For 2 years now I have been committed to receiving a CSA box of fruits and vegetables every other week from Terra Organics.  I love it! Locally grown produce that I get to pick online and then have delivered straight to my door. Not only do I feel good knowing that I support my local community, it has changed the way I cook. Instead of coming up with recipes and heading to the store for all the ingredients, I now start with what I’ve already got on hand. For instance, I had a bunch of rhubarb delivered this week. Knowing that we had friends coming over later in the week for dinner, I immediately went to the fridge to check my produce and decided to feature our meal around the rhubarb. Rhubarb; how it shines in  tarts, pies and crumbles. But what about for a main course and what would go with it? To Pinterest I went, looking desperately for a match. This recipe for pork chops and rhubarb mostarda looked to be the best fit for our evening. I made the sauce in the morning (you can also do it the night before), only leaving the marinating and grilling to be done. What a marvelous dish. The sauce by itself is sweet and strong flavored, but perfectly compliments the pork. All were happy at the table. Final note; I have been waiting for the perfect meal to pair with one of the bottles of Riesling I brought back from Alsace, France. This was it. The Riesling was fairly dry and didn’t compete with the rhubarb. I would encourage you to look for something similar, dry to semi-dry Riesling.

Enjoy!

Grilled Pork Chops with Rhubarb Mostarda

Ingredients

For the rhubarb mostarda:

2/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1 Tbs. peeled and minced fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 1/2 lb. rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch chunks

1/2 small red onion, finely chopped

2 Tbs. dry mustard

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

3 Tbs. fresh lemon juice

2 Tbs. olive oil

2 small garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

4  pork chops

2 Tbs. coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)

 Directions

To make the mostarda, in a large, heavy pot, combine the sugar, vinegar, ginger, garlic and cumin. Place over low heat and bring to a simmer, stirring frequently to dissolve the sugar. Add the rhubarb and onion, increase the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring frequently to break up the rhubarb, until the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Stir in the mustard, season with pepper and stir until smooth. Let cool completely. If desired, refrigerate overnight. Return the mostarda to room temperature before serving.

In a shallow nonreactive dish that will hold the pork chops in a single layer, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil and garlic. Whisk in the salt and pepper. Place the chops in the dish and brush both sides thoroughly with the lemon mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 hours, turning the chops occasionally.

Remove the chops from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes. Remove the chops from the marinade and pat dry. Reserve the marinade if using a charcoal grill.

Prepare a medium-hot fire in a grill, or preheat a cast-iron grill pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat.

Place the chops on the grill rack over the hottest part of the fire or in the grill pan and cook without moving them for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. Move the chops after 1 minute if the fire flares up. Turn the chops over and cook until they are golden brown and crusty, 2 1/2 to 3 minutes more. If using a charcoal grill, brush the chops occasionally with the reserved marinade. Move the chops to a cooler part of the grill or reduce the heat, and cook until the chops are firm to the touch but still have a little give, 2-3 minutes more.

Transfer the chops to a platter, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 3 to 4 minutes. Garnish with the parsley and serve immediately with the mostarda. Serves 4.

Recipe adapted from Williams-Sonoma

You gotta love a tender and juicy pork chop. Sage works ever so well with pork and if you get your hands on some of the fresh variety, you will reap the rewards of this pungent herb. For this recipe, I’ve made my own special seasoning for the chops. Using a pestle and mortar, pound up some garlic, coriander seeds, sage, sea salt, and white pepper for a wicked seasoning. If you cook it just right, you will get a succulent and sweet treat that melts in your mouth. People have told me that pork steaks are difficult to cook right. They say it is hard to keep it moist and juicy in the inside, while making sure it is cooked well-done. I am glad to tell you that is not the case at all. As a matter of fact, I believe porks steaks are one of the easiest to cook in your kitchen. Season them right and with a bit of TLC you are already there. Cook them on your grill for 3-4 minutes on each side depending on the thickness. You must resist at all cost to overcook them. Rest the steaks for 3 minutes and you will be in little piggy heaven. 

READY TO COOK?

1. In a pestle and mortar, pound the sage, garlic, coriander seeds, white pepper, and sea salt.
2. Season the mix onto your steaks, drizzle some olive oil all over, wrap them up with cling film and marinate for at least 1 hour (or overnight).
3. Pre-heat your oven to 200ºc.
4. When you are ready to cook, take out the stem of your mushroom. Stuff the mushroom with Parmesan, basil, and black pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and stick them into the oven. They will take only 12 minutes to cook.

1. Heat up a griddle-pan until sizzling hot.
2. Pop in your steaks and grill on each side for 3 and a half minutes (or 4 minutes depending on thickness).

1. Once the steaks are done, rest them on a warm plate for 2-3 minutes.
2. While the steaks are resting, heat up a small pan with a dash of olive oil.
3. Lightly sauté the kale in the oil under a low heat for 1 minute. Turn the hob off and add a knob of butter, sea salt and black pepper.
4. Plate your dish up with the kale, mushrooms, and pork chops.
5. I like a little bit of bread on the side to soak up the juices. I’ve also drizzled some sticky balsamic and mixed seeds on the dish to act as a sweet and crunchy sauce.

