An American Meal

We had the BEST dinner the other night.  Everything worked so well together, I just had to share it with you as a whole plate.  It's a perfectly American meal for the week of the 4th of July!

The meat of the meal (pun intended) was what I lovingly refer to as "Pork Chop ala Monkey Scientist".  I'm not totally sure of every step he makes to prepare it, but I know it involves maple syrup (my favorite), cayenne pepper, and a quick pan sear on a grill pan coated with olive oil from the Misto.  It's juicy and delicious - one of his specialties these days!



Next, what would pork chops be without apple sauce?  The Monkey Scientist told me about an amazing peach apple sauce that his mom buys, so I did my best to replicate it.  He told me I was very successful! Apple sauce is one of the easiest things to make from scratch, it just takes a little time and patience.  I was glad he suggested adding peaches because they added a perfect bit of summer flair to my go-to recipe.  My recipe is below and it's a yelleBELLYboo original, based on the applesauce knowledge passed down by my Nanny Paula (although it isn't nearly as good as hers) and my own preferences (maple. it's always maple) .



A week before we made this meal, we'd gone to the grocery store when we were both starving.  As we stumbled down the baking aisle, somehow a box of Jiffy cornbread mix ended up in our basket.  We decided it would go great with this meal, but I had to spice it up a bit.  I added a tablespoon or two of lavender, but otherwise followed the box instructions.  I think it added a nice flowery touch that elevated the cornbread nicely.

Finally, sticking with our southern theme, we made some beautiful swiss chard.  I don't usually cook swiss chard, but I couldn't resist its rainbow stems!  I used techniques I often use for kale or spinach and I think it came out wonderfully.  It added just a little bit of Asian flavor to our otherwise very-Americana meal.  I loved how it rounded out our plate.  The recipe below is another yelleBELLYboo original - I was feeling quite inventive this night!

If you're looking for a nice dinner to throw together, this one was so easy and yummy.  It was our favorite meal we've had in a long time!



Peach Applesauce


Ingredients
2 lbs Macintosh apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
3 peaches, peeled, pitted, and sliced
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/4 cup raw or white sugar (more or less depending how sweet you like it)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup water

Instructions
1. Add all of the ingredients to a large pan and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low or low and continue to simmer for 30-40 minutes, until the apples and peaches are easily crushed with the back of a spoon.
3. Remove from heat and allow to cool.  Crush the apples and peaches with the back of a spoon until you have a chunky applesauce.  If you like your applesauce smoother, you can blend with an immersion blender or in the food processor.  Serve cold or at room temperature.


Swiss Chard with Goat Cheese and Almonds


Ingredients
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp chili oil (can omit)
1 bunch Swiss chard
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup slivered almond (I used honey roasted)
1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese

Instructions
1. Heat the sesame and chili oils in a medium to large skillet with high sides over medium heat.
2. Wash and dry the Swiss chard and roughly chop.  Add to the skillet, season with salt and pepper, and cook down until wilted and soft.
3. Remove from heat and place in a serving dish.  Add the almonds and goat cheese and toss to mix.  Serve immediately.

Chorizo-style Pork Chops

I'm a bit of an early bird.  I love getting up early, even on the weekends, and seizing the day.  By 11 pm on a weekday, I'm already asleep.  It's a little bit of a struggle, since most of my friends aren't exactly excited when I call them at 9 am on a Saturday to go to the farmer's market.  I can't understand why...the morning is always so gorgeous and sunny!

Sometimes on the weekend, I'll try to quietly entertain myself for an hour or two and let the Monkey Scientist sleep a little later before I wake him up.  I'll read a book on my iPad or, lately, brainstorm recipe ideas.  A few weeks ago, lying in bed on a Saturday morning, I had the inspiration for this dish.  Yes, I was thinking about pork chops at 9 am on a Saturday.  I might like food a little bit.



If you didn't notice, I have been a little bit obsessed with chorizo lately.  I would love to eat it fried up for dinner, but pork sausage isn't exactly the healthiest protein in the world.  So I wanted to create a pork dish that could serve as the main course while incorporating all of those spicy, warm chorizo flavors into it. I decided the best way to do this was to make a marinade with all of the ingredients that go into my favorite chorizo sausage (except the ground pork) and smother some boneless pork chops in it.



Do you know what gives chorizo that unmistakable red/orange oil?  I couldn't quite figure it out until I started making this recipe.  It's dried chiles!  If you live in DC, you can find dried Mexican chiles in the produce section at most Giant supermarkets.  The best place for dried chiles though is the new Georgetown Safeway.  The Monkey Scientist stopped by there and found a wide selection at very reasonable prices.



This recipe turned out better than I ever expected!  The sauce was amazing - I could have licked it off the plate.  It did have a solid kick to it - which we love - but you could tone it down by using milder chiles and less cayenne.  It wasn't exactly the same as eating chorizo, but it certainly was healthier.  Except for the whole frying in bacon fat thing - but that was totally worth it. We didn't grow up eating pork chops, but they're fairly inexpensive and super easy and quick to make.  We ate it with my favorite brussels sprouts recipe - I'll share it with you later this week.  This was one of my favorite meals to date!



Chorizo-style Pork Chops
adapted from Homesick Texan and Simply Recipes

Ingredients
3 dried New Mexico chiles (or other Mexican dried chile peppers)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 small onion, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon oregano
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
2 teaspoons salt
4-6 boneless pork chops (about 3/4" thick)
1-2 tbsp bacon fat (or olive oil)

Instructions
1. Rinse the dried chiles, and then remove the stem and seeds. Heat the chiles for a couple of minutes on each side in a cast-iron skillet on high heat. Remove from skillet and let soak for half an hour in water.
2. After chiles are moist, drain the water and place the chiles and vinegar in a blender or food processor, also adding the diced onion and chopped garlic. Puree until a smooth, bright red paste is formed (can add a splash of water or vinegar if it's too dry to blend). It will look like ketchup.
3. Combine the remaining spices in a separate bowl.  Rub the pork chops in a heavy coat of the spice blend.  Place them in a Ziploc bag, then add in the chile mixture.  Seal the bag, then shake to coat the pork chops and place in the refrigerator to marinate for about 2 hours.
4.  Heat a skillet over medium high heat until hot.  Add the bacon fat (fry up some bacon, remove it and leave the fat behind) or oil and then the pork chops.  Do not crowd the pan.  Cook for about 2 minutes on each side, until you see a brown sear around the edges (it won't turn very brown because of the marinade).  Juices should run clear and there should be no pink inside when done. Serve immediately.