Guy Fieri's Cuban Pork Chops with Mojo

We are in love with this pork chop recipe. We usually make it with boneless pork chops, and I've never bothered with the watercress, but the tomato and avocado are strangely quite delicious with this. I also have cut back on the marinade quantities by about half and didn't really notice a difference. I've never been a huge pork chop fan, but I seriously have to force myself not to make these more often so I don't get tired of them. All credit goes to Guy Fieri from the Food Network.

Ingredients:

1 cup plus 1/4 cup orange juice, divided

1/2 cup plus 1/4 cup fresh lime juice, divided

1/4 cup vinegar

4 (1-inch-thick) bone-in pork chops

1 tablespoon black pepper

2 tablespoons kosher salt (make sure to use kosher and not regular table salt or it will be WAY too salty)

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon dried oregano

3 tablespoons canola oil

1/4 cup chopped red onion (or whatever kind of onions you have)

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 cup white wine (I don't bother with this)

1 cup watercress, for garnish (I also don't bother with this)

1 Roma tomato, chopped, for garnish

1/2 avocado, sliced, for garnish

Directions:

In a gallon-sized resealable plastic bag, combine 1 cup orange juice, 1/2 cup lime juice, and vinegar. Add pork and let it sit and marinate for about 1 hour in refrigerator.

In a small mixing bowl, combine all dried spices. Pat the pork chops dry with a paper towel and rub with the dry spice mixture.

Heat oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Place the pork chops in the pan and sear on 1 side until brown. Flip over and turn the heat down to medium-low. Add onion and saute for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and continue to cook until garlic begins to brown. Pour in the remaining 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup lime juice, and white wine. Simmer until the liquid is slightly reduced and begins to thicken. The chops should be cooked through.

Remove the chops from pan and put on a warm plate. Continue to reduce juices in pan by half. Pour over the chops and serve immediately.

Garnish with watercress, tomatoes and avocado.

Kool-Aid Play Dough

Just in case anyone else is dreading the impending winter as much as I am. This was really fun for the kids to help make and it is the softest, best-smelling play dough ever!

1 cup flour
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 package unsweetened Kool-Aid
1/4 cup salt
2 tablespoons cream of tartar
1 cup water

Mix flour, salt, cream of tartar and Kool-Aid® in a medium pot. Add water and oil. Stir over
medium heat 3 to 5 minutes. It will get LUMPY. Just mix them out the best you can. When mixture forms a ball in pot, remove. Knead until smooth. PLAY! Put in a plastic bag and refrigerate.

Flour Tortillas

This recipe was found at homesicktexan.blogspot.com (it looked like she had a number of awesome recipes on there). They were really quick to make and my kids loved them because they were really soft and different from the store bought kind. Just roll them out thinner than you might think because they puff up a bit when you cook them. They're good with white whole wheat flour too!


Texas Flour Tortillas (adapted from The Border Cookbook by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison)
Ingredients:
Two cups of all-purpose flour (can make them whole wheat by substituting one cup of whole-wheat flour for white flour)
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of vegetable oil
3/4 cups of warm milk

Directions:
Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and oil.
Slowly add the warm milk.
Stir until a loose, sticky ball is formed.
Knead for two minutes on a floured surface. Dough should be firm and soft.
Place dough in a bowl and cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap for 20 minutes.
After the dough has rested, break off eight sections, roll them into balls in your hands, place on a plate (make sure they aren’t touching) and then cover balls with damp cloth or plastic wrap for 10 minutes. (It’s very important to let the dough rest, otherwise it will be like elastic and won’t roll out to a proper thickness and shape.)
After dough has rested, one at a time place a dough ball on a floured surface, pat it out into a four-inch circle, and then roll with a rolling pin from the center until it’s thin and about eight inches in diameter. (If you roll out pie crusts you’ll have no problem with this.) Don’t over work the dough, or it’ll be stiff. Keep rolled-out tortillas covered until ready to cook.
In a dry iron skillet or comal heated on high, cook the tortilla about thirty seconds on each side. It should start to puff a bit when it’s done.
Keep cooked tortillas covered wrapped in a napkin until ready to eat.
Can be reheated in a dry iron skillet, over your gas-burner flame or in the oven wrapped in foil.
While you probably won’t have any leftovers, you can store in the fridge tightly wrapped in foil or plastic for a day or so.
Makes eight tortillas.

