Green Beans with Caramelized Onions and Bacon

Thinking this would be a nice side for my continuous "thanksgiving", I bought the goods. And while I didn't intend to deviate from the original recipe, I did. There was supposed to be a cider vinegar addition at the end but I got discombobulated after adding the bacon too early.

Green Beans with Caramelized Onions and Bacon
from Cooking Club, Oct/Nov 2010
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8 bacon slices (8 oz.), chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
4 c sliced onions (2-3 large)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 lb fresh green beans

Cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until crisp, stirring frequently. Drain on paper towels.


Discard drippings from skillet; wipe clean with paper towels.

Heat oil in same skillet over medium heat until hot.


Cook onions, salt and pepper, covered 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adjusting heat as necessary. Uncover, cook 5 minutes or until light golden brown and very tender, stirring frequently.

I started the onions and cooked them covered for 10 minutes, then added the salt and pepper before cooking continued another 5 minutes.

Cook beans in large pot of lightly salted water 6-8 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain well.

My beans were cooked in a 4.5-quart saucepan.

Just before serving, heat onions, and beans in large skillet over medium-high heat until heated through, stirring frequently.


Transfer to a platter and serve.



This was good even though I didn't do the recipe exactly as written. But if you think about it, onions and bacon with crisp-tender green beans? How could that be bad? It wasn't bad, but it still wasn't as good as the Green Beans with Shallots and Walnut Oil. I couldn't help make the comparison. Maybe if I'd used the cider vinegar it would've been as good? Maybe one day we'll find out.

Cost:

• bacon: $1.42
• olive oil: $0.44
• onions: $0.93
• fresh green beans: $3.06

Total: $5.85 or about $0.73 for each of 8 servings.

Spiced Balsamic Pork Tenderloin

Because the pork tenderloins I bought at Costco come in packs of two, I needed another tenderloin recipe pretty quick after making the first one. This one calls for things I generally have on-hand anyway so there was no special purchases at the store; that's a win for me especially if it turns out to be tasty.

Spiced Balsamic Pork Tenderloin
from Cooking Club, Fall 2012
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2 tsp packed light brown sugar
1 tsp dried sage
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 1-lb pork tenderloin
2 tsp canola oil
1/4 c balsamic vinegar
1/4 c water
1 1/2 tsp hot sauce, such as Frank's

Heat oven to 350°F.

Combine brown sugar, sage, thyme, pepper and salt in a small bowl.


Rub over pork, pressing to adhere.


Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot.


Cook pork 4 minutes or until browned on all sides; place on foil-lined small rimmed baking sheet. Reserve skillet with drippings.


Bake 15-20 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145-150°F. Cover loosely with foil.

My tenderloin went from 66.2°F to 146.1°F in 18 minutes.

Let stand 10 minutes; thinly slice.


Meanwhile, heat reserved skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add vinegar, water and hot sauce; bring to a boil.


Boil 3 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring to scrape up any browned bits from bottom of skillet. Serve over pork.


Well, well! This tenderloin turned out marvelously! But with a simple dry rub and balsamic vinegar, that isn't really all that surprising, is it? Plus it reminds me of this tenderloin, but with a little more pizzazz and a little less velvet. Done in just about 45 minutes, I'll be sure to keep this one in mind the next time I'm in a tenderloin mood. And I bet it's fairly inexpensive. Let's see.

Cost:

• light brown sugar: $0.01
• pork tenderloin: $3.96
• canola oil: $0.19
• balsamic vinegar: $0.67

Total: $4.83 and rounding up to $5 to consider dry spices, that makes each of three servings about $1.67.

Charred Autumn Squash Mash with Bacon

A few years ago I made twice-baked butternut squash potatoes. I adapted a recipe and it didn't turn out great. Looking back on it, I can see that I did things by choice I wouldn't do the same way today. Then sometimes I just get excited and go astray by accident because I didn't read the ingredients list thoroughly and it's still good.

Originally written for a buttercup squash, I used a butternut in this recipe. And honestly, I didn't realize that until right now. I didn't know that if a squash name started with "b" it'd be anything but a butternut. Did you? Not only was I supposed to use a buttercup, but the squash wasn't supposed to be peeled. I just looked at how long that squash line was on the ingredients list and assumed "peeled" was in there.

Charred Autumn Squash Mash with Bacon
adapted from Cooking Club, Fall 2013
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6 slices apple-wood smoked bacon, coarsely chopped
3 (6-inch) sprigs fresh thyme
3 (6-inch) sprigs fresh sage
3 lb. buttercup squash, halved lengthwise, seeded, cut into wedges (2-2.5")
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 c sliced shallots
3/4 - 1 c hot whole milk
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Heat oven to 400°F.

Cook bacon in large nonstick skillet over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes or until brown and slightly crisp; drain on paper towels. Reserve bacon drippings in skillet.


Line large rimmed baking sheet with foil, lightly coat foil with cooking spray. Arrange thyme and sage on baking sheet. Lightly brush cut edges of squash with 1-2 tablespoons of the reserved bacon drippings; place cut-side-down over herbs.

The hot bacon grease cooled quickly when brushed onto the squash pieces. The solidified grease made the squash look like candles.

Bake 20 minutes; turn squash. Bake until browned and tender, 10-40 minutes.

The second baking time was supposed to be 10-15 minutes according to the original recipe.

Transfer squash to large bowl; reserve herb sprigs. Using potato masher, mash squash until smooth.


Discard all but 1 tablespoon bacon drippings in skillet. Add butter to skillet and heat over medium until hot.


Add shallots; cook 1 minute or until softened, stirring frequently.


Reduce heat to low; stir in mashed squash.


Slowly stir in 3/4 cup milk, adding additional milk to desired consistency.


Crumble roasted herb leaves over squash, discarding stems.


Reserve 2 tablespoons bacon for garnish; stir in remaining bacon, salt and pepper.


Cook 3 to 5 minutes or until hot, stirring constantly. Serve garnished with reserved 2 tablespoons bacon.


As I said above, the recipe turned out well even though I didn't follow the directions to a T. I thought the milk in the squash mash would be weird, but nope, not at all. The roasted herbs looked crazy since they were so dark and crispy but what a pleasant little trick! With the bacon there was nice variation in texture and little flavor explosions. Yep, this was a good one.

When I do this next time, I'll plan for 60 minutes of roasting time and will flip the squash after 30 minutes.

Cost:

• apple-wood smoked bacon: $1.56
• fresh thyme: $1
• fresh sage: $0.56
• butternut squash: $2.76
• unsalted butter: $0.05
• shallots: $0.72
• whole milk: $0.25

Total: $6.90 or about $1.15 for each of six servings.