Braised Pork Chops

Fall... My absolute favorite season. Chilly weather, jackets, vibrant colors, and warming meals make this season so wonderful. It sneaks up on you overnight, and all the sudden it's time to bust out all those old cooking techniques that haven't been used since last Winter, like braising. Braising, it even sounds warm! This was a new way to cook pork chops for me, and I really loved it, they were absolutely infused with the flavor from the cooking liquid. It's the perfect dish for serving with some rice and roasted veggies!

Braised Pork Chops:
3 boneless pork chops
1 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of red wine vinegar
2 tbsp of brown sugar
2 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp of Dijon mustard
1/3 cup of sherry wine
2/3 cups of water
1/2 tsp of onion powder
salt, pepper

In a medium sauce pan, heat the olive oil. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper and brown both sides. In the mean time stir together the vinegar, sugar, Worcestershire, and Dijon. Pour over the pork chops and add the sherry, water, and onion powder. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 40 minutes. Remove pork from liquids and turn heat to high, and cook until the sauce reduces and thickens, about 3 minutes. Serve pork topped with sauce. Enjoy!

Happy Eating.

Tamale Pie

APRIL FOOLS. Desptite it being the first of April, it's snowing. The weather is playing a huge prank on us all. So I need some hot comfort now, preferibly, some hot comfort that won't derail my beach body preperations. So here is a Tex-Mexy cassarole that packs a delicious flavor punch, gives you that warm fuzzy feeling that only comes from a hot meal on a cold day, and won't stand in the way of you (or me) from rocking that bikini this summer.

Tamale Pie:
1 1/4 cups of yellow cornmeal
1 tsp of salt
5 1/2 cups of water, divided
1 tbsp of butter
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, boiled and shredded - 6.7 oz cooked
1 medium shallot
2 bell peppers
1 poblano pepper
1 jalapeno pepper
1 cup chard
2 cloves of garlic
1 29 oz cups canned plum tomatoes in juices
1/2 cup of chicken broth
1 1/3 cups of frozen whole kernal corn
1 1 /2 tsp of cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp of salt
1 cup of 2% shredded cheddar cheese
Red onion, avocado, sour cream/greek yogurt for serving (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a medium pot bring 4 cups of water, lightly salted, to a boil. In a small bowl mix the corn meal with remaining 1 1/2 cups of water until smooth. Whisk the corn meal into boiling water, until smooth. Reduce heat to low and cook stirring frequently for 15 minutes, stir in butter. In the meantime, Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dice peppers and shallot and add to the oil. Cook, stirring often until peppers soften and brown slightly, about 8 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and juices, broth, seasoning, and corn and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and cook until most of the liquid has absoarbed, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste. Grease or spray with non-stick a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Spread about 1/3 of the cooked corn meal onto the bottom of the pan, sprinkle the shredded chicken on top, then pour the tomato mixture over the chicken. Top with the remaining cornmeal, spreading the cornmeal evenly over the casserole. If you have issues spreading the cornmeal use a wet spatula, it really helps. Sprinkle with the cheese. Bake until the cheese is melted and golden, about 35 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving. (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Nutrition Info (calculated from MyFitnessPal):
For 1/6 of casserole
Calories: 302
Carbs: 37 g
Fat: 11 g
Protein: 17 g
Fiber: 5 g
Sugar: 6 g

Happy Eating.

Turkey with Mushroom Pan Gravy

The cold rages on and on. This winter has been impossible long, leading me to cook hearty meal after hearty meal. A lot of times, they take time. You need a few hours to roast, or a day to slow cook, an hour or more to do a pasta bake. Sometimes that's too slow. So here is something that took me about 35-40 minutes from start to finish. It's fast, easy and so warm and comforting, a delicious pan roasted turkey breast with gravy! I served mine with roasted Brussels sprouts and a grain medley I picked up at Wegmans (it's the golden jewel blend, if you have a Wegmans, and I highly recommend it). Turkey breast makes a great change from chicken breast, a lot more flavorful (and bigger). All and all a great, easy, and fast week night dinner.



Turkey with Mushroom Pan Gravy:
1 1.5 lb split turkey breast
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of pepper
1/2 tsp of dried thyme
1/2 tsp of dried rosemary
1 tbsp of olive oil
1 shallot
2 cloves of garlic
2-3 cups of low sodium chicken broth, divided
1 cup of Shitake mushrooms
2 tbsp of flour
1/2 tbsp of butter

Heat oil in a medium pan, over high heat. Season the turkey breast with salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary. Place the breast in the hot pan, skin side down, and brown for about 3 minutes, until skin is caramelized. Meanwhile, mince the garlic and shallot. Flip the turkey over and add the garlic and shallot to the pan, lower the heat to medium-low. Cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds, then pour in 1 cup of chicken broth. Cover pan and simmer turkey breast until it is cooked through (internal temperature of 160 degrees), about 30 minutes (will vary based on size). If at any point in the cooking process the broth has all cooked out, add more broth to keep the turkey moist, I added an additional half cup of broth about 5 minutes before my turkey was done. After turkey is cooked through, remove from pan and cover with tinfoil to let rest. Add the mushrooms to the pan and cook uncovered, until any remaining broth has evaporated and mushrooms are tender, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the flour until incorporated. Add 1 cup of broth to the pan and bring to a boil. Whisk until well combined and mixture has thickened. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter. Adjust seasoning to taste. Slice turkey, and serve with gravy on top or on the side. Enjoy.



