Honey-Balsamic Glazed Pork Chops

If you are looking for a seriously good and easy grilled pork chop recipe, look no further. The slightly-sweet and tangy-sour glaze is so delicious on the pork. My husband LOVES this recipe and requests it often. You must try it!

Honey-Balsamic Glazed Pork Chops
(recipe adapted from Saveur.com)
Serves 6

6 bone-in or boneless pork chops
5 T extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked black pepper
2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
4  T honey
6 T unsalted butter
2 tsp dried rosemary or 3 tsp fresh


Put pork chops on a plate, drizzle with oil and season generously with kosher salt and pepper, on both sides. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat grill to medium-high heat.
Combine vinegar and honey in a 1-qt. saucepan and cook over medium heat until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 5 minutes or so). Stir in butter and rosemary and set aside.

Put pork chops on grill and cook, occasionally turning and basting generously with balsamic mixture, until browned and cooked through, 12–14 minutes. Transfer to a platter and let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Teriyaki Grilled Pork

It was such a beautiful weekend here in New England. Totally made me wish I was camping. Soon, Jen, soon!
The super nice weather made me crave grilled summer food, so for dinner one night I decided to whip up my super quick and easy homemade teriyaki sauce, and use it to marinate some boneless pork spareribs. Major yum!

Homemade Teriyaki Marinade

(makes about 1 cup)

1 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground ginger
* 1 1/2 - 2 lbs pork, chicken or steak tips

Combine all of the ingredients except for the meat, in a small saucepan.

Over medium high heat, bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat, pour the sauce into a heat proof bowl or measuring cup and refrigerate until luke warm (about 20 minutes).

Place rinsed meat into a single layer of a shallow container or into a resealable gallon-sized plastic bag.

Pour marinade over meat and refrigerate for 2 to 8 hours, turning the bag or meat a few times during that time.
Remove meat and discard marinade. Grill meat until desired doneness and then enjoy!

Lemon and Herb Pork Chops

I've been experimenting a lot lately with traditional French cooking. I am French, after all, so I feel it should be my duty to enrich my kids with some classic French cooking. I can't have them growing up thinking the only real French foods they've ever had are french fries and french toast, that just isn't right. So, the first place I started looking for some classic recipes was my mom's collection of recipes. Her mother (my grandmother) was French-Canadian so my mom had a lot of great recipes from her, but most were for large family gatherings during the holidays, not exactly every-day type foods. So, I turned to where most people start looking when they think of French cooking: Julia Child. She's the master and her recipes are amazing.

So, one of the first recipes from Julia that I would like to share with you is actually pretty easy and simple, but very flavorful and delicious. This recipe is best made with boneless pork chops, but boneless chicken breasts would be good as well. To start, you need to make the marinade:


Lemon Juice and Herb Marinade

For every pound of meat....

1 tsp salt (I used kosher)
1/8 tsp black pepper (I used slightly more per pound and cracked instead of ground)
3 T fresh lemon juice (I also added about a 1/4 tsp of lemon zest)
3 T extra virgin olive oil
3 parsley sprigs, chopped
1/4 tsp dried thyme or sage
1 bay leaf
1 clove mashed or minced fresh garlic (I used double per pound)


Directions:

Rub the salt and pepper onto both sides of the meat.

Mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl or plastic storage container. Add the meat and turn to baste in the marinade and coat well. Cover and let meat marinade in fridge for at least 2 hours (I highly recommend marinating for 6 or more hours--possibly over night, for best flavor). Turn meat in the marinade every couple of hours so they marinate evenly.

When ready to cook, scrape marinade off of the meat and pat meat dry with a paper towel (this is crucial). Then add 3-4 T canola oil to a heavy skillet and heat to almost smoking.

Cook meat for 3 to 4 minutes then flip to finish cooking on the other side.

Julia recommends serving this meat with garlic mashed potatoes. Enjoy!

Baked Manicotti with Prosciutto

This is a great recipe. It's simple, yet very flavorful, and actually pretty darn fun to put together. Regular manicotti can be a huge mess to fill so this variation is like a breath of fresh air. Using no-boil lasagna noodles instead, makes this dish super easy and leaves a lot of room for creativity.
Let's get started, shall we?


