Another Friday Night, Another Dinner

Isn't it amazing how quickly those Friday night dinners roll around?

Once a week, it seems.

Well, for this Friday night, I had a new idea for dinner.

Why don't you come along and see what we had this time?

Yet once again, the Internet comes to the rescue as I found a recipe for Pork Medallions with Balsamic Honey Glaze.

Here I have

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (remember, since we are cooking this, it can be a lesser quality)

3 tablespoons honey

2 large cloves garlic, grated

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

salt

ground black pepper

It's all mixed together now.

Since there would just be two of us for dinner, I bought two thick-cut America's Cut Pork Chops (tm) at the butcher's counter of my local grocery store.

The recipe directions say to sear each side for 1 to 2 minutes on the stove.

Okay, that is done. Now, don't mind me, but I highly doubt that a mere 8 to 10 minutes more in a 350 oven will result in our chops reaching our desired 140 degrees.

And in fact, my handy dandy thermometer confirmed this fact, as it took amost three times as long to reach the target temperature.

Reading through the reviews for the recipe, I decided that the glaze should be reduced a bit more.

So I added the glaze to the hot pan and allowed it to reduce by about 1/3 before adding it to the meat that would be going into the oven.

Looking better.

Now, I'm thinking that I would have cooked these just a bit more on the stove the next time.

But I kinda, sorta followed the recipe this time.

While the meat finished in the oven, I turned my attention to the sides.

In honor of my daughter, I started off with bacon.

Then I added the previously blanched green beans from our garden and the store.

I let the green beans cook till until almost done before removing them to the oven.

Looking good, right?

Then I moved on to the piece de resistance of the evening.

Sauteed Brussels sprouts.

After much trial and error and much determination on my part, I have decided that I like my my Brussels sprouts separated and sauteed with bacon.

The Brussels sprouts leaves are caramelized and oh so very tasty.

Now tell me that this doesn't look good.

The pork chops have reached the optimum temperature of 140 degrees.

The sides are ready.

In the end we decided to split our pork chops in half and save the rest for later.

The veggies we ate right away.

The husband even declared that he liked the Brussels sprouts.

You know what?

The dear husband moved just that much closer to being able to be called the Foodie Husband.

It's a process, dear.

You have to earn it.

Pantry Staples, Part I

In the first of what I am sure will be a riveting series, I am presenting what I consider to be pantry staples worth having around.

Pantry Staples - er, not those kind of staples...

Today, we will look at various vinegars and their uses in the kitchen.

These are the vinegars I regularly keep on hand. From the left: white vinegar, cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, white wine (in this case, pinot grigio) vinegar, champagne vinegar, rice vinegar and balsamic vinegar.

Before we look at each vinegar and its uses, a word about some of the above. I heartily recommend getting the low or no sodium rice vinegar. I also usually have both a lesser quality (an 8 year old) balsamic vinegar for cooking as well as a better quality (a 25 year old) balsamic vinegar for finishing and vinaigrettes. Unfortunately, I seem to have neglected to replace my lesser quality balsamic vinegar. My rule of thumb is that the further from the table the balsamic vinegar is used, the lesser quality it needs to be. Note to self: buy more balsamic vinegar.

Now, on with the vinegars.

White vinegar is not only useful for non-caustic and environmentally-friendly household cleaning applications, but it is often used in cooking when one needs the acidity of a vinegar, but one does not desire an overpowering flavor.

Case in point. Once your household sponges begin to smell, they are positively overflowing with germs. This is either the time to toss them, or sanitize them. Place your sponges in a heat-proof bowl and pour in some white vinegar. Water can be added to achieve the desired liquid volume. Heat in the microwave for 1:30 minutes. Allow to cool thoroughly before handling. The acidity of the vinegar and the heat act together to kill all the evil micro-bug-wuggies.



Ah look. I got some more balsamic vinegar. Now, I don't know who is responsible, but I really want to slap him for confusing the issue here. It used to be a simple matter of picking a balsamic vinegar by the number of years it has been aged, as the older the vinegar, the more refined the taste, but now different brands have their own methods of "qualifying" the various qualities. One to four grape leaves, one to five stars? Come on. Give us a break. Just who do you think you are kidding here? I really have to wonder if this is a case of see how many different bottles of balsamic vinegar we can get the stupid consumer to buy before they get wise. Hello!! We aren't that stupid and we will remember that you seemed to believe that of us. Can you tell that I have spent far too much time trying to figure out what balsamic vinegar to buy once I got to the store?

Er, anyway: let's forget the money-grubbing idiots for a while.

And now, on to the vinegars:

Vinegars are used in cooking and baking; for making salad dressings, to transform milk into a buttermilk substitute, and in marinades. Which type of vinegar should you use?

