MUSTARD SHERRY GRILLED PORK CHOPS, BARLEY PILAF & CORN ON THE COBB

So mustard and pork are kind of a classic combo.  I hope that I did it justice.  I thought it was awesome but I'll leave it up to you all to decide.  I also did a spin on a classic pilaf by using barely instead of rice.  I think it's a great way to change it up.


BARLEY RICE PILAF (SERVES 6):
1 cup pearl barley
3 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon butter
1 carrot
2 stalks celery
1/2 onion
3 mushrooms
1/2 red bell pepper
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried thyme
salt, pepper and garlic to taste

Put pan on stove over medium heat and add butter.  Chop all veggies (no worries about being even they will cook through) and add them to the pan.  Sweat veggies until soft and then add barley, broth, thyme, bay leaf and salt, pepper and garlic.  Bring to a boil and turn down to a simmer and cover.  Cook for about an hour stirring occasionally.

SWEATING VEGGIES

ADDING BARLEY

ADDING BROTH AND HERBS

COOKED BARELY

CORN ON THE COBB (SERVES 2):

2 Ears Corn

1/2 gallon water

Place water in a pot and bring to a boil.  While water is coming up peel the husk off the corn.  Once the water is boiling place ears of corn in the water and turn off the water.  Let the corn sit in water for about10 minutes. Remove corn from water.  Add whatever condiments you like to corn once out of the water (I like butter and salt).

MUSTARD SHERRY GRILLED PORK CHOPS (SERVES 3):

3 Pork Loin Chops

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon whole grain mustard

salt to taste

pan spray

Place sherry vinegar, olive oil, mustard and salt into a bag or Tupperware container.  Stir and place pork chops into marinade and let sit (in the fridge) for about an hour.  Turn your grill on to about 400 degrees (you can use your oven too if don't have a grill) .  Spray your grill down with the pan spray and place your chops on the grill and cook for about 4 minutes per side.  Let rest for about 3 or 4 minutes before serving.  

MARINADE

CHOPS IN MARINADE

CHOPS ON THE GRILL

CHOPS FLIPPED

AND THAT IS WHATS FOR DINNER TONIGHT!!!!

FANCY BURGERS

So my coworker had mentioned that there was these burgers at Shaws that were so delicious that I had to try them.  So I found them on a good deal this last weekend so I made them last night for dinner.  I am calling them fancy burgers because usually most people add some cheese maybe some bacon lettuce and tomato, maybe an onion.  I have all those just in an upgraded sense.  Check it out.

Panchetta (serves 2):

4 slices Panchetta

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Place pan in the oven and bake for about 10-15 minutes or until the panchetta is nice and crispy.

before

after

BALSAMIC GRILLED ONIONS (SERVES 2):

1 medium onion

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your grill to between 400 and 500 degrees.  Slice onions to about 1/4 inch thick.  Lay out and sprinkle with the rest of the ingredients.  Place rounds on the grill and grill for about 3 minutes per side and then take off grill and set aside. 

sliced onions

onions marinating

just on the grill

balsamic grilled onions

BASIL GARLIC AOLI (SERVES 2):

1/4 cup mayo or miracle whip if you prefer

4 basil leaves

1 teaspoon fresh garlic

Place mayo into a bowl and add chopped garlic (I always have a jar of the already chopped up in the fridge).  Then you will need to chiffonad the basil.  I know that seems like and intimidating word but it is actually really easy.  Put all your leaves in a stack, roll the leaves up together and slice (see pics below).  Add the basil to the bowl and stir. Set aside for assembling.

stack your basil leaves together

roll the basil leaves

and chop...that simple

finished aoli

THICK GRILLED BURGERS (SERVES 2):

2 thick burger patties (I used shaw's pub burgers here)

salt and pepper

4 slices of brie cheese (with the rind removed)

Preheat grill between 400 and 500 degrees.  Salt and Pepper the burgers to your liking and place on the grill.  Cook for about 6 minutes per side for a medium burger longer for well done shorter for more rare. Just before taking off grill add the brie and then take them off and let them rest for about 4 minutes or so.

shaws pub style burgers

on the grill

flip

add the brie

TO ASSEMBLE:

take your burger bun and smother in aoli.  Place your burger on the bottom side put your two pieces of panchetta on the top.  Add your grilled onions.  I also put two slices of tomato and some arugula salad mix on our burgers add the top of the bun and enjoy!

