Pork Loin Chops with Caramelized Apples

Friday, October 11, 2013

One of our fun family traditions is to go apple picking. This always results in too many apples. I have already baked an apple cake recipe here:http://www.saladgirlnat.com/2013/05/super-easy-apple-cake.html and the kids and I have been snacking on apples daily. This was another good way to use a few more apples and it was a delicious and fast dinner. The pork and the wine infused the apples with fantastic flavor. 

Ingredients:

4 Bone In  Loin Pork Chops
1-2 tablespoons of oil for frying
1 teaspoon sage (I was in a hurry and used dry)
Few tablespoons of flour for dredging (I used whole wheat)
2-3 Apples (I used golden delicious but any apple will do)—peeled, cored and sliced
½  cup of white wine
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
Salt to taste

Wash and dry pork. Add a few tablespoons of flour onto a large plate. Heat oil on a large skillet till nice and hot, about 2 minutes. In the meantime, coat pork chops with flour.
Add pork chops to skillet  and cook 3-5 minutes per side depending on how thick the chops are and how well done you want the chops to be cooked. 
Add salt, pepper and dry sage to each side.

Remove chops and keep warm. Keeping pan on medium, deglaze pan with white wine. Add apples and allow to cook through, about 5 minutes. Add brown sugar and cook another few minutes till cooked through. Return pork chops to skillet for another minute.

Serve pork chops topped with apples. I prepared pureed pumpkin (another fruit of our farm visit) as a side.

Enjoy!


Roasted Cauliflower Gratin

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

am a huge fan of roasted cauliflower (check out my basic roasted cauliflower recipe here:  http://www.saladgirlnat.com/2013/05/cauliflower-roasted-with-white-truffle.html?m=1 but my husband—not so much.  Saw this recipe for roasted cauliflower gratin http://theshiksa.com/2012/04/25/roasted-cauliflower-gratin/
and had to try.
I made a few modifications based on my taste buds and I have to say that this was a huge hit even with the spouse.  And while not as healthy as plain roasted cauliflower, definitely healthier than the typical gratin.

INGREDIENTS:
2 medium heads of cauliflower broken up into florets
2 tablespoons of oil ( I used white truffle which I love on cauliflower and in general)
2 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
1 ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)
1 ¼ cup of milk (I used 1 %)
Cheddar cheese—recipe called for ¾ cup of cheddar but I had THREE slices of smoke cheddar which I chopped up
3 tablespoons panko ( I used Ian’s Whole Wheat Panko—my favorite)
Cooking spray ( I use coconut spray by Spectrum)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. I used my Breville Convection Oven.
Toss florets with oil of choice. Roast for about half hour, tossing every 10  minutes or so.

In the meantime, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Slowly whisk in flour and stir so it’s lump free. Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg if using.
The above ingredients should form a thick paste.

Slowly stir in milk a bit at a time. Heat it for a few minutes, mixing frequently so it thickens and begins to bubble around edges. DO NOT BRING TO BOIL.

Whisk in cheese and stir till melted. Reduce flame to low  and stir frequently. Continue to do so till ready to assemble the gratin.

Remove cauliflower from oven. Reduce temperature to 375.  Spray an 8 x8 baking dish ( I used a Pyrex dish) with oil. Add cauliflower in an even layer.
Pour cheese mixture over it. Sprinkle with panko.

Bake for about ½ hour till brown and bubbly. If you wish, broil for another 1-2 minutes (but be careful because I almost burned mine on that last step).

Enjoy!

Adapted from: 


 
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