INGREDIENTS

• 2x 220g pork chops (any tender cuts like loin)
• 1 sprig of sage (finely chopped)
• 1 sprig of basil (finely chopped)
• 1 clove of garlic – crushed
• 1 tea spoon of coriander seeds

• 2 portobello mushrooms (or any huge mushroom you can find)
• 2 table spoons of Parmesan cheese
• 3 handfuls of kale (roughly chopped up)
• sticky balsamic vinegar
• 2 table spoons of mixed seeds
• olive oil (use a good one)
• sea salt
• black pepper
• white pepper
• knob of butter

I took a trip in a time machine….back to the woods of West Virginia when life was simpler and food was fried.

I loved this book.  Every time I opened its pages, I left this world of mortgage payments and to do lists, and I visited the world my family once occupied.  The backwoods of West Virginia is my heritage.  Stories of coal mines, family run grocery stores, churches filled with the same blood line; this is comfort.  Emmons recreated this world and characters who are believable and lovely, as well as flawed and damaged.

The story takes place in the 1970s and revolves around cousins who we meet when they are very young.  This is the story about bonding as sisters even when not, growing up in different ways, families who share great intimacies and life which smacks them in the face when deep secrets are revealed.  It is not a carefree book in the sense you won’t be affected.  Depending on your own baggage, there may be parts which are difficult to read; but life is that way, isn’t it?  There are parts which are just very hard.

The only disappointing thing about Emmons book was once finished I didn’t have another of her books to immediately begin reading.  This is a first time author who will be on my list to watch.

5/5 Stars

I also made Lipton onion soup potatoes as a side but what really caught me was the asparagus.

Usually, when I make asparagus to go with a meal, I do it the way my mother-in-law taught me, toss spears with generous amount of olive oil, salt, pepper and bake. Tuesday night, I was not paying attention and accidently grabbed the Old Bay seasoning (same can shape as my black pepper) and applied liberally before I realized what color it was. I merely mixed and continued. My husband and I use Old Bay on French fries a lot and it works out wonderfully.

Moving on!
To my normal asparagus mixture, I added about a Tablespoon of minced garlic (for those you who haven’t discovered the squeeze bottles of minced garlic at the grocery store, you are missing out!) and applied a liberal amount of shaved parmesan! I went nuts with it. Mixed it all and baked it at 375 F for about 15 minutes (we like ours with a bit of crunch) and stirred it twice. It was the best! I overdid the salt a tad but I didn’t mind the saltiness- but the parmesan added a lovely roasted cheese taste with a bit of salt added in and it completed the meal very well.

Don’t be afraid to experiment- sometimes the mistakes are better than the original recipe!

Brought to you by Julie Ohnstad of Atlanta, GA courtesy of the Food Network.

Some substitutions of course:  Coke Zero for Coca-Cola (and not flat, but I assumed that boiling it made that moot), jar of peaches (not fresh or frozen), yellow grits, and Palmetto Cheese with Jalepenos (instead of pimentos and cheese).  I also skipped the watercress salad.

Next time, I will also serve it with steamed broccoli or collards to add some green to the plate.

Drum roll . . . this scored one of the highest scores ever: a 9.5.  The husband especially loved the jalapeno pimento cheese grits!!

Whilst Calvary provides a nurturing environment for the members of its community naming the home after the hill which on which Jesus was crucified and died seems a joke. The Cessnock Cemetery, located about 450 metres ahead, makes one question the intent of the town planners. Perhaps they missed the somberness of the layout.

The mocking tone from the town seemed to influence the radio and my iPod. Mum and dad were listening to Eurythmics’ Here Comes The Rain Agin while a the Glee version of Céline Dion’s Taking Chances was filling my headphones. The words, ‘Talk to me like lovers do,’ overlapping each other in the chorus and bridge of both songs.

Today marked our first day in the Hunter Valley and it began with a stop at Carr’s Traditional Butchery.

Located on Wollombi Road, the butchery stocked a range of local cuts with Beef from Singleton and Lamb and Pork from around the Hunter.

In the end we decided that pork was the winner and chose bacon and some of the juiciest pork chops I’d ever seen. The flesh was deep pink and it was no doubt of a high quality and freshness.

Keep reading for my Pork Chops with Garden Salad and Pan-Fried Potatoes.

Keep Smiling and Happy Cooking!

Brendon The Smiling Chef

What you need:

• 1/2″ thick pork chops (or at least 1/4″ thick)
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Brown sugar
• Salt
• Pepper
• Fork
• Baking dish large enough to fit the chops

Preheat the oven to 375° (should take about 5 – 10 min, depending on how old your oven is)

Rinse pork chops under water and pat dry. Place in baking dish. Using the fork, pierce the meat all over, flip, and do the same again. Sprinkle each side with salt and pepper. Now eyeballing, cover each side with cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar. The best way to know if it will taste like pie is if it smells like it. Take a whiff and if it is missing something, add it. Pour the apple juice in the baking dish and bake uncovered for 30 min. Poof, voila, the pork is done!

