Spice Cured Pork

This is a recipe we got from my husband's cousin. She made it for Christmas dinner and it was so good Michael had to get a copy from her :) This is the second time I made it. The first time I found it to be a little salty, so I didn't put quite as much as the recipe calls for. I'm not sure exactly how much I put in, so for this, I left the recipe in it's original form.

I'm getting two new cooking magazines, but unfortunately my pots, pans, and skillets are still over at the other house, but it shouldn't be much longer until we have it moved. We're getting really sick of eating out, so hopefully I will be able to get a lot of new recipes up here soon :)

This must be cured over night, so don't forget to start it the day before you want to eat it!

2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp and 1 tsp crushed sea salt
1 Tbsp fresh ground black pepper
1 Tbsp dry oregano
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground clove
2.5 lbs pork tenderloin
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup water

• Mix sugar, salt, pepper, oregano, coriander, and cloves. On a baking sheet, completely coat tenderloin with spices. Refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Heat olive oil until very hot in large skillet. Sear tenderloin until brown on all sides (leaving a crusty skin)
• Place tenderloin in a shallow baking pan. Leave room so juices don't burn.
• Brush tenderloin with syrup, reserve leftover. Pour water around tenderloin.
• Bake 10 minutes, brush with the rest of the syrup and pan juices. Return to oven, but add water if juices start to scorch.
• Bake for another 10-15 minutes and take temperature. Will be fully cooked at 150-155 degrees and may take more than 25 minutes total.
• Reserve juices and let stand for 10 minutes.
• Pour juices over meat. Drizzle with olive oil if dry.

Chicken Marsala

I got this recipe out of an application on my phone. I absolutely LOVE the stuffed chicken marsala at Olive Garden, so I thought I'd try a version at home (this one is NOT stuffed). As usual, I used chicken thighs rather than breasts, just remember that they are smaller so you have to use more of them.

1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp water
3 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp pepper
1-1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
4 boneless chicken breasts (or 8 thighs)
2 Tbsp sliced green onion
1/4 cup dry marsala or dry sherry
1/2 cup dry marsala wine

• Pound chicken with a meat mallet until 1/4" thick.
• Mix together salt and flour, pat chicken in mixture until coated.
• Spray a skillet with nonstick spray (unless using a non stick skillet) and preheat over medium heat.
• Add half the chicken and butter, cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until tender (or until no pink remains). Transfer to a platter, keep warm, and repeat with remaining chicken.
• Add mushrooms, green onion, water, and salt to skillet. Cook over medium heat until mushrooms are tender and most of the liquid has evaporated (about 3 minutes). Add marsala or dry sherry to skillet. Heat through. Spoon over chicken.