Honey Oat Quick Bread

I made this and we really liked it. It's a lot more dense than a yeast based bread but it was kind of a nice change. It was great with homemade jam!

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons plus 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats or quick-cooking (not instant) oats divided (I pulsed mine in the blender to grind them up a bit)
  
• 1 1/3 cups whole-wheat flour or white whole-wheat flour (see Tip)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 8-ounce container (scant 1 cup) nonfat or low-fat plain yogurt
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup clover honey or other mild honey
• 3/4 cup nonfat or low-fat milk

Directions:

1. Position rack in middle of oven; preheat to 375°F. Generously coat a 9-by-5-inch (or similar size) loaf pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon oats in the pan. Tip the pan back and forth to coat the sides and bottom with oats; set aside another 1 tablespoon oats for garnishing the loaf.

2. Thoroughly stir together whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Using a fork, beat together the remaining 1 cup oats, yogurt, egg, oil and honey in a medium bowl until well blended. Stir in milk. Gently stir the yogurt mixture into the flour mixture just until thoroughly incorporated but not overmixed (excess mixing can cause toughening). Immediately scrape the batter into the pan, spreading evenly to the edges. Sprinkle the reserved 1 tablespoon oats over the top.

3. Bake the loaf until well browned on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. (It's normal for the top to crack.) Let stand in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a table knife around and under the loaf to loosen it and turn it out onto the rack. Let cool until barely warm, about 45 minutes.

Tip: White whole-wheat flour, made from a special variety of white wheat, is light in color and flavor but has the same nutritional properties as regular whole-wheat flour. Two companies that distribute the flour nationally are King Arthur Flour (kingarthurflour.com) and Bob's Red Mill (bobsredmill.com).

Cinnamon Raisin Bread

This was a great recipe. Everyone loved it! It made really good thick-sliced french toast the next morning. The only thing I would do differently next time is add some cinnamon to the dough itself & maybe a little more into the swirl part. Enjoy!

DOUGH

• 1 1/2 cups warm milk (110 to 115 degrees F)
• 1 cup instant dry mashed potatoes
  
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
  
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees F to 115 degrees F)
• 4+ cups King Arthur Bread Flour (King Arthur brand is by far the best, if you haven't tried it, it is worth the money & will change your baking forever!)
  
• 1 1/2 cups raisins

FILLING:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine the milk, potatoes, butter, sugar and salt. In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add potato mixture and 2 cups flour; beat until smooth. Fold in raisins. stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
2. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide in half. Roll each portion into a 16-in. x 8-in. rectangle. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over rectangles to within 1/2 in. of edges. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a short side; pinch seam to seal and tuck ends under.
3. Place seam side down in two greased 9-in. x 5-in. x 3-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes or until doubled. Brush with butter. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Most bread will measure 190 degrees when it's done. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

Cake Balls

I haven't tried these yet, but I plan to make them when I need a fun dessert to take somewhere. They got good reviews on allrecipes.com. If you look up the recipe online there are also more suggestions for good frosting/topping combos. Let me know if they work out!

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package chocolate (or favorite flavor) cake mix
• 1 (16 ounce) container prepared chocolate frosting
• 1 (3 ounce) bar chocolate flavored confectioners coating.

1. Prepare the cake mix according to package directions using any of the recommended pan sizes. When cake is done, crumble while warm into a large bowl, and stir in the frosting until well blended.
2. Melt chocolate coating in a glass bowl in the microwave, or in a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.
3. Use a melon baller or small scoop to form balls of the chocolate cake mixture. Freeze for at least an hour. Dip the balls in chocolate using a toothpick or fork to hold them. You can also roll in coconut, nuts, sprinkles, etc. Place on waxed paper to set.

Pudding Ice Cream

I just ran across this recipe and I have not tried it yet. I thought I would post it incase anyone had the desire to experiment...The site I got it from said that the oreo cookie pudding was really good in this recipe...

• 1 (3 3/4 ounce) package instant pudding mix, any flavor

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 cups light cream or half-and-half
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup heavy cream or whipping cream

1. Combine pudding, light cream and sugar. Beat mixture as directed on pudding package, however, discontinue beating as soon as the mixture begins to thicken.

2. Stir in vanilla and heavy cream.

3. Transfer pudding mixture to ice cream machine maker and process according to specifications.