Pork Chops Marinated in Beer with Garlic and Fennel

This was a really easy meal. I made it for my dad for a Father's Day celebration meal with baked potatoes, a fresh garden salad, and a blueberry-raspberry-peach crumble pie, per his request.  It would have been good with polenta as well. I realize writing this recipe that I never put pork recipes on this site!  Up until now.  I just don't really think about buying pork.  I also realize that I don't cook with beef much either.  I enjoy both types of meat, I just happen to mostly eat chicken, fish or vegetarian. 

Pork Chops Marinated in Beer with Garlic and Fennel
serves 4 people

1 beer
4 pork chops
handful of diced fresh fennel
4-6 garlic cloves, diced/pressed
pepper

Place the pork chops in a baking dish, cover with beer, exposing just the surface of the meat.  Place garlic on top of the meat and then fennel.  Add some pepper.  You can marinate for several hours, or if you are pressed for time like I was, you can put it right in the oven.  Cook in preheated 350 F.  If you marinate for a longer duration, which I recommend, place pork chops and marinade in a plastic bag and refigerate for 4-24 hours.

~~~Enjoy~~~

Incredible Blackberry-Raspberry Crumble Pie

 ****This post is cut and pasted from my earlier post "New Baby Celebration Meal" but it deserves its own post...so here goes...


Blackberry-Raspberry Crumble 
When cooked right, the pie is thick enough to stay put on your spoon.  This is a very easy dessert that is sure to disappear quickly.  You can use any fruit, but the cooking times and ingredients will differ a bit.   This is my favorite dessert right now!

Makes 1 pie
Topping:
1 cup oatmeal, whole grain
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup of butter melted
Mix the oatmeal and brown sugar then mix in the butter.  Set aside. The topping gets spread evenly over the pie.  I have a hard time keeping my kids hands out of the topping-- it is delicious and simple.

Insides:
2 cups of previously frozen blackberries (de-thaw before using)
2 cups previously frozen raspberries, or enough to fill a pie dish (de-thaw before using)
5 TBS flour
3 TBS lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Mix all the above ingredients (minus the fruit and lemon juice).  When thoroughly combined, add to the fruit and pour on the lemon juice.  Be careful not to rough up the berries too much as you mix it.  They are delicate.   Spoon the mixture into the pie pan.   Next, cover the fruit mixture with the oatmeal crumble.  Bake at 350 F for as long as it takes, making sure not to burn the crumble layer. The pie should be bubbling for a while.  Keep an eye on the topping and take out of oven before it gets overcooked.  I think it took about 45 minutes, but... don't take my word for it...I time things very intuitively.  I use my nose too and can usually tell when it is done cooking by the smells.  Good luck!  Bon Appetite!

New Baby Celebration Meal

It is always fun to cook for a family that has just had a new baby!  For this dinner I made a Chicken, Spinach and Onion Quiche with a polenta crust, green salad, and Blackberry-Raspberry Crumble pie.  Half of the quiche has noodles in it for the kids.  The new family now has 3 children, so I imagine the big kids would enjoy the noodles.

Chicken, Spinach, Onion Quiche with Noodles and a Polenta Crust
serves 4-6, makes 1 quiche

Ingredients
crust
1/2 cup dry polenta
1 1/2 cups water
splash or two of olive oil
some salt
1/3 cup grated cheese of your choice.  I used Tillamook Sharp.

Insides of quiche
4 eggs
2 cups milk
2 chicken breasts cooked and chopped into bite-size pieces
1 onion
2 fully packed cups of fresh spinach, chopped
a handful of cooked noodles ( I used leftover spaghetti noodles)- optional
black pepper

Making the Crust
Bring 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil.  Slowly add 1/2 cup dry polenta while stirring to prevent clumping.  Watch out, the polenta will spit up and bite you if the heat is too high!  Mix in about 1 TBS olive oil and a dash of salt.  Turn heat down and stir occassionally until polenta is thick.  Prepare a pie dish by oiling it with olive oil.  This will prevent the polenta crust from sticking to the pan.  Evenly spread polenta like you would a regular wheat crust.  I used a spatula and made the crust a little thicker than a regular wheat crust would be.  Bake the crust in an oven for 20 minutes on 350F.  Right before it is done cooking add the grated cheese and let it melt before taking it out of the oven.  Set crust aside and prepare the filling.

