Dinner tonite: Pork Chops au Poivre

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Pork Chops au Poivre

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
½ teaspoon salt, divided
4 4-ounce boneless pork chops, ½ inch thick, trimmed
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour / almond flour works fine
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium shallot, minced
½ cup brandy
¼ cup sour cream (nutrition facts use reduced-fat sour cream)

Pork Chops au Poivre Ingredients Cont.

Pork Chops au Poivre Instructions

1. Combine salt and pepper and rub the mixture onto both sides of each pork chop. Place flour in a shallow dish; dredge each chop in the flour, shaking off any excess.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chops, reduce heat to medium and cook until browned and just cooked through. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add shallot to the pan and cook, stirring, until softened, about 1 minute. Add brandy and cook, stirring and scraping up any browned bits, until most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from the heat; stir in sour cream and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Serve the pork chops with the sauce.

Pork Chops au Poivre Instructions Cont.

Pork Chops au Poivre Nutrition Information

Per serving: 299 calories; 15 g fat (4 g sat, 8 g mono); 72 mg cholesterol; 3 g carbohydrate; 22 g protein; 0 g fiber; 342 mg sodium; 319 mg potassium.
0 Carbohydrate Servings
Exchanges: 2 lean meat, 1 1/2 fat

Braised Chicken

adapted from Pioneer Woman

3 lbs thighs
3 chicken breasts
3 garlic cloves
32 oz baby carrots
2 tomatoes (optional)
2 bell peppers (optional)
1 large onion
1/2 cup chicken broth (optional)
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp paprika powder
1 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp oil

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350F (175C).
slice peppers, chili, and onions, dice tomatoes if using

mince garlic - mix with oil and spices for marinade
Dump baby carrots in pyrex, layer chicken on top, season with salt and pepper brush on marinade

If using chicken with skin, start and finish with skin side up.

30 min at 350, turn chicken, another 30 min, turn chicken, cook to internal temp 170.

stir fry pork with veggies

1lb pork, thinly sliced
1 bunch scallions, chopped
1 lb baby zucchini, or regular
1 bell pepper
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp dry sherry
4 tbsp veg oil

1. marinate pork in sherry and soy sauce
2. chop veggies
3. heat veg oil, stir fry pork until almost done. remove from wok and keep warm
4. stir fry veg a few minutes. Add pork back to wok and cook it until it's done.

Ginger glazed Mahi Mahi

(from allrecipes)

3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger root
1 clove garlic, crushed or to taste
2 teaspoons olive oil
4 (6 ounce) mahi mahi fillets
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon vegetable oil



In a shallow glass dish, stir together the honey, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, ginger, garlic and olive oil. Season fish fillets with salt and pepper, and place them into the dish. If the fillets have skin on them, place them skin side down. Cover, and refrigerate for 20 minutes to marinate.

Reserve some marinade

Bake, covered, at 350 degrees F (165 degrees C) for about 20 to 30 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Pour reserved marinade into the skillet, and heat over medium heat until the mixture reduces to a glaze consistently. Spoon glaze over fish, and serve immediately.

Shepherds Pie

1 1/2 lbs ground beef

1 onion -- chopped

1 small bell pepper -- chopped

2-3 cloves garlic -- minced

24 oz. tomato juice (no added sugars)

salt and pepper to taste

Frozen Peas, or string beans, or
fresh green beans if possible.

1 head cauliflower

1 stick unsalted butter

12 oz. sharp cheddar cheese ( you experiment with different kinds and quatities of cheese)

Directions:
Brown ground beef, onion, bell pepper, and garlic. ( If you are concerned about the fat left in pan, you can brown meat in microwave. Take a plastic colander and place in microwavable bowl. Break meat apart and place in colandar and microwave till brown, stirring occassionally. The fat will drip into bowl and you can throw it away.) Add tomato juice and string beans (or peas or a mixture of the two) and cook on top of stove till it thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste.

While the meat sauce is cooking you can cook the cauliflower till tender. Drain cauliflower and then beat or blend in food processor. Add buter and salt and pepper and about 1/2 of the cheese. (These are a variation of the cauliflower potatos.

Put meat in a casserole dish. Top with cauliflower potatos and then top with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. ****Note: I sometimes put mine in individual casserole dishes, bake and then when they are cooled down. I freeze them. This way I have something I can take with me. I just heat it up in a microwave.

