The Other (Delicious) White Meat

Whenever I get my Rachael Ray magazine I do the initial, first flip-through. Where I mostly look at titles and photos and read a few of the non-food related articles. Then comes the second scan. This is when I check out ingredients and how long meals take and actually read the recipes I'm interested in. I found one in the Weekly Menu Planning section of April's issue: Herb-Crusted Pork Chops with Broccoli & Onions.

I made a few amendments to the recipe, making the pork chops pretty amazing. I used the idea of toasted bread crumbs and baking in the oven, but took it a little further...

What You'll Need:

• Fat free half & half
• 1 egg
• Brown mustard
• Honey
• Pork chops
• Panko bread crumbs
• Parsley, garlic powder, thyme
• Cheese powder from a macaroni & cheese box (my secret ingredient!)

Put it All Together:

• Whisk together the half & half and egg first. Then squirt in the mustard and honey and whisk together as best you can. The honey might be a little tricky because it's going into cold liquid, but you should be able to get it to spread out enough.
• Put your pork chops in a shallow dish, give them a few stabs with a fork and S&P them. Pour honey mustard mixture over them, making sure they're mostly covered. Cover with plastic wrap and stick in the fridge.
• Now, I did this about 3 hours before dinner. You could definitely do it the night before and it would be even better!
• When you're ready, preheat the oven to 425 and heat up a little olive oil in a skillet and add panko bread crumbs. Stir them around a lot while they're in the pan so they all get a chance to get toasty brown. 
• Move the bread crumbs to a shallow dish to cool. Then add about 2/3 of a cheese packet from a mac & cheese box, a few good shakes of garlic powder, just a little parsley and thyme and pepper.
• Get your pork chops out, smoosh them and slide them around a little in their egg mixture before coating them in the bread crumbs. (Sprinkle some extra on top.)
• Place coated chops on a greased rack (I just used the rack from the toaster oven) on top of a cookie sheet lined with foil -- just to make your clean-up easier. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

They will be tender and moist from soaking in the egg and half & half and they'll be crunchy and tasty from the bread crumb mixture! I served them with broccoli and red onion, like the Rachael Ray recipe called for -- with the addition of sliced tomatoes on top -- and quinoa (prepared with chicken broth and a small splash of olive oil).


Broccoli & Red Onion: Heat up some olive oil, soften sliced onion a little. Add broccoli with S&P and toss as much as you can. Add a little water on the bottom for broccoli to steam, cover & cook until tender (but still a little crunch).

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