Wild rice, cranberry sauce (with the cranberries included), stuffing, and steamed string beans will go well with these chops. Happy eating!

God Bless!

Jill’s Pork Chop Pot

• 1 package pork chops—any cut
• I can brown sugar–enhanced baked beans
• ½ cup or so brown sugar
• ½ can diced apples or apple pie filling (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place chops in a baking dish.
3. Pour beans over chops.
4. Add apple filling if desired.
5. Bake for approximately 1 hour, flipping chops halfway through. Feel free to splash some bourbon over those beans.

Faux Risotto

• 1 boil-in-bag package of white or brown rice
• 1 can diced mushrooms or 1 cup sautéed fresh ‘shrooms.
• ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

1. Prepare rice according to directions.
2. Finely chop canned mushrooms or mince fresh mushrooms and saute in olive oil.
3. Drain rice; add ‘shrooms and parmesan. Season to taste.

Italian baked shrimp

I just found this recipe on Facebook and decided to try it this weekend.

Melt a stick of butter in a disposable hotel pan (make sure you remove all plastic, of course). Slice one lemon and layer it on top of the butter. Put down fresh shrimp, and then sprinkle one pack of Italian seasoning over shrimpies. Put in the oven and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedules to read my blog! Have a great day!

instagram.com/annaschiele

Stuffed Apple and Brown Rice Pork Chops

Ingredients:
Thick cut pork chops (there were 9 in my package)
1 c. long grain brown rice (cooked according to package directions)
2 lg. Gala apples (chopped)
Butter (I didn’t measure, but it was about a tablespoon)
Onion (chopped)
1-2 tsp. Paprika
McCormick Grill Mates Applewood Rub
Mushrooms (optional, chopped)
Celery (optional, chopped)
How to do it…

Step 1:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Step 2:
Trim fat from pork chops. Make a deep incision into each pork chop, creating a “pocket”. Coat pork chops in Applewood Rub and place into deep glass baking dish.

Step 3:
Make brown rice according to package direction in a large pot. When finished, mix in chopped apples and paprika.

Step 4:
In small pot, add butter and chopped onions (along with mushrooms and celery, or other veggies of choice). Simmer on low until tender. When finished, mix into brown rice mixture.

Step 5:
Stuff brown rice mixture into pork “pockets”. If you have extra rice, add it around the sides of the baking dish. Cover with foil.

Step 5:
Bake in oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 25-30 minutes (I left mine in for 40, but it turned out a bit dry).

Step 6:
Enjoy!!

 
I’ve used this recipe for Breaded Pork Chops several times now, it came from an issue of Taste of Home/ Simple and Delicious. I love the Taste of Home various magazines and their recipes. To make the Breaded Chops I’ll need 1/4 cup Egg Beater‘s, 1/4 cup 2% milk, 1/2 cup crushed low fat saltines crackers, 2 boneless pork loin chops (1-inch thick and 4 ounces each), and 1 tablespoon Canola Oil. Then to prepare them is quite easy; in a shallow bowl, combine Egg Beater’s and milk. Place cracker crumbs in another shallow bowl. Dip each pork chop in egg mixture, then coat with cracker crumbs, patting to make a thick coating. In a large skillet, cook chops in oil for 4-5 minutes on each side or until a thermometer reads 145°. Let meat stand for 5 minutes before serving. The Chops came out moist and delicious and the saltines made a great crust for the Chops. I’ve left the original recipe, which makes 6 Chops, and the link to the Taste of Home website at the end of the post.

To go with the Chops it was leftovers. Bob Evans Mashed Potatoes and the Green Beans leftover from last night. Just reheat and served. I also baked a loaf of Meijer Bakery Artisan Harvest Grain Bread. Just love the fresh taste of their bread. For dessert later a Healthy Choice Vanilla Bean Frozen Yogurt.

 
Breaded Pork Chops Recipe

Ingredients
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup 2% milk
1-1/2 cups crushed saltine crackers
6 boneless pork loin chops (1-inch thick and 4 ounces each)
1/4 cup canola oil
Directions
In a shallow bowl, combine egg and milk. Place cracker crumbs in another shallow bowl. Dip each pork chop in egg mixture, then coat with cracker crumbs, patting to make a thick coating.
In a large skillet, cook chops in oil for 4-5 minutes on each side or until a thermometer reads 145°. Let meat stand for 5 minutes before serving. Yield: 6 servings.
Nutritional Facts
1 serving (1 each) equals 317 calories, 18 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 92 mg cholesterol, 246 mg sodium, 12 g carbohydrate, trace fiber, 25 g protein.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Breaded-Pork-Chops

Seriously, the best Buttermilk Fried Pork Chops Ever!

