Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce

There isn’t much to say about this recipe except that it was very tasty.  I think the fact that the pork chops I used were really great helped things. They came from my meat buying club.

Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce (Gourmet, May 2005)

• 4 (3/4-inch-thick) pork chops
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots  *I used red onion*
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup country-style Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream *I used unsweetened evaporated milk*
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 325°F.

Heat a dry 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot. Pat pork dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add oil to hot skillet, swirling to coat, then brown chops, turning over once, about 8 minutes total. Transfer to a shallow baking pan, reserving skillet, and bake, uncovered, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Let stand, loosely covered with foil, 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour off fat from skillet, then cook shallots in butter over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add broth and any juices from baking pan and boil, scraping up any brown bits, 2 minutes. Add mustard and cream and return to a boil, then add lemon juice and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened, about 3 minutes.

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Grilled Steak Sandwiches

I don’t have any pictures for this sandwich, but I am sure that there will be photos for future incarnations of this amazingly simple meal. 

It all started while I was at the grocery store picking up things for tonight’s dinner (more on that later).   I needed something for lunch and Jason wanted to grill since the weather was so nice.  I went in thinking hot dogs, but then a revelation came to me… grilled steak sandwiches!  I like to grill a marinated london broil and then serve the thinly sliced steak on a roll, but there was no time to marinate a whole london broil.  Alas!

A stop at the meat counter showed thinly sliced sirloin tip steaks.  I picked up two packages (pretty cheap), and then a bottle of Stubbs Beef marinade.  When I got home, I dumped the beef and the marinade in a ziplock first off, then unloaded the rest of the groceries.  About 15 minutes later, all of the groceries were put away and the meat was on the grill.  About 5 minutes later, the steaks were layered onto a nice club roll with horseradish, A1 sauce, cheddar or swiss cheese, lettuce and tomato.  Add chips and a pickle and we beat a hot dog by a mile.

I am sure you could do this with skirt steak, but the grocery stores in my area do not always carry that cut of meat.  Both are very thinly cut, and take really well to quick marinades.

What a nice afternoon; we got to eat out on the deck, and discuss all of the possible toppings and combinations we could think of to make this little steak sandwich a regular in the rotation.   I think it would be great for tailgating or having a bunch of friends over.

 As for tonights dinner, we are trying out red oak plank grilled salmon.  If we aren’t in a food coma later on I will post the recipe if it turns out well, so come on back, ya hear!

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I’m baaack…

Y’all thought that I had totally forsaken the blog, didn’t you?  Well, we have been cooking new things, but to be honest, I just haven’t felt like taking pictures or writing up the recipes.  It makes me feel bad though, because I look at these nice dinners that we have had, and I feel I didn’t give them the 15 minutes of fame that they deserved. 

Well, we have had some yummy things this weekend, and so I have to take the time while I have it to share them with you.

The first is Butternut Squash and Chorizo soup.

This past summer, our friend Alba introduced us to chorizo sausage. I was skeptical, because I am not normally a sausage fan. But the chorizo that she made us was more like a more spicy version of keilbasa, and it wasn’t too spicy.  She sent us home with our own package and we tried it in different ways and really enjoyed it.  Our favorite way was sliced into coins, then sauteed until brown and served on a nice slice of italian bread for an appetizer (recipe courtesy Alba).

The CSA program that we were a part of over the summer had left us with a nice butternut squash that I had no idea what to do with and felt bad seeing it look back at me from it’s basket, asking when it would reach it’s destiny.

I got this recipe out of a Rachel Ray cookbook, and I decided instead of using the frozen pureed squash that she called for, I would try my hand at roasting and pureeing my own squash.  It wasn’t hard; I roasted the whole squash at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes.  Once it had cooled, I cut the squash in half and scooped out the seeds, then peeled off the skin (it was sort of like peeling the skin off of a roasted pepper).  I cubed the flesh of the squash, tossed it in my food processor and chopped the heck out of it with some salt and pepper.  I drizzled some non-fat creamer through the lid to help everything get moving.  Wha-la. 

Okay now the recipe:

• 1/2 lb of chorizo sausage  (see pictures below)
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic,  minced
• 1 tbsp chili powder (I think this was too much)
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• puree of butternut squash
• 1 quart chicken stock

Remove the Sausage from the casing and either chop or crumble into small pieces.  Brown the sausage in a large soup pan, then add onion, garlic, cumin and chili . ***note:  I would taste the chorizo first and see if you think it is spicy enough as it is before you add the chili***

After the onion is softened, add the squash and chicken stock until you reach the desired consistency.  Let simmer for 15 minutes.   Add salt and pepper to taste.   Garnish with a little bit of sour cream if you like.

My notes:

 

The chorizo sausage that Alba shared with us was not available at my store, so I bought what I could. This brand was more like an italian sausage than kielbasa, to my dismay.  Not to mention it was pretty spicy.

The soup was still good, something different than the norm.  Next time I would try a different brand of sausage, and not add as much chili, maybe none at all.  Oh, and I would use the frozen squash, it would truly make for a 30 minute meal.  We had this with a good grilled cheese sandwhich.

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