The Perfect Pork Chop!

I just made the perfect pork chop tonight! The trick is to brine the pork chop before you pan fry it. I don't consider myself a very good cook, but this seemed easy enough and it made me seem like a GREAT cook.

I started with 2 thick-cut boneless pork chops.

In a medium bowl, dissolve 1 tablespoon of salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar in 2 cups of water. Place the chops in the water so they're submerged, cover the bowl with plastic and place it in the fridge for 30 minutes.

(in those 30 minutes, it's a great time to cook up some potatoes, steam some veggies or make a salad. I made mashed potatoes)

After 30 minutes, remove the pork chops from the water, dry them off with a paper towel and season them with pepper (or any other spice you like. No need for salt since they soaked it up from the water).

Heat about a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet on medium heat until it is just smoking. Then, add a slice of butter! Once the butter is fully melted, add the pork chops to the hot skillet. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side and be sure to have a splatter guard if you don't want hot oil popping up!

Done! These were seriously the best pork chops I've had. They browned perfectly and were even a little crispy on the outside, but perfectly juicy in the middle! I didn't even use any rubs or spices on the chop, and it was still delicious enough to eat alone. Yum!

Asparagus/Parmesan Pasta

This is my go-to lazy day recipe. It is so versatile and always so yummy! I don't have an exact recipe, but it's very hard to screw this recipe up. Here are the ingredients:

Pasta (any kind, I usually use rotini or these spirals)

1 bunch fresh asparagus

3 cups fresh spinach (or more!)

2 cups parmesan cheese - shredded or grated

olive oil

garlic powder

To prepare the asparagus, I preheat the oven to 350, arrange the asparagus on a cookie sheet and drizzle it with olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Bake it for about 5-8 minutes, just so the ends are a little crispy. When it's done, chop it up into 1 inch pieces.

To prepare the spinach, I saute it in a little bit of olive oil until wilted.

Cook the pasta according to package directions. I typically use close to a whole box of Barillo pasta.

Once the pasta is ready and drained, put it in a big ol' mixing bowl and coat it with olive oil. When you think it's enough olive oil, add more! I just love olive oil.

Add the parmesan cheese, the cut asparagus and the sauteed spinach to the pasta. The parmesan cheese should melt a little bit and you can add salt and pepper to taste.

And then eat! I love this dish because it is good hot or cold, which makes for a good lunch the next day.

I sometimes add a little bit of balsamic vinaigrette dressing to the pasta for an extra tangy taste. It's also delicious!

Cherry Tomato and Kalamata Olive Pasta

This is a loose and fast recipe for a tasty pasta that can be modified based on what you have on hand. I happened to have a boatload of cherry tomatoes and some basil.

Step 1:
Start with bunch of cherry tomatoes cut in half or whatever tomatoes you have on hand. Drizzle a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the top. Then sprinkle with red pepper flakes... the more you add the spicier the dish. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Step 2:
In the mean time, boil some pasta and drain. I chose bowtie noodles because they really grip the sauce. 
Step 3:
When the tomatoes are done, pull them out of the oven and add a bunch of cut up basil and stir around. Let it sit for 5ish minutes. You can add fresh oregano too if you have it.

Step 4:
Pour the still hot tomato mix over the noodles in a pot. Turn the burner on low. Add about 1/4 of a cup of cut up kalamata olives. Add a small container of feta cheese and stir till melted.

Step 5:
EAT! then do the dishes!

Veggie Pizza with Gorgonzola Cheese

It is just as delicious and nutritious as it looks! I never made a pizza before that wasn't prepackaged in a factory. The only prepared foods were the frozen thin crusts (3 for $5) and the gorgonzola cheese. Mild mozzarella pales in comparison to the tartness in gorgonzola. But honestly you can use whatever toppings you want. I loaded my pizza with  big pile but while it baked the ingredients eventually flattened out.

1 thin crust pie
2 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 of a Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
4 baby bella mushrooms, thinly sliced
4 oz of gorgonzola cheese
1/2 yellow pepper, thinly sliced and chopped
Handful of spinach, slightly wilted (heat in a sauce pan for 30 seconds)
red pepper, salt and pepper to taste

1) Preheat oven to 450F
2) Thaw crust and brush lightly with olive oil.
3) Spread garlic and tomato slices in pizza leaving 1 inch for crust.
4) Layer onions, mushrooms, cheese, pepper, and spinach. Season to taste.
5) Bake pizza on center oven rack for 10 minutes or until edges of crust are browned.

That's. It. Pretty sure I'm going to make pizza over and over and over again!

Vegan Stuffed Peppers with Black Beans and Rice

The line-up

I've played with different stuffed peppers recipes and came up with this vegan concoction. A cheese topping would go really well with a vegetarian version. Suggestions?

1/2 c. uncooked rice

1/2 medium vidalia onion, diced

3 garlic cloves minced

15 oz can of diced tomatoes with green chile peppers

15 oz can of black beans rinsed and drained

1/4 c. frozen corn

salt and pepper to season

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp red pepper flakes

4 bell peppers, halved and seeds removed

cilantro (optional)

1) Cook rice as instructed. I bet veggie stock or some tomato juice from the can of tomatoes would help with flavor. Don't know, wish I tried.

2) Heat some olive oil in a sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic, sauté for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, black beans, frozen corn, and spices to sauce pan and stir to combine. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer for 5-7 mins until flavors meld.

3) Add cooked rice to sauce pan and stir to coat rice with tomato mixture. This will be your stuffing.

4) Preheat oven to 350F and add 1/2" water to bottom of baking dish. 

5) Stuff pepper halves with stuffing and top with chopped cilantro. Place in baking dish upright and cover dish with foil. Bake for 30 mins or until peppers are softened. 

Hot Mamacita!!