Grilled Pork Chops with Sauteed Spinach and Caramelized Onion Applesauce

Great news!

That... and.. I woke up this morning... and I can breathe! With the help of some Sudafed of course, but all that you need to know is that my nose  functioning and life is good!


Today I feel like this:



And last time I posted, I totally felt like this:





I've been on a steady regime of Sudafed, soup (Adam totally rules and got me two orders of spicy shrimp and turnip noodle soup from David's in Chinatown which cleared my sinuses for a bit), cough drops, Theraflu and tea. And Honey Bunches of Oats. But I think the trick is definitely the Vitamin C pills that I've been taking 4/day (2 in the AM and 2 in the PM). That totally works. (Superstition?)

 It's amazing how much we take breathing for granted. 

Anyway, eating this pork chop tonight and being able to taste it was pretty awesome. So enough about me being sick. Let's get excited about grilled pork chops with caramelized onion apple sauce.

The thing about making applesauce is that you can make a lot. You don't have to spend a ton of time on this. You've just got to core the apples (Yea, you heard me. Don't peel them.). And cut them up. Boil them with some water and spices for a long time. And you're good to go. The boiling takes a while though. Caramelized onions can take some time too. So to make this a SUPER quick and delicious meal, I suggest making a batch of the applesauce on a weekend. You can divide it up and freeze the extra (individually depending on the number of chops you will serve it on) for later use (oh, how domestic of you!). Then, of course, it's just defrost and place on top of a grilled chop with some spinach!


So I'm going to give you this recipe as 2 different recipes. And the applesauce is going to make a lot. But you'll thank me later. And once again after that.


Soundtrack:


Caramelized Onion Applesauce
(double to make extra - freezes well divided into small ziplocs and defrosts easily for quick meals)


4 apples, cored and quartered
3/4 c water
1/4 c sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 c caramelized onions (if you've got leftovers from your batch try this awesome hummus)


Combine apples, water, sugar and cinnamon in a quart saucepan over medium heat. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Add onions and puree using an immersion blender (or wait until sauce cools and pulse in a blender or food processor).


Grilled Pork Chops with Sauteed Spinach and Caramelized Onion Applesauce
Serves 4


4 boneless pork chops
1 clove garlic
15 oz bag baby spinach
splash of chicken broth
1 tbsp grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 c. caramelized onion applesauce (see above)
Salt & pepper, EVOO


Salt and pepper both sides of each pork chop. Place a grill pan over medium heat and heat until hot. Spray pan with cooking spray and place chops in pan. These will cook 7-10 minutes on each side until done.


Meanwhile (after the pork cooks for 15 minutes or so), in a large frying pan, heat a small drizzle of EVOO over medium heat. Add garlic and toast for 1-2 minutes or until aromatic. Add spinach, a splash of chicken broth and the Pecorin Romano. Cook spinach for 1-2 minutes or until it begins to wilt. Remove from heat and continue to toss until spinach is fully cooked.


Serve each pork chop topped with 1/4 of the spinach and 1/4 c of caramelized onion applesauce.

 

Cilantro Lime Pork Chops

Mmm. Cilantro. Mmm. Citrus. Mmm. PORK.

Serving Suggestion: STARCH!
Actually, I just keep conveniently forgetting that corn is NOT a vegetable
Jer keeps reminding me... damn him!

See here's the thing. Pork chops can be tough to cook. Because they get tough. (har har har) There is literally nothing worse than chewing on a tough pork chop, trying to cover it up with barbecue sauce, hanging your head in shame.. (yea that's what bbq sauce reminds me of... sad) So how can you make this not happen? Honestly, I have no idea. Was that a huge let down? I'm sorry. Things that I do know: every time I've ever baked pork chops they've been tough, I've had lots of luck with grilling them, bone-in pork chops are tougher to make tough (that's not going to get old for me, I'm sorry... not). It's also my theory that because I buy cheaper pork chops, they are fattier, and therefore more forgiving (like sweatpants! or Joey's thanksgiving pants). I think that's probably accurate. Anyway, I cooked the boneless chops I used in this recipe over the grill and they came out perfectly. No marinade. No sauce. If that makes you nervous, you're normal. But it worked. I shrug my shoulders. Anyway, tried and true, just don't overcook and you'll get the perfect chop. Mmm pork.

Speaking of Joey's Thanksgiving pants, it's been coming to my attention more and more that not everyone in the world has seen every episode of Friends ever. This boggles my mind and makes me feel sad for you all. BEST. SHOW. EVER. I've actually been watching some re-re-re-re-runs on TV lately... gets me every time. I love cheesy jokes though, in case you hadn't noticed. One liners, silly puns, etc. Oooooh, the great American sitcom. I miss you. Snookie: "the poof" will never be as cool as "the Rachel".

Wait, were we making something? Oh yea. Cilantro Lime Pork Chops. Tender pork. The citrus-y sauce compliments the taste of the grilled meat well (definitely cook over a grill flame where possible!). And then cilantro. Great weeknight summer dish; easy and not a lot of time spent in a hot kitchen. So let's get started! (Original recipe from Epicurious)

Just a side note about my side dishes in the picture above: 1) Brown rice and wild rice tossed with salt, pepper, scallions and juice from 1/2 an orange (meh, should've used more orange, but it had potential) 2) Corn, rolled in a little bit of butter and seasoned with chili powder (good! try this!). I'd definitely suggest making some sort of grain (rice, couscous, what have you) to drizzle extra sauce on. 

Soundtrack: Eliza Newman (catchy! adorable! ukulele!) 

Cilantro Lime Pork Chops

1/4 c fresh lime juice

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 c EVOO

2 tbs fresh cilantro, chopped

4 boneless pork chops

salt and pepper (to season)

Combine lime juice, garlic, pepper flakes, salt, EVOO and cilantro in a bowl. Stir with a whisk.

Sprinkle chops with salt and pepper. Grill over medium-high heat (depending on thickness, check cooking times!) until cooked through.

To serve, pour 1/4 of the cilantro-lime sauce over each chop.

Fresh!

Chop! Chop! Chop! Pork Chop!

Finished sauce

Din!

:)