Pork Chops Stuffed with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Spinach

***This was really yummy! I saw Giada make it a couple of days ago on Everyday Italian, and I knew I wanted to give it a whirl. The Dijon mustard and sun-dried tomatoes really make this recipe pop. It wasn't very difficult to make. The best part is, the recipe makes enough for 4 servings, so it looks like Brad and I will have it again tomorrow night.***

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 sun-dried tomatoes, diced
1 (10-ounce) bag of frozen spinach, thawed and excess water squeezed out
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup (2 ounces) goat cheese
1/3 cup reduced-fat cream cheese
4 (4-ounce) center-cut pork chops
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 lemon, zested
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard



Warm the 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, salt, pepper, and thyme. Cook until combined, about 2 more minutes. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Add the goat cheese and the cream cheese. Stir to combine and set aside.

Use a sharp knife to cut a pocket into the thickest portion of the pork chop. Stuff each pocket with 1/4 of the spinach and sun-dried tomato mixture and close the pork around the stuffing. Season the outside of the pork with salt and pepper.

In a small bowl combine the chicken broth, lemon zest, lemon juice, and mustard.

Warm the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot add the pork. Cook until golden and cooked through, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the pork to a side dish and tent with foil to keep warm. Add the chicken broth mixture to the skillet over medium-high heat. Scrape up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan as the chicken broth simmers. Reduce the broth by half to make a light sauce, about 8 minutes. Spoon some sauce over the pork before serving.

Source: Giada De Laurentiis - The Food Network

Old-Fashioned Pound Cake

2 cups butter, softened

2 3/4 cups sugar

6 large eggs

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/8 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg (I substituted the nutmeg with cinnamon)

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer 2 minutes or until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating 5 to 7 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until yellow disappears.

Combine flour, salt, and nutmeg in a large bowl; add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Mix at low speed after each addition just until mixture is blended. Stir in vanilla. Spoon batter into a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 to 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan, and cool completely on wire rack.

Source: The Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook

Penne with Oven-Roasted Chicken, Asparagus, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes (Macaroni Grill Style)

Brad and I had dinner with some friends recently at Macaroni Grill. I had their "Penne with Oven-Roasted Chicken" and fell in love with it. After that, I started on a mission to try and replicate the recipe. The final recipe that I used is a combination of several that I found. I think it comes extremely close. This is our new favorite....Brad loved it! I'll definitely be making it over and over. The sun-dried tomatoes are the best part. Now I want to try and find other recipes that incorporate them. Giada made sun-dried tomato/spinach/cheese stuffed pork chops today on Everyday Italian. I'll probably give those a whirl in the next week or so. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup drained, oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, sliced, with 1 Tbsp oil reserved
16 asparagus spears, tough ends trimmed, sliced diagonally into 1/2” pieces
2 - 2.5 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 Tbsp tomato paste
8 oz penne pasta
Olive oil
Shredded mozzarella/parmesan cheese

Directions:
Place chicken in a baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle chicken with a mixture of seasonings - basil, garlic spice, and parsley. Cook in the oven for 35 - 45 minutes at 375 degrees or until chicken is cooked thoroughly through.


Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions.

Add 1 Tbsp. of the reserved sun-dried tomato oil and 1 Tbsp. olive oil to a large skillet. Over high heat, stir-fry the asparagus for 3 minutes. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, 1/4 cup basil, oregano, chicken broth, wine and tomato paste. Bring to a boil and simmer until asparagus is crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.


Put cooked pasta on a plate. Place a heaping layer of the shredded mozzarella/parmesan cheese on top of the pasta. Next, drizzle sun-dried tomato mixture over the pasta and cheese. Place oven-roasted chicken on top.

Viola!

A Sunday Snapping Photos

Well, I have to admit...I didn't do a bit of cooking today (unless throwing together some chicken salad sandwiches counts). However, I did manage to snap a few neat shots in the kitchen...that counts, right? I got brave and tried out Brad's macro lens. Here are a few of the results:

A girl can't have a "Sugar & Spice" food blog without taking a picture of some sugar and spice...!

An addiction of ours....Starbuck's coffee...



My beloved cookbook collection...



I really liked this one....I think it's a neat shot of "Black Betsy." =)

I did get a new cookbook today...I'm excited to try it out. It's this one:

Pecan-Crusted Tilapia

I made this for dinner tonight, and the results were a pleasant surprise. The pecans added the nicest flavor...so good! If you like fish, you have to try this. The fish just melts in your mouth. I did not have any bread crumbs on hand, so I had to leave those out. It turned out yummy anyway.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup pecan pieces

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup reduced-fat milk
1 egg (or 1/4 cup egg substitute)

1 1/2 pounds tilapia fillets

1 teaspoon Lawry's seasoned salt

1/4 cup canola oil

Steps:
1. Chop pecans finely (like coarse bread crumbs). I chopped mine in the food processor; combine with bread crumbs in medium bowl. Place flour in second medium bowl. Blend milk and egg together in third medium bowl.

That's Sal holding my IPOD...he's a big help! =)

2. Preheat large sauté pan on medium 1–2 minutes. Sprinkle both sides of fish with Lawry's seasoned salt.

3. Dip fillets in flour (coating both sides) then dip into egg mixture (allowing excess to drip off). Finally, dip into pecan mixture. Wash hands.

4. Place oil in pan; swirl to coat. Add fish (wash hands) and cook 2–3 minutes on each side or until golden. Serve.