Egg Roll Salad

Perfect Pairing: Deep straight-sided skillet with a lid        

It is hard to believe I have been an “Iowan” for almost three months!  I don’t know where the time has gone.  Chris and I love living here and it really feels like home.  That being said, we both agree that sometimes it feels like we are playing house and soon we will have to move back into a one bedroom city condo.  Our baby boy is growing (and boy am I growing) and kicking and moving!  I love to watch and feel him moving around and getting comfy in there.  He has a tendency to stop as soon as Chris puts his hand on my stomach.  Stinker!

A big part of the move has been my transition to working from home full time.  So far I have really enjoyed the experience.  I did find that I need to make myself get out and do things because a few days will go by without leaving my neighborhood.  I’m sure it will be 10x harder once baby boy Lam arrives!  While I no longer need to pack a lunch to take to the office I find that it is much easier to have a big batch of something made at the beginning of the week so I can have a quick lunch ready when I don’t have a lot of time away from my desk. 

This Egg Roll Salad has been a staple lunch for me since I started working from home.  Not only is it delicious and satisfying it is incredibly light and healthy.  It is full of protein and fiber!  It is called an Egg Roll Salad because it tastes like the inside of an egg roll.  Side note, one thing that we miss from Chicago was the Chinese food delivery place that was a block from our condo.  The meals were just ok but they had the BEST egg rolls I’ve ever had in my life and they would legit deliver in under 15 minutes.  I miss those unhealthy rolls. 

I use my trusty straight sided skillet for this meal.  I use this skillet more than any other pan in my kitchen.  I am actually on my second generation because I wore out the first one.  Tip from the top, I found both of mine at a discount price at Home Goods.  You need a pan that has a large capacity for this recipe since you will be steaming two bags of slaw. 

I always serve this with an extra drizzle of soy sauce and sriracha.  So good!

One year ago on Perfecting the Pairing: Cream Filled Chocolate Cupcakes

Two years ago on Perfecting the Pairing: Sloppy Joe Dip

Three years ago on Perfecting the Pairing: Pumpkin Crisp

Four years ago on Perfecting the Pairing: Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna Roll-Ups

Five years ago on Perfecting the Pairing (my first ever "Five years ago!": Baked Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal

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Mustard Pork Chops

Perfect Pairing:  Sweet Potato Gnocchi and Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Cranberries and Pecans

When I ran across Nigella Lawson’s Mustard Pork Chops recipe I knew I needed to make it pronto.  It is a great cold weather dish with few ingredients that comes together in minutes.  

I made just a few changes to the original recipe.  I used three pork chops instead of two, and seasoned them with salt and pepper before searing in the pan.  Before deglazing the pan I added one sliced onion and cooked until soft and caramelized, then added the sauce ingredients (hard cider, mustard, and a touch of cream).  I bumped up the amounts of mustard and cider to make a little more sauce.

Nigella recommended serving the chops with gnocchi.  Of course you could keep the prep super simple and use store-bought gnocchi, or you could make your own!  I had always wanted to make gnocchi so this seemed like the perfect time.  I used this sweet potato gnocchi recipe from Richard Blais (Top Chef and Food Network fame).  I followed the gnocchi prep only and used the pork chop sauce to top it off.  I will definitely make these again and use the full recipe with the brown butter sauce because that sounds fantastic. 

They ended up being pretty easy to make and kind of fun!  I found that a bench scraper was the best tool for the job.

To round out the meal I roasted brussels sprouts (using this method, minus the vinegar) and tossed in handfuls of pecans and dried cranberries for the last few minutes in the oven.  Pretty and yummy.

It was a pretty fantastic meal!

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Pork Chops and Apples

Perfect Pairing:  Yellow delicious apples

I have always enjoyed cooking but I really started getting into it my last semester of college, which was my first time in an apartment.  Until then I had lived in the sorority house where do you don’t do any of your own cooking.  Unless, of course, you count heating up the frozen mac and cheese packets that were always available on the weekends.  Those things were amazing. 

Anyway, I remember making this dish during my last fall in Ames, Iowa.  I think I made it for my mom and grandma who were visiting for the weekend.  If I remember correctly I also made some sort of sweet potato recipe with canned sweet potatoes.  Blech.  I blame Sandra Lee, the semi-homemade lady.  Some things are better off using the homemade method.

Pork chops and apples is the perfect fall dish.  It is a cinch to pull together, delicious, and smells SO good while it is baking. 

You toss sliced apples with a little flour, sugar, cinnamon and spices.  I really like using yellow delicious apples for baking like this.  I would not recommend using the eating varieties like honeycrisp, fuji or macintosh.  If your store does not have yellow delicious they might have johnalicious.  I guess just look for the licious varieties.  More information on the best apples on this apple crisp post.

Next, you top the apples with thin cut pork chops that have been seasoned with salt, pepper, and shake and bake.   

Cover with foil and bake until the pork chops are cooked through.  It is the perfect fall comfort food!

One year ago on Perfecting the Pairing: Autumn Salad

Two years ago on Perfecting the Pairing:  Buffalo Chicken Bites

Click "Read more" for the recipe....

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Pork Loin (or Turkey) Crostini with Green Apple, Mango Chutney, and Brie

Perfect Pairing:  Leftover Turkey

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I had a fabulous time with my family filled with lots of good food and laughs.  My mom and I spent the last couple of days getting a jump start on the Christmas baking.  We decided to try our hand at truffles, three different varieties.  At times the kitchen felt a little like Willy Wonka's, but they turned out great.  I will definitely be posting about them!

The internet is flooded with ideas on what to do with your leftover turkey.  In fact, CoolMaterial.com (a website dedicated to "stuff guys want") did a feature on how to use your leftovers, and included a link to my recipe for customized bread bowl breakfasts!  It is hard to beat a turkey sandwich with a little mayo and cranberry sauce, but if even that is getting a little old, try out this crostini.  When I made them I used leftover pork loin, but I think it would be lovely with turkey. 

If you don’t happen to have mango chutney on hand, or if you are not a fan, orange marmalade or apricot preserves would work well.  The tart green apple adds crunch and melted brie makes anything better.

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