Fall entertaining

Stuffed Pork Chops, seasonal roasted veggies, mashed potatoes and peanut butter chocolate chip pie.

So a lot of things going on in this post but this is the dinner menu I put together for a little get-together we had last night. Josh and I invited over some friends of ours who are very recently married and I wanted to have some nice food that fit into the season to serve to them. This seemed to fit.

Stuffed pork chops:

I started with 6 thick cut pork chops, mine were 1.5 in thick, boneless. You could use bone in. Would add a little more flavor, the butcher just did not have any when I was there.  I brine the pork, as it tends to dry out easily.

Brine:

½ cup granulated sugar

½ cup salt

1 tsp poultry seasoning

1tsp ground black pepper

Dissolve all of the above in about 1.5-2 liters of water (enough to cover your pork chops)

I let the pork brine overnight (in the fridge). About 12 hours.

Stuffing:

I used pre-cut stuffing cubes (my way of cheating) about 2 cups

½ cup celery finely diced

½ cup onion finely diced

1/8 cup dried cranberries chopped

½ gala apple finely diced

1 teaspoon olive oil

I sauté celery, onion, cranberries and apple in the olive oil until cooked down. Then I add about 1-1.5 cups of chicken stock. I usually have my own on hand, but pre-packaged works. If you use pre-packaged I suggest the low sodium. Warm this in the pan and then add to the stuffing cubes. Stir until all stuffing is moistened.

Cut slit in the middle of pork chops… almost, but not all the way through. Just to make a pocket to stuff. Add about ½ cup stuffing per pork chop and then secure pork chop with 2 toothpicks to make sure the stuffing does not fall out. Repeat will all pork chops. Season the outside of all pork chops with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning to taste.

Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in large sauté pan, place pork chops in pan and caramelize outside of chops until golden brown on both sides. Then transfer to a baking dish, cover with foil. Place in 350 degree oven for 15-20 min to finish cooking. Remove from oven and serve.

Mashed potatoes

So mashed potatoes are easy and some people may criticize me for even putting this on my blog, but I have gotten texts from multiple people in the past asking me how to make “real” mashed potatoes and not just the ones out of the box. Really easy… Please stay away from the boxed flakes.

2-3 lbs of russet potatoes, peeled and cubed to similar sized pieces

Boil potatoes for 25-30 min until fork inserted comes out easily and they seem very tender. Then drain potatoes in a colander.  Place potatoes back in pot you cooked them in. Add 4 tbsp butter and allow to melt from the heat of the potatoes. Mash potatoes with potato masher. If you do not have a masher, then you can use a hand mixer to whip your potatoes instead. You can then add milk to your potatoes until the consistency you desire. I personally prefer sour cream, for the tanginess and for the consistency. I have recently replaced my sour cream with Greek yogurt which is great too. I add about a cup to get the consistency I desire. I then add about 2-3 tsp salt, 2 tsp garlic powder and about 2 tsp ground black pepper. This can all be changed to how you want your potatoes to taste. Make them the way you want them, not the way I want them. I crave garlic, you may not.

Roasted seasonal veggies:

Super easy. I chose what was in season.

Butternut squash – 1 squash cut into chunks of about the same size (peeled and de-seeded)

Carrots – about 1-1.5 lbs, cut into chunks of about the same size

Cauliflower – 1 head cut up

Zucchini – 3 medium sized cut into chunks of about the same size

I tossed all the veggies in olive oil and salt, pepper and thyme. Then I roasted the butternut squash and carrots for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Then added the cauliflower and zucchini and continued to roast at 350 degrees for another 20-25 minutes until all veggies were soft. Then they were ready to serve. One of the easiest side dishes I have made, but super delicious if you like veggies.

Peanut butter chocolate chip pie:

Crust:

1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 stick butter melted

3 tbsp granulated sugar

Mix all ingredients and press into a 9 in pie plate to form a pie crust. (or cheat and buy a 9 in graham cracker crumb pie crust)

Filling:

1 cup peanut butter

½ cup powdered sugar

1 - 8oz packaged cream cheese softened

Mix above ingredients until combined, set aside.

1 pint heavy whipping cream

1 tbsp vanilla extract

¼ cup powdered sugar (or a little more depending on your taste and how sweet you prefer it)

Mix whipping cream, vanilla and powdered sugar and whip until you form stiff peaks. Once you have formed whipped cream you can combine with peanut butter mixture. Start by adding 1/3 whipped cream to the peanut butter mixture and mix together. Then add second 1/3 of whipped cream to peanut butter mixture and fold in slowly to keep light and fluffy. Add last 1/3 of whipped cream to peanut butter mixture and fold in slowly to keep light and fluffy. Finally add ½ bag of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips to mixture. Mix until combined, place in previously made pie crust and put in fridge for 2+hrs to harden prior to eating. I usually make this pie the night before I serve it that way I don’t have to worry about desert the day of, and it is nice and firm the day it is served. I have also frozen this before and it is delicious that way too.

Hope you enjoy these recipes. A little taste of fall. As always, if you have questions feel free to email or post comments.

