Pork and Sweet Potato Skillet

Some days, it's just not worth getting out of bed. Yesterday, this was definitely the case, at least for dinner. I was so excited to try new recipes from my new cookbooks. I had actually bought myself a few cookbooks while Christmas shopping for others as a good girl treat to myself. The recipe I made last night was the entire reason that I bought the cookbook. Dan and DJ both love sweet potatoes. When I saw a ton of sweet potato recipes, I thought it would be a match made in heaven, like chocolate and peanut butter.
While I was making it, something just didn't seem right. It seemed a bit too soft for me, even though I followed the directions. I know that books put a lot of time and effort into making their food look good. That is why I bought the book after all, the pictures appealed to me. Mine just looked like mush. It was reminiscent of the pureed foods that I used to make for DJ when he was first eating solid foods. This recipe was horrible. Just bad. Throw it in the trash and make grilled cheese instead bad. Not a keeper, not even close. I adapted the recipe slightly. I didn't have caraway or fennel seeds, so I did not use them. If you have either of those, feel free to throw a teaspoon in a skillet and give it a try if it sounds appealing to you. Let me know if it made a difference.
Lastly, and I wrote about this last on purpose, I love my husband. He understands how I feel about food being wasted, so even if something doesn't taste good, we still eat it because it angers me to throw perfectly good food in the trash. About three-fourths of the way through the meal, I saw Dan spit out something into a napkin. He had an insect in his food! I was so mad, but I had no idea of telling where it came from. I knew that it wasn't in the pan when I started cooking. It wasn't in the meat or anything else that I chopped. Needless to say, it ended up in the trash after that! Today will definitely be better, because it can't possibly get any worse!

Ingredients
3/4 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon butter, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 medium sweet potatoes (2 cups), peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
1 small onion, sliced
1/4 pound turkey sausage, cut into 1/2 pieces
1 small red apple, cored and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 cup prepared sweet and sour sauce
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Instructions
1.) Toast seeds in large nonstick skillet over medium heat 30 seconds or just until fragrant, if using.
2.) Add pork and 1 teaspoon butter to skillet; cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes or until pork is no longer pink. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from skillet.
3.) Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter, potatoes and onion to skillet. Cover; cook and stir over medium-low heat 8 to 10 minutes or until tender.
4.) Add pork, sausage, apple, and sweet and sour sauce to skillet; cook and stir until heated through. Garnish with parsley.
Makes 4 servings.

Source: adapted from Favorite Name Brand: Fix It Quick, One Dish