'Home Interiors'

Sinds 1995  heb ik samen met mijn man Peter een interieurzaak in Sint-Niklaas. Vanaf de opening is onze zaak uitgegroeid van een 'decoratiewinkeltje' tot een zaak waar ons cliënteel terecht kan voor de volledige aankleding van hun interieur.We werken niet volgens bepaalde 'trends', maar volgen altijd ons hart...

Een 5-tal jaar geleden zijn we de trotse eigenaars geworden van een nieuw pand waar we uiteraard een groter aanbod kunnen aanbieden en waar we bovendien ook wonen.

Ik ben, net zoals mijn man trouwens,sinds jaar en dag groot liefhebber van alles wat met interieur te maken heeft. Onze zaak is 'geboren' uit die liefde...We zijn er ons  dan ook heel erg van bewust dat we bevoorrecht zijn om dit dag in, dag uit te mogen doen.Het is bovendien een job waar we dagelijks interessante mensen ontmoeten.

  

Ik ga via deze weg proberen een beeld te scheppen van alles wat ons bezig houdt en hoop dat jullie een beetje zullen meegenieten.....en dat ik jullie kan boeien in onze belevingen !

Enjoy !

Sabine

Pork Tenderloin with Pears and Shallots

Just when you've had it with summer and the f%#$*# air conditioning that barely works... bam, you suddenly find yourself having to wear a sweater when you go out at night. Ah, fall, how I've missed you. John's parents came over for dinner last weekend, and we wanted to cook something appropriate for the changing of the seasons. But before we get to that, allow me to introduce our newest (and tiniest) kitchen assistant, Penny:

Penny fits nicely in my apron pocket, and she looooves to eat. And now back to the cooking...

The finished dish looks pretty elegant, but it was relatively simple to prepare. You brown the pork tenderloin and then pop it in the oven while you prepare the pears and the sauce. The sauce contains pear nectar (find it in the International Foods aisle with the other Goya stuff), which adds just enough sweetness. We served this with some rice pilaf, roasted tomatoes and green beans, and my favorite fall dessert, apple squares.

Pork Tenderloin with Pears and Shallots
from Bon Appetit

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme plus fresh thyme sprigs for garnish
1 1 1/4-pound pork tenderloin
3 large shallots, each cut into 6 wedges through stem end, peeled
3 unpeeled small Bosc or Anjou pears, quartered, cored
4 teaspoons butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups low-salt chicken broth
3/4 cup pear nectar

Preparation:  
Preheat oven to 475°F. Mix oil, garlic, and chopped thyme in small bowl. Rub mixture over pork, shallots, and pears. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and shallots; brown on all sides, turning, about 7 minutes. Transfer shallots to platter. Transfer pork to baking sheet (do not clean skillet). Roast pork until thermometer inserted into center registers 145°F, about 10 minutes.
  
Meanwhile, add pears to same skillet and cook over medium-high heat until brown on cut side, turning once or twice, about 4 minutes. Transfer pears to platter (do not clean skillet).
  
Mix butter and flour in small cup. Add broth, pear nectar, and butter mixture to same skillet; boil until sauce thickens, scraping up browned bits, about 7 minutes.
  
Slice pork; arrange on platter. Surround with pears and shallots. Drizzle sauce over pork. Garnish with thyme sprigs.

Serves 4

 Download a printable recipe.
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Peach Sangria

My sangria is why I get invited to parties what people always ask me to bring to their parties. I brought this to my friends' Labor Day BBQ last weekend. I actually have special portable sangria pitchers for such occasions. I am serious about my wine cocktails, ok?

I also make a lovely red sangria, which we'll get to one of these days, but let's hang onto summer a little longer and talk about the peach sangria. This sangria is a bit sweeter than a red, and people who don't really even like wine that much (weirdos) love this. I was able to get a few end-of-season peaches at our farmer's market which I pulverized into peach puree using a stick blender. If you can't get good peaches, I've also used peach nectar (Goya makes this; it's usually in the International Foods aisle at the supermarket).

Don't buy expensive wine for this. Does it have a twist-off cap? Good-use it. Cheap Spanish table wine or a Sauvingon Blanc (I used the $3 Trader Joe's variety) will do nicely. As for the hard alcohol in this recipe, I usually leave out the brandy, but will sometimes substitute with Peach Schnapps or citrus vodka.

My favorite part of making sangria is cutting up all of the fruit. This recipe calls for sliced peaches, oranges, and apples, but feel free to throw in whatever you want. Berries, melon, or other citrus fruits would all work here. And most importantly... let the sangria sit in the fridge for several hours (preferably overnight) before you serve it. Trust me on this... if you taste it right after you mix it together, it's not going to taste that great. One day later, however, you will have something life-changing on your hands. Oh, and you might want to make a double batch.

Peach Sangria
adapted from FoodNetwork.com

Ingredients:
1 bottle white wine
3 ounces brandy (optional)
2 ounces triple sec
1 cup orange juice
1 cup pineapple juice
2 ounces simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water brought to a boil for 2 minutes in a small saucepan) and cooled (leftover syrup can be stored in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for 1 month)
3 ounces white peach puree (peel peaches, remove pit and puree in a blender with a small amount of water)
Fresh peaches, oranges, and apples sliced

Directions
Place all ingredients in a pitcher and stir to mix. Refrigerate at least 8 hours or up to 48 hours. Serve over ice.

Download a printable recipe.
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