Pork Chops and Arugula Grape Salad

Food Network is a favorite website of mine... especially when I want easy and delicious recipe ideas. I found this recipe for grilled pork chops with an arugula and grape salad and decided to give it a shot.

Here's what you'll need for the chops...

I varied it up the recipe by marinating the pork chops in the salad dressing for about 10 minutes prior to grilling.

I doubled the dressing recipe so I could use half of it for the marinade and the other half for the salad. Wisk together a diced shallot, balsamic vinegar, olive oil and S&P. Pour half into a ziploc bag with the chops and stick in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, assemble the salad...

Toss together some arugula mix, red grapes sliced in half, crumbled gorgonzola and the dressing.

Grill the chops on the BBQ or a cast iron grill pan for about 4 minutes on each side, depending on how thick they are. The finished product will look like this...

Uhh... so good!!!

Summer Salad Series- Chicken and Parmesan with Balsamic

I love a good "throw together whatever you have in your fridge" salad... especially on a summer evening  when you come home to a hot stuffy house and the last thing you want to do in this heat is COOK (there, I said it.) Open all the windows then open up your fridge to see what you can toss together.

Here's what I had to work with:

Some salad mix, green onions, shredded parm, already-cooked chicken and my favorite salad dressing ever- Three Cheese Balsamic Vinaigrette from Fresh & Easy (It's bottled up amazingness.)

Empty the salad greens in a big bowl. Chop up the chicken and the green onions. (I also found an apple to dice up and throw in there, too...) Throw in a handful of parmesan and toss with some dressing.

Scoop up some ensalada, pour yourself a glass of chardo and relax.

5 Minute Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Don't be fooled by the title of this post. These pulled pork sandwiches literally take 5 minutes to throw together. This is all thanks to my newest Fresh & Easy discovery... fully cooked pulled pork for $5.99!

It also comes in pulled brisket and pulled chicken... yum! So here's the breakdown of the 5 minutes it will take you to cook dinner. Ready, set, go!

Minute 1: Pop some wheat hamburger buns in the toaster to toast lightly. Also put the pulled pork in the microwave for 2 1/2 minutes.

Minute 2: Toss some shredded cabbage cole slaw mix with some oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

Minute 3: Slice an avocado.

Minute 4: Take the pork out of the micro and the buns out of the toaster.

Minute 5: Assemble your sandwiches and top with a splash of your favorite bbq sauce.

Ok, so you will be hustling this whole time, maybe if you slowed it down a bit it would take 7 or 8 minutes, but still! Can you beat this quick, easy and cheap dinner?

Don't forget the napkins. You'll be wearing this sandwich before you know it!

Breakfast for Dinner

We are big fans of breakfast for dinner. I whipped up this savory scramble and it totally hit the spot. Not to mention, with only 4 ingredients it's easy and cheap.

Here's what you need:
About 8 eggs
1 bunch of asparagus
About 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
Grated Parmesan to taste

Start by trimming the bottoms off asparagus and slicing on a diagonal (it always looks pretty...)

Sauté the asparagus with a splash of water and cover for a few minutes until it's nice and tender. Drain from the liquid and set aside.

Beat the eggs with a dash of S&P and the scramble in a frying pan until they are no longer wet and gooey. Take them off the heat and mix in the asparagus and ricotta until combined.

I grabbed a loaf of kalamata olive bread at the market and toasted some slices. I also sliced up a ripe avocado that was ready to be eaten... and I wouldn't have wanted anything else for dinner! Ta-da!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bacon Cookies

I love the new "bacon goes with everything" phenomenon going on at the moment. I hadn't done any baking in a while so decided try this recipe I found in Food Network magazine for peanut butter chocolate chip bacon cookies. Plus, what husband wouldn't want to come home from a golf-filled morning to a house smelling of that heavenly concoction?

The original recipe only makes a dozen cookies, so I doubled it... why not? Here's the original recipe, double it if you feel so inclined. Here's what you'll need:

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Pinch of chipotle or ancho chile powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 5 strips bacon (1/3 pound) (Be sure to use good bacon. Don't cheap out. Also, I used more bacon which was a good call!)
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup roughly chopped honey- roasted peanuts (I did not add these and did not miss them!)
• 1/3 cup bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, chile powder and salt in a large bowl.

Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 4 to 6 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; reserve 2 tablespoons of the drippings and set aside to cool. 

Crumble the bacon, discarding (or eating) any chewy bits.

Beat the butter and reserved bacon drippings in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Beat in the peanut butter until combined, about 1 minute. Beat in the granulated and light brown sugar until creamy, about 4 minutes, then add the egg and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 more minutes.

Reduce the mixer speed to low; add the flour mixture in 2 additions, scraping down the bowl as needed, until just combined. Stir in the peanuts and all but 2 tablespoons each of the chocolate chips and bacon.

Form the dough into 12 balls and arrange 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten with your fingers (the cookies will not spread in the oven); press the reserved bacon and chocolate chips on top (I forgot to do this step since I mixed all the bacon in with the dough... whoops). Bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Let the cookies cool 2 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely. 

*I recommend munching on these cookies with a big glass of ice cold milk. You'll need it!

Fresh Flowers!

I love having fresh flowers throughout the house, but the bathroom counter is one of my favorite spots to stick a bouquet of fresh and fragrant beauties. This bunch was on sale at the grocery store for $3.99 and will probably last about 7-10 days... so for just a few dollars you can add some life and vibrance throughout your home!

Doesn't this just make you happy?

Orange you glad I made sorbet?

With summer here, sorbet is a staple to have in our freezer. Homemade sorbet is even sweeter! Here's our quick and tasty sorbet recipe. This is orange sorbet, but we get creative sometimes but adding some freshly juiced lemon, raspberry or lime juice... yummmm!

The first step is to have an ice cream maker. One of our favorite wedding presents is our ice cream maker. It's a great tool to have in your bag of tricks.

Start by making a simple syrup by taking 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar and boiling in a sauce pan. Bring the syrup to room temp and mix with 3 cups orange juice (which we always have in the fridge.) Pop in the ice cream maker and let it do it's thing until it's icy and somewhat firm but fluffy (usually it takes about 30 minutes.)

When it looks like this...

...put it in some Ziploc containers, the kind with the twist on tops (they keep out excess air the best) and keep in the freezer for whenever your sweet tooth comes to visit.

Orange you glad you have this recipe now? 

Sunday Petit Dejeuner

On a beautiful lazy Sunday morning, there are not many things that I love more than a light breakfast al fresco. Forget any Grand Slam breakfasts... the French did it right, sometimes all you need is a Petit Dejeuner (noun) breakfast usually including a roll and coffee or tea.


So this morning, I put on a pot of coffee and busted out the Bisquick. Bisquick biscuits are the easiest things ever. (This recipe is also on the back of the box) Here's what you need:


2 1/4 cup Bisquick
2/3 cup milk


That's it. Mix it together, knead it out on the counter and cut into round pieces using an upside down glass. Put on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes in a 450 degree oven. (This recipe is also on the back of the box.)


Serve with some butter and your jam of choice (mine is always blueberry...) 

And here's the obligatory "even the dog wants one" photo...

Happy Weekend!

D.I.Y. Murder Dogs

One of my favorite things ever are those hot dogs you get in Downtown L.A. that are wrapped in bacon and topped with grilled onions and peppers. They have to be cooked on the most ingenious makeshift grills consisting of a shopping cart, a propane tank and a cookie sheet. We call them Murder Dogs, quite simply, because they are heart attacks on a bun... but they are amazing. This past Memorial Day weekend we decided to recreate this gritty twist on the classic American dish.

Start off with the hot dog/ sausage of your choice. My husband chose Argentine chorizo, available at your local carniceria. Hebrew Nationals would do the trick just fine. Wrap in the bacon securing each end in place with a toothpick.

Lay them down on a cookie sheet and pop in the oven for about 30-45 minutes at 375, keeping an eye on them and turning when necessary.

While the dogs are cooking away, get going on the fixins. Saute some onions and peppers. Shred some cheddar, monterey jack cheese, whatever you have on hand.

Once the dogs are ready, remove the toothpicks and snip the sausages apart, if necessary. Layer the sausage on a big bun with your condiments of choice (don't discount Mayo), then the sausage, some peppers and onions and top with cheese.

How can you resist that? And because you made it yourself, you don't have to worry about that fact that you are eating food that was prepared on a sidewalk!