A Nice Little Sunday

We had a very busy day planned...finish cleaning, take S to the park, Chris wanted to watch the Bears game at Noon, I had to run to the grocery store to get a few groceries for dinner and Chris's parents were coming over for dinner.  The things I did not get done as planned were emptying all of my planters and putting them all away in the garage and replanting one with mums. Cleaning the garage.  So it looks like next weekend we already know what our plans are.. oh fun, I can hardly wait!

This morning I made us a quick breakfast before we went to the park.  I received the Spiced Pecan Pumpkin Waffle-Pancake Mix from Williams-Sonoma for a birthday gift; let me tell you it was the tastiest present a girl could ever receive.  I made the pancakes and they were absolutely delicious. I also made some of my other new obsession Trader Joe's Pumpkin Spice Coffee.  Once fall hits I am normally at Starbucks regularly to get my fix of Pumpkin Spice Lattes. I've always known from a calorie/fat standpoint they weren't good but never actually looked for fear of what I would find. Well I looked and I am truly sad that I did.  Let's just say it's a good thing I almost always hold the whip.  The Trader Joe's coffee doesn't get you 100% to satisfying the latte craving but it will definitely do.  I find that a dash of pumpkin pie spice is a nice little addition to my coffee.

Our visit to the park

Dinner Menu
Asian Pear and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese (from Food and Wine magazine)
Pork Tenderloin
Mashed Potatoes
Brussel Sprouts & Butternut Squash with a Bacon Vinaigrette
Homemade Apple Pie

Since I was only making the salad for four people I just cut the recipe down.  I also wasn't able to find pumpkin seeds so I had to leave that ingredient out.  It was still a really tasty salad.






For the pork I followed the marinade I made previously for beef tenderloin but tweaked it a bit.  In a zip lock bag I combine with the pork
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup toasted sesame oil
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup flour
3 cloves crushed garlic
fresh cracked pepper and sea salt
Marinate for 3-4 hours - Grill

I found the vegetable recipe on the Williams-Sonoma website.  I wasn't able to find the steamed chestnuts because most stores apparently only carry them seasonally (and the three stores I went to don't consider this to be in-season).  I also found that I needed to saute the butternut squash and brussel sprouts for a little longer than the recipe states.  It may be that I didn't blanch them quite long enough. But either way it turned out quite well.





This meal was rated 3.5 asparagus spears