What a sauce! (Plum Chutney)

This past week I was visiting my parents, and I cooked dinner for them I made a pork tenderloin with a plum chutney and roasted new potatoes. Nothing super hard or fancy. My dad, of course, told me about all the times I messed up when I was learning to cook in high school. (I am much better now I promise!). However, both my parents loved the pork that had been rubbed with herbs de Provence served with chutney on top. In fact, my mom asked for the recipe! For those of you with mother's that cook, you know its good when they want your recipe. 

Of course, my parents labeled the meal "gourmet", but whatever. It tasted good. So here is my recipe for Plum Chutney.

Plum Chutney

Ingredients:
3-4 fresh plums, pitted and roughly chopped
1/4 c. diced white onion, fresh or frozen
1/3 c. raisins
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
Water as needed

Directions:
Put olive oil in your pot. Add the onion. If frozen, turn heat to medium to thaw. Add remaining ingredients. Add water until plums are just covered. Simmer 25-30 minutes. Serve warm with pork or beef.

Substitutions: This will work with any stone fruit such as peaches or nectarines. Also, cranberries can be used instead of raisins and shallots can be used instead of onion.

Enjoy!

Curate Spanish Tapas

Yesterday was my birthday. Now let's not get too excited. I didn't go out and I didn't have a cake...mostly because my husband refused to bake me one! 
On the other hand, knowing that my birthday was going to be on a Monday, my husband endeavored to make my weekend spectacular.

So, the majority of this post is going to be about Curate, a Spanish Tapas restaurant in Asheville, North Carolina. 

Curate is amazing! I love Spanish tapas, but it has been a while since I had been to a tapas restaurant, so Price made a reservation. We walk in, and see past the bar to a kitchen. The smells wafting through the restaurant are phenomenal. We get to our table, and are overwhelmed by the selection.

Here is what we finally decided on:
A pitcher of white Sangria
Tabla de Jamon (a Spanish ham trio)
Asparagus in a romesco sauce
Steamed littleneck clams in white wine sauce
Morracan lamb skewers
Cheese plate 


It was, in a word, sublime. The sangria was refreshing, the cured hams divine, the asparagus perfectly cooked, the clams were juicy, the lamb tender and the cheeses superb. What more is there to say?


Now the Spanish ham trio was 3 types of ham: Serrano fermin (good, but common), Iberico fermin (special spanish pigs cured the same as serrano), and Iberico de bellota (they only feed the pigs acorns! it makes the meat very nutty). Personally, I liked the iberico fermin the best. It was creamy. Who knew ham could be creamy? Price enjoyed the iberico de bellota. It was hearty and strong. 


I strongly recommend curate to anyone wanting to experience Spanish tapas while in Asheville!


Enjoy.