restaurant on the other). Super fresh and palate-pleasing! We had corn nuggets for appetizers, which is exactly what it sounds like, sweet corn in a fried ball, so worth it! I ventured for a simple item of a Fried Shrimp Po-boy; probably rivaled anything I've had down in New Orleans; delicious corn batter instead of flour made for just the right texture; A+. Becca went for a Shrimp & Crab-stuffed Potato, and she ate the whole thing! So that tells me a lot, because most meals are too much for her and I usually finish them!
Saturday evening brought a good opportunity to visit with 2 other 'bayou' priest friends who concelebrated our wedding with Fr. Chris. We had a very blessed time together, and shared the experiment for which this post is named. That morning I found a recipe in one of the kitchen's cookbooks and decided to go for it (see below). Other than the food, we were very grateful to see our friends. Although they seemed a bit tired, they're young (as I so often hear about Becca and me), and they seem to be doing very well in their parishes down there. We hope you can join with us in continued prayers for them and all priests. They do so much for us, the laity, yet they are human and need God's grace and strength too. So we were all too happy to prepare a simple, and hopefully good, meal for them. Hopefully you can enjoy the recipe, and make variations of your own!
Ingredients (increased amounts from the recipe, as the tenderloins we worked with were larger, here's the modified recipe...sort of)
-1 small onion, finely chopped-2 tbsp garlic, minced (I used some out of a jar, worked fine)
-Cooking spray (I used Olive oil)
-1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I excluded these in our try)
-10 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and drained (don't forget to thaw it!)
-6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
-2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
-Salt and black pepper to taste (and other things)
-2 (3/4 pound each) pork tenderloins, trimmed (we used a 4.5 lb pair of tenderloins)
For the glaze:
-4 tablespoons Dijon mustard
-2 tablespoon dried rosemary, crushed (till it looks good)
-1 tablespoon dried oregano (till it looks good)
-1 tablespoon dried thyme (till it looks good)
-1 tablespoon pepper (till it looks good)
-1/2 cup Chablis (I think we used a Pinot Grigio, any dry white will do)
Directions
- Cook onion and garlic in a pan sprayed with olive oil, over medium heat, stirring constantly until onions are tender.
- Add mushrooms (if you used them) and cook, stirring constantly, for three minutes. Stir in the spinach, bacon, one tablespoon Dijon mustard, salt and black pepper; set aside.
- Slice each tenderloin lengthwise down the center. Cover with plastic wrap and pound into a 12 by 8 inch rectangle (or just till its flat).
- Spoon 1/2 of the spinach mixture over tenderloin, up to 1/2 inch of the edges. Roll jellyroll style, starting with the short side. Tie with strong string at 1 1/2 inch intervals. Repeat with second tenderloin. Place them seam side down in a shallow pan coated with cooking spray (or olive oil). -Instead of rolling 2, I filled 2 separate ones but tied them openings-together as 1.
- Combine the glaze ingredients, mix well. Spread evenly over both tenderloins. (on the bottom too). Add wine, might want to use more than 1/2 cup, after an hour, most of it baked out)
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 60-70 minutes (time extended for more meat).
- Remove from oven, let the tenderloins rest for 7.25 (just kidding, let it cool silly!) minutes before slicing.
Enjoy!
~Nick
P.S. I hope everyone has a happy and blessed Lent, and may we all draw nearer to our Lord...my goal this season is to write, write, write! Drop me a line, I miss you people!
