Ultra Crunchy Baked Pork Chops

***These pork chops are wonderful! They are from the Feb. 2008 issue of Cooks Illustrated. The ultra-crunchy outer layer is very flavorful. It's also a plus that they are baked...not fried. These are definitely worthy of my favorites list...I'll be making them again!***

Ingredients:

4 boneless center-cut pork chops, 6 to 8 ounces each, 3/4 to 1 inch thick, trimmed of excess fat

4 slices hearty white sandwich bread, torn into 1 inch pieces

1 small shallot, minced (about 2 tbsp)

3 medium garlic cloves, minced (about 1 tbsp)

2 tbsp. vegetable oil

Ground black pepper

2 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp. minced fresh thyme leaves

2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley leaves

1/4 cup plus 6 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour

3 large egg whites

3 tbsp. Dijon mustard

Lemon wedges

Directions:

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees.

Pulse bread in food processor until coarsely ground, about eight 1-second pulses (you should have 3 1/2 cups crumbs). Transfer crumbs to rimmed baking sheet and add shallot, garlic, oil, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Toss until crumbs are evenly coated with oil. Bake until deep golden brown and dry, about 15 minutes, stirring twice during baking time. (Do not turn off oven.) Cool to room temperature. Toss crumbs with Parmesan, thyme, and parsley.

Place 1/4 cup flour in pie plate. In second pie plate, whisk egg whites and mustard until combined; add remaining 6 tbsp. flour and whisk until almost smooth, with pea-sized lumps remaining.

Increase oven temperature to 425 degrees. Spray wire rack with nonstick cooking spray and place in rimmed baking sheet. Season chops with pepper. Dredge 1 pork chop in flour, shake off excess. Using tongs, coat with egg mixture; let excess drip off. Coat all sides of chop with bread crumb mixture, pressing gently so that thick layer of crumbs adheres to chop. Transfer breaded chop to wire rack. Repeat with remaining 3 chops.

Bake until instant-read thermometer inserted in center of chops registered 150 degrees, 17 to 25 minutes. Let rest on rack 5 minutes before serving with lemon wedges.

Source: Cooks Illustrated magazine; February 2008

Grilled Pork Chops with Herbs de Provence

Brad and I went shopping the other weekend, and a new cast-iron grill pan and some Herbs de Provence were among my new goodies. I wanted to try them both out, so I ended up with these pork chops. They were so good, and I was really impressed with the grill pan. It did a wonderful job. This is such a simple recipe, but the pork chops were packed with flavor:

Ingredients:
2 Pork Chops
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Herbs de Provence
Moore's Original Marinade

Directions:
Marinate the pork chops for about 45 minutes in Moore's marinade.

Heat grill pan over medium-high heat. You'll want the pan to be completely heated when you add the pork chops. This will help sear the meat and lock in the flavor.

Coat pan with cooking spray. Drizzle both sides of the pork chops with E.V.O.O. and sprinkle with the Herbs de Provence. Next, place the pork chops in the pan. Let cook for 8 - 10 minutes.

Flip the pork chops. Let them cook an additional 8 - 10 minutes. If needed, keep flipping the pork chops until cooked through, drizzling with a dash of E.V.O.O. each time. Drizzling with the olive oil will help keep the pork chops from getting dry in the gril pan.

Serve immediately.

Julia Child's French Bread!

So, I am very excited to announce that I have become a member of an amazing group of bakers called the "Daring Bakers." Each month, I will be faced with a new challenge...probably something that I've never had the guts to attempt before...case in point - Homemade French Bread. And not just any ole' bread, but Julia Child's French Bread.

This month's challenge was hosted by:

Mary at - http://breadchick.com/

Sara at - http://iliketocook.blogspot.com/

I have to admit that when I first saw this recipe - and what a whooper of a recipe! - I was pretty intimidated. After all, it took up 15 pages when I printed it. Yes, you read that correctly - 15 pages! I've made homemade sourdough bread before. In fact, that was my very first blog post a few months back. So, I thought maybe I could conquer my first Daring Baker challenge okay. It really wasn't as bad as I thought. Basically, the only ingredients are flour, yeast, salt and water. The recipe simply takes patience.

