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This is what we had for dinner last night. S and E loved it! The pork chops were moist and tender. The only changes I made to recipe were to double the ingredients and to use some chicken broth I had in the freezer instead of the water and bouillon cubes. We had it with egg noodles, because for some reason that’s what I like with a cream sauce.

Pork Chops in Sour Cream Sauce (slow cooker recipe)

Ingredients:

• 4 to 6 pork chops, bone-in or boneless
• flour
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2 cubes or equivalent chicken boullion granules or base
• 2 cups hot water
• 8 oz. sour cream (fat free is okay)

Preparation:
Season pork chops to taste and dredge in flour. Lightly brown in oil and place in slow cooker; top with onion slices. Dissolve or soften boullion in hot water and pour over chops. Cook on low 7-8 hours. After the pork chops have cooked, stir 2 tablespoons flour into the sour cream; stir into cooking juices. (It is not necessary for this to be totally blended into boullion, but don’t just dump it on top either.) Turn slow cooker to high for 15-30 minutes or until liquid is slightly thickened. Serve with rice, noodles or potatoes as you choose. The sour cream sauce is delicious!
Serves 4 to 6.

Just getting around to adding things I made back at Thanksgiving.

21. Pumpkin Pie.
I just used the recipe from the back of the can of “One Pie” pumpkin. I didn’t even realize that I’d never made a pumpkin pie until I was making it and it seemed like such an unfamiliar process. Then I thought it over and realized that whoever we’ve ever spent Thanksgiving with, someone else has always made the pumpkin pie.

22. Apple-Cranberry Pie.
I was excited to make this, because I love anything with cranberries in it. However, when I was making it I was shocked at how much sugar it used, and expected it to taste overly sweet. It wasn’t, but it was incredibly gloppy. The recipe called for adding apple juice, and that was clearly a bad idea. The pie tasted OK, but we called it “apple cranberry pot pie” because it was so soupy. Liquid under a crust.

I’m throwing out that recipe, and next time I’m just going to add cranberries and a little extra sugar to a regular apple pie.

For full disclosure, I don’t make the crust. I buy the crust. I also feel no guilt about this.

Strawberry-rhubarb pie hardly feels like a “new” recipe to me because it’s so very similar to making an apple pie or something. But I’ve never made one, so it counts.

I was delighted because I told E I wanted him to help me, and he was thrilled! He usually doesn’t want to help make things, but he was actually excited about this. Yay!

Also, we made it on Friday afternoon and brought it to NH on Saturday so we could share it with my father and my brother. My mom used to make this pie a lot.

It was delicious. I know I will be making this every year now.

My cousin made this for a few family gatherings, and I was eager to make it myself so I could post it here as something I tried, because it is so, so yummy! But the original source is here to give credit where credit is due.

I left cilantro in the ingredients list, because I’m sure if you can eat it, it adds to how delicious this is. Since cilantro would kill me (literally; I’m allergic to it) I don’t include it when making this.

Lime & Peanut Coleslaw Recipe

• 1 1/2 cups unsalted raw peanuts
• 1/2 of a medium-large cabbage
• 1 basket of tiny cherry tomatoes, washed and quartered
• 1 jalapeno chile, seeded and diced
• 3/4 cup cilantro, chopped

• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon + fine-grain sea salt

1. In a skillet or oven (350F) roast the peanuts for 5 to 10 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice along the way, until golden and toasted.
2. Cut the cabbage into two quarters and cut out the core. Using a knife shred each quarter into whisper thin slices. The key here is bite-sized and thin. If any pieces look like they might be awkwardly long, cut those in half. Combine the cabbage, tomatoes, jalapeno (opt), and cilantro in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl combine the lime juice, olive oil, salt. Add to the cabbage mixture and gently stir to combine. Just before serving fold in the peanuts (add them too earl and they lose some of their crunch). Taste and adjust the flavor with more salt if needed.

Notes:

I always just use dry roasted peanuts from a jar. They make them now with sea salt! I’m sure roasting peanuts fresh yourself would make them taste fantastic, but I just never have that kind of time.

My cousin often makes it without tomatoes, since her husband doesn’t like them much.