Going to sleep now... 100 pumpkin cupcakes to make this weekend for the girls' school for their halloween party on Monday. Pumpkin cupcakes are one of my favorite. Probably because they have cream cheese frosting... I do make a mean cream cheese frosing :)

Happy Cooking!!

Not Quite Great-Grandma's Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Rolls

So I somehow managed to lose my great-grandma’s cinnamon roll recipe, which were the best cinnamon rolls in the world. But I did my own take on them. It's not quite her recipe but as close as I have gotten to it. So here is my cinnamon roll recipe:

Dough:

1 cup milk
½ cup butter
1 cup cool water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast (this is for those of you who buy a big container like me… otherwiseuse 2 packages of the yeast)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
6 cups all purpose flour

Warm the milk in a small saucepan until it bubbles. Then add the butter, you want it to melt. Add the cool water and let the combination cool until just lukewarm. Then add your yeast and let set a couple minutes until it starts to get creamy looking (that means your yeast are alive and working). Add the sugar, salt, eggs and 2 cups of the flour. Mix until combined. Then mix in the rest of the flour ½ cup at a time until the dough has pulled together. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until it becomes smooth (usually takes me 5-6 min of kneading). Cut the dough into 2 pieces.  Take the first piece and roll it out into a rectangle. Top the rectangle with ½ stick of softened butter. I just take a frosting knife and act like I am frosting it. Then add ½ the cinnamon mixture.

Cinnamon mixture:

2 cups brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon (you can alter this to your taste, I like a lot of cinnamon)

Roll the completed rectangle and seal the edge with a touch of water. Using a very sharp knife or dental floss (I use a knife) cut into 12 equal rounds. Place in a greased 9x13 baking dish. Repeat with the second half of the dough.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1-1.5 hrs in a warm area of your kitchen. I like them to double in size, then I think they have expanded enough. Then bake in a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. I like to let them cool a little then top them with my cream cheese icing.

Cream Cheese Icing:

1 – 8oz block of cream cheese, softened
½ stick butter – softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 lb of powdered sugar (or maybe a little more, depending on your consistency)

I mix the cream cheese butter and vanilla together until light then add the powdered sugar until it has reached the thickness that I want. If you add too much powdered sugar add just a touch of milk to the mixture to loosen it up some.

So these aren’t my great-grandma’s recipe, but pretty good anyway. Hope you enjoy.

Pulled Pork and Beer Bread

Pulled pork and beer bread

So we don’t have a smoker… I do feel that true pulled pork is smoked but unfortunately I don’t feel like spending the money on a smoker so I use my crock pot. The longer you cook your pork shoulder the more tender and easier to pull it will be.  I prefer bone in pork shoulder because you get the extra flavor out of the bone as you cook. Bone out is fine too and I know many people prefer this.

Pork shoulder – 3-4 lbs (I trim this to get rid of the excess fat… I’m not a fan of pork fat)

Brine:

Enough cool water to cover your pork shoulder
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup salt
1 tbsp black pepper ground or 10 whole peppercorns
2-3 tbsp of my dry rub

I will give you the recipe for my dry rub if you keep reading. I put the pork shoulder in the brine for overnight. Brining helps ensure juicy meat (especially if you smoke your pork and don’t cook it in the crockpot.)

Dry Rub:

½ cup kosher salt
2 tbsp paprika (can be plain or hot… I prefer Hungarian hot paprika)
1 tsp cayenne
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp onion powder
2 tbsp ground black pepper

The morning after the shoulder has brined I take it out and pat it off. Then I apply my dry rub liberally and let it set for a couple hrs. During that time I prepare the juice I cook the meat in.

Cooking liquid:

2 – 12oz cans or bottles of beer (your choice, we had yuengling in the house)
Enough hot water to cover the pork shoulder
2-3 tbsp of the leftover dry rub
2 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp of liquid smoke
1 yellow onion diced

I put the rubbed shoulder in the liquid in the crockpot and let it cook for 6-7 hrs. Usually on high for 3-4 hrs then down on low for the rest of the day. If I know I am going to be gone for 12+ hrs then I will just leave it on low the entire time. If I only have 4-5 hrs, I cook it on high the entire time. Basically cook it until it falls apart, or is very easy to pull apart. I usually drench it in barbeque sauce, whatever your favorite is or if you prefer to make your own. Today we are having it with homemade coleslaw, baked beans and beer bread.

Beer Bread:

This is a super simple beer bread recipe. It’s mildly sweet bread but goes great with the pulled pork. It isn’t a typical, let it rise type recipe so your loaf looks rustic when coming out but it tastes amazing.

3 cups self rising flour
½ cup granulated sugar
½ tsp salt
1- 12 oz can or bottle of beer (the heavier the beer the more flavor, we again used yuenling)

Mix the flour, salt and sugar together, add the beer and mix until combined. The dough will be sticky. Prepare a loaf pan (butter and flour) or use a baking spray so it does not stick. Then bake at 375 degrees for 50-55 minutes depending on your oven. When I pull the loaf from the oven I brush it with a little melted butter.

Pulled pork is traditionally smoked, but if you are like me and just don’t have a smoker at this time you can still enjoy it. I think that the beer bread compliments it well with the bit of sweetness. If you have any questions about these recipes or are looking for any others, email me and let me know. Happy cooking!