Grandma's Stuffed Pork Chops

Recently I've been thinking and reflecting on family. I loved getting together for large family gatherings, extended family, and always good food. A friend suggested recently I record these memories here by posting family recipes. This one comes from my grandma on my fathers side. My dad talks about how he and my uncle used to fight over the bigger chop.

Start with pork chops on the thicker side. Cut them through the middle, 

not all the way, just a pocket.

 

Heat the oil in a skillet and heat the oven to 425.
Stuff the pork chops with the prepared stuffing and season on both sides with season salt.
Add the chops to the pan and cook until golden brown on one side. Flip all of the chops and add the onion to cook at the same time. The onions are my addition, not Grandmas.

Once the chops are browned on both sides, but not cooked all the way through, top with the can of tomato sauce. Bake at 425 until the chops are cooked all the way through.

Cucumber feta salad

Hmmmm, what can I throw together from my fridge for lunch? This would be really good in a wrap with some chicken or tossed with some cold pasta for pasta salad.

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. kalamata olive, chopped

2 - 4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

1 green onion, chopped

1/3 or a large English cucumber, chopped

1 medium tomato, chopped

Stir it all together, taste of salt and enjoy!

Pork Paprika Skillet Dinner

This is sort of funny how this dinner came about. They say necessity is the mother of all invention. Well I really did not want to make dinner tonight, but, it is necessary. So I went out the the freezer, actually hoping for some bacon to eat with pancakes since that seemed really easy. And I found a tiny package of thinly sliced pork I had bought to make a Korean dish with, then forgot about, and bought more pork for that Korean dish. It was delicious though. So that brings me to this. And not wanting to cook dinner. My dad used to make a dish that we loved that was rice, some seasonings, and chicken all baked in the oven until the rice and the chicken were cooked. So I decided to try something like that here. I seared the pork, added the rice and seasonings and baked until done. While that was cooking I cooked some frozen green beans and opened a bottle of sweet and sour red cabbage. And we have a nice Sunday dinner with such minimal work. 

6 fairly thin pork chops

Season salt

2 tsp. Paprika

2 - 3 Tbsp. oil

1 onion

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1 pork bouillon cube (enough for 2 cups)

3 c. water

1 1/4 c. rice

Pre-heat the oven to 450.

Heat the oil until sizzling. Season the chops on one side lightly with the season salt and put in the pan, seasoned side down. Lightly season the other side and sprinkle lightly with paprika. Once the pork is lightly browned in spots flip over and add the onion. 

Once the second side is lightly browned add the water, bouillon cube, and black pepper. Bring to a simmer, when the bouillon cube is dissolved add the rice stirring to combine. Bring to a boil again, cover, and place in the oven. Stir after 10 minutes, replace the lid and bake until the rice is cooked. About 10 more minutes.  

Remove from the oven and let stand still covered for 10 minutes.

Blueberry Hand Pies

A make a strawberry galette a few weeks ago and had some leftover crust, so I made a few mini blueberry tarts to enjoy. I loved them so much I made them again for company tonight. I started with the crust recipe I like so much with a few minor changes. 

So I add a little more sugar than it calls for and in place of the shortening I grate in a stick of frozen butter (half a cups of butter) and the rest of the fat I pour in some coconut oil.

For me this made 13 hand pies that were perfect for 1 person.

For the filling I used almost 3 packages of blueberries, I used three and had some filling left over. I think it was about 6 cups total. I mixed it with 3/4 a cup of sugar, but that also depends on your berries. Then add 1/4 cup tapioca flour and about 2 - 3 tablespoons of lemon juice. Mash about 1.2 of a cup of them lightly just to create a little liquid. Stir it all together and let it sit while you mix up the crust. 

It was really easy to assemble from there. I hate rolling and cutting stuff out and dealing with leftover scraps. So I spit the dough into pieces and rolled them individually. They should be about 5 inches across when it's all flat. I started to make ten pies but they were rolling a little too big so I pinched some of the dough off of them and it made enough for three more. Put the rolled out dough on the tray you will be baking them on. I recommend a no stick mat as well, tin foil works too. I have done both. Top with just under a half a cup of filling. I like to stir the filling before scooping each time since the liquid tends to settle. Top with the filling and fold the sides in around the berries. Brush the crust with cream and sprinkle with a coarse sugar. 

Bake at 425 until they are golden brown. I think it took about 25 minutes. You don't want the liquid that seeps out to burn on the pan or it will lend a charred taste to the pastries. Cool on the pan no more than5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. I'm not sure how long these stay good before they get soggy, I suspect they would get soggy if made the day before but I'm not sure since we haven't ever had them last that long.

