Friends,
I made the most amazing dinner last night and I just wanted to share it with you. I love love love it when new things that I try to make turn out well and boy did these two recipes, both obtained from Mel's Kitchen Cafe at www.melskitchencafe.com. They're both easy and delish! On the potatoes, I didn't use the green onion because no matter how many times I try to like g.o.'s I just don't :) We used our grill to make the pork chops and I can't tell you how happy it made me to smell the smell of a grill!
Tender Grilled Pork Chops
*Serves 4 (if you slice them and serve them with other sides, you could probably get away with serving 5 or 6 children/adults)
4 boneless pork loin chops
1/4 cup olive oil
2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon steak seasoning (such as Montreal Steak Seasoning or make your own*)
Mix olive oil, soy sauce and steak seasoning ingredients in a small bowl and pour into a one-gallon resealable plastic bag. Add the pork chops and set the bag in a baking dish in a way that the pork chops get a healthy dose of the marinade (it may be advantageous to flip the bag over halfway through the marinating time). Marinate in the refrigerator for 3-8 hours (no more than 8). Heat the grill to medium and grill the chops 6-8 minutes per side (depending on how thick they are) until they are no longer pink in the center. Remove the chops from the grill and tent them with foil and allow them to rest for 5-7 minutes. Slice the chops in 1/4 to 3/8 inch slices across the grain and serve.
Recipe Source: my sister-in-law, Angela
Twice-Baked Potatoes
*Serves 8 (as a side dish)
4 large-ish russet potatoes, scrubbed clean
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
4 green onions, white and green parts thinly chopped
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Pierce each potato three or four times with a fork and place in the oven (or on a baking sheet). Bake for about an hour, until a fork can easily be inserted into the potato. Remove the potatoes from the oven. Let them cool for about 5-10 minutes.
Carefully cut each potato in half lengthwise, so you get two “boat” shapes from each potato. Using an oven mitt or potholder, hold the potato in one hand and with a spoon scoop out the flesh into a bowl. Leave a thin border (a little less than 1/4-inch) of potato innards around the skin so that it isn’t too fragile to hold the pumped up potato mixture.
Mash the potato flesh with a potato masher or fork until mostly smooth. Stir in the melted butter, 1 cup cheese, green onions, sour cream, milk, salt and pepper. Mix well.
Preheat the broiler and move an oven rack about 3-4 inches away from the broiler heating element.
Scoop the potato filling into the shells, mounding each potato shell full of the good stuff. Sprinkle the potatoes with the remaining 1 cup cheese and broil the potatoes until the cheese is golden and bubbly, about 5 minutes.
Recipe Source: My Kitchen Cafe (www.melskitchencafe.com)
PS On a totally unrelated note; Levi proposed to Kim! We're so so happy for them!
Loves to all,
Apryl
