pork tenderloin with apples and leeks

It's been so beautiful outside, I'm just loving family walks. I can tell Owen loves them as well in his Baby Bjorn. He seems to believe he's walking right along as he kicks his little legs like crazy every time we're moving. We went to Happy Rolph's today and Owen got his first look at farm animals. He was completely fascinated. I loved it because we were one of the only families there. We had a beautiful lakeside stroll - just us and the chirping birds.


I am pleased with my recent use of fridge and pantry items that were coming close to expiration. I had ricotta from last week and half a stick of cream cheese I didn't want to go to waste. So I decided to use them up and make Everyday Food's Lemon-Ricotta Tart again. I was only too pleased to make this a second time since I am continually dreaming about how much I enjoyed it this past Easter. I happened to have exactly half the required Nilla wafers, cream cheese and ricotta left over, so I halved the entire recipe and Voila! Lemon-Ricotta Bars!

Another detail that worked out amidst all odds was that I managed to bake these with that oven issue I mentioned last week. I did this by heating the broiler and keeping an eye on the temperature with the manual thermometer. I kept tin foil around as a fail-safe, but didn't end up needing it because as the oven slowly cooled the dessert baked perfectly.

I also made last night's dinner of Pork Tenderloin with Apples and Leeks under the broiler. I always knew pork and apples were a classic combination. I can remember growing up and eating pork chops with apple sauce. Well, I remember it clearly because I absolutely hated it.

The same way Swiss Chard with Raisins & Pine Nuts surprised me, this recipe is so surprisingly delicious I can't believe it. Every single ingredient compliments each other in a simple and most fantastic way. I will definitely make this again and probably serve it for a dinner party in the future. It's really that much of a show-stopper!