AND THAT'S WHATS FOR DINNER!

ROASTED CORN AND CHEESE GRITS WITH TACO MEATBALLS, ROASTED TOMATOES AND AVOCADO SALSA

So this morning I randomly came up with this recipe.  I was thinking about the ground turkey I had in the fridge and about the grits I had for breakfast on Sunday.  I wasn't sure how it would turn out but it ended up being more fantastic then I could imagine.  And actually it wasn't too complicated either!

TACO FLAVORED MEATBALLS (SERVES 6):

1 package of ground turkey (you can use ground beef if you prefer) 

1 package of your favorite taco mix

2 eggs

3/4 cup plain bread crumbs

Pan spray

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Spray down your sheet pan with the pan spray.  Place all but the pan spray into the a bowl mix until everything is fully mixed together.  Once everything is all mixed roll into 2 inch balls and place on the sheet pan. Place the pan in the oven and cook for about 20-25 minutes or until they reach 165 degrees on your meat thermometer.  

MEATBALL MIX

MEATBALLS ALL ROLLED OUT

YUMMY COOKED MEATBALLS

ROASTED CHERRY TOMATOES (SERVES 6):

1 pint cherry or plum tomatoes

1 tablespoon olive oil

garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.  Place your pint of tomatoes into your pan. 

Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients over the tomatoes and place in the oven.  

Roast for 15-20 minutes ore until the pop and start to brown.

BEFORE

AFTER

ROASTED CORN & CHEESE GRITS (SERVES 3):

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon butter (I always use unsalted)

1/2 cup grits (I happened to use Trader Joe's)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup roasted corn (you can make fresh if you want but Trader Joe's has a frozen one)

1 sliced green onion

3/4 cup sharp Cheddar cheese

pepper to taste

Place your water, salt and butter in a pot and bring to a boil.  Gradually stir in your grits and bring back up to a boil.  Turn on low and cover, simmer, stirring often, for about 15 minutes.  After about 15 minutes add the milk and roasted corn.  Turn up to medium low and cook, again stirring often, for about 10 minutes.  Stir in green onion, cheese and pepper.  It should look very creamy.

GRITS A COOKIN'

ALL DONE!

AVOCADO SALSA (SERVES 4-6):

1 ripe avocado

1 green onion, sliced

2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped

1 teaspoon ponzu or lime juice

salt and pepper to taste

Slice avocado in half and remove pit. Cut avocado into squares and scoop out into a bowl with a spoon.  Add all ingredients to a bowl and stir.

To put it all together I placed the grits in the bottom of the bowl made a ring with the roasted tomatoes placed 3 meatballs into the middle and placed the avocado salsa on the top.

AND THAT IS WHATS FOR DINNER TONIGHT!

DINNER OUT...AT GREGGS!

So tonight I had plans to go out to dinner with my friend and we decided to go to a Rhode Island staple Greggs.  They are known for their baking (although I didn't have dessert) and pickles.  If you go to Greggs you must ask for the pickles they are amazing.  I did do a little searching and found out they gave their recipe to the Providence Journal at one point so I pasted it on here for you to try at home.  The rolls they have are amazing as well.  I put a roll recipe on here too in case you are ever looking for a roll recipe.  For actual dinner I had a Bruschetta burger. Not as good as expected but the recipe below would be what I would want out of a bruschetta burger.  Hope you enjoy whats for dinner tonight!

Greggs pickles

Washed pickling size cucumbers, cut into spears or 1/4-inch slices

1 ½ tablespoons pickling salt

1 ½ teaspoons pickling spices

¼ teaspoon hot pepper seed or flaked red pepper

8 small gloves garlic

1 half-gallon glass jar with cover 

Fill jars with washed cucumbers. Pack them in tightly. Mix salt, garlic, pickling spices and pepper in a bowl with about 2 cups of hot water; stir until the salt is dissolved. Add some cold water until the liquid feels comfortable to the touch, not hot. Add to the cucumbers. Add more water (warm) if necessary to fill the jar. Let stand on counter, loosely covered, for about 1 hour. After 1 hour cover tightly and refrigerate for 7 days. Taste on the 7^th day.