After putting it off for several weeks, I finally decided to put my apron on and start kneading last weekend. After an entire day of mixing, kneading, rising, baking, and re-reading the recipe I finally ended up with somewhat beautiful French bread. I started the process around 12pm, and I bit into my first piece of French bread yummy-ness around 11pm (yes it was late, and no we couldn't wait until the following day to try it!). I was proud of my efforts and the final product. My husband, Brad, usually isn't a bread person. But, he couldn't get enough of this stuff. I am a self-proclaimed bread girl, so I was excited to finally finish the challenge. I will admit that I was nervous though. I was worried that my entire day in the kitchen was going to be wasted if the bread wasn't any good. I anxiously watched as Brad took the first bite. After a few long seconds, he finally plastered a big smile across his face. At that point, I knew my efforts had been a success!

We love eating bread with seasoned dipping oil, so we of course had to try this bread with it. It was delish!

Because the recipe is so very long, you can use this link to view it in its entirety:
http://breadchick.com/?p=336

Don't let the recipe scare you. If you take the time to attempt this recipe once, you'll realize that it's worth almost an entire day in the kitchen!

Mozzarella and Sun-Dried Tomato Cigars

***Here's yet another yummy recipe from Giada. Her recipes never let me down! For this one, I only made the cigars....not the salad dressing. I used a pre-made, bottled Italian Vinaigrette to save time. However, I did want to include the ingredients and directions for Giada's homemade dressing because it looked so good.***

Cigars:

6 sheets phyllo dough

4 tablespoon butter, melted

8 ounces smoked mozzarella, sliced 1/4-inch thick

8 ounces sun-dried tomatoes, drained

Dressing:

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup Prosecco

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

6 cups field greens

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Lay a sheet of phyllo dough on a clean dry work surface. Use a pastry brush to brush the phyllo sheet with melted butter. Fold the phyllo sheet in half lengthwise, resulting in a 12 by 8-inch rectangle. Brush the top of the phyllo with melted butter. Place a few slices of smoked mozzarella at a narrow end of the phyllo rectangle, leaving 1-inch on each side. Top the cheese with a few pieces of sun-dried tomatoes. Carefully roll up the phyllo dough into a cigar shape starting with the cheese and tomato end. About half way through the rolling, tuck in the 1-inch ends of the phyllo dough, and continue rolling. Place on a foil-lined baking sheet, seam side down, and brush the top with butter. Continue rolling the 5 remaining cigars. Bake until golden, about 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small ball jar or in a plastic container with a tight-fitting lid combine the extra-virgin olive oil, Proseco, cider vinegar, salt, and pepper. Shake well. Toss the Proseco vinaigrette with the field greens. Place the dressed greens on a serving platter or on individual serving plates.

Slice the cigars into 2-inch pieces. Place atop the dressed field greens. Serve immediately.

Source: Giada DeLaurentiis - Everyday Italian - http://www.foodnetwork.com/

Apple Nut Pancakes

Something Brad and I love are homemade pancakes on the weekend. We've tried a lot of pancakes, and let me just say that these are the best I've ever put in my mouth! They are so scrumptious. They just melt in your mouth, and the chunks of apple are amazing. You've got to try these!

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp. salt

2 tbsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tbsp. sugar

2 apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1 cup milk

2 egg whites

2 tbsp. applesauce

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (I used cinnamon instead)

1 cup walnuts, chopped for garnish

maple syrup

whipped cream (I left this out)

Directions:

Preheat griddle over medium heat and coat with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, and apples.

In a separate larger bowl, combine milk, egg whites, applesauce, vanilla extract and pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon). Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients and stir to combine. Pour 1/4 cup batter at a time onto griddle; cook for 3 minutes. Once the sides and top of pancake begin to bubble, flip and cook another 3 minutes.

To serve, place pancakes on a serving dish and sprinkle with walnuts, maple syrup, and a dollop of whipped cream.

Source: "Inspirations" - The Fresh Market - Feb. 6 - March 4 issue