Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Pleasant Pork Chops

6 pork chops
salt to taste
pepper to taste
3 T. butter
1/2 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 c. chicken broth
1 c. sour cream
2 t. paprika

Saute onion and garlic in hot butter. Add pork chops to skillet and cook until mostly done. Remove pork chops from skillet. Add broth,sour cream, and paprika to the onion-garlic mixture. Return pork chops to skillet and cook until everything is heated through.

I highly recommend serving this with/over "Foolproof Oven-Baked Brown Rice". It's delicious with this sauce!

(The original recipe said to brown the pork chops, then add the chicken broth and cook at low heat for 1 hour. Then to transfer the pork chops to a serving plate, reduce the juices in the skillet to half, add the sour cream, and heat through. Then pour mixture over pork chops. My way seems easier/faster and tastes good!)

Italian Sausage with Bow Ties

16 oz. bow-tie pasta (or penne or whatever)
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 t. minced garlic
1/2 t. red pepper flakes, crushed (or to taste)
2 cans diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 cups heavy cream or half & half
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. dried basil

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, cook the sausage, onion, garlic, and pepper flakes over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Drain. Stir in tomatoes, cream, salt, and basil. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat, simmer, uncovered for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta; toss with the sausage mixture. Garnish with parmesan cheese, if desired.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Hamburger Pie

This is absolutely one of our very favorite recipes. It just tastes like home.

2 lb. ground beef, browned & drained
1-2 tsp. garlic, minced
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
1-2 cans green beans
potatoes, mashed
cheddar cheese, shredded

Brown the ground beef and garlic, then drain. Add tomatoes and tomato sauce (sometimes I just use a few small cans of tomato sauce). Spread meat & tomato mixture in a 9x13 pan or a large casserole pan. Spread the green beans on top of the meat mixture. Make mashed potatoes. I make them from scratch (I'm not an instant potato fan) and use 8-12 potatoes, depending on how many people I'm feeding. Spread the mashed potatoes on top of the green bean layer. Top with shredded cheddar cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.