What you’ll need:

• 6 boneless pork chops, about 1″ thick
• 3 cups buttermilk
• 3 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 2 adobo seasoning packets ( I use Goya)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup shredded parmesan-reggiano
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tbsp. kosher salt
• 1 tsp. course ground black pepper
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 egg

What you’ll do:

1. Combine cayenne, adobo and buttermilk.
2. Arrange chops in a single layer and pierce with a fork all over. Then pour buttermilk mixture over and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (up to 24).
3. In a skillet (I used a cast iron), heat your oil to medium. And preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. Set up your breading station. You’ll need 3 bowls. In the first, place the salt, pepper and flour and combine. In the second, beat the egg and stir in the water. In the last bowl, combine the panko, parmesan-reggiano, and parsley.
5. Remove a pork chop from the buttermilk marinade and remove excess.
6. Move through breading station – coat with flour, coat with egg wash, and last coat with the panko mixture. Place carefully in the oil and allow to brown for 2-3 minutes on each side.
7. Once both sides are browned, place on cookie sheet and repeat for each pork chop.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
9. Remove and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
10. Enjoy!

As much as I loved that sauce, I still had left over blackberries in my fridge. I mentioned in that post that I would try something like it over a dinner dish like chicken or beef. I really didn’t think of pork as an option until I was browsing Pinterest. There I came upon an apple chutney pork chop recipe and thought, you know what, pork chops and blackberries would be a good combo!

So I hopped on Google to see what I could find:

Pork Chops with Blackberry Sauce.

Pork Chops with Blackberry Sauce

adapted from: PaleOMG

2 thick cut pork chops

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp dried thyme

salt and pepper to taste

12 oz fresh blackberries

1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tbsp water

1. Sprinkle spices on chops and press them into each side.

2. Combine blackberries, vinegar, water, and salt in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Heat until it begins to simmer, stirring often. **very important to stir frequently so that it does not burn.

3. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 3-5 minutes.

4. Pour half of the sauce into a bowl and set aside, return the rest to the low heat.

5. Brush one side of the chops with the sauce and place that side down in a skillet over medium heat.

6. Brush the other side with the sauce while cooking. Flip every 2-3 minutes, re-glazing each time. In total, the cook time takes  about 15-17 minutes.

7. Top with the berry sauce that continued to cook and thicken.

The flavor of these pork chops was amazing!! The sweetness of the blackberries combined with the saltiness of the chops is a great pair. Be warned, you may eat yourself into a coma or a stomach ache if you are not careful. They are that good.

Enjoy!

Ok, let’s hop backwards a bit to Easter and talk about what we really like to talk about on this blog…Food!  I spent Easter day with my momma who has also adopted the paleo lifestyle,  I will tell you – sharing the same eating habits with those close to you makes it a lot easier.  There is far less temptation and a greater community of support.  We cooked up some bone-in pork chops on top of baked apples and pears.
Here is what our delicious dinner looked like:

Here is the recipe we put together:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 F
2.  Slice apples and pears (we used 2 of each) and arrange in a casserole dish (we used a 1 1/2 qt glass one)
3.  Sprinkle the apples and pears with cinnamon and set aside
4.  Heat a skillet with a little bit of olive oil (enough to coat the bottom)
5.  Cook the pork in the skillet until each side is slightly browned (about 5-7 minutes total; flipping as needed)
6.  Place the pork chops on top of the layer of apples and pears in your casserole dish
7.  Cover (we used aluminum foil) and cook for about 45 minutes.  The fruit will be very tender and the pork should read close to 160 F on a meat thermometer.  (The USDA says pork cooking temp should be between 145 and 160 FYI)

Now, it was Easter and since we weren’t sitting around sampling sweets from the Easter basket anymore, we also made a paleo dessert.  We felt a rich, decadent (and most importantly) chocolate dessert was in order.  After all we had been fasting following a strict paleo lifestyle since February.  That was just a joke – we have all learned that there are tons of tasty paleo recipes out there   So, we made these paleo brownies courtesy of bakergal.com.  We made the version with the egg and did not add either optional ingredient.  Rich, decadent and sweet they were!  It was my first time cooking with Agave, which is what really brought out that sweet element.  We did make them in an 8×8 pan, but you could use a 9×12 for a bit thinner slices.  Like I said, they are rich – so a little bit will do ya!  They were equally delicious the following day…and that’s as long as they lasted.

I hope you all had an equally delicious paleo holiday, if you celebrate it.

Well, that does it for me…back to my day job.  Now that Chuck has reached his weight goal (dropped 20 lbs - jerk) and finished the Shamrock Shuffle last week, he will be back to blog soon.  Since his training for the run was sparse (read that as pretty much non existent), he credits the paleo lifestyle for his terrific results.  He completed the 8k in 44:08 with an avg pace of 8:53.  Not bad for a middle aged white guy.  Congrats to all the runners!

The Practical Cooks Junior Train for a 5k.

In this spirit, they’ve offered feedback on the menu, and I’m going to test a few things in the kitchen. It’s time to shake things up.

