Pork Roast...Chop

Missy Tippens

I've shared a recipe very similar to this in 2014. It's called Harriet's Pork Tenderloin. And that was what I intended to make with a pork tenderloin I had in the fridge the other day. But then I got caught up in my work, and looked up and realized it was already past 5:30 and the roast would take an hour. (We usually eat around 6.)

Soooo... I decided to slice the roast into chops and cook them in the skillet.

First, I sliced the tenderloin into thick porkchops--maybe 3/4 to 1 inch thick.

I melted some butter in an iron skillet along with a drizzle of olive oil. Then I salted and peppered the pork and placed it in the hot skillet.

I browned the meat on one side for a couple of minutes, then turned it. I actually added some white wine to it, but may not do that again because it messed up the caramelization on the second side. I guess maybe a dash of wine would be okay. Once flipped to the second side, I put the lid on to let the meat cook for about 5-7 more minutes.

For the last couple of minutes, I took the lid off to let all the liquid cook down.

Then I decided to make a sauce that's similar to the original recipe. I added a couple of pats of butter to the skillet. Then I stirred in 2 heaping tablespoons of apricot preserves. Stir and mix until the preserves are melted and and mixed well with the melted butter.

These pork chops turned out to be melt-in-your-mouth tender! They were amazing. You can serve them over rice, which goes really well with the sauce.

I served them with sautéed portobello mushrooms and asparagus. Turned out to be a great side dish.

A very quick and delicious meal!

www.missytippens.com

Pork Medallions and Pan Sauce

Missy Tippens

I recently saw these beautiful pork medallions at the grocery store and snatched them up for a night when I needed a quick meal. I could tell these would thaw and cook quickly.

Flash forward a couple of weeks, and I pulled these out of the freezer. They were thawed and ready to go by dinnertime. I waited until my husband got home to start everything.

I dried the pork, and then seasoned with salt, pepper, and some Penzey's Sunny Paris--one of our favorites. Here's the description from the website: Hand-mixed from: shallots, chives, green peppercorn, dill weed, basil, tarragon, chervil and bay leaf.  Sounds yummy, doesn't it? I thought it would be perfect with pork.

I heated olive oil and butter in the skillet. Then seared the meat on either side. Then I added a little white wine and covered for a few minutes to let the meat cook through. When it was done (don't over cook!), I took the meat out of the skillet and sprinkled in about 1-2 teaspoons of flour and cooked until slightly thickened. I spooned the sauce over the pork and served.

It turned out so yummy! Before preparing the meat, I microwaved baked potatoes and then made steam-in-the-bag vegetables. Not bad for a quick weeknight meal!

www.missytippens.com

Quick and Easy Pork Chops

Tex here, and I don’t know about you, but I am stoked for Thanksgiving. The turkey, the dressing…

Definitely the dressing.

Oh, and I have a great idea for leftover dressing that I will share with you next week. That is, if I remember to take some pictures.

It’s AMAZING.

But leading up to the big day, it's all about quick meals here at the Obi house. Like the other night when I found myself with some pork chops, but not sure how to cook them.

I checked the pantry.

Cream of Mushroom soup.

Okay, what can I do with that besides simply pouring it over the pork chops?

Checked the fridge.

Half an onion, four mushrooms, butter...

Okay, now we're on to something.

First to address the soup. I didn't want just plain old mushroom soup. So I poured it into a large measuring cup, added some chicken broth (about 1/4 cup), some roasted garlic powder (regular garlic powder will work, too--1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon), some black pepper to taste and 1/2 tsp. dried thyme.

Whisk that all together until smooth and set aside.

Now for the pork chops. Season them lightly with your favorite seasoning (salt and pepper works just fine), then brown them in a hot skillet with 1-2 tablespoons melted butter.

When both sides are browned, remove from pan and set aside.

I sliced up my mushrooms and onion.

Melted another 2 tablespoons butter in the same pan and tossed them in, cooking just until they start to soften.

Now return the pork chops to the pan.

Pour the soup mixture over top.

Once soup comes to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for ten minutes.

Throw in some mashed potatoes, a veggie and dinner is served--in less than thirty minutes.

These pork chops are moist and delicious. People will think you slaved all day. But you didn't, which makes them even better.

Well, most of the kiddos and a couple of the grandkids will be dining with Grammy and Big Daddy for the big day. Of course, it doesn't matter how many we have, there's always more than enough food to go around. I'm looking forward to that first bite of pumpkin pie.

So what are you doing for turkey day? Are you guesting or hosting?

What dish do you look forward to most at Thanksgiving?

Spring Forward with Coffee

I tweeted/posted this week that if a coffee company would produce an extra-caffeinated java called Spring Forward, I buy it in a heartbeat.

I don't spring forward well, even as I love the sunlit evenings available for walks with ManO. UGH, another reason to move to Hawaii where they don't have Daylight Savings Time.

Coffee helps me get through the getting used to DST part. Here's what I need, recited to the rhythm of "Here is the Church, Here is the Steeple."

Here is the coffee pot

Don't laugh at my little four cup coffee maker. It's called portion control.

Here is the coffee (from my favorite coffee roaster Muddy Dog Roasting Company)

Love the King's Daughters Inn coffee. Made for a bed and breakfast in Durham, NC.  

Remember to plug in the pot, add the water and coffee, and turn it on. (Um, I always forget to one of the four)

One of my favorite mugs from Yellowstone Park. I know Jan Drexler appreciates this one.

Then drink up a mug and see, because you can open your eyes.


Okay, that's pretty awful but hey, it's the day after Daylight Savings, a Monday as I'm typing this and I'm having to go for an extra pot. Or may I should have said it was Haiku. But then I'd have to count the syllables and there are way too many.  

But pondering my addiction to coffee did get me thinking about other ways  I could integrate coffee into my menus. There's never enough coffee.

NUMBER ONE IMPORTANT LESSON:  If you are using coffee in a recipe, it has to be STRONG. Double strength it. Make sure you can't see through it. Otherwise, that coffee flavor is just going to be week.

I could still see through this cup of coffee. NOT STRONG ENOUGH.

Entree: I found  a recipe I could adapt from Alton Brown's Molasses and Coffee Pork Chops. 
While the marinade was boiled down for the glaze, my food microbiology training reminded me that's not always the safe way to go. So I doubled the marinade/glaze part of the recipe, using one half to marinade the pork chops and throw away, the other half to boil down for the glaze. I also ditched the thyme. I oven broiled the chops because it's just not quite grilling season here yet. The flavor is more on the oriental side. I also think a lighter roasting works better as far as the coffee goes. 



Salad dressing: Yes, salad dressing. I looked at a lot of recipes using ground coffee beans but decided to use coffee as a substitute for lemon juice in an easy vinaigrette of oil and vinegar. Paired with greens and fruit, it's pretty tasty.

Dessert:  Sure there's coffee ice cream but have you ever made coffee sauce to pour over your ice cream? You make a simple syrup using 1:1 coffee and sugar, simmering it down while stirring constantly, adding one or two tablespoons butter and a teaspoon of vanilla after you take it off the stove. Cool and serve over ice cream or cake. Divine.

There you have it, an entire meal to perk you up!

So what about you, are you happy to Spring Forward? Did you need extra caffeine at the start of your week? Have you ever used coffee as an ingredient rather than a beverage?