I love going grocery shopping early in the morning. If you've never done it; you should. It's so luxurious to go in, and feel unrushed. You actually have time to compare labels, prices, and make a more thought-out decision. I tend to feel like I have more freedom to be creative and let the food speak to me. I also find I tend to make less impulsive buys, because I can walk around slowly and really think about each purchase. Seriously gang, give early AM shopping a try.
Anywho. this morning, I heard some good things coming from the pork chops that were on sale, so I snagged a pack. It was a pretty good deal. I got 8 nice sized chops for under $5! With a find like that, you have to do something tasty to celebrate!
Garlic-Thyme Pork Chops
What you need:
1 stick of butter
pork chops
1-2 tsp garlic powder (or granules)
1-2 tsp dried thyme leaves
salt & pepper
What you do:
Melt about half of the butter in a large pan.
Season the chops with the thyme, garlic, salt & pepper.
Place chops in the hot butter. There really should be a nice layer of melted butter, maybe as much as 1/4 inch thick, but definitely enough so that it comes up the sides of the chops.
Make sure you've got the pan under a low fame. We're not trying to fry the chops, just make a little butter hot tub for them. Let everything hang out for about 5-7 minutes, depending on how thick your chops are. Turn the chops over. They should have some good browning on the first side. Allow the other side to cook another 5-7 minutes, and you're done!
You can toss some chopped or sliced onion into the pan after you remove the chops, with a bit of extra oil or butter, for a tasty topping for the chops.
Slowly cooking the chops in butter makes them SO tender and yummy! I hope you give this recipe a try. If you do, let me know how it goes!
Happy eating!
Monday, August 3, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
menu plan monday
This is what I've got planned for my meals this week. Being single has it's perks...there are only two different meals listed here, but they will feed me for an entire week.
Red Beans and Rice
BBQ Sloppy Joes
What's missing? Oh yeah, sweet yumminess...how about a chocolate-banana cream pie? Mmmm...
Anywho, I hope your planning tasty yumminess this week as well!
Red Beans and Rice
BBQ Sloppy Joes
What's missing? Oh yeah, sweet yumminess...how about a chocolate-banana cream pie? Mmmm...
Anywho, I hope your planning tasty yumminess this week as well!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
For the love of...
I recently made a promise to food. I promised I would be kind to it...give it a chance, and try not to judge it too much by it's appearance. When trying new foods, I've found diving in and taking a huge bite proves to be much more satisfying than taking a tentative nibble. It also helps avoid a premature proclamation of disdain. You really can't get the full, honest impression of something if your tongue approaches it with fear and trembling. I've trained my tongue to approach completely ready to fall in love. No hesitations or hiccups at the gateway of my taste buds. Thus far, this theory has provided me with countless treks to Yum-town. On a few occasions my tongue has found itself a bit incompatible with a few items, but that's to be expected. You can't really be a foodie if you have no discretion in your tastes. I've also found it's best not to ask what something is until after you've swallowed a good mouthful of it...possibly two. This tends to keep you honest. Think about it...how often have you tried something and liked it...until you found out what was in it? So what if that new dish you tasted is actually cow eyeballs boiled in rat dung puree? If you liked it when you tried it, then own up to it! Don't suddenly leave it hanging because you found out it doesn't run w/the cool crowd of ingredients. Alright, folks, enough of muh preachin', get out there and try something new!
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Food is not the enemy
Why is it that food always seems to be one of the causalities of life? Whether it be a meal that's punctuated by tension and pent up rage; supper preparations that get side tracked by sudden pain; or a total lack of appetite because one's heart is hurting so intensely it drowns out the cries of the belly.
It's interesting how, much to my constant shock and occasional dismay, my body does at least attempt to continue to function even during the hard times. When pain, sorrow, and misery are all that I can focus on, my tummy still demands sustenance. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on how you look at it), my mind is kind enough to put a stop to the actual psychological desire for food, thus my tummy eventually learns to shut up. Still surprising, considering as how stomach growling means there's air going through your stomach and intestines, so unless something begins to fill them...the growling should continue. After a while, though, bile starts getting rid of some of the air. Nothing more annoying that sobbing hysterically, and having your stomach trying to compete with you, emitting it's own keeling wails of dismay.
From a rational, analytical standpoint, eating/food is supposed to be an objective sort of experience. In the strictest sense, food is only meant to keep us alive...nothing else. We humans, however, have gone and made a ripe mess of things by tying all sorts of social, economic, spiritual, and emotional meanings to food. Think about a wedding, for example, how would you feel if you attended a wedding that offered no refreshments at all...not even punch. Contrast that to how you'd feel if you attended a wedding with a sit-down meal. Would you be more or less pleased? Keep in mind the outcome of the wedding is the exact same. The man and the woman are married. Technically, isn't the reason for going to a wedding, to see two people get married? So why, then, do we somehow feel less happy about the event if we're left to fend for ourselves when it comes to having our hunger satiated?
