Easter Dinner

We had some dear friends and family for dinner on Easter Sunday.  It was great evening, we even got to watch the Tour of Flanders!

My husband charged me to make a somewhat healthy dinner.  I think I delivered.  All of our guests seemed to enjoy it too!  We started with shrimp cocktail and hummus with carrot chips.  I love a super spicy cocktail sauce.

Cocktail Sauce

3/4 cup of good ketchup

1/4 cup of fresh grated horseradish

1 TBS of fresh lemon juice

1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp of fresh cracked pepper

Combine and serve with shrimp.  Enjoy!

For dinner we had pork tenderloin, honey roasted sweet potatoes, and asparagus.  I tried a more paste-like marinade for the pork and it was really great.  It definitely helped that my husband did a great job grilling it low and slow.  The sweet potatoes are a recipe from Ellie Krieger and they were DELICIOUS!  The honey and lemon are a great combination.

Rosemary Pork Tenderloin

2 TBS of fresh rosemary, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

4 TBS of olive oil

1 tsp of salt

1 tsp of pepper

2 medium (1.5 lbs) pork tenderloins

In a resealable bag, combine the rosemary, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Add the pork to the bag and massage well.  This helps to disperse the marinade and inject the flavor.  Let this stand in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.  Bring up to room temperature prior to cooking.  Cook on the grill using an indirect cooking method.  Enjoy!

Honey Roasted Sweet Potatoes

2 TBS of honey

3 TBS of olive oil

Juice of 1/2 of a lemon

1/2 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp of pepper

2 lbs of sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces

Preheat the oven to 375degrees.  Combine the honey, olive oil, lemon, salt, and pepper.  Place sweet potatoes in a 9"x13" baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.  Pour the honey mixture over the potatoes and toss to coat.  Bake for 50-60 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Enjoy!

For dessert, I prepared a Mixed Berry Pavlova.  I followed the recipe exactly except I altered the Triple Raspberry sauce.  This is a great dessert and a little different.  It is such a great way to use all the berries that are in season starting in the spring.  

Raspberry Sauce

1/2 pint of fresh raspberries, rinsed

1/4 cup of water

1/4 cup of sugar

1/4 sugar of seedless, no sugar added raspberry jelly

2 TBS of pomegranate liquor

In a small sauce pan, combine the raspberries, water, and sugar.  Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 4 minutes.  Add the raspberry mixture to a food processor with the jelly and liquor.  Pulse until very smooth. Place in a container and chill.  Use the sauce over everything ice cream, fresh berries, or yogurt.  It is delicious!  Enjoy!