The Quiche Filling 
preheat oven to 375 Bake
1. Thoroughly mix 4 eggs with 2 cups of milk.  Set aside. 
2. Fry one chopped onion in a pan with butter for 3 minutes.  Add chicken breasts if they are not already precooked.  Cook until the chicken and onions are done to your liking.  Add some pepper.  Set aside.
3. Fill the polenta and cheese pie crust with the chopped fresh (uncooked) spinach.
4. Optional- Cover 1/2 of the quiche with cooked noodles (great for kids).
5. Cover the polenta evenly with the chicken and onions.
6. Pour the milk-egg mixture over the chicken-onion-spinach covered crust.  Leave at least 1/2 inch of the pie dish unfilled so that it won't overflow into your oven like it did mine =)
7. Cover the quiche with aluminum foil.  This keeps the pie cooking evenly.  No burned top or hard noodles!
8. Cook in preheated 350 F oven for 30 minutes or more.  I can't remember exactly how long I cooked mine, but I think it was 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Mine was really full though, so it would cook quicker the less full your pie dish is.

Now, time for DESSERT!

Blackberry-Raspberry Crumble 
When cooked right, the pie is thick enough to stay put on your spoon.  This is a very easy dessert that is sure to disappear quickly.  You can use any fruit, but the cooking times and ingredients will differ a bit.   This is my favorite dessert right now!


Makes 1 pie
Topping:
1 cup oatmeal, whole grain
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup of butter melted
Mix the oatmeal and brown sugar then mix in the butter.  Set aside. The topping gets spread evenly over the pie.  I have a hard time keeping my kids hands out of the topping-- it is delicious and simple.

Insides:
2 cups of previously frozen blackberries (de-thaw before using)
2 cups previously frozen raspberries, or enough to fill a pie dish (de-thaw before using)
5 TBS flour
3 TBS lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Mix all the above ingredients (minus the fruit and lemon juice).  When thoroughly combined, add to the fruit and pour on the lemon juice.  Be careful not to rough up the berries too much as you mix it.  They are delicate.   Spoon the mixture into the pie pan.   Next, cover the fruit mixture with the oatmeal crumble.  Bake at 350 F for as long as it takes, making sure not to burn the crumble layer. The pie should be bubbling for a while.  Keep an eye on the topping and take out of oven before it gets overcooked.  I think it took about 45 minutes, but... don't take my word for it...I time things very intuitively.  I use my nose too and can usually tell when it is done cooking by the smells.  Good luck!  Bon Appetite!

Strawberry Pancakes

Full disclosure: I used Trader Joes Pancake mix.  When you are in a hurry to get your kid off to Theater camp, it is nice to have a mix on hand.  Nice and quick.  The girls picked an entire basket of strawberries yesterday, some of which I cut into small pieces and added to the batter.  After having one of these fresh strawberry pancakes--- I've gotta say, they are my favorite type of fruit pancakes!! WOW, they were amazing.  I imagine you can add strawberries to any pancake mix.  Cut them small so the pancake is easy to turn.

Chicken Tortilla Salad

Chicken Tortilla Salad
serves one

2 handfuls of crushed corn chips
1 small grated carrot
enough washed romaine for one salad, about 4 leaves or so
1 chicken breast
1 garlic clove
butter for frying
1 TBS olive oil
1 TBS balsamic vinegar
lemon pepper (Trader Joes)


In a cast iron pan cook one chicken breast in butter. Add a clove of pressed garlic, cover and slowly cook until done. Cut in to bite-size pieces and use a little lemon pepper to season. Set aside.

