Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Pork Chop with Cider Gravy, Sauteed Apples and Onions

Dress-up your mashed potato with pork chops and apples!

Cook Time: 30 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Salt
4 bone-in pork chops, 1-inch thick
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 large onions, yellow or red, thinly sliced
2 Gala or Golden Delicious apples, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 lemon
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup apple cider
2 cups chicken stock
2 rounded tablespoons orange marmalade


Directions

In a medium pot add sweet potatoes and cover with salted water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer until fork tender, 15 to 18 minutes.


Season chops with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, a turn of the pan, in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook pork 5 minutes on the first side until deeply golden, turn and cook 3 to 4 minutes more with a loose foil tent over the pan. Remove cooked chops to a plate and cover to keep warm. Add another turn of the pan of olive oil, add the onions and apples. Season with salt, pepper and thyme and cook until just tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Douse with juice of a lemon and remove onions and apples to a bowl; keep warm.


Add 2 tablespoons butter to the skillet, melt then whisk in flour, cook 1 minute then whisk in cider and 1 cup of stock. Season the gravy with salt and pepper. Thicken 4 to 5 minutes over medium-low heat.


Drain cooked sweet potatoes and return pan to stove. Melt 2 tablespoons butter and combine with marmalade and 1 cup stock. Add potatoes and mash, season with salt and pepper.


Serve chop covered with apples and onions, gravy poured down over top, sweet potatoes alongside.

From: foodnetwork.com

Chicken Cordon Bleu Burgers

Cook Time: 12 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

2 teaspoons vegetable or olive oil, plus more for drizzling
4 slices Canadian bacon
2 pounds ground chicken breast
2 teaspoons sweet paprika, eyeball it in your palm
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
2 teaspoons grill seasoning blend (recommended: Montreal Steak Seasoning) or salt and pepper
1 shallot, finely chopped
4 deli slices Swiss cheese
2/3 cup mayonnaise or reduced fat mayonnaise, eyeball it
3 rounded tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons freshly chopped tarragon leaves, 4 sprigs
4 kaiser rolls or sandwich size sour dough English muffins, split and toasted
8 leaves leaf lettuce
1 vine ripe tomato, thinly sliced


Directions

Preheat grill pan, nonstick griddle, large nonstick skillet or table top electric grill to medium high heat.


Add 2 tablespoons of oil and Canadian bacon. Warm bacon and caramelize it at edges, 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Remove to a piece of foil. Fold foil over loosely to keep warm.


Combine chicken, paprika, poultry seasoning, grill seasoning, shallot. Score meat with the side of your hand to separate into 4 equal amounts. Make 4 large patties, 3/4 to 1 inch thick. Drizzle patties with oil and place on hot grill pan, griddle or in skillet. Cook 5 minutes on each side, until chicken is cooked through.


Top patties with reserved cooked Canadian bacon and Swiss cheese. Fold each slice of cheese in half to fit the burger. Cover loosely with tin foil. Turn off pan and let cheese melt, 2 minutes.


Combine mayonnaise, mustard, tarragon. Slather bun tops or English tops with sauce. Place Cordon Bleu burgers on bun bottoms and top with lettuce and tomato. Put bun or muffin tops in place. Serve with oven fries.

From: foodnetwork.com

Christmas Pasta

Looking for something to serve on Christmas day? Here's a flavorful sauce with pancetta, Italian sausage, veal, pork and beef!

Cook Time: 20 min
Level: Intermediate
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
1/4 pound pancetta, thick cut, chopped into small bits (Italian cured pork, ask at deli counter)
1/2 pound bulk hot Italian sausage
1 pound combined ground beef, pork and veal
1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup good quality dry red wine
1 cup prepared beef stock, paper container or canned
2 (32-ounce) cans chunky style crushed tomatoes
A handful chopped flat leaf parsley leaves
1/4 teaspoon (a couple of pinches) allspice or cinnamon
Coarse salt and black pepper
2 pounds penne rigate, cooked to al dente
Grated Pecorino Romano, as an accompaniment
Fresh, crusty bread, for mopping


Directions

Heat a deep pot over medium high heat. Add oil, garlic, bay, and pancetta bits and brown for 1 minute. Add meats and brown and crumble them for 5 minutes.


Chop carrot, celery, and onions near the stove and add to the pot as you work. Cook vegetables with meat 5 minutes and add wine. Cook for 1 minute; add stock and tomatoes to the pot.


Stir in parsley, allspice, or cinnamon and season sauce with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring sauce to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and cook 10 to 15 minutes minimum before serving. Reheated sauce only improves.


Toss pasta (cook off only as much pasta as you need at the time: half a pound for every 3 people) with a couple of ladles of sauce to coat, then top bowl with extra sauce. Top pasta with lots of cheese and pass bread at the table.


From: foodnetwork.com

Grilled Chicken with Arugula Pesto

Quick, light and delicious pasta!

Cook Time: 10 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds or shelled pistachios
1 cup packed fresh arugula leaves
1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 clove garlic, grated or minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 small pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast (tenders removed)


Directions

Heat a grill pan to high.

Toast the nuts lightly in small skillet over low heat, then add them to a food processor.

Add the arugula, basil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt and pepper, to taste, and pulse to combine.

With the processor on, stream in the extra-virgin olive oil to form thick pesto.

Lightly pound out the chicken, then rub all sides with the pesto. Spray the grill pan with cooking spray or rub with a little oil and grill the chicken 2 to 4 minutes on each side.

From: foodnetwork.com

Penne-Wise Pumpkin Pasta

Cook Time: 10 min

Level: Easy

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

Salt

1 pound whole-wheat penne

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 shallots, finely chopped

3 to 4 cloves garlic, grated

2 cups chicken stock

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree

1/2 cup cream

1 teaspoon hot sauce, to taste

Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

2 pinches ground cinnamon

Salt and black pepper

7 to 8 leaves fresh sage, thinly sliced plus more, for garnish

Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions

Heat water for pasta, salt it and cook penne to al dente.

Heat the oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic to the pan, saute 3 minutes. Stir in chicken stock and combine with pumpkin, stir in cream then season sauce with hot sauce, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer 5 to 6 minutes more to thicken. Stir in sage, toss with pasta with grated cheese, to taste.

From: foodnetwork.com

Autumn Potato Gratin

Cook Time: 35 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 8 servings


Ingredients

4 pounds mixed baby potatoes, such as Red Bliss, Peruvian Purples, and Fingerlings
2 cups heavy cream, plus some to cover
4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick)
2 sprigs each fresh thyme, sage, and rosemary
2 garlic cloves, cracked
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan


Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.


Halve the potatoes and toss them into a large baking dish and season with salt and pepper.


Meanwhile, put the cream, butter, herbs, and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes, to infuse the cream with flavor. Season with salt and pepper.


Pour the hot cream mixture through a strainer over the potatoes, (discard the herbs and garlic), if there is not enough cream to go 3/4 of the way up the potatoes then pour some additional cream on top to make up the difference. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly over the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked through and top begins to brown. Cover and keep warm until ready to serve.

From: foodnetwork.com

Chili-Garlic Roasted Broccoli

Cook Time: 20 min

Level: Easy

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, eyeball it

5 to 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon grill seasoning blend (recommended:Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick Grill Mates)

1 large head broccoli, cut into thin, long spears

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, chili powder and grill seasoning in the bottom of a large bowl and add the broccoli spears. Toss to coat broccoli evenly then transfer to a large nonstick baking sheet. Roast the broccoli until ends are crisp and brown and stalks are tender, 17 to 20 minutes.

From: foodnetwork.com