VIENNA ROLLS

1 package active dry yeast

1/4 cup warm water to activate the yeast in

1 cup warm water

2 cups all purpose flour

2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

1 tablespoon sugar

1 1/4 teaspoon salt

Mix all of the above together, then fold in:

2 large egg whites, beaten until stiff

Stir in an additional 1 3/4 - 2 cups flour. Knead for 7 minutes. Place in bowl and cover.

Let rise an hour and a half, punch down, let rise again.

Shape into rolls, cover, and give an hour to rise. Bake at 425 in a steamy oven for about 20-25 minutes.

I made a couple of changes to this recipe: instant yeast instead of active dry yeast and butter instead of shortening.

I intend to post a full article after I have a couple more times to practice them, but hopefully this is enough for folks to get close.

BRUScHETTA BURGER

Bruschetta topping:

1 or 2 ripe tomatoes

1 small clove of garlic, minced

1/8 cup fresh basil 

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Salt & fresh cracked pepper

Mix all the ingredients together except salt. Add salt right before before the burgers so the tomatoes don’t get watery. Set aside.

For the Patties:

Ground Beef seasoned only with salt & pepper)-- the bruschetta

Mozzarella or Provolone,  to melt on the burger.

 Make beef patties, and make a large indentation in the middle. Brush one side of the bread with olive oil. Grill the olive oil side until grill marks form. Place the patties on the uncooked side of a bread slice. Salt the bruschetta topping and spoon over the top of the patties. Top with another slice of grilled bread. 

AND THAT'S WHATS FOR DINNER TONIGHT!

CHICKEN STUFFED WITH BRIE & BASIL, ROASTED CAULIFLOWER AND QUINOA

So I know tonight's dish sounds a different.  Many of you might think stuffing a chicken breast is difficult but really once you've done it once you'll see that it's easier then you thought.  We also have quinoa on our plate tonight sounds exotic but it is really pretty easy to find.  I usually find it in the natural foods section.  It is actually not a grain it is a seed and takes on any of the flavor of what it's cooked it.  It's got lots of protein and is a great alternative to rice. I know there isn't a lot of color to this dish tonight but the flavor all but makes up for it. 

Roasted Cauliflower (serves 2):

1 bag frozen cauliflower or a half a head of fresh cauliflower

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  If you use the frozen cauliflower just place it on your pan.  If you are using fresh cut the head in half and cut out core.  Chunk into florets and place on pan.  Drizzle the olive oil over the cauliflower and sprinkle the onion, garlic, salt and pepper on it as well. Place in the oven for about 20 minutes or until you see the cauliflower starting to brown along the edges. 

BEFORE

AFTER

Chicken Breast Stuffed With Brie and Basil (Serves 2):

2 chicken breasts

2 oz of brie cheese

2 basil leaves

Wildtree Ranchers Steak Rub (you can use a mix of garlic, salt and pepper) to taste

Pan Spray

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Spray your pan down with the pan spray and set aside. Remove rind from brie and cut into two pieces, set aside. Place 1 large basil leaf on top of each piece of brie.  Now it's time to make a pocket into your chicken.  Place the chicken on one side.  (if you have trouble with  large knives use a small one for this task) Place the point of the knife at the top middle of the side of the chicken breast continue cutting down the breast for about 3 inches trying not to puncture through the front or back of the breast.  Place brie and basil in the breast pocket fold over the top and place 2 toothpicks into the side to keep the brie and basil inside the chicken. Place the chicken on the pan and put in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the inside reaches 165 degrees  (if you have a meat thermometer) if you don't have a thermometer the the chicken should feel firm to the touch.  Remove toothpicks prior to serving.

BRIE

POCKET FOR FILLING

BRIE AND BASIL IN THE POCKET

USE TOOTHPICKS TO CLOSE UP POCKETS

FINISHED PRODUCT

QUINOA (SERVES 3-4):

1 cup quinoa

1 1/4 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons garlic

2 green onions

salt and pepper to taste

Place chicken stock and garlic in a pot and place on the stove and bring to a boil.  Once it comes to a boil add your quinoa and green onions and cook, covered, for 10 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed.  Season with salt and pepper and serve.

QUINOA

COOKING ON THE STOVE

WHAT IT SHOULD LOOK LIKE WHEN IT'S ALL DONE.

AND THAT IS WHATS FOR DINNER TONIGHT!