Baked Manicotti with Prosciutto
(adapted from Amanda's Cookin')

For the sauce:
2 - 28 oz cans of diced tomatoes, with juice (or the equivalent in fresh, diced tomatoes)
2 T extra virgin olive oil
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/4 - 1/2 tsp hot red pepper flakes (I used 1/2 tsp)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 T chopped fresh basil

For the filling:
3 cups ricotta cheese (I used fat-free)
2 cups grated parmesan cheese, divided (I used reduced fat)
2 cups finely shredded mozzarella cheese (I used 2% reduced fat)
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 T chopped fresh parsley
2 T chopped fresh basil
16 no-boil lasagna noodles (1 1/2 packages)
16 slices thinly sliced prosciutto


Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

For the sauce: In a large saucepan, heat the oil, garlic and pepper flakes over medium heat until garlic is just starting to brown, about 2-4 minutes. Add the tomatoes and salt. Bring to a simmer and cook until sauce slightly thickens, about 15 minutes. Then turn off the heat and add the basil.

For the filling: Combine the ricotta, mozzarella, 1 cup of the parmesan, eggs, salt, pepper, parsley and basil. Mix well and set aside.

Assembly: Cook noodles in boiling water until just pliable (this will only take about 30 seconds!!). Drain (but, do not rinse) and then place in a single layer on clean kitchen towels.

Pour about 1 1/2 cups of sauce in the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish and spread evenly.

Place 1 slice of prosciutto on top of each noodle. Then spread 1/4 cup of cheese mixture over 3/4 of each noodle, on top of the prosciutto, leaving 1/4 of the noodle uncovered.

Then, starting from the end of the noodle with the cheese, gently roll the noodle into a tube shape and then arrange in the baking dish seam side down. Continue until all manicotti are rolled.

Top the manicotti evenly with the remaining sauce, making sure to cover each noodle completely.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack until the sauce is bubbling (about 40 minutes).

Remove manicotti from the oven and adjust the oven rack to the highest position (about 6 inches from the heating element). Sprinkle remaining 1 cup of parmesan cheese evenly over the manicotti. Do not replace the foil. Broil on LOW until cheese starts to brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy with crusty garlic bread and a fresh green salad. Serves 8.

*Note: This dish can be made ahead of time. After assembly, place a piece of parchment paper over the top of the sauce and then wrap the top with aluminum foil (a few times if freezing). Then place in the refrigerator for up to three days or freeze.

To cook, let stand at room temperature for 20 minutes or so (or thaw completely), then remove parchment paper, replace foil, then follow baking instructions.

Baked Ham and Cheese Pasta with Broccoli

I threw this meal together the other night because I needed a quick meal that used up the left over ham I had in the fridge. It's just a basic macaroni and cheese dish with added ham and broccoli, but it's my HEALTHIER version that is also baked in the oven. This made a lot so you can cut the recipe in half if you want to. Hope you enjoy this as much as we did!


Baked Ham and Cheese Pasta with Broccoli

1- 13.25 oz pkg whole wheat rotini pasta, cooked al-dente
2 full cups cooked diced ham
1- 12 oz pkg frozen broccoli, cooked
6 T unsalted butter
1 small onion, diced
1/3 cup flour (plus more, if needed)
3 1/2 cups 1% milk
6 oz 2% milk reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup grated reduced fat parmesan cheese (plus more for sprinkling)
1/2 tsp dried parsley
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook pasta to package directions to "al-dente", drain. Cook broccoli until done, whatever method is preferred by you (microwave or stove top), drain. Melt butter in a 3 quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add flour, mix well and cook for 1 minute to create roux. Gradually add milk to roux to form a thickened sauce (add more flour if needed to desired thickness), also add the parsley and salt/pepper, to taste, to roux (I started with a 1/4 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp pepper and then added more if I desired). Remove from heat. Add cheddar cheese and parmesan to roux and mix well until all melted.

Add pasta, ham and broccoli back to pot used to boil pasta in. Add the cheese mixture and stir gently until well combined. Pour pasta mixture into a 9x13 pan, sprayed with cooking spray. Sprinkle with more parmesan cheese on top.




Bake, uncovered for 20-25 minutes until hot and bubbling. Let sit for a few minutes before serving. Enjoy!