Balsamic Black Pepper Pork Chops

 

"Don't judge the book by its cover."  Yep, that's right...because the look of this dish is what exactly describes it!  Pork chops can be a bit boring and bland at times if you don't have the right ingredients in it.  When I saw 'balsamic', it captured my eye.  I was intrigued (since I like balsamic vinegar).  Needless to say, I decided to take a chance of the 'uncertainty' of what the outcome may be.  And boy, was I glad!  When you find yourself licking at your own fingers and scraping the pan juices, what does that tell you?  That tells me I hit a home run!!!


Ingredients:

4 4-ounce pork chops (preferably bone-in)
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup chopped onions
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup lower sodium chicken broth

Sprinkle pork chops with pepper, salt and thyme.  Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high.  Add the chops and cook 3-4 minutes per side, or until browned and cooked to desired degree of doneness.  (At 150 degrees the chops will be pink in the center, juicy and tender).  Remove from pan.
Add the onion to the pan, stir and add the vinegar and broth.  Cook 2-3 minutes, or until sauce is thick.  Add the chops back to the pan, turning once to cover them in the sauce.
Serve with any sauce remaining in the pan drizzled over the pork.

Recipe courtesy:  A sweet and savory life

 

Yogurt Cupcakes

I thought this is a very nice twist to a typical children's yogurts.  Adding some colors to it looks palatable to eat before their eyes.  Let alone, have your kids involve putting them together, it is so much fun like me and my daughter did.  And best of all, she looks forward to snack on them, even adults will enjoy it, too!  C'mon, who does not like Nutella?  I know, my husband does!  I also love serving it to my daughter's play dates.  Her and her friends love it!

Ingredients:

Sprinkles (let your child pick what she likes)
8 silicone or foil cupcake wrappers
jar of Nutella
Low-fat banana yogurt
8 wooden pop stick

Shake sprinkles into eight silicone or foil cupcake wrappers.  Spread 2 to 3 teaspoons Nutella on the bottom and partially up the side of each wrapper.  Freeze until hardened, 1 to 2 hours.  Fill with low-fat banana yogurt.  Cover with foil, make a slit, and insert a wooden pop stick.  Freeze 3 to 4 hours or until solid.  Peel off wrappers, thaw a little, and serve.

Recipe courtesy:  Parenting Magazine, 2012

Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings

Every football season, this is a very popular dish in our household.  Hubby would specifically request this where he can comfortably sit on the couch, munch on these while watching his favorite team (Da Bears!) playing on tv.   While sitting on the couch watching the Olympic games, I thought "why not make the wings?" It will be a perfect finger food for this event!  We extremely enjoy this dish since the day we discovered of making them from scratch.  During our dwelling in Texas, we loved going to a "wing place" in a small town called Waxahachie.  Ever since we moved, we eagerly tried to recreate that super yummy finger food dish (trials and errors) all along...and voila!...our chicken wings was born!  Serve as an appetizer or an entree', it's your choice.  And the best part of it, it's oven-baked...oh, the joys of convenience and scrumptiousness without worrying our waistline.  The only rule before digging into these wings is to wash your hands!  Enjoy!


Ingredients:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 pounds chicken wingettes and drumettes
1/2 unsalted butter, melted (optional)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
squeeze of half a lemon

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.  Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray with oil cooking spray.  In a bowl mix flour, salt, garlic powder and onion powder.  Add chicken and toss to coat.  Spread chicken on the baking sheet in a single layer and spray with oil cooking spray.  Roast chicken for 45 minutes, turning once or twice until browned and crispy.

In a bowl, toss chicken with the melted butter (if using), then toss with parmesan cheese and squeeze lemon, mix altogether.  Serve immediately!

