Monday, 3/29/2010

GRILLED PORK CHOPS

2 boneless porkchops about 1/2" thick
Liberally coat with Char Crust- Roasted Garlic Peppercorn
Spritz lightly with non-stick spray to keep the crust from burning

Grill on Direct Medium








ASPARAGUS with SHERRY-BACON VINAIGRETTE
from Weber's Real Grilling

1/4 pound bacon
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound asparagus
thinly sliced red onion (optional ingredient that I never add)

In medium skillet over medium heat, lay the bacon in a single layer and cook until crispy, 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally. Drain the bacon on paper towels, reserving the bacon fat in the skillet.

Pour off all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat and return the skillet over medium heat. Add the thyme and garlic to the skillet and let them sizzle for about 10 seconds. Add the vinegar, salt, and pepper, and then remove the skillet from the heat.

Remove and discard the tough bottom of each asparagus spear- cut or snap at natural breaking point. Put asparagus in a dish, pour the vinaigrette over the asparagus, and turn to coat evenly.

Finely chop the drained bacon.

Grill the asparagus over Direct Medium heat until browned in spots but not charred, 6-8 minutes, turning them occasionally. Plate the asparagus on a platter or plates and sprinkle with bacon. This is where you would add the red onions, if you like that kind of thing.

This asparagus dish is really easy to make and tastes delicious! Anytime bacon is added to vegetables I am happy:) I like that it cooks at the same grill settings as the pork chops. We found the Char Crust dry-rub seasoning a couple months ago and LOVE it. It doesn't look very pretty, but it does seal in the juices as it's marketing promotes. We've had it on steak, chicken, and pork. All have been great. And, I am really please with how many meals we have been able to make with just one package. I think this was our 4th time and there is still enough for at least 2 more meals.

Katie started her meal with raspberry pear yogurt. By the time she was done with that the grill work was done. She enjoyed asparagus tips and pork with us and then had to finish off with...cheese:)

Saturday, 3/27/2010

GNOCCHI with THYME BUTTER

A week ago I decided to make this recipe to take with us to our monthly church potluck group, The Crockpots. Just in case you don't know, gnocchi is a potato dumpling often used as a pasta. It came from the Taste of Home magazine and seemed simple enough. Other than the potato ricer we had to buy, the only ingredients I didn't already have on hand were potatoes and fresh thyme. Well, it may have sounded simple, but it wasn't.

First of all, the timing for prep was all off. The recipe said to cook the potatoes for 15-20 minutes. Try 25. And then after draining the potatoes, the recipe said it would take 1-2 minutes to let the steam evaporate from the pot over low heat. Try 8 minutes and still steaming. It was very labor intensive to roll the dough out into 1/2 inch ropes, cut the individual dumplings, reshaped them into something that looked like gnocchi and boil in small batches. It took WAY more time than I planned for. We were late.

The thyme butter was easy to make: 1 stick of butter and 4 tsp of fresh thyme leaves. The idea was to melt the butter and add in the cooked gnocchi and thyme, stirring gently to coat the gnocchi. Unfortunately my gnocchi didn't keep their shape and ended up smooshing as I stirred. Looked and tasted a bit like herbed mashed potatoes.

Since we signed up to take a main dish to the potluck and our gnocchi dish was more like mashed potatoes, we decided to do what any good potluckers would do. We stopped at KFC for a bucket of fried chicken on our way. It was delicious and was enjoyed by toddlers, kids, and adults alike. We did take the gnocchi and it was eaten, but it wasn't a dish I was proud of. I won't give up on it yet. Maybe next time I'll watch a tutorial online and/or try a different recipe.

On a positive note, the potato ricer worked great! Now it's time for kitchen clean up. Lots of dishes, pots and pans were required for this not-so-great dish.