I’ve made it twice. Once, I left out the jalapenos altogether because I wanted E to eat it. The second time I made him regular coleslaw and made this the way S and I would enjoy it most: with three fresh jalapenos from our garden diced up into it. The burn contrasting with the cool coleslaw & lime flavors . . . mmm!

If you think you’ll have leftovers, then the first time you serve it, put the peanuts on the serving on each plate instead of mixing them in the whole bowl of it. The crunchy texture adds so much to this dish and they do get less crunchy when left in too long.

I boost the flavor by zesting the lime. I zest one lime all over, then cut in half for juicing. Then I just top off with lime juice from a jar until I have enough (at that point it doesn’t take much.)

If you eat those spicy peanuts, they’d probably be good in this, too!

This is one of those things that sounds way better than it tasted. I was disappointed. I don’t expect to make it again.

Sweet-Potato Salad

• 3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks.
• 1/4 cup orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup apricot jam
• 1 cup diced red bell pepper
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1 tablespoon prepared mustard
• salt
• black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• grated zest of one orange
• (optional) 1 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped, for garnish

1. At least 5 hours before serving, place sweet potatoes in a steamer basket set over simmering water. Cover and steam about 20 minutes or until cooked but still firm. Remove to a large bowl and allow to cool. When cool enough to handle, cut potatoes into 1-inch dice and return to bowl. Add orange marmalade, apricot jam, and bell pepper and toss to coat.
2. In a small bowl or container with a cover, combine olive oil, vinegar, orange juice, and mustard and whisk or cover and shake to combine. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, garlic, red pepper flakes, and orange zest. Whisk or cover and shake to combine.
3. Pour vinaigrette over potato mixture and stir gently with a wooden spoon. Mound potato salad on a platter or place in a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to allow flavors to marry. Remove salad from refrigerator 15 minutes before serving. Serve sprinkled with pecans.

Note: I didn’t use the pecans.

Corn and Black Bean Salad with Lime Vinaigrette

• 1 can sweet corn (not salted)
• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 large green bell pepper, diced
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced
• 1/2 red onion (less if it’s very large)
• 1 small jalapeno, minced and seeds discarded (optional)
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• juice of 2 limes + lime zest from 1/2 life
• 1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. garlic salt
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne

1. In large bowl, combine corn, black beans, peppers, onion, jalapeno (if using), and tomato.
2. In separate bowl, combine vinegar, lime juice & zest, garlic, and spices. Slowly add olive oil, whisking quickly to emulsify it as it joins the vinegar.
3. Add dressing to salad, toss, and serve.

I didn’t add the jalapeno because I was making it for a Cub Scout gathering and I thought less spicy would be better.
I zested the 2 limes I juiced, not just 1/2 a lime. It was good; I’d do that again.
I didn’t use garlic salt, just regular salt. There was garlic in the salad already, and garlic salt always tastes fake and weird to me.

I’ll definitely make this again. Yum.

I made these today because I didn’t want to/have time to go to the store, so I Googled what we had on hand to find a recipe. The meat was very tender and the flavor was fine but my family was not super enthusiastic so I probably won’t make it again. Still, it was pretty good for pulling a dinner out of the freezer and pantry, with no advance planning!

Orange-Glazed Pork Chops

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 6 pork chops (I used 4 because that’s what I had)
• 3 tablespoons minced onion
• 2 cups orange juice
• 1/4 cup orange marmalade
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1.5 tsp. dry mustard
• 1 tsp. salt

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the pork chops and brown both sides, about 5 minutes per side.
2. Transfer the chops to a slow cooker.
3. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the oil from the skilled. Return to heat and add the onion. Cook for one minute.
4. Turn up the heat to medium-high and add the orange juice, marmalade, brown sugar, dry mustard, and salt, whisking it to blend. Bring to a full boil, stirring frequently. Boil and stir for 6 minutes until the sauce has a thin syrupy consistency, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan.
5. Pour the sauce over the pork chops in the slow cooker, rotating them with tongs to completely coat both sides with the sauce.
6. Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours until tender.

Serving suggestion: Serve with rice.

Note: If I were to make this again, I’d probably cut the amount of OJ drastically. The “sauce” stayed really thin and runny and wasn’t as much of a “glaze” as I would’ve liked. At step five, the sauce was enough to cover the 4 chops, with no turning of the chops needed.