Speaking of shaking things up, there are some changes coming to the blog. If there’s not a strong objection from the masses, I’m cutting down to blogging twice a week, with a goal of bringing more to each entry. There will be more guests on board soon–more voices–and more multimedia. I miss making videos, and I’ve started podcasting in my work life, so who knows what could happen here.

But some things stay the same, and that includes weekly menu planning, and here they are:

Weekly Menus: 4/14/2013

The Four-Square Grocery List:

The Four-Square Grocery Shopping List: 4/14/2013

Which all translates into:

Sunday: Rotisserie Chicken Salad
I’ll have mine on greens, and TPCs Jr will likely have it on the side. This is an easy meal I’ve missed being able to make.

Chicken Jolt Salad with Espresso Cheese, Apples, and Dijon-Sherry Vinaigrette

Monday: Dine Out! (Pizza and Salad)
It is odd for me to have my dinner plans made for me, but not know my dining companions. A very cool idea from my friend who is organizing the Digital Marketing for Business conference, there are speakers’ dinners. I’m on a panel about Sexism in IT, that should make for lively dinner conversation.

Tuesday: Nachos
This is sponsored by TPCs Jr. I have no complaints, we haven’t had this lately. My challenge is shoving as many vegetables into the mix as possible.

These veggie nachos come loaded.

Wednesday: Fish and Greens
Probably fish packets, with citrus and herbs, and something green on the side. Starch to be determined.

Thursday: Pork chops!
Again, I’ve missed these. And with advanced planning, perhaps I’ll remember to take them out of the freezer to thaw!

Beautiful Pork Chops from Brinkley Farms

Friday: Leftover Surprise
I look forward to the surprise. I think it may be pork and mango on a bed of greens.

Saturday: Dine Out!
Not gonna lie, pretty excited about this one. There’s a Food Truck Rodeo, and I’ll be doing a joint review of it with fellow blogger VeggieMacabre. Oh, this will be epic. We’ve been planning this for over a year, and schedules finally lined up. I plan on eating one of everything, because that is what I do. Game on.

What are you cooking these days? I need an infusion of new ideas, or a challenge. Post a comment below. I accept all challenges that won’t kill me (shellfish and Nutella, well the latter won’t kill me, but my complaints will certainly be heartfelt). Or Tweet my way. I am listening!

Send avocados, salad ideas, and good intentions to practical cook at gmail dot com. Connect on Facebook: The Practical Cook Blog. (Thanks in advance for spreading The Practical Cook Blog word. Press “like” on Facebook today! Also, follow the food pictures on Instagram @amylewi.)

Next up on Wednesday: 3 Salad Ideas OR Greens with Envy.

I was in the market yesterday and was looking at the gorgeous asparagus that was on sale. I noticed that it was grown in Mexico, but it did not state whether it was conventionally or organically grown. I checked the PLU code and noticed it began with the number 8. 8? What the heck does that 8 mean? I checked my PLU code list and my mouth dropped when I realized that 8 is the digit that is used to identify food that has been genetically modified. Yup…genetically modified! I was shocked as I watched person after person pick up the asparagus and put it in their baskets. They had no idea (ok, maybe they did but just didn’t care).

I asked the produce worker stocking the asparagus if the store had any organically grown asparagus. I was led to a completely different part of the store where there was plenty of packaged organic asparagus. They didn’t look as pretty as the other asparagus, but I was not going to compromise my body simply for the look of the produce. On my way up to the register I ran into the same produce worker who was stocking the asparagus and asked her if she had any conventionally grown asparagus aside from the genetically modified ones. She looked at me like I had two heads (you know that look) and laughed. I asked her why she was laughing and she went on to explain how some people seem to know more about produce than is good for them. I explained to her that the number 8 digit on the PLU indicated that the asparagus was indeed genetically modified. She went on and on telling me how she has been in produce for 15 years and never has she heard of such a thing.  Just goes to show you that even the people that work with the food sometimes don’t know what they are even stocking.

Here’s how the coding works…
PLU codes have been used by supermarkets since 1990 to make check-out and inventory control easier, faster, and more accurate. Fresh fruit and vegetable PLU codes are used to identify bulk produce (and related items such as nuts and herbs). For example, they tell the supermarket cashier whether an apple is a conventionally grown Fuji apple which may sell for $1.29 per pound/kg versus an organically grown Fuji apple which may sell for $2.29 per pound/kg. In some instances the codes are also differentiated by size (e.g. small, medium, large).

The 4-digit PLU codes for produce are assigned randomly within a series of numbers within the 3000 and 4000 series. There is no intelligence built into the 4-digit code. For example, no one number within the 4-digit number represents anything in particular. The 4-digit codes are for conventionally grown produce. 5-digit codes are used to identify organic or genetically modified produce. The prefix of ‘8’ would be placed in front of the 4-digit code for genetically modified produce and the prefix of ‘9’ would be placed in front of the 4-digit conventionally grown code for organic produce. You will not see the 5 digit codes in the PLU codes database since they are simply prefixes added to the conventionally grown produce PLU codes.

