Peppered Breaded Pork Chops

I didn't feel like making dinner tonight. I procrastinated all day, and then at 4:30pm, I decided it was an "eat whatcha got" kind of night. Otherwise I'd end up at the store hungry and spend way too much. So I went to the freezer downstairs and pulled out some Peppered Pork Chops from our most recent meal swap (thanks, Peggy!). There was some broccoli "harvested" from the garden the other day, a red pepper and a handful of baby carrots wasting away in a bag in the fridge. Steamed veggies it is.

Ok, now for a starchy side (hey - I'm feeding a growing football player here)... No potatoes in the cupboard, but I had some brown rice and some couscous in the pantry. Couscous it is - it's more fun to say. Then I spied a partial loaf of French bread left over from cheesesteak night, and remembered there was a little lump of "expensive butter" in the fridge leftover from a previous dinner. Garlic bread!  There ya have it - not too bad for a 4:30pm "eat whatcha got" meal. Here's the recipe:

Peppered Breaded Pork Chops

1/3 c. butter
1 t. fresh minced garlic
1 c. plain breadcrumbs
1tbsp. minced parsley
1 t. salt
½ t. ground red pepper
¼ t. ground black pepper
¼ t. onion powder
6 center cut boneless pork chops

In saucepan, heat butter over medium heat, and add garlic.  In shallow dish mix breadcrumbs, parsley, salt, red pepper, black pepper and onion powder until blended. Dip pork chops in garlic butter, then coat with breadcrumbs. Place in 2-8x8 pans, cover with foil, put in Ziploc and freeze.

To cook: Thaw. Bake at 425 for 40 minutes or until golden brown. (Temp. 160)

Layered Mexican Trifle Salad

So this is awesome. It's a lot of work, but it is awesome. Feeds a crowd, looks cool, tastes great. What more can you ask for? I first had this at a party, and then tracked down the recipe - I believe it was originally from Pampered Chef. You can mix it up, but I really like this combo. It's easy to double or whatever is needed, based on the serving dish. The one pictured was MASSIVE, and was basically a triple batch - so much work, and at the last minute! Layered Mexican Trifle Salad I ngredients: Beans: drain, rinse and mix together 1 15 oz. can pinto beans and 1 15 oz. can black beans 1 15 oz. can whole kernel corn, drained (I've also used fresh) 1 large tomato, diced (I usually use several Roma tomatoes) 2 green bell peppers, diced 3 ripe avocadoes, diced and mashed with the juice of 1 lime and salt and pepper to taste 1 large onion, diced (red or white) 2 cups cooked chicken, diced or shredded 2 cups cheddar or jack cheese, shredded

Skillet Chicken, Broccoli, Ziti & Asiago Cheese

We ALL really love this recipe. This is based on a recipe from the good people at Cooks Illustrated - I am grateful to them for getting my kids to happily eat sundried tomatoes and broccoli! I've also made this in a huge batch and served it family-style for a dinner party (and got to use my giant Pampered Chef Simple Additions square pasta bowl (it's really big), and it was AWESOME). If people could have licked the bowl clean, they might have - there was NOTHING left. Try this, and love it: Chicken, Broccoli, Penne and Asiago Cheese Skillet 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch squares 2 tbsp. vegetable oil (or olive oil - just don't heat that to smoking) 1 medium onion, minced (about 1 cup) 3 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 1 tbsp.) 1/4 tsp. dried oregano 1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes 8 oz. ziti or penne (2 /12 cups) 3 c. water 2 c. low-sodium chicken broth 3-4 c. broccoli florets 1/4 c. sun-dried tomatoes in oil, rinsed and choppe

Another Take on Comfort Food

Sometimes there's nothing you can do but cook. I've had the displeasure of seeing 2 young moms in our school community recieve cancer diagnoses in the last 18 months. If you're like me, when someone you know is hurting, you want to help, but lots of times, there's not much you can do. If you can cook, you can take away some of the stress of getting the family fed and bring a meal or two. In fact, even if you can't cook, you can pick up a meal at a restaurant or a bag of groceries, or even a gift card for a local restaurant. I think it comes naturally to some - the church and school communities I grew up in always loved with food - church potlucks, school spaghetti dinners, and of course lots of meals for people who needed them. But not everyone has done this before, so it might be overwhelming. As in my "feeding a crowd" blurb, there are a few things to keep in mind. Don't try to impress - don't try new recipes. Find out if you're

A Cooking Baker

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