· Balsamic vinegar is the most expensive because it is aged for a longer period of time. The longer it's aged, the sweeter and thicker it gets, and the more expensive too. Buy several different types of balsamic vinegar. Less expensive vinegars are used for marinades and salad dressings where there are lots of other ingredients. The really expensive balsamic vinegars are used to drizzle over cheese and greens as an appetizer, or as a garnish or finishing touch to many recipes. Hint: you would serve the expensive balsamic vinegar to people you really like or to people you are trying to impress.

· Red and white wine vinegars are more 'everyday' vinegars. They are good for salad dressings and marinades. Red wine vinegar is best used with heartier flavors and foods, like beef, pork, and vegetables. White wine vinegar is best for chicken and fish dishes. Champagne vinegar and white wine vinegars are light in color, so are good for dressing lighter foods like pale greens, chicken, and fish.

· Apple cider vinegar is mild and inexpensive; it's the one I use most often when making salad dressings. Since it is mild, it's a good choice for marinating fish or chicken. It's also good for making Flavored Vinegars.

· Rice vinegar is the mildest of all, with much less acidity than other vinegars. It's often used in Asian or Chinese cooking.

· Plain distilled vinegar is made from grain alcohol and has a very sharp, unpleasant taste. Use it in very small quantities; it's best to add a bit to milk to 'create' a buttermilk substitute, or for cleaning purposes.

· All vinegars should be stored tightly closed in a cool, dark place. They will last for about a year after opening; after that time, the flavors will diminish. Purchase expensive vinegars in very small quantities and be sure to use them within one year.

· Lemon and lime juices are acidic and can be substituted for red wine, white wine, apple cider, and rice wine vinegars. Don't use them in place of balsamic vinegar, because you won't get the same depth of flavor.

Back in the Kitchen Again (Cue the music!.. er, anyway...)

For some odd reason (psst, read the blog title!) I feel the need to head back to my culinary roots. But first, cue the gray tree frogs. Aren't they the cutest little things? And much nicer than my not-so-friendly neighborhood wasps, one of which promptly stung me as I went out on my deck today. Hmph. Whatever happened to manners?

Okay, enough of that. Now on to the food...

I decided to saute boneless pork chops for dinner tonight. However, timing is very critical with such a lean cut of meat, so I decided to hedge my bets as it were.

Here we have the components for the most basic of brines: kosher salt, whole peppercorns, water and sugar.

I microwaved one quart of water until boiling. I then added 1/4 cup kosher salt, 1/4 cup sugar and about 12 (well okay, I really didn't count them. Just get over it already) whole peppercorns. Stir until the salt and sugar dissolve into the water.

Add cool water and allow to come to room temperature. Add the pork loin and move to the refrigerator. Now this is important. Do not let the pork remain in the brine for more than an hour or so. This is not one of those times when more is better.

Remove from the brining liquid and rinse. Pat dry and return to the refrigerator if not cooking immediately.

Cook as usual (here, with salt, pepper and olive oil) and relax with the knowledge that the brine allows for a wider margin of error. Or simply accept that the meat will taste all that much better for your efforts.

Ooh, we are on to one of my favorite summertime treats: Insalata Caprese. For those of us who didn't study Italian, that's Capri Salad.

Here we have some of the first tomatoes from my garden. These are Roma tomatoes, which happen to be some of my favorite tomatoes. And we have fresh basil, also from my garden. And most importantly, we have a very high quality balsamic vinegar. Now, this is one of those times when you simply must buy the very best mid-quality balsamic vinegar [hey, don't blame me, it used to be much simpler: just pick a 25 year old balsamic vinager and you were done, but now the industry has done away with the age designations, so good luck in figuring out what you are looking for. And expect to spend much time standing in front of the balsamic vinegar display at your local store, frowning. Trust me, you will be. Write your congressman, write your somebody, and complain!] (and expect to pay $15 to $25 for a bottle). But, rest assured that this is a wise investment, as you will only need a little of this ingredient for finishing sauces, such as this. I also highly recommend a good quality extra-virgin olive oil for this dish. Believe me, your efforts (and money) will be rewarded. And lastly, you need a nice, aged Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Sigh, once again, quality matters in a dish such as this. Please, get the good stuff. Or make this once with the ordinary stuff and then immediately with the good stuff and you will understand. Trust me on this: with home-grown tomatoes and basil, the good balsamic vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil and Parmegiano-Reggiano cheese and you will be in heaven.

The tomatoes.

Chiffenade the basil. Roll lengthwise into a tight tube and thinly slice.

See how pretty it is?

Shave Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese over the top.

Other equally acceptable choices are a good quality (notice a trend here?) fresh mozzarella or a nice provolone cheese.

Drizzle the balsamic vinegar.

And finish with the extra-virgin olive oil.

Now, aren't you glad you went the extra mile for your very deserving family?

The final plating. Insalata Caprese, pork loin and canned creamed corn with butter. Chow and ciao.

Oh, and if you were wondering, the yellow pool by the pork loin is a quick mixture of one part yellow mustard to one part honey. A natural companion to pork. Trust me already.