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Here in Washington State (and countless other places of course) it is asparagus season. When I was young, my mom and I used to cook up some hard boiled eggs and sizzlean then jump into the car with Bunny the mastiff and drive down to the banks of the river. There we looked for asparagus. It was hard to find with all the other reedy plants around. We stopped to play in the water and even carved our names into a tree. Those days with my mom are still some of my fondest memories (I had a silver coat! Rad!) and I think of her every time I eat asparagus. Which is admittedly a lot.
I found some big fat asparagus at the store this week. Chef Beef and I were in the mood for a quick dinner so I found some lean top loin steak and assigned him to the grill. (That is his fire roasted garlic butter on the steaks -- its a secret process I know nothing about)
I cut the asparagus (2 bunches) on the bias and sauteed it in about 1TB of olive oil for about 4 minutes. I then added minced garlic (4 cloves) and steamed for another 2 minutes, then added pine nuts (1/4 cup) for another 2 minutes browning everything off. Here's how it all turned out. Fast and supremely good.
I want to like 30 minute meals but I don't. I don't like cooking with crappy canned and processed food. I also don't like being duped into recipes that promise quick cooking time...as long as you have done all your prep work beforehand....that is the whole point...if I had time to dice carrots, I wouldn't need your damn 30 minute recipe. So I have set about trying to create and document my own creations, recipe adaptations, and ideas for those of us who work and need to create good food sometime before 11 pm. One of my best (only?) skills is time management and that is something that I feel like I can contribute to parts of the recipe world. Good time management and organization is really the key to cooking great meals quickly -- after all, that's how our favorite restaurants get things out the door in an efficient manner. This is a meat and potatoes starter...and my first stab at writing a really detailed recipe, so if you see room for improvement, please let me know.
Pork Marsala with Roasted Red Potatoes -- 45 minutes
Task 1: Prepare (5 minutes) and Roast Potatoes (40 minutes)
Items Needed:
1 lb red potatoes
1 Tb fresh thyme or herb of choice(I simply run my fingers down the thyme twig in the opposite direction of the leaves) Adjust quantity as desired
1/4 c olive oil
Kosher Salt and Pepper
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Scrub and dry potatoes
3. Cut potatoes in half onto cooking sheet (I like to roast on a 'jelly roll' or high sided pan)
4. Drizzle 1/4 c olive oil over the potatoes. Sprinkle with heavy pinch of kosher salt , 20 twists of pepper, and recently liberated TB of thyme.
5. Mix potatoes with bare hands (or gloves) until potatoes are reasonably covered with oil and seasonings
6. Rinse Hands
7. Place potatoes in oven, set timer to 40 minutes.
Task 2. Prepare (10 minutes) and cook Pork Marsala
Items Needed:
1/4 c flour
1 tsp salt
10 twists pepper
1 tsp paprika
Around 1 lb pork loin
2 Tb olive oil
1 package pre-sliced mushrooms (buy whole if you have an extra 5 minutes)
1 bunch scallions
1 Tb Mustard
1/2 c Marsala
1/2 c chicken stock
1. Get a bowl and stir together 1/4 c flour, 1 tsp salt, 10 twists pepper, and 1 tsp paprika
2. Take your pork tenderloin, rinse, and pat dry. Cut tenderloin into 6 medallions.
3. Wash hands
4. Get a large skillet. If you are skilled at meat and heat, use non stick because the deglazing process will yeild a much richer result. If not, teflon up.
5. Put 2 Tb olive oil in skillet and set to medium high heat
6. Take pork medallions and dip each into the flour mixture, pressing lightly to coat both sides and edges. Once you are finished dipping all 6 and rinsing your hands again, the oil should be ready.
7. Saute flour coated medallions in pan for about 5 minutes on each side. Watch your heat carefully and adjust heat/oil as needed for your range, however, don't move them around too much or they won't brown well.
8. Meanwhile, use the 10 minute saute time to rinse and dice up those scallions.
Interlude: At this point you will be about 20 minutes into things. Take 5 minutes and pull your intrepid potatoes from the oven and give them a stir or if you're neurotic like me, flip each one over for maximum browning.
9. Depending on the thickness of your medallions and how rare you like your pork, pull the medallions from the pan, put on a plate, and cover with foil. You can a. stick them in the oven with the potatoes to finish for 5 mintues, or simply set aside to rest.
10. Introduce 8 oz pre-sliced mushrooms and bunch of diced scallions to the hot oil in skillet (which is now empty of pork). Use moisture of vegetables to scrape up brown bits in pan for about 5 minutes (mushrooms should be well browned).
11. Add 1 TB of mustard and stir until vegetables are coated. Now deglaze with Marsala first, followed by chicken stock. Keep stirring and adjust heat downward closer to medium. Bring sauce to a simmer and it should thicken nicely.
12. When reduced by about half, re-introduce pork and drippings to the pan of sauce and make sure the pork is coated and warm.
13. About this time, your timer should go off and you should rescue your potatoes from the oven.
14. Plate and eat (in time for bed).
Here in Washington State (and countless other places of course) it is asparagus season. When I was young, my mom and I used to cook up some hard boiled eggs and sizzlean then jump into the car with Bunny the mastiff and drive down to the banks of the river. There we looked for asparagus. It was hard to find with all the other reedy plants around. We stopped to play in the water and even carved our names into a tree. Those days with my mom are still some of my fondest memories (I had a silver coat! Rad!) and I think of her every time I eat asparagus. Which is admittedly a lot. 