Cauliflower Soup

Cauliflower soup is sort of simple and complex at the same time. It's pretty straight forward. Cauliflower, broth, cream, and usually cheese. In mine anyway cheese is a must. But it never turns out quite the way I want it to taste, it's usually kind of flat, bland, and watery tasting no matter what I do, and no where near as good as Zupas. But the fix was pretty simple, instead of boiling the cauliflower for soup, roasting it makes all the difference. Also a good blender so it's actually smooth and not just chopped super fine.

1 head cauliflower
oil
Salt, pepper, garlic, manchego cheese
Chicken broth to cover
handful or two of gouda cheese
heavy cream, about a 1:8 rations of cream to broth

Cut the cauliflower in to smallish pieces. Toss with just enough oil to coat, I like olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic to taste and the toss with grated manchego cheese. Roast at 450 until very golden in spots.

Once that is roasted combine in the vitamix with the chicken broth and cheese. Add to a pot and simmer until heated through and gouda is melted. Stir in heavy cream and cook until hot. Taste for salt and pepper and serve with crusty bread.

Raisin Filled Cookies

This started off as Golden Raisin cookies from King Arthur Flour. Some basic changes had to happen though because I don't like hard chewy raisins.  So I simmered the raisins in cinnamon water until they were soft and then chopped them up a little. The drawback to that was while they were really good, they don't keep over night. The raisins make the cookies soft, which was actually delicious as well.


2 c. flour

1/2 c. powdered sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 stick butter, frozen

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 c. coconut oil

7-8 Tbsp. ice water

Filling

2 c. raisins

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

water to cover

Cream

Coarse Sugar

Simmer the raisins together with the cinnamon. Once they are plump and soft drain and chop. Put them on a paper towel for a little while preparing the dough to dry out as much as possible.

Another change I made was cream on the top instead of egg with the sugar to top.

The rest of the directions are the same as on the King Arthur web site so you can look there for directions. 

Pumpkin Bombe

Just wanted to post this picture of something fun and tasty. The pumpkin recipe is my own, the cake recipe is not. And cake will work here, but the quinoa cake is perfect. It's rich, moist, and sturdy. 

Start with the bombe pan, I got mine on Amazon. Coat them with a layer of chocolate. Once it is set up, coat them with a second layer. Once they are totally first fill them with

Pumpkin chiffon

I made a little wellin the pumpkin and filled it with caramel. 

I baked a thin layer of the chocolate quinoa cake from Mel's Kitchen Cafe and used a cookie cutter to put it in to the right size to fit in the bottom. 

Then chill again to make sure the shell is firm to remove from the pan. 

I tried to remove them with the flat side up at first and stretch the pan away from it to loosen and I ended up cracking the chocolate. I found it was easier to have the flat side down and peel the pan away from the chocolate. Mine were stick from the caramel so I put them in muffin liners.

Corn Chowder

1 lb bacon

1 large onin

10 ears fresh corn

2 large potatoes, cut in to 1/2 in cubes

2 carrots, grated

1/4 c. flour

6 c. chicken broth

1 1/2 c. milk

1 c. heavy cream

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1/4 tsp. tabasco

1 tsp salt or to taste

Cook the bacon until crisp. Remove from the pan and saute the onion in the drippings. 

While that is cooking sliced the corn from the cobs and reserve both.

Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 - 3 minutes. Add the broth, potatoes, carrots, and corn cobs. Simmer for 5 minutes and then add all the remaining ingredients except the corn kernels.

Simmer until the potatoes are completely tender. Remove the corn cobs and add the kernels to the soup. Simmer 2 minutes longer. Taste for salt. 

Serve with the bacon crumbled on top.

Bacon Jalapeno Deviled Eggs

Well Easter was fun, and delicious food was enjoyed. None more so than these deviled eggs. After making the blue cheese eggs the other day I thought it would be fun to play around with other flavors too. It's seemed like a fun place to switch things around. This time I tried jalapeno, cheddar, and bacon. It works. It works really well in fact. I heated chopped fresh jalapeno on one side of the pan and bacon bits in the other.This time I used half of the jalapeno and none of the seeds. Next time, depending on who else I am eating them with I think I will use the seeds and give them some kick.

6 eggs, cooked and cooled

1/2 - 1 whole jalapeno

2 Tbsp. bacon bits

3 small sliced green onions

1/4 c. shredded cheddar cheddar cheese

1/4 - 1/2 c. mayo

Nature Seasons

Remove the yolk and mash with the mayo. Stir everything else in and season to taste. Then refilled the egg whites with the mixture and enjoy. 

Chicken Shawarma

I like to look at other cultures for new flavor ideas. But I also like stuff that is simple enough to use for everyday meals. This is both, a new flavor to enjoy but simple enough to make in a hurry. 