Cedar Plank Grilled Salmon

Living in a small town hundred miles away from the ocean, it's quite difficult to find fresh seafood in our local grocery stores.  As a seafood lover family, this is one of our biggest challenges trying to compromise the scarcity of them in our diet knowing we can only eat them in rare occasions, unfortunately.   So, whenever we go to a bigger cities where possible good seafood offered, we take the opportunity of bringing our big old cooler hoping to "hunt" or I should say "fish" them at any Wholefoods store.
Whenever we cook seafood like "wild-caught" (we prefer the wild side), we want to make sure we cook it to the best recipe possible to enjoy them to the fullest.  When it comes to salmon, oftentimes we grill them on cedar wood or cedar paper (featured on this recipe), whichever available.  Salmon has a creamy, mild and soft flavor.  So, you don't need to infuse a lot of spices into it.  A simple recipe will do to avoid overpowering the natural delicate flavor of the fish, then grill or bake them to perfection, this is how we typically treat salmons.  To enhance its natural flavor we would recommend using a cedar wood or cedar paper while grilling.   It adds a wonderful smoky taste to it!  I usually paired it with seasoned couscous and a steamed veggies on the side.  It's such a perfect combination that they complement each other exquisitely.  Once you've tried grilling salmon over cedar wood or paper, you would no longer want to go back to your basic grilling procedure, promise!  We're sharing you a very simple recipe with big flavor.  Sometimes the simplest things are the best things....bon appetit!

Ingredients:

3-4 8oz.  salmon fillets (cedar papers) or 1-2 pounds salmon fillet (cedar plank)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
 salt and pepper to your taste
1 untreated cedar plank or

Oven "Fried" Pizza

Oh, for the love of pizza!!!  I specially made this recipe for my dear hubby.  It never crossed my mind that the person I was about to marry is a  pizza lover...I mean big time!!!  Never ate this much pizza (several kinds whichever hits his fancy!) in my entire life until we became "One".  Don't get me wrong, I enjoy every bit of pizza sharing with him and I look forward to every moment of it until our lifetime...
To get some varieties (other than the usual pizza chains in town), I started making them from scratch.  It's actually not scary (I thought)!  Don't get too excited but I don't do those pizza dough "up-in-the-air" spinning tricks, okay! (LOL!).   I just follow the recipe to the T and that will do.
This specific recipe is one of his favorites and became mine, too.  There is something about this rustic taste that makes it feel so comforting and homey.  We make this anytime of the year, whenever our palates are calling for it, but really for me the best time is in winter.

Ingredients

• Basic Pizza Dough, recipe follows
• 8 tablespoons olive oil
• Lamb Sausage or Sweet Italian Sausage (our preference) and Caramelized Onions, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a cast iron skillet large enough to hold 1 of the pizza rounds, heat about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. When the oil begins to smoke lightly, turn heat off and add 1 of the pizza rounds. Use a spatula to press gently on the top of the round to keep it relatively flat as it cooks. When you see it is slightly brown on the underside, season the top lightly with salt and pepper and flip the round on its second side. Season it with salt and pepper and top with the onion sausage-onion mixture and place the skillet in the center of the oven until the pizza has finished cooking, 5 to 8 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough and topping.

Basic Pizza Dough:

• 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 cups warm water (about 110 degrees F)
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling dough
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1 scant tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus some additional for coating the bowl/greasing the trays

In a large bowl, combine the yeast and warm water. Stir to dissolve the yeast and allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes.

Using a sieve or strainer, "sift" about half of the flour over the yeast mixture and blend until smooth with your hands. Add the salt, pepper and honey and mix to blend. Sift in the remaining flour and mix to blend.

Lightly flour a cutting board or flat surface. Turn the pizza dough onto the floured area and knead for 3 to 5 minutes. The flour should feel smooth and the ingredients fully integrated. Place the dough inside a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in a warm place, about 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in volume.

Press gently on the dough and turn it onto a floured surface. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts, rolling each quarter into a loose ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to rest for an additional 15 minutes. Flatten each ball, 1at a time, and roll into a 6-inch round. Place each round in a single layer on a lightly greased baking sheet.

Tip for topping the pizza: Brushing the dough with olive oil can create a barrier that will help to prevent the topping from making the crust soggy.

