I was single until the age 43. Most of my adult life I lived alone or with female roommates. It has been 20 plus years since I lived with a man and even though I dated a lot, as anyone will tell you, it’s not the same as living with a man 24/7. D and I have lived together for nearly two years now and I still find myself amazed by the differences between us and more specifically I’m mesmerized by the male anatomy. Now I have to be delicate in my discussing “male anatomy” because even though D doesn’t read my blog he would not be thrilled to know that I am discussing his body in a public forum. That being said, I love my husband and everything that entails. It’s just that I marvel at his body and the fact that I live with a man. Sometimes when I see him in all his nakedness I am transfixed. I find myself staring which he thinks is funny and weird. I just love having a beautiful man at my disposal, all the time. Simply put, it’s fun and I find myself giggling just thinking about it. We live in our bodies without really giving them much thought. I am a woman and it’s just who I am. The fact that I live with a man now is amazing to me.

Aw … love!

Okay, okay … enough already, I’m supposed to be writing about food and teaching people how to cook not bragging about my handsome hubby.

I don’t watch a lot of Food Network but one show I do enjoy is “Chopped”. I love to see what the chefs will do with the crazy ingredients they are given. It inspires me to try new things, to stretch my palate and to take chances. Yesterday I got my cook on. It’s been a long time since I felt inspired enough to actually experiment in the kitchen. I suppose I’m not much of a planner which would explain why this blog is so sporadic. In my defense, having only half a kitchen does make it challenging to come up with inspired food and then take pictures of it.

Anyway … last night I made Spicy Pork Loin with Mushroomy Rice Pilaf and broiled Sun-dried Tomato and Balsamic Eggplant and I took a fuzzy picture of it, Yay!

Spicy Pork, Mushroomy Rice Pilaf, Sun-Dried Tomato & Balsamic Eggplant

As you may recall, I love to prepare meats with rubs. I find they infuse flavor much better than a marinade in much less time. I have also learned to let meat rest before serving. Two simple things that will make your cooking life so much easier and rewarding. With this in mind I figured why wouldn’t it work with Eggplant? I don’t have a lot of experience cooking Aubergine. ( Which is also my favorite color)

My favorite color!

So I dusted the slices with a mixture of onion flakes, powdered sun-dried tomato, garlic powder, salt, red & black pepper and just a tiny pinch of sugar; then I threw them under the broiler for 10 minutes. After they were finished I drizzled balsamic vinegar and a pinch of parmesan cheese. Yummy! D didn’t even hate it.

Rice Pilaf is my go to starch. It’s easy with Jasmine rice, onions and baby portabellas. I used the same spices as the eggplant to tie the two dishes together. For the pork loin I used a combination of chili powder, red pepper flakes, garlic, salt and onion flakes with dried cheddar powder. I pan seared them on each side for about four minutes then finished them in the warm oven for another five minutes.

Dinner was a success! D ate two servings and I vowed to actually blog about it. Woo hoo!