Key West Pork Chops

This is a recipe I've been making for years. As a matter of fact, the cookbook that provided the inspiration for it came with me on our 7 year sailing adventure. There weren't very many times that pork chops were available (ones that I would eat, that is), but when they were, this was a go-to recipe. I've adapted it from The New York Times Cook Book, by Craig Claiborne.

Key West Pork Chops

2 TBSP oil
4 - 6 pork chops (not the boneless kind - they dry out too much, even with this moist recipe)
1 1/2 cups raw rice (I think long grain white rice works best here)
1 onion, sliced
lemon or lime, sliced
salsa (your favorite brand, or homemade)
3 cups tomato (or V-8) juice
tabasco sauce

Brown the pork chops on both sides in the oil in a large frying pan. Here, they are just starting on side one:

Remove the chops to a plate and stir in the rice, just to coat with the remaining oil. Turn the rice into a large greased baking pan. You need a deep-ish one. Arrange the pork chops on top of the rice.Sprinkle with salt and pepper if desired. Distribute the onion and lemon (or lime) slices on top. Spoon some salsa over each pork chop and add a bit of tabasco here and there. Here's what mine looked like at this point:

Pour the juice around the pork chops. Cover tightly with foil. Bake at 325 for 1 - 1 1/2 hours. I forgot to take a picture of them on our plates, but here's what the baking pan looked like after we ate half:

I served this with roasted brussels sprouts, because that's what I had on hand.

Golden Summer Cake

Rick came home from the store the other day with a buttload lot of nectarines.  Who asked him to get any nectarines?  I didn't.  Once I got close to the bag of said nectarines, I knew exactly why he bought them.  They smelled heavenly.  But they were all ripe, so I had to spring into action and figure out how to use a bunch of them fast.  There was no way we could eat them out-of-hand fast enough.

A quick search located this really great recipe.

Fruit Topped Golden Summer Cake (my name, not theirs)

1 cup flour (thanks to my friend Patty's recommendation, I used King Arthur's White Whole Wheat)

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup softened butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp Fiori di Sicilia (this is my addition to the recipe and I must say that it made a huge difference, but it is completely optional -- you could try some lemon extract instead or leave it out entirely)

2 nectarines, cut up

1/2 TBSP sugar mixed with 1/2 tsp nutmeg.

Cream butter and sugar until smooth.  Add eggs and mix completely.  Add flour, baking powder and salt, stirring to combine.  Turn into greased 9" x 9" pan.  Scatter fruit over the batter and sprinkle with sugar/nutmeg mix.  Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes.

I know what you're thinking:  those don't look like nectarines!  and that isn't a square pan!

The first time I baked this cake, I used nectarines, but had to double the recipe to be able to use more than 2 nectarines!  The next time I baked it, not only did I double it, but I was finally running low on nectarines, so I added a bunch of fresh cherries -- a delightful combination!  The latest version (in the photos) uses both blueberries and cherries -- another delightful combination!

I really overloaded it with fruit, which doesn't seem to affect the recipe, but the berries did sink a bit.  I don't see this as a problem.

This cake is especially good topped with some vanilla ice cream. 

An Ambitious Cooking Project :: Egg Rolls!

I've made these egg rolls at least one time in the past, if I can believe the notes I made in the cookbook.  It was at best a dim memory.  So this recent attempt felt like the first time ... all over again.

The internet abounds with recipes and I will provide mine if you request it, but for now, I'll simply entertain you with photos of my egg roll experience.

Preparing the filling of cabbage, onions, carrots and water chestnuts, with a tablespoon (or so) of soy sauce and about a teaspoon of sugar:

Whisking the extremely thin batter -- in one direction only! -- while the pan in heating:

The pan is lightly oiled before I pour in the batter.  Pam worked better than liquid oil, as it gave a more even coating.  The pancakes are thin and cook relatively quickly.  The trickiest part is turning them to cook the other side.

They are stacked under a moistened towel to keep them soft.  I think the recipe made 8 or 9.

I wasn't able to get a photo of the actual filling and rolling and forgot to get a photo while they were frying.  So here is a picture of the finished product:

I served them with a selection of 4 dipping sauces.  We ate every single one. And then we had dinner. :)

A Fun New Purchase

I've been wanting the pasta maker attachment for my Kitchen Aid for a long time.  Last week, I actually bought it at a really nice local kitchen ware store.  On Sunday, I decided to make lasagna.  The Kitchen Aid mixed up the pasta dough like a dream.  I remember the olden days (about 25 years ago) when I used to knead that dough by hand and then roll it in a hand crank roller.  Well, that roller rusted out somewhere in the Caribbean, sometime in the late '80's.

I forgot to take pictures while making the sheets of pasta, but I did remember the camera while dishing out our second lasagna dinner on Monday night.  We will probably eat it for 2 more nights!

This is Rick's dinner :)  Well, part of it anyway.

We Made Cupcakes (and Marshmallows)

My BGOTN business partner Carol, and I continually fantasize about having a food booth at the State Fair. Deep down, we know we don't have the energy or the inclination to really do this, but that doesn't keep us from dreaming up the perfect fair food.