Happy Eating

Classic Lasagna

It is so cold and rainy and snowy and grey out. All I can think about is warm comforting meals. Soup, casseroles, cheesy pastas, etc. I just want to eat warm heavy things, so I made lasagna. I decided to put my pasta maker to work and I made noodles, using the same spinach pasta dough I made before. I rolled the noodles out to a 7 on the pasta machine, and then cut them into large strips by hand. The spinach in the pasta means I sneaked another serving of veggies into my meal, and I further healthied/lightened up this classic by using part-skim ricotta, low fat mozzarella, and chicken sausage. The lasagna can be made in advanced and frozen, or cooked as soon as it's assembled, it's equally delicious, and warming on these cold winter days.



Lasagna:
12-15 Lasagna noodles, bought or homemade, cooked al dente
Sauce
Ricotta Mixture
1 cup of 2% Mozzarella Cheese
1/4 cup of Parmesan Cheese

Sauce:
1 tbsp of olive oil
1/2 yellow onion
1 medium shallot
8 oz of chicken or pork sausage
3 cloves of garlic
1 29 oz can of tomato sauce
2 tbsp of tomato paste
2 tsp of dried oregano
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
1 handful of fresh basil, chopped
salt, pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Split open the sausage to remove the meat from the casing and add the meat to the pan to brown. Dice the onion, shallot and garlic and add to the pan. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until the onions soften, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and raise heat to bring to a simmer. Slowly stir in the the paste. Season with spices, and reduce heat to low. Cover, until needed.



Cheese Mixture:
2 1/2 cups of part skim ricotta
1 cup of Parmesan
1 egg
1 tsp of salt

In a medium bowl mix together the ricotta, Parmesan and salt. Check flavor, and add more salt if necessary. Mix in egg.

Assembly:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large casserole dish, spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom, trying to get as little sausage as possible. Top the sauce with a layer of noodles. Top noodles with half of the ricotta mixture, and sprinkle 1/3 of a cup of mozzarella on top. Add half of the remaining sauce, then another layer of noodles, then the rest of the ricotta mixture, 1/3 cup of mozzarella, then the rest of the sauce. Add final layer of noodles and top that with remaining mozzarella and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese. At this point, the lasagna can be frozen or refrigerated for later use. If cooking now, cover with tinfoil and cook for 30 minutes, then uncover and cook for an additional 30 minutes. If you like a crispy top (like me), turn the broiler on and carefully broil for 3-4 minutes until top is golden brown. Let cool slightly before slicing and serving.



Happy Eating.

Pasta Bake

Is there anything more comforting than warm, cheesy pasta on a rainy night? I don't think so. Which is why Monday, was past bake night. This is my fastest bake, it is something similar to baked ziti, but with penne and very little effort. What came out of the oven was hot and delicious and beyond comforting, the perfect end to a rainy day.

Penne Pasta Bake:

1 Lb penne pasta
2 cups of pasta sauce (my recipe can be found here, but you need a lot less than that makes, so adjust accordingly, 1 15 oz can as the base of the sauce is plenty, but make more if you want extra sauce on the side (totally optional))
15 oz of ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1/2 cup of grated/shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup of mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make pasta according to box directions for al dente. In the mean time make the sauce (or heat your favorite jarred version). Mix ricotta and Parmesan cheese in a small bowl. Salt and pepper to taste, then beat egg into mixture. Pour cooked noodles into a large glass baking dish, you want the pasta spread relatively thin. Cover with sauce and stir. Stir in cheese mixture so it is evenly distributed and the pasta is same thickness throughout the pan. Top with the mozzarella and some additional Parmesan (if you want). Bake for about 30 minutes uncovered. The top cheese will be melted, but not browned and everything should be very hot. Move the oven rack towards the top and turn on the broiler. Broil for 3-4 minutes until top layer is browned and a bit crispy. Be careful with the broiler, it is so easy to destroy things (I have so many, many times). Serve and enjoy.

Because this bake doesn't have a lot of sauce, it stays together really well in the oven and isn't one of those best the next day or make in advance bakes. Don't get me wrong, it taste great the next day, but it is definitely better the right from the oven unlike it's pastalicious brothers and sisters.

Happy Eating