So, a 0 in front of the 4 digit code means that the produce is conventionally grown. An 8 in front of the 4 digit code means it is genetically modified, and a 9 in front of the 4 digit code means that it is organic.

For example, a banana is coded at 4011, a conventionally grown banana would be 04011, a genetically modified banana would be 84011, and an organically grown banana would be 94011.

Simple huh? So, the next time you want to know how your produce is grown, and what you are putting in your body…check the PLU code.

And on a side note, the organically grown asparagus…I roasted it last night with some beautiful extra virgin olive oil (again from my favorite Mountain Town Olive Oil Co in Salt Lake), some Real Salt (again from Salt Lake) and pepper. It was absolutely amazing! It may not have been prettier than the other asparagus, but the taste…pure, gorgeous asparagus flavor with all of it’s intended nutrition. A happy tummy, intestines and body!

I had the roasted asparagus with a simple center cut pork chop…from humanily raised piggies. I love pig! The chop got the same treatment as the asparagus. It was pat dry of any moisture, rubbed with a little bit of the pure olive oil, Real Salt and pepper. I seared it in a hot pan on one side allowing the sugars in the meat to come to the surface and create a crunch piggy caramel. Flipped the chop over and put it in the oven (where the asparagus was already roasting) until it reached an internal temperature of 130 degrees. (Oh, the oven was at 400 degrees F.) I pulled it from the oven and put it on a plate. I tented it with some aluminum foil and let it rest while the asparagus finished (which was in the oven for a total of 20 minutes). As I waited for the asparagus to finish I made a simple pan sauce to go with it.

I placed the pan that the chop had been cooked in on the stove top. I added about 1/2 cup of homemade beef stock (you can use chicken if you like), and deglazed the pan (or scrapped up all the brown bits stuck to the bottom). I added a touch of mustard (because I’m a mustard freak!) and allowed the sauce to reduce until the asparagus was done. It was perfect timing. When the asparagus came out of the oven the pork had reached a perfect 140 degrees internal temp (which meant it would be still just a tad pink and very juicy). I finished the sauce with just a touch of chocolate balsamic vinegar (a little acid goes a long way in waking up a sauce)…yes, again from Mountain Town Olive Oil Co. Gave it a whisk to combine and poured it over the chop and the asparagus tying it all together. Dinner…was served! And…dinner…was amazing! And…I didn’t get sick. I ate too much, yes…but I didn’t get sick!

I’m looking forward to making it again! The left over asparagus will go into a fritatta for lunch today!
If you’re curious about the PLU stuff, go to www.plucodes.com. Know what you’re eating! It will keep you out of the doctor’s office!

Off to the market to get some organically grown starter plants for my garden!
Have an amazing day…and happy eating!

Love,
Trish

Thus far it’s been plain sailing. Books that I knew well, and that I’d recommend to anyone. My ‘frequently used cookbooks’, kept on the shelf in the kitchen within easy reach.

But this is where it gets interesting. I was given Kitchen of Light a few years ago, and yet tonight was the first time I’ve cooked anything from it. It’s sat there on the bottom shelf of the bookshelf at the back of the dining room. While the pictures are great, none of the recipes really grabbed me.

So I searched through for the most typical dish, and came up with this number – Aquavit-flambeed pork loin chops with apple and onion compote. They suggest serving it with baked fennel and caramelised potatoes.

There’s no getting round it – I was sceptical on reading the recipe, but followed it, where I could, word for word. It didn’t start well. Marinading a pair of pork chops in brandy and spices for 24 hours left them slightly rubbery, and smelling of your kitchen bin the day after you’ve had a curry.

And then for the potatoes. If you’ve ever enjoyed a toffee apple, and thought ‘I wonder what a toffee potato is like’, then this is the recipe for you. Butter, sugar, juniper berries, thyme, salt and potatoes. Yes, sugar.

Disappointingly, the recipes themselves were unclear at times, and seemed plain inaccurate at others. One inch thick pork chops were required, and were never going to cook in the specified 8 minutes on a low heat.

All of this would have been forgiven if the food had tasted good. And I’m afraid it didn’t. While the fennel was great (baked in the oven for 40 minutes with lemon juice and olive oil) and the apple compote was fine, the pork was poor, and the potatoes bizarre. There aren’t many meals we don’t finish, but the fact that Rhian is eating a bowl of granola as I write tells you how little we enjoyed this.

I guess I won’t be trying the prune-stuffed pork meatballs with beetroot.

Or the juniper-spiced venison with brown goat cheese sauce.

