Back at It: Pickled Peaches, Pork & Maple Balsamic Reduction

Soooo. I don't have a dishwasher in my new place. That, and the fact that I'm still unpacking bit by bit has stifled my cooking for the past few weeks, but I'm back: on a schedule and finding my routine.

I'm a graduate student now. Instead of working forty hours a week I am now taking classes for fourteen hours a week, working as a graduate assistant for another ten and then working part-time for at least another five. I haven't decided which I prefer. So far, with my hours and hours of class work included, my free time is looking sparse.

But that won't stop me from cooking. It's therapeutic for me: mixing and tasting and measuring. Your mind must be in it and not thinking about the hundred other things that could be occupying your mind (like another pending deployment for the A-man). So on Saturday I decided I was going to use three peaches I had from the Farmer's Market, plus a pork tenderloin and use up that half-bottle of balsamic vinegar I toted from Boston. And after some research and recipes, this is what I came up with:



Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Pickled Peaches and Maple Balsamic Reduction
(gluten-free, dairy-free)

Maple Balsamic Reduction:

1 cup of balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons earth balance (or butter)

Put balsamic vinegar in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a medium-low and let simmer for twenty minutes. Add the maple syrup and earth balance and whisk. Take off heat and let cool and thicken slightly, then it's ready to use.

Pickled Peaches:

The pickled peaches recipe that I used was taken from the Whole Foods website, which can be found here. The only substitution that I made was using agave instead of sugar.

Pork:

1 pork tenderloin
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1-2 tablespoons olive oil

Coat the pork in olive oil, then coat with the garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least four hours. Then, grill over medium heat on a grill about twelve minutes, turning four times.

I served this dish with pureed sweet potatoes (the balsamic reduction goes really well with this) and kale chips. And, Henry really liked the pork.

Sweet and Sour Pork

Going out to eat for Chinese food is often tricky in the gluten-free world. Many foods are made with soy sauce, which in most cases, is made from wheat. Fortunately, restaurants like P.F. Changs have gluten-free menus and do a great job at making their food available to all. But it's still nice to have a few Chinese (well, Americanized Chinese) dishes in your repertoire. Here's one of my favorites -- made just a bit healthier.

This is a typical sweet and sour pork recipe. It doesn't call for anything particularly fancy, except for agave which is my preferred sweetener (but you can certainly use sugar). Also, my sister recently made the recipe with tofu instead of pork -- making it easy to convert vegan as well. Also, instead of being served over rice, the A-man and I opted to serve it over lightly sauteed shredded cabbage; a now favorite option of mine.

Sweet and Sour Pork (gluten-free, dairy-free)

Serves 2 for dinner

About 2 pounds of pork tenderloin (or drained, extra firm tofu), cubed
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup canola or grapeseed oil
1 cup cubed fresh or canned pineapple
1/2 chopped yellow onion/pepper/carrot (optional)

for the sauce:
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup agave
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons gluten-free soy sauce

In a wok or skillet over medium heat, add the oil -- make sure it doesn't smoke. Meanwhile, add the cornstarch to a large ziploc bag then the pork and shake until evenly coated. Fry the pork until crispy in small batches and drain on paper towels. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan add all of the sauce ingredients and whisk together. Bring to a boil and then let simmer for a few minutes. Adjust agave and vinegar if desired. Add the pork back into the wok, then add the pineapple and vegetables, then the sauce. Stir to combine and serve over rice or lightly sauteed shredded cabbage.