We had been discussing cupcakes baked in ice cream cones for several months now. It's perfect for the fair, no? It does not require utensils and it can be eaten with one hand. The other day, I went to her house for a day in the kitchen. We experimented with this concept. The cupcakes were easy enough to bake. While we did not decorate them, we knew this would be vital to their success. They tasted fine when just cooled.

The experiment had to go further, however. How would these things taste after they sat for a few hours? The answer is: disgusting. The cone part absorbs quite a bit of moisture from the cupcake and becomes, well, beyond soggy. Again, disgusting.

We also made marshmallows -- 2 different recipes. These were absolutely delicious and have kept quite well, even after several days. How about 3 of these on a skewer -- marsh-kabobs anyone? These too can be eaten with one hand and do not require any utensils.

Carol of course made me the most delicious lunch: a Tuscan tart. That's really the best reason to spend the day at Carol's. She's absolutely the best cook I know. (Patty - I'm sure your cooking is on par with Carol's, but since I have not tasted it, Carol has to get The Gold!)

Coconut Bread Pudding

I have a serious weakness for coconut in any form. I modified a very basic bread pudding recipe to satisfy my coconut craving. I must say, this is awesome. Beware, bread pudding is not an exact science and you must use some judgment.

1 loaf sliced white bread (not as airy as Wonder bread, but nothing too dense either -- I use sliced bread from the in-house bakery at my local Safeway)
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 can (14 oz) coconut milk (generally found in the Asian cooking section of the supermarket -- don't confuse this with coconut cream, which is sweetened and much too thick for this recipe)
1/4 cup regular milk
2 TBSP vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt
1/2 cup shredded coconut (I use the unsweetened type found in the health food section, but you could use the sweetened kind instead)

Place raisins in a bowl of hot water. let soak for 20 minutes. Drain
Combine sugar, eggs, milks, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, coconut and raisins.
Cut bread into cubes. Stir the bread gently into the sugar/egg/milk mixture. Here's where the judgment comes in. If it looks too dry, you can beat another egg with 1/2 cup milk and stir it in. It's really hard to describe how moist this should be. Last time I made it, it was just a bit too dry and I think it was because the loaf of bread I used was larger than normal.

Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes. You can add some more shredded coconut on top for the last few minutes -- just long enough for it to brown a bit. It will look very pretty :)

I usually serve this at room temperature with whipped cream. But my friend Patty/Pricilla (she has 2 personalities) has recently shared a recipe for caramel sauce that I think would be awesome on this bread pudding.

The Best Chocolate Cake

I know, everyone thinks they have the best chocolate cake recipe ever devised. The truth is that this one really is the best (stop laughing, Patty). This is Rick's absolute favorite thing I've ever created in the kitchen. The photo on the right shows just how dense and moist this cake is. Here goes.

1 cup cocoa powder (for this recipe, I splurge and use Dutch process cocoa)
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons instant coffee powder
3 sticks unsalted butter
3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 eggs (yes, 5)
1 cup buttermilk (I mix 2 tablespoons lemon juice with milk to make 1 cup)
1/4 cup water

An electric mixer makes this cake a snap, so if you have one, use it!

Cream the butter until fluffy.
Add sugar and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.
Mix in the dry ingredients alternating with the liquids.
Beat until super smooth.
Pour into buttered bundt pan.
Bake in preheated 325 oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes (check it at this point to see if it needs 10 more minutes)

Lemon Pie ... mmmm

I'll share with you one of the simplest and yummiest dessert recipes that I know --- Lemon Pie. One of the things that makes it so easy is that I choose to use a graham cracker crust instead of making my own. The graham cracker crust just seems like a better match for this filling.

1 cup sugar
3 TBSP cornstarch
1 cup milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1/3 cup butter
1 TBSP grated lemon peel
1 cup sour cream

Combine sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Stir in milk, lemon juice and egg yolks. Cook over medium hear, stirring constantly, until thick. This will take about 10 minutes, but it will feel longer!
Remove from heat. Stir in butter until melted. Add lemon peel. Cool. Fold in sour cream. Spoon into graham cracker crust. Refrigerate.

Whenever I make this pie, I also make a batch of macaroons with the 3 egg whites. How's that for efficient?




Enjoy!

Granola

Yesterday I made a batch of granola. It's my favorite granola recipe. It's my only granola recipe. I copied it out of the newspaper when I was in college at SUNY Buffalo. That was so long ago, that I don't even remember the name of the newspaper. I guess I should be thankful that I remember as much as I do.

Ingredients
4 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
1 TBSP cinnamon
1 cup of chopped nuts (walnuts, almonds, cashews, pepitas -- whatever you prefer. My favorite combo is almonds and cashews.)

1/2 cup oil
2/3 cup honey
1 TBSP vanilla

Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Place oil and honey in a small saucepan. Heat on low until it is thin and runny. Stir in vanilla.
Pour over the dry ingredients and stir well.
Spread on 2 cookie sheets and bake at 325 for 20-30 minutes. Stir often to prevent burning.
Remove from oven and let cool. Store in airtight containers.



Yum.