Spanakopita

adapted from allrecipes.com

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil or olive oil
  
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach - thawed, drained and squeezed dry
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 2 (4 ounce) packages feta cheese, crumbled
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 (16 ounce) packages phyllo dough
• 3/4 pound butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Slowly cook and stir onions until softened. Mix in spinach and dill. Cook approximately 10 minutes, or until most of the moisture has been absorbed. Remove from heat. Mix in feta cheese, eggs, salt and pepper.
3. Separate one sheet of phyllo from the stack and evenly brush with a light coating of butter. Place another sheet of phyllo over the butter and press the two sheets together. Cut the layered phyllo dough into long strips about 3 inches wide. Keep the remaining phyllo covered with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out.
4. Lay out one strip of phyllo at a time on your work surface with one of the narrow ends close to you. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling 1 inch from the end closest to you. Fold the bottom right corner over the filling to the left edge to form a triangle. Fold the triangle up, bringing the point at the bottom left up to rest along the left edge. Turn the lower left corner over to touch the right edge. Continue turning the triangle over in this manner until you reach the end of the phyllo. Repeat with the remaining filling and phyllo dough.
5. Alternatively, layer a few sheets on the bottom of the pyrex dish, brushed with butter, dump in the spinach/cheese mixture, and top with another few layers of phyllo to make one big spinach pie.
   
6. Place filled phyllo dough triangles on a large baking sheet and brush with the remaining butter. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

New Orleans bbq shrimp

Adapted from nolafoodie.com

1 lb peeled shrimp

2 Sticks Butter

½ Large White Onion

4 Cloves Garlic (Peeled and Smashed)

Olive Oil

Worcestershire Sauce

1 Bottle Abita Amber Beer (Do Not Substitute)

Juice of one lemon

Garlic powder

Coarse Kosher Salt

Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Cayenne Pepper

Slap ya Mama



Hardware



2 Quart Saucepan

Large Pyrex baking dish




Prep (5 minutes)



Dice Onion

Smash Garlic

Clean shrimp and lay them in one layer the baking dish, sprinkle with kosher salt




Cook (15 minutes)



1. In the saucepan, sauté onion until translucent, then add garlic (yes, in chunks), then the two sticks of butter.
2. When butter has liquefied, add each seasoning while stirring – garlic powder, salt, pepper, cayenne, crab boil, and Worcestershire sauce.
3. Add the olive oil, squeeze in the lemon, stir, and then add about half of a bottle of beer (6-8 oz.).
4. Keep stirring; drink the rest of the beer.
5. When the foam from the beer subsides, pour the sauce over the shrimp in the baking dish.
6. Place under the broiler for about 10 minutes, stir, then another 5 minutes, or until shrimp are pink and cooked.
7. Remove from broiler and let rest for at least ten minutes.
8. Serve in a bowl with lots of sauce and pieces of po-boy bread for dipping.

(i will make an exception for bread with this - it's too good not to)

ostrich flambe

Ostrich Filets Flame

* (2) 4 oz. Ostrich filets
* salt and pepper
* 1 clove garlic, crushed
* 2 tbs. butter
* 1/4 cup brandy
* 1/2cup ostrich stock (may substitute beef stock)
* 1 1/2cups sliced mushrooms

Pound ostrich filet lightly with a mallet. Season meat on both sides with salt, pepper and garlic. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan and add the meat. Saute ostrich filets on each side for about 2 minutes per side. Add brandy and flame. Remove meat to a platter and keep warm. Add mushrooms to the sauce remaining in the pan. Add stock and reduce by half. Pour sauce over meat and serve immediately. Serves 2.

Sweet and Sour Chicken (or Pork)

(adapted from an About.com recipe)
Faster than waiting for delivery. Healthier than fried mystery meat. Less frightening than fuscia sauce.

• 1/2 cup orange juice (or apricot wine plus a little lemon and lime juice if there is no OJ)
  
• 2 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 1 Tbsp. cornstarch (optional)
  
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 1 Tbsp. canola oil
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
  
• 1 pork tenderloin, sliced 1/4" thick OR 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast cut into small cubes
  
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• pineapple rings, chopped the same size as the peppers
• brown rice (optional)
  

Mix orange juice (or wine), soy sauce, honey, lemon/lime/pineapple juice, cornstarch and ginger in small bowl. Set aside.
Heat oil in large skilet and add garlic and meat; cook meat thoroughly.
Add pineapples and peppers and stir fry 4-5 min.
Add juice mixture and bring to a boil. Simmer 1 minute until sauce is thickened, stirring constantly. Serve over hot cooked rice