With roasted garlic-herb mashed potatoes

The lobster was served with a meunière sauce, which is simply a brown butter sauce with fresh parsley and fresh lemon juice. Melt the butter in a small, heavy saucepan over medium heat and cook until it turns golden brown, about 4 to 6 minutes, Beat in the lemon juice and parsley–simple

I began with a nice season with a little Himalayan pink salt, fresh cracked black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, Weber Chicago steak seasoning (goes on more than just steak), and just a hint of dry thyme…wee bit, Panko bread crumbs, finely grated Parmesan cheese

The seasonings and bread crumbs produced a nice crust

My close up Mr. Demille. My intentions were to make a nice port wine sauce, but I was missing one key ingredient–port! So I went to plan “B” which was to do a Maître d’Hôtel Butter (basically the same as the meunière), however when I saw Hubby spooning the meunière sauce over his chops, I thought…hmmm…that looks interesting, so I followed suit. Worked out fine. So those other sauces will have to wait till my next go-round

There was a side serving of mixed vegetables–steamed broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and squash. We must eat our veggies

And that my friends was Thursday evening dinner

one of many magnolia trees on campus

Ah, lovely spring. My campus and the surrounding neighborhoods are beautiful, with budding magnolia trees (my favorite!) and also sunny bright weather that’s appropriate for iTunes playlists rife with artists like Madeleine Peyroux, Pomplamoose, Paul Simon, Jason Mraz and my newest musical obsession (courtesy of my Madeleine Peyroux Pandora station). Also spring leads into summer, which makes me want to take my ukulele out to a nearby park and play and sing the few songs I know, as H and I did last summer, with a good friend from work.

Another plus to spring: changing outfits! I can wear my chucks instead of my usual intense all-weather shoes that I’ve been sporting quite often this past winter. I just got this epic new pair (at TJMaxx, oh hey), which is perfect timing since my khaki-green ones are on their way to becoming indisposed creatures. And Tuesday was such a gorgeous day, I decided to wear …. a skirt!

(insert gasp here)

I have this excellent skirt, a little old, but appropriately gay – it’s kind of quilted-ish/patchwork-y, with lots of squares of bright color as well as some squares of plaid. I wore it yesterday to class and when I went to get groceries afterwards, and two ladygays (I’m pretty sure they were ladygays) hit on me! I mean …. what?

Well 1) Sorry I’m not sorry chicas, but I’m happily taken.

And 2) It’s interesting to me that this happens when I present as more feminine. Truth be told, my gender presentation varies from day to day. But I like the creativity that happens when I put outfits together. And sometimes I end up looking more conventionally “butch” and some days I femme it up more. I like to keep people (and myself, to some degree) guessing, I suppose. What will I wear tomorrow? Heck if I know. But, more importantly, will it involve these new chucks? I sure hope so.

Anyways. Gender presentation is a funny thing. And so are labels really. Now are you ready for some new totally radical vocab? Okay, today’s recipe is brought to you by the concept of …….

social constructions

Social constructions, my dears, are concepts that are invented. You heard right. Stuff that people came up with. But more so, these are social inventions that hold sway in culture and society. Inventions like race, gender, class, sexuality etc etc etc. Crazy, right? I know! (I mean seriously, I went to Mount Holyoke, where by junior year, you learn that everything ever is basically a social construction). Things we think are facts – maybe not so.

So anyways, what does this have to do with this post?

Well I could really go on forever about social constructs. But here’s why I’m mentioning it now. Because the terms we use to label ourselves – are you ready? – are examples of social constructions. Whoa, right?! I KNOW.

So, for example, the label “butch” – is a social construct. It’s not a social construct to like certain things (like flannel, or cargo shorts, for instance) – but it is a social construct that these things get tied to the stereotype of being butch. You follow me?

Hence, while it may not be stereotypical for a self-identifying butchladyqueer as myself to wear a skirt or a dress, one does not necessarily cancel out the other, and so, it’s not necessarily an oxymoron. Therefore, fellow queers, we have reached a paradox.

You know what else is a paradoxical social construction? How in the United States things like cranberry sauce and mashed potatoes and delicious vegetables are associated with Thanksgiving and autumn. OH SNAP. Because who’s to say we can’t enjoy these things whenever? Right?

Cranberry-glazed Pork Chops

Cranberry-glazed Pork Chops (HT to Carrie Holcomb’s Diabetic Meals, super HT to MamaR for giving me this cookbook. Original ingredients listed first, my modifications in parentheses)

Ingredients, makes 4 servings

For the pork:

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp celery salt

4 boneless pork loin chops

2 tsp cooking oil (2 tsp olive oil)

1 large onion, sliced and separated into rings (I nixed this)

2 tbsp water

For the glaze:

3/4 cup cranberries

1/4 cup (brown) sugar

3 tbsp water

2 tbsp frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed (4 tbsp fresh-squeezed orange juice – note: I’m not sure that this is exactly equivalent)

1 tsp finely shredded orange peel

1/2 tsp ground sage

1/4 tsp salt

Equipment: skillet pan (and cover for the pan – though not necessary), sauce pan, (if you use a fresh orange for the juice and the peel: cutting board, knife, grater), tongs, bowl,plate

1. To prepare the pork: Combine the pepper and celery salt in a bowl. Rub onto both sides of the chops.

2. Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Cook pork (and onion, if you’re using it) until chops are browned, turning over once.