Yield: 4 (6-inch) pizzas

Sausage and Caramelized Onions Topping:

• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 12 ounces spicy lamb sausage, casings removed
• 2 small red onions, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, cubed
• 1/2 cup basil leaves, stemmed, washed and dried (optional)

In a medium skillet over high heat, heat the olive oil and cook the sausage, breaking it into small pieces as it cooks, until golden brown and crispy.

Using a slotted spoon, remove the sausage from the pan onto a paper-towel lined plate. Drop the onions into the pan and cook over medium heat until caramelized, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the honey.

Add the caramelized onions to the pizza fried pizza dough and top with mozzarella, sausage, basil, and a drizzle of good extra-virgin olive oil


Yield: 4 (6-inch pizzas)
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

Recipe courtesy: Foodnetwork, Alex Guarnaschelli

Butterscotch Pot De Creme

This dessert is so divine!  First time making it and I'm glad I gave it a try in spite of being adamant as I thought it will be a daunting job.  It actually was not as bad as thought it would be...I cannot stop eating this that I have to restraint myself because it's that good! Especially when you eat it the day after...hmmm heavenly delicious!!!  And yeah, it's from GQ Magazine, so needless to say I was intrigued by this recipe other than the photos of being so mouth-watering, thinking it's got to be good!!! 

BUTTERSCOTCH POT DE CRÈME
(GQ Magazine, September 2009)

6 egg yolks
¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 TSP pure vanilla extract
1 TSP kosher salt
¼ cup bitter-sweet chocolate, shavings (for garnish)

Preheat oven to 300⁰F.

Place egg yolks in a large bowl and lightly whisk till smooth. Set aside.

Over a medium high flame, heat the brown sugar, milk and heavy cream in a heavy saucepan and stir until brown sugar start to dissolve. Then heat until the milk is steaming and tiny bubbles have formed along the edges, but do not boil. Remove from heat. Cover and keep warm.

In a medium saucepan, combine the granulated sugar with ¼ cup of water and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the sugar turns amber (ideally the color of a new penny), remove from heat. Carefully add ¼ cup of the hot cream mixture, whisking until combined. Whisk in 2 more cups of the cream mixture, then add the rest.

Pour the caramel cream into the yolk in a slow, steady stream and gently whisking the mixture continuously. Stir in the vanilla and salt. Strain the custard through a fine strainer (or sieve) into a pitcher. Skim off any foam or bubbles on top.

Pout the custard into six 5-ounce ramekins, leaving ½ inch at the top of each. Place ramekins in a roasting pan and carefully fill the pan with hot water until it comes halfway up their sides. Carefully cover the pan with foil.

Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes until set. When done, the center may still a bit loose when the custard is gently shaken.

Remove the pan from the oven and let the crème finish setting in the water bath at room temperature uncovered. When cool, refrigerate uncovered to preserve the burnished color.

Makes 6 5-ounce (or 10 3-ounce) desserts

Easy Carne Guisada

Carne Guisada is best described as a kind of Mexican stew that varies both in ingredients and in cooking methods, often depending upon region.  This version relies upon slow cooking to produce fall-apart result.  I fell in love with this dish the very first time I tried in a Mexican restaurant at the south side of Dallas.  There's something about it that brings me back home (Philippines), every time I eat it.  Partly because of the ingredients in it and the taste somewhat reminds me to some of our "Pinoy" dishes.




2 pounds chuck roast, trimmed and cut in bite-size pieces
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons canola oil or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup chopped celery (optional)
3 to 4 jalapenos, stems and seed removed, chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 1/2 cups beef stock or beef broth
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in deep pan.  Mix meat with the flour.  Fry meat mixture on heated oil until slightly brown.  Mix the rest of the ingredients into meat.  Slow cook meat until tender.  Serve over hot rice.

Note:  You can also use a crockpot for this dish which I do.  I would fry the meat first on a pan then transfer everything to a crockpot, turn it on high for 3-4 hours or low for 7-8 hours and forget about it.  The next thing you know, the dish's aroma will be calling you...