I wanted a bean salad for a cookout that only had things in it that I can eat (e.g. no cilantro, as I’d be dead before the cookout ended!) and this is what I found. I read a ton of recipes before choosing this, though, and many were similar, so I added the “variations” at the end of the recipe. Of the variations listed, I did add a shake of cayenne and a dash of each lemon and lime juice.

Black Bean and Chickpea Salad

• 2 cans black beans
• 2 cans corn (with no salt added)
• 1 can chickpeas
• 1/2 cup diced red onions
• 2 bell peppers, diced (red make the salad prettier)

• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil (extra virgin)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon diced garlic
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 teaspoon basil

1. Drain beans, corn, and chickpeas; stir in bowl with onions and peppers.
2. In separate container, whisk dressing ingredients to emulsify.
3. Pour dressing on salad and refrigerate overnight so flavors will blend.

• Add black olives
• Substitute fresh basil or oregano, chopped fine, for dried.
• Add red pepper flakes or cayenne.
• Add desired type of fresh hot pepper, diced.
• Add fresh tomatoes, such as halved grape tomatoes.
• Add lime or lemon juice and/or zest.
• Replace one of the cans of black beans with another type/color of bean.

This is a good “safe” bean salad to serve to a variety of people (especially if not made spicy).
I like the chickpeas in it so much that I’ll probably add them to other bean salad recipes.

The first night we had these, I thought, “I will never make these again!” But then we had them as leftovers, and I reconsidered.

They’re made with graham crackers lining the bottom of the pan, and though I thought graham crackers would never stick, I dutifully sprayed the pan as directed.

They stuck anyway. We and the people we were with had had a few drinks and were quite relaxed so it was pretty funny, but I still thought I wouldn’t make them again because of that. However, the next day they were easier to deal with, and so so so yummy, I very well might.

I would make 2 changes in the future: 1. I’d line the baking pan with parchment paper so I could lift the whole thing right out before cutting it. 2. I’d space the marshmallows out enough that I could cut brownies without ever touching a marshmallow.

Brownie S’Mores

• 9 whole cinnamon graham crackers, halved crosswise
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, cut up
• 4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar (I used dark, because it’s what I had on hand)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups semisweet or milk chocolate chips
• 35 regular-sized marshmallows

1. Heat oven to 350. Spray bottom of 13×9 inch baking pan with cooking spray. Arrange graham crackers over bottom of pan, overlapping slightly or breaking to fit if necessary.
2. Melt butter and unsweetened chocolate, stirring frequently. (Directions say: in saucepan, then remove from heat. I did: in microwave, stirring halfway through.) Stir in sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla until blended. Stir in eggs until blended and smooth, then stir in flour. Batter will be smooth, thick, and shiny. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon onto/gently spread over graham crackers.
3. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until top is just set and toothpick inserted in center comes out with moist crumbs attached.
4. Heat broiler. Place marshmallows on their sides evenly over top of brownies. Broil 30 seconds to 2 minutes (watch carefully!) until marshmallows are puffed and tops are golden brown. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Note: They were much easier to cut and absolutely delicious the day after, so if I make them again, I will probably always serve them at room temperature, and cut in advance of serving.

These sounded better than they tasted. Way better, since I got a huge kick out of planning to make them! :) In reality, you couldn’t really taste the potato chips at all, so it was just a sweet cookie. I was expecting more of the sweet/salty taste you get with something like a chocolate covered pretzel. Didn’t happen.

It’s also crucial to leave them in just until they are cooked. The recipe says it would make 60, but I got 48 out of it, baked 24 & 24. The first 2 dozen I left in longer than the 2nd 2 dozen, and crisp, the cookies were even less satisfying.

Potato Chip Cookies

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup light-brown sugar, packed (I used dark, because that’s what I had on hand)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups crushed potato chips
• 1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Beat the butter and sugars together, using an electric mixer set on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy, then reduce speed to low and mix in the flour, salt, and baking soda.
3. Gently stir in the potato chips and chocolate chips.
4. Drop the cookie dough by tablespoonfuls, about 2 inches apart, onto ungreased baking sheets and bake for 14 to 15 minutes.
5. Let cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.