Farmhouse Pork and Apple Pie

I've been trying out many, many new recipes this month trying to find something worth sharing, but nothing has been very spectacular until last night.  It was the grand prize winner of a pork recipe contest, and I completely understand why.  Everyone loved it and had seconds (or thirds).  This dish takes some prep time, but it's worth it.  It's supposed to be made in a huge oven-proof skillet, but I didn't have one big enough so I transferred everything to a 9x13 - which it filled completely.  This recipe makes a lot of food.  I made more mashed potatoes than the recipe calls for (6 potatoes instead of 4), but it was such a thin layer of potatoes I would do a few more next time.  I think I will cut the recipe in half next time for my little family, too.

Farmhouse Pork and Apple Pie

1 lb sliced bacon, cut into 2-inch pieces

3 medium onions, chopped (seems like a lot, but they cook down)

3 lbs boneless pork, cubed

3/4 c flour

oil, optional

3 tart cooking apples, peeled and chopped

1 tsp rubbed sage

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 c apple cider

1/2 c water

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/2 c milk

5 Tb butter, divided

Additional salt and pepper

Snipped fresh parsley, optional

Cook bacon in an ovenproof 12-in. skillet until crisp.  Remove with a slottered spoon to paper towels to drain.  In drippings, saute onions until tender; remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Dust pork lightly with flour.  Brown a third at a time in drippings, adding oil if needed.  Remove from the heat and drain.  To pork, add bacon, onions, apples, sage, nutmeg, salt and pepper.  Stir in apple cider and water.  Cover and bake at 325 for 2 hours or until the pork is tender.  In a saucepan, cook potatoes in boiling water until tender.  Drain and mash with milk and 3 Tb butter.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Remove skillet from the oven and spread potatoes over pork mixture.  Melt remaining butter; brush over potatoes.  Broil 6 inches from the heat for 5 minutes or until topping is browned.  Sprinkle with parsley if desired.  Serves 10.

Pork Chops with Apples and Stuffing

This recipe is insanely simple and oh, so good.  I wondered if it would have enough flavor when there are no seasonings at all in the meat, but it wasn't a problem.  This is a dish where you determine your ideal taste ratio and then create the perfect bite every time.  My perfect bite was made up of  fairly equal amounts of each of the three flavors.  My kids were nervous when they saw apples baked into their dinner, but we have a rule at our table that you have to try a bite of everything served, so they each tried a tiny taste and then kept eating and eating.  My family inhaled it before we got any pictures, so this one is courtesy of Taste of Home, as is the recipe.

Pork Chops with Apples and Stuffing

6 boneless pork loin chops (1-inch thick and 4 ounces each)

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 package (6 ounces) crushed stuffing mix
1 can (21 ounces) apple pie filling with cinnamon
 
In a large skillet, brown pork chops in oil over medium-high heat.  Meanwhile, prepare stuffing according to package directions.  Spread pie filling into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish.  Place the pork chops on top; spoon stuffing over chops.  Cover and bake at 350° for 35 minutes.  Uncover; bake 10 minutes longer or until a meat thermometer reads 160°.  Yield: 6 servings.

Pork Chop Spanish Rice

Last night we had a yummy dish that is one of my husband's favorites. In my rush to get it on the table and into tummies, I didn't take any pictures. I tried to see if I could dress up the leftovers today and take a decent picture, but the leftovers were devoured for lunch until there was almost nothing left. So the yummy-looking picture above was found here, and I have added that delicious-sounding recipe to my list of recipes to try. My dinner did include spanish rice with cheese on it, but it doesn't look exactly like that picture. We discovered this dish shortly after moving to Spanish Fork, and for some reason spanish rice and Spanish Fork always got mixed up in my head, so we ended up re-naming this dish Spanish Fork Chops. Whatever you decide to call it, it's delicious.

Spanish Fork Chops/Pork Chop Spanish Rice
4 pork chops
1 Tb oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp pepper
3/4 c rice
1/2 c chopped onions
1/2 c chopped red or green bell pepper
1 can (1 lb 4 oz) whole tomatoes
5 red or green bell pepper rings
1/2 c grated cheese

In a large Dutch oven, slowly brown chops in heated oil. Drain off excess oil. Sprinkle chops with salt, chili powder, and pepper. Add rice, onions and peppers. Pour in tomatoes with liquid, breaking tomaotes into pieces with a wooden spoon. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer 35-40 minutes or until rice and meat are tender. Sprinkle with cheese and serve. It looks great if you have white and yellow cheeses (like cheddar and monterrey jack).

Freezer Pork Cubes

2.5 lbs pork boneless shoulder, cut into 1" cubes (or pork chops, or whatever is on sale)

1. 5 tsps salt

3/4 tsp dried thyme leaves

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/8 tsp pepper

1.5 c water

Directions:

Season pork with salt and pepper and brown in 12" skillet or 4 quart Dutch oven over medium heat, about 20 minutes. Add thyme, garlic powder, and onion powder. Stir in water and heat to boiling. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until pork is cooked through, 1-1 1/4 hours. (Watch the water level as it nears the hour mark - you don't want it to boil dry.)

Drain pork if necessary; arrange in single layer in ungreased jelly roll pan (or line pan with freezer paper). Freeze uncovered 30 minutes (this partial freezing prevents pork cubes from freezing together solidly).

Divide partially frozen pork among two 1 pt freezer containers. Cover, label and freeze. Use within 2 months.

Use in Sweet & Sour Pork.

Sweet and Sour Pork

{Photo courtesy of rasamalaysia.com)

I can't even tell you how much I love this recipe. It is delicious and the sweet and sour sauce is simple and good. I made this recipe in my advanced cooking class at BYU and it was one of the handful of recipes I added to my personal recipe rotation.

We prepared this recipe during the freezer portion of our class and it is meant to be used with another recipe, Freezer Pork Cubes. The pork cubes take some advance preparation, but once you have a batch on hand, it literally takes 20 minutes to go from freezer to dinner table.

Sweet and Sour Pork

1 container freezer pork cubes

2/3 c. water

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. brown sugar

1/2 c. white vinegar

2 Tb soy sauce

1 tsp brown bouquet sauce (I never use this, but I do occasionally splash in some worcestershire) 1 Tb instant chicken bouillon (or you could substitute the bouillon and water for chicken stock, but it may not have the same flavor)

2 Tb corn starch

2 Tb cold water

2 medium tomatoes, each cut into 6 wedges or cubed

1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 1" pieces (I've also added red bell pepper)

2 green onions, cut into 1" pieces (or smaller if you dislike onions outside of salsa)

1 can (8 oz) water chestnut slices

1 can (8.5 oz) pineapple chunks, drained

hot, cooked rice (I start the rice in my rice cooker and then make the sweet and sour pork. They finish at the same time. Voila!)

Directions:

Heat freezer pork cubes, 2/3 c water, sugars, vinegar, soy sauce, brown bouquet sauce, and bouillon to boiling in 3 quart sauce pan over medium heat. Cover, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until pork is hot, about 10 minutes.

Mix 2 Tb cornstarch and 2 Tb cold water; stir into pork mixture. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly; boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, green pepper, onion, pineapple and water chestnuts; stir occasionally until boiling or heated through.

Serve with rice. Don't forget the chopsticks!