Wash romaine lettuce and break in to bite size pieces. Grate carrot and spread over lettuce.

Dressing: Mix 1 TBS olive oil with 1 TBS balsamic vinegar with a fork. Toss salad with dressing and add chicken and a couple of handfuls of crushed corn chips.

Yummy and simple.

Pan Cooked Chicken Breasts with Lemon Pepper, Fennel and Caramelized Onions

OK, I admit it, I have been to Trader Joes a lot lately. A lot for me anyway. With some frozen chicken breast and some very exciting lemon pepper I came up with this dish, a nice and easy one pan-only kind of meal. I served it with feta cheese polenta. Big hit with the kids, although take it easy on the lemon pepper for them! Lesson learned :)

Pan Cooked Chicken Breasts with Lemon Pepper, Fennel, and Caramelized Onions

4 fresh or frozen chicken breasts, I got mine frozen from Trader Joes
1 onion
1 TBS butter
handful of fresh fennel
lemon pepper to taste

Begin by heating a cast iron pan on medium. When the pan has warmed add a dollup of butter and long slices of onion. Cook for a few minutes then add chicken, stir, cover for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes turn the chicken, and cover for another 5 minutes. Depending on the size of the chicken you may need to cook it for more or less time. Several minutes before it's done add a handful of fresh fennel and grind some lemon pepper over the chicken. Cover and cook until fennel is wilted and chicken is done.

Best served with feta polenta.

Library Storytime this Summer on Whidbey

Freland Library courtesy http://www.sno-isle.org/?ID=1196

Langley Library courtesy http://www.sno-isle.org/?ID=1199

Don't miss storytime with your kids at the Langley and Freeland libraries this summer! Come for stories and crafts. Family storytime this summer begins July 6th and running through August 10th . Storytimes are on Tuesdays at 10:00 here in Langley and on Wednesdays at 10:00 in Freeland. See you there!

http://www.sno-isle.org/

Salmon, Artichokes and Polenta

Doesn't get any simpler or better than this for me! And the fresh Alaskan Salmon is finally here!!!! Buttery and delicious!

A Splash of Pinot Noir

The magnificent four: chicken thighs fried in butter, garlic, fresh thyme and steamed with a splash of Pinot Noir. 

Garlic, Thyme, and Wine Infused Chicken
serves 4
1 package of chicken thighs
3 TBS butter
3-4 cloves of garlic
6 fresh and tender sprigs of thyme
salt and pepper
splash of pinot noir

Heat a cast iron pan on medium, add 3 TBS butter, tip pan to spread the butter evenly.  Add crushed garlic and thyme sprigs.  Stir for up to a minute, being careful not to burn the garlic.  Add chicken thighs, fry for a couple of minutes, making sure to flip the thighs.  Salt and pepper to your taste.  Add a splash of Pinot Noir, flip thighs again and cover with a lid, turning the heat down slightly.  The thighs cook pretty quickly so keep an eye on them.  I think they took about 10 minutes to cook once I put the Pinot Noir in the pan.  Turn the thighs periodically as they cook. 

I made this dinner because I knew it would be delicious and quick.  I had just finished working at 7 PM, the kids were still up and hungry.  Dinner was ready within the half hour.  I served it with the always kid friendly noodles and my favorite sit fried broccoli in olive oil.  The chicken and broccoli would also be great with rice or polenta.  Have you ever used Braggs Liquid Aminos?  It is basically a soy sauce.  Add a bit of it to your noodles, chicken and broccoli.

Soft Boiled Eggs, Polenta and Feta

My 5 year old daughter loves polenta.  Come to think of it, we all do!  She requested it for breakfast and I combined it with some soft boiled eggs (7-8 minutes cooking depending on their size, add after the water comes to a boil) and sheep feta, which I get from the wonderful Trader Joes.  Bon Appetite!