Baked Pork Chops

These are outstanding and so easy. The only downside is running the oven in the summer. Maybe I'll grill these if I ever get a house of my own again. We had new potatoes, veggies, and apple sauce (of course). Nom.

Mediterranean Pork Chops
4 boneless or bone-in pork loin chops, cut 1/2 inch thick (1 to 1 1/2 pounds)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbl finely chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
3 cloves garlic, minced (1 1/2 tsp minced)

Combine the 4 spices and rub on chops
Roast chops in a 425° oven for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° and continue roasting about 25 minutes

Jumpin Jambalaya

Well, last night was fun! We made jambalaya from scratch. Before it was always with Zatarain's box mix. Ironically, when you make it from scratch you still use Zatarain's seasonings. It made a huge amount. I could safely halve everything and still have leftovers.

Jambalaya

1 Tbl olive oil (try peanut)
1 Tbl Cajun seasoning
1 lb andouille sausage, sliced
1.25 lb shrimp, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 onion, diced
1 small green bell pepper, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14.5 oz) diced Italian tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (used Sriricha)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon file powder
2 cups uncooked uncle ben's brown rice (try 1.5 cups)
3 1/4 cups chicken broth (adjust to uncle ben's recommended liquid)

Heat oil in a large heavy Dutch oven over medium heat.
Season the sausage and shrimp pieces with Cajun seasoning.
Saute sausage until browned.
Add onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic until tender.
Stir in crushed tomatoes, and season with black pepper, salt, hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce and file powder.
Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the shrimp, rice and chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed.

Day 1, still tired from the move

Ok, so actually I'm a month into by new life with my awesome wife in Corpus Christi. Lisa moved here about 7 months ahead of me and I dont yet have a job. That means the upkeep of our condo falls to me. I've started cooking and have tried out a few recipies. Last night, she suggested I blog about them so I dont lose what I gained.

So, a recipe I tried before the creation of this blog was for a shimp pot. It was excellent.

Shrimp Pot

4 ears of corn, cut to smaller pieces

1 lb shrimp, not peeled

1 lb keilbasa, sliced 1/4 pieces

several new potatoes

2 Tbl Old Bay Seasoning

Fill large pot half full of water. Add spice and bring to a boil.

Add new potatoes and cook for 10 minutes

Add keilbasa and cook for 7 minutes

Add corn and cook 7 minutes

Add shrimp and cook 4-6 minutes (until whitish pink)

Serve with crusty bread, butter and beer.