We enjoyed it the first night with couscous and green beans on the side and the leftovers the next day in wraps. I tossed the romaine with a little olive oil, sliced green onions, and a pinch of salt. I think a drizzle of tzatziki would be great too.

 4 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp. onion powder

2 Tbsp. Coriander

2 Tbsp. Cumin

1 tsp allspice

4 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

Several large squirts Texas Pete

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/3 c. olive oil

Combine all the seasonings and rub all over the chicken. Cover and put in the fridge for 2 - 3 hours. 

Put a cookie sheet with a cookie cooling rack on it in the oven. Heat the oven to 500 and let the pan heat up. Once the oven and the pan are hot spray it with cooking spray and put the chicken on the cookie cooking rack. 

Cook on the top rack in the oven for 5 minutes. Flip the chicken over and cook another 5 minutes. 

Put the chicken on the bottom rack in the oven, turn to 400, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes before slicing.

Bacon Blue Cheese Deviled Eggs

These are by far the best deviled eggs I have ever eaten. I kind of love them. A lot. I like regular deviled eggs too, but they aren't something I think of making all that often. Mostly Easter or when I am making snacky foods. These though I have made two days in a row and can't wait for an excuse to make again and share them with other people. It also got me thinking of other flavor combinations that I might like. I think next I am going to try sauteed jalapenos, bacon, and manchego cheese. 

But I'm getting a little ahead of myself here, I need to tell what these are first. 

I'll start with the eggs themselves. So I boil them a little funny, i read somewhere a long time ago and I can't remember where to give credit a way to boil them so the yolk doesn't get that gray ring around it. Anyway, put the in a bot of barely simmering water and bring to a boil. Boil them for 5 minutes and remove them from the heat. Cover and let them stand like that for 10 minutes and chill until ready to use. 

Once you are ready to use them I smashed the blue cheese with the mayo. Not to a perfect blended consistency. You want some cheese chunks in there. Then season them with Nature Seasons. Mix in the cooled yolk, sliced green onion, and crisp bacon. Then just squeeze it back in to the egg like normal. The first day I didn't actually garnish them just to eat. When I decided I wanted to take a picture though and share them I made the eggs all pretty.

For the bacon I like the bacon that is pre-cooked and bagged for salad. I do crisp it slightly in a non stick pan. It has the same flavor and it stays crisper, it doesn't get soggy. Just make sure and use real bacon bits, not bacon flavored bits. That would be nasty.

I think for amounts I use about a heaping teaspoon amount of blue cheese for 3 eggs, One green onion, sliced for 3 eggs, and about a tablespoon of bacon for 3 eggs. For a dozen eggs that works out to 4 green onions, a quarter cup of bacon bits, and a golf ball sized chunk of cheese.

Strawberry Rhubarb Galette II

I was excited when I made this, it was the delicious accompaniment that dinner needed that night. And I thought maybe I would come and post it over here. As I was looking around over here, it has really been a while since I used this regularly I noticed I had already posted a strawberry rhubarb galette before. The reason I had forgotten was that it was good, but nothing really special and not where near strawberry rhubarb pie. But this version was and I can't wait to make it again. 

For starters I made my own crust. It's a totally different type than store bought crust is and it made a works of difference here. Also the filling was a lot fuller and chunkier. 

Crust Recipe

I really liked that crust recipe. I made a second one a few days later with apple pie filling and caramel mixed together and baked and it was just as good. Before baking though I brush the crust with cream and sprinkle with large sugar. It helps the crust turn golden and it looks pretty. 

It was a last minute idea to make, and I didn't have all the ingredients I would have normally used so I had to improvise some but it worked out perfectly.

2 c. frozen rhubarb

1 c. frozen berries, thawed slightly and chopped

1/2 a small box of strawberry jello

sugar taste

2 Tbsp tapioca starch

I tossed everything in a bowl and stirred it up before making the crust. You want it to be sticky and no powdery bits left before you add it to the crust. 

Two things I learned, the hard way.

1) Put the crust on the pan you are baking it on, not the one you rolled it out on, before adding the filling. Once you add it, you can't move it. 

2) You don't want the filling to be frozen solid when you add it. It will stiffen up the crust and cause it to break when you fold it over. If that happens the filling can leak out making a sticky mess, but also burning on the bottom of the pan. 

Play around with it, have fun, it accommodates whatever filling you want to make.

Feta Broccoli Salad

Salad ingredients

2 c. chopped fresh broccoli

1 orange pepper, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1/2 cucumber, chopped

2 green onions, sliced whites and green parts

1 large head romaine, sliced

4 oz. feta, crumbled

 Dressing

3/4 c. olive oil

2 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Whisk together all the dressing ingredients until the sugar is dissolved. Toss with all of the salad ingredients and enjoy immediately.