Make Stuffed Iowa Pork Loin With Us!
We got a new grill and have been trying out all kinds of new recipes and brushing up old favorites around here!
Let me tell you, Pit Boss is the ultimate grill, and we are in love!
We got the Sportsman 1230 Wood Pellet Gas Grill combo. This beauty can smoke, bake, braise, roast, grill, barbecue, char-grill and sear, all in one machine!
So, on to one of our favorite family recipes!
Stuffed Iowa Pork Loin
Ingredients
Vegetables
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (extra virgin)
• 1 small onion (or half of a large onion – chopped in small pieces)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 4 garlic cloves (crushed)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 6 mushrooms (baby portobello – chopped small)
• 2 cups baby spinach (chopped medium/small)
Pork and layering the filling
• 3.25 pounds pork loin (blot dry with paper towels)
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup crumbled bacon or bits
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 large apple (chopped small)
• Meat seasoning or rub (we use Rufus Teague)
Instructions
• As you cook the onion, use that time to chop the other vegetables to save time.
• Heat a large sauté pan on medium heat, add olive oil, then add chopped onion and sauté for 7 minutes or until translucent. Stirring occasionally.
• Add salt, pepper, crushed garlic, stir and cook for 1 minute.
• Add mushrooms, stir and cook for 2 minutes.
• Add chopped spinach, stir and cook for 1 minute or until the spinach wilts. Set aside.
• Preheat smoker to 250 degrees.
• Butterfly the meat
• Spread the mustard evenly on the pork.
• Sprinkle on the shredded cheese, bacon and apple chunks.
• Spread on the vegetable mixture.
• Refold pork and sprinkle with grill seasoning or rub.
• Place the pork on the grill, add the meat thermometer, and smoke for roughly 3 hours or until inside temp reaches 145 degrees.
Viola!
We love ours with grilled sweat potato wedges!
Let me know what you think of the recipe!
And if you have any questions on the grill, ask away!
XO,
Jess
Lawn Chairs and Cookouts
Yesterday I finally got the garage sale lawn chairs finished! Remember the old blue metal set we got for $10? The one that looked like it belonged next to pink plastic flamingos in, well, not our yard? Yes, those are nice shiny black now! Before:
Now:
All we needed was a couple fun cushions. Well, that has been a task. Since these chairs are so old no cushions are the right size! And, have you noticed how dull this year’s “summer” colors are? Blah! But, we stopped in at K-Mart just to check, and found a decent, fun and bright set. Not what we thought we wanted, but it will work for this year! They are a bit different shape, but when you sit in them and squish them down they are perfect. I would also like to add a couple red throw pillows to match the ones we would like to throw on the hammock (coming soon!). Here’s what we have so far:
Better! And Tony even helped me pick ’em out! So, we decided to celebrate a productive day (and the fact that it didn’t rain!) by grilling out and having dinner at the picnic table.
The pups even joined in! Have a great weekend!
P.S. Just for the record, the blue on the chairs was a really pretty color. But, we have a lot of red in our yard and it just wasn’t matching what we wanted to do out there. But, after already painted the set black we realized the new cushions do have the exact blue in them! Oh, well, sticking to the plan! Now they are versatile enough to change our minds on cushions all the time! (if they weren’t so ridiculously expensive!)
More Party Ideas
It is still raining here in Illinois, and I am still tired from a busy weekend of graduation parties. So, we have no progress, no news, no excitement. But, I have seen a few more party ideas that are inspiring me to be a bit more creative when planning for the upcoming engagement party…
I love when details in party decor match or have the same vibe. We are going with a lot of red for the party, so not only is this bowl of drinks our color, but it just feels like our style. We are working on a similar idea.
Ki at Junk Camp made this condiment holder with vintage industrial light cages. I would love to be able to find enough things to make on of these in time for the party. Isn’t that adorable!?
Silverware in cans would mean less plastic garbage and an easier way to carry them all outside. I was also thinking about using our vintage picnic basket.
Galvanized buckets have a charm to them. These bottles are even pretty!
These last two vintage inspired photos by photographer Philip Harvey are just so pretty. I love the bright colored chairs under the trees. This will be more what our space will look like. The beach scene makes me want to some how hang a canopy over the tables…
Make Mine Eclectic 