Royal Foodie Joust

If I haven't told you already, I'm a member of the Foodie Blog Roll on the Left Over Queen's forum. I joined in order to see others' food blogs, share my blog with people other than my customers, friends, and family; to connect, discover and learn more about food.

One of the perks of being a member of the forum is the opportunity to participate in the monthly Royal Foodie Joust. I explain about it here in a post earlier this month.

White peppercorns are basically the black ones with no skin (the black part is the skin). Pink peppercorns are not a true peppercorn. They are actually the dried berries of the Baies Rose. Well, they can come fresh, whole, and packed in brine too but I have mostly seen them dried.
I have searched for more infomation on the Baies Rose but I come up with nothing. Nikki's speculation: It probably is being exploited for it's overproducing ovaries and the rest of the flower is discarded. I have seen Baies Rose in the ingredient list for fragrances and candles, but it's because I looked for it. Anyhow, the berries have a sweet peppery flavor and are popular in French cuisine. Qui. Qui.

Boursin is a fabulously rich triple cream cheese that is great spread on everything. It comes in five different flavors like garlic and fines herbs and shallots and chives. My recipe is not, but the the pepper and garlic varieties are kosher.

The sanguine color of the blood orange comes from anthocyanin, a naturally occuring pigment in fruits and plants. It shows up as any color from red to blue. It's presence indicates high antioxidants. The fruit itself is supposedly a hybrid of a pommelo and a tangelo (which is a hybrid of itself) that originated in Sicily.


Onto la recette...


Blood Orange Salsa
1 blood orange, peel and pith removed, cut into supremes and diced
1 navel orange, peel and pith removed, cut into supremes and diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 tablespoon mint, chiffonade (about 6 or 7 leaves, depending on the size)
1 jalepeno, stemmed, seeded, and minced
1 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients, toss, refrigerate for 30 minutes to chill before serving.

The dark, meaty look of a blood orange. Almost visceral. But not really.

Boursin Cheese Filling

1 box (5.2 oz/150 g) Boursin pepper cheese, room temperature

1 Tbsp orange peel

1 Tbsp lemon peel

1/2 tsp fresh lime juice

Combine ingredients in small bowl and set aside

Boy this stuff is easy!

Pink and white peppercorn crusted pork tenderloin

6Tbsp crushed pink and white peppercorns

1 Tbsp kosher salt

3-4 lb lean pork tenderloin roast

Butcher's twine for tying meat*

Nonstick cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray; set aside. Rinse tenderloin under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.


2. Using a spice grinder or hand-held grinder, grind peppercorns and put them on a plate and mix in the kosher salt.


3. Butterfly tenderloin by make a deep lengthwise cut down the center, being careful not to cut all the way through. Open the tenderloin up like a book. OPTIONS: #1--Have butcher butterfly the meat before you leave the store #2--Place the opened tenderloin between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Pound with a meat mallet until 1/4-inch thick.


4. Spread the Boursin stuffing on one half, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Roll up tenderloin and tie at 2-inch intervals with butcher's twine.

Creamy, lemony, peppery, orangey goodness. Hog tied. Hee hee.

(sorry about the pixelation [and the color] My camera sometimes sucks.)

*At your local grocer or butcher you can ask for some twine. More than likely he or she will give it to you for free.


5. Spray all sides of loin with nonstick spray. Place loin on pepper-covered plate and roll until all sides are coated evenly with pepper.

6. Place loin on prepared baking sheet. Roast in preheated oven for 25 to 35 minutes or until roast registers 160 degrees F on meat thermometer.

7. Let rest for 10 minutes and serve with blood orange salsa


Thank you for coming to see my creation.

Don't forget to vote for me :)