I am, of course, not saying it's totally wrong to have certain psychological connections to food. Various smells, tastes, and the sight of some foods leads to pleasant strolls down memory lane, which is actually a good thing.
On the other hand, stress, depression and other issues, makes some people eat too much. Gaining 20 lbs because your boyfriend broke up with you, doesn't exactly make you love food. Suddenly, those 12 ding-dongs you ate, are the enemy, and end up being punished for your jacked-up emotions. Sort of like when someone says, "Do these pants make me look fat?" No; your fat makes you look fat.
I say then, we rescue food from it's impossible position in our life. Avoid eating when you're emotional and/or not hungry. At the same time, no matter how upset you are, don't go days without eating...sending your body into starvation mode. Try to eat something at least once a day. Your body still needs nutrients and energy to keep on making that broken heart of yours keep beating (no matter how much you would rather it stop). Don't reward or punish children with food. By punish, I mean, do the whole "you're not getting up from this table until you eat every bite of your food" thing. A child will eat when they are hungry (they're awesomely selfish that way. They will not let themselves starve), and likewise, they won't eat when they aren't hungry. Forcing a child to eat, because you want to prove your point is teaching them to override their body's signals of satiation. This could then lead to your precious little one being famous...as the largest human being alive. When your emotions go into a spin, do some sort of physical activity like walking, jogging, dancing or whatever.
Food is not the enemy. The enemy is the enemy.
It's interesting how, much to my constant shock and occasional dismay, my body does at least attempt to continue to function even during the hard times. When pain, sorrow, and misery are all that I can focus on, my tummy still demands sustenance. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on how you look at it), my mind is kind enough to put a stop to the actual psychological desire for food, thus my tummy eventually learns to shut up. Still surprising, considering as how stomach growling means there's air going through your stomach and intestines, so unless something begins to fill them...the growling should continue. After a while, though, bile starts getting rid of some of the air. Nothing more annoying that sobbing hysterically, and having your stomach trying to compete with you, emitting it's own keeling wails of dismay.
From a rational, analytical standpoint, eating/food is supposed to be an objective sort of experience. In the strictest sense, food is only meant to keep us alive...nothing else. We humans, however, have gone and made a ripe mess of things by tying all sorts of social, economic, spiritual, and emotional meanings to food. Think about a wedding, for example, how would you feel if you attended a wedding that offered no refreshments at all...not even punch. Contrast that to how you'd feel if you attended a wedding with a sit-down meal. Would you be more or less pleased? Keep in mind the outcome of the wedding is the exact same. The man and the woman are married. Technically, isn't the reason for going to a wedding, to see two people get married? So why, then, do we somehow feel less happy about the event if we're left to fend for ourselves when it comes to having our hunger satiated?
I am, of course, not saying it's totally wrong to have certain psychological connections to food. Various smells, tastes, and the sight of some foods leads to pleasant strolls down memory lane, which is actually a good thing.
On the other hand, stress, depression and other issues, makes some people eat too much. Gaining 20 lbs because your boyfriend broke up with you, doesn't exactly make you love food. Suddenly, those 12 ding-dongs you ate, are the enemy, and end up being punished for your jacked-up emotions. Sort of like when someone says, "Do these pants make me look fat?" No; your fat makes you look fat.
I say then, we rescue food from it's impossible position in our life. Avoid eating when you're emotional and/or not hungry. At the same time, no matter how upset you are, don't go days without eating...sending your body into starvation mode. Try to eat something at least once a day. Your body still needs nutrients and energy to keep on making that broken heart of yours keep beating (no matter how much you would rather it stop). Don't reward or punish children with food. By punish, I mean, do the whole "you're not getting up from this table until you eat every bite of your food" thing. A child will eat when they are hungry (they're awesomely selfish that way. They will not let themselves starve), and likewise, they won't eat when they aren't hungry. Forcing a child to eat, because you want to prove your point is teaching them to override their body's signals of satiation. This could then lead to your precious little one being famous...as the largest human being alive. When your emotions go into a spin, do some sort of physical activity like walking, jogging, dancing or whatever.
Food is not the enemy. The enemy is the enemy.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Camping 2
Camping was tons of fun! The rain kind of followed us around for a bit, but didn't totally dampen our trip (pun intended). It was great being outdoors, and really taking/having the time to enjoy the beauty God has endowed all nature with. One of the things I enjoyed most was cooking over the open fire, and yes...I did bring my apron.