3. Add 2 tbsp water to skillet. Cook (covered or uncovered) over medium heat for 15-20 minutes or until juices run clear. Transfer to plate, remove onions from skillet and set them aside.

4. To prepare the glaze: Combine cranberries, sugar, 3 tbsp water, orange juice, orange peel, sage, and salt in saucepan. Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until cranberry skins pop and liquid is bubbling.

5. Stir in onions (if you are using them.) Serve glaze with pork chops.

Dee-lish! Just a cautionary note: this ended a little dry for my taste – so in the future, if substituting the juice concentrate with fresh-squeezed orange juice, I may add more than 4 tbsp to the glaze …. although I’m not too sure on this point. It’s also very easy to overcook pork, so be on the lookout for that. I can also see this recipe working really well with chicken, too.

And, to bring it back to “Thanksgiving dinners in autumn are a social construction”: with the cranberries, I figured some excellent sides would be mashed potatoes and some kale and butternut squash – one meal I am sure to give thanks for.

Happy cooking!

You may be thinking that it’s so much easier to just buy a Taco Seasoning packet. But you may have never stopped to look at the ingredients. The first time I learned about this was through Wildtree, an party-plan company that offers “herbs, spices and culinary blends that are free of preservatives, additives, fillers and promote a healthier lifestyle.”

Wildtree makes their own Taco Seasoning and they compare the ingredients and cost with with a nationally known brand:

Nationally Known Brand of Taco Seasoning
Maltodextrin, salt, chili pepper, onion powder, monosodium glutamate, corn starch, garlic powder, spice. Contains less than 2% of the following: partially hydrogenated soybean oil, silicon dioxide, natural flavor, ethoxyquin
$2.03—serves 6—34¢ per serving

Do you know what silicon dioxide is? It’s that stuff that they put in packets and you find in shoeboxes and purses before you buy them that state “DO NOT EAT.” Hmmm… And with salt the second ingredient on the list, no wonder my friend Ceci always says that she hates using store-bought taco seasoning when cooking for her kids because it’s filled with so much sodium just makes you feel you bloated.

Wildtree Taco Seasoning
Masa Corn Flour, Chili Powder, Cumin, Sea Salt, Onion Powder, Oregano, Garlic Powder, Black Pepper
$7.00—serves 18—34¢ per serving

It’s an excellent blend. But you can also make taco seasoning yourself – with spices you most likely already have in your pantry! Just check out Tiffany’s post for her Taco Seasoning Blend. So easy!

~

The seasoning blend I’d like to share with you today can also be made with spices already in your pantry!

This past weekend, while dining out, I has some incredibly flavorful blackened chicken. I forgot how much I loooooovvveeee Blackened Seasoning! It got me to thinking… my poor, poor husband can never enjoy blackened chicken like I do! Though he’s said that he’s had and enjoyed the Blackened Steak Burger at McGuire’s Irish Pub in Pensacola, Florida. S0, I decided to make some Red Beans & Rice still in my pantry from my Zatarain’s Big Game Cravebox and top it with a Blackened Pork Chop.

I searched the web far and wide for a blackened seasoning mixture and just like taco seasoning, there are countless combinations of spices! But I finally settled on a pretty standard one and it made our taste buds sing… and zing!

Blackened Seasoning

(makes enough to cover 1 lb of meat)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Tbsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp Paprika
• 1/2 Tbsp garlic powder
• 1/2 Tbsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne

Mix spices together so that they are evening distributed. {If you’d like, you can even pulse the thyme, basil and oregano in a spice or coffee grinder to be more like a powder. I don’t mind them as is, though!} We like spice, so my 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne was heaping! I also used a “Garlic Salt with Parsley” blend instead of garlic powder, but you most likely won’t find that readily in your pantry. And of course, you can omit the salt completely if you want a salt-free option and still have flavorful results!

I recommend doubling or tripling the recipe to have on hand to sprinkle on potatoes, eggs, popcorn or whatever you wish. Just store the seasoning in an empty spice bottle or seal-tight jar.

Blackened Pork Chops

• 4 pork chops (approximately 1 lb)
• Blackened Seasoning (1 recipe above)
• Olive Oil (I used garlic infused olive oil.)

Method:

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Brush one side of the pork chops with olive oil and rub with 1/2 of the seasoning mix.
• Lightly spray a pan (I used a grill pan!) with cooking spray or olive oil and heat to medium-high.
• Once hot, put the chops in the pan, seasoned-side down.
• Brush the remaining side with the olive oil and rub with the remaining blackened seasoning.
• Sear the chops for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.
• Transfer the chops to a baking sheet or pan and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cooked through.

We were so hungry, that I forgot to take pictures, but here is one of our leftovers!

Blackened Pork Chop over Red Beans & Rice

Rob said, “YES” to me making this again. Win!

What’s your favorite way to use blackened seasoning?

Cheers~
Carrie