Here's what we had:
Friday
Lunch: PBJ sandwiches
Supper: Chili w/crackers
Saturday
Breakfast: Banana Pancakes
Lunch: Bean Burritos w/salsa
Supper: Grilled Cheese sandwiches, Tomato-Basil Soup, Sweet potato fries
Sunday:
Breakfast: Sweet potato pancakes
Lunch: Leftovers- PB&Banana Sandwiches, tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, mashed sweet potatoes
We had TONS of fruit to snack on/for desert as well. Needless to say, we didn't starve. On the way back to home, we stopped in a neighboring town for supper. A cute, little Mexican restaurant. I had chicken enchiladas. Not bad. We got back in Sunday at close to midnight, so tired we could barely keep our eyes open.
Here's what we had:
Friday
Lunch: PBJ sandwiches
Supper: Chili w/crackers
Saturday
Breakfast: Banana Pancakes
Lunch: Bean Burritos w/salsa
Supper: Grilled Cheese sandwiches, Tomato-Basil Soup, Sweet potato fries
Sunday:
Breakfast: Sweet potato pancakes
Lunch: Leftovers- PB&Banana Sandwiches, tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, mashed sweet potatoes
We had TONS of fruit to snack on/for desert as well. Needless to say, we didn't starve. On the way back to home, we stopped in a neighboring town for supper. A cute, little Mexican restaurant. I had chicken enchiladas. Not bad. We got back in Sunday at close to midnight, so tired we could barely keep our eyes open.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Camping 1
So I'm pretty excited. This weekend, I'm going camping with some dear friends. What really excites me is the culinary challenge, as I have never cooked on a camping trip. I'm not exactly sure how it will turn out, but I know I'll enjoy the experience. Another frontier to be conquered! (not that I've conquered any frontiers) I'll let you know how it goes, of course. If you happen to have any menu suggestions, please post them in the comment section!!
Happy eating!
Happy eating!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Riiiiiibs!!
The grocery store here has some pretty amazing deals from time to time. Recently, there was a sale on some lovely HUGE pork ribs. $1 a pound!! Monday, I made some super yummy, oniony, slow cooked ribs. They absolutely melted in my mouth!
What you need:
Huge, well marbled pork ribs (not baby back ribs)
1-2 pkg onion soup mix
2 tbs worshire sauce
large plastic or glass container with lid
Olive oil
What you do:
Rub the soup mix and worshire sauce into each rib. They should not be soaking wet, just damp. Allow the marinade for at least 2 hours, but preferably 6-8 or even overnight.
Preheat oven to 375. In a super hot pan, add a about 3 tbs olive oil. Place each rib in the pan, but DON'T CROWD THEM! Let each side get well seared (dark brown)...roughly 3-4 mins per side, eye ball it. You're not looking to get them totally done!!
In a large, covered baking dish, lightly coat the bottom with olive oil...maybe 4 tbs. Put the ribs in the dish, and use a bit of water (maybe 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup) to deglaze the pan. Deglazing just means, adding enough water or liquid to get the crusty stuff off the bottom of the pan...it makes a lovely sauce, since that's where all the flavor collects! Add the juice over the top of the ribs. You can add chopped veggies at this point (potatoes, carrots, celery, turnips, etc.)
Cover the dish and bake for around 30 mins. Check the ribs, to see if they're done to your liking. There should be no blood, but a touch of pink is okay. Don't overcook them...unless you like super tough meat.
Happy eating!
What you need:
Huge, well marbled pork ribs (not baby back ribs)
1-2 pkg onion soup mix
2 tbs worshire sauce
large plastic or glass container with lid
Olive oil
What you do:
Rub the soup mix and worshire sauce into each rib. They should not be soaking wet, just damp. Allow the marinade for at least 2 hours, but preferably 6-8 or even overnight.
Preheat oven to 375. In a super hot pan, add a about 3 tbs olive oil. Place each rib in the pan, but DON'T CROWD THEM! Let each side get well seared (dark brown)...roughly 3-4 mins per side, eye ball it. You're not looking to get them totally done!!
In a large, covered baking dish, lightly coat the bottom with olive oil...maybe 4 tbs. Put the ribs in the dish, and use a bit of water (maybe 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup) to deglaze the pan. Deglazing just means, adding enough water or liquid to get the crusty stuff off the bottom of the pan...it makes a lovely sauce, since that's where all the flavor collects! Add the juice over the top of the ribs. You can add chopped veggies at this point (potatoes, carrots, celery, turnips, etc.)
Cover the dish and bake for around 30 mins. Check the ribs, to see if they're done to your liking. There should be no blood, but a touch of pink is okay. Don't overcook them...unless you like super tough meat.
Happy eating!
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