Cooking for One: Pork Chops

I mentioned here that I'd be working on a bunch of recipes for my friend Sara. She says it's cheaper for her to eat out more often than not, and I'm trying to convince her that with a few simple recipes she could make a bunch of stuff and recombine it all week to keep it interesting.

I'm not going to make her crazy or anything, just see if my theory is right: if you make (or buy) some good sauces and cook the basics for the dishes in advance, in bulk, you'll end up with enough variety in the end to not feel like you're eating the same leftovers again and again.

And, so, here is the first installment.

I started with a basic pork chop recipe. After I cooked it, I stored the chops in individual portions in the fridge in airtight containers. They should keep for a week this way, which means, Sara wouldn't have to eat

them several days in a row. I also made sure the herbs and flavors I used to season the chops would taste good with a variety of side-dishes. In reality, this recipe will work well with chicken, too (I don't eat lamb, but maybe it would taste good with that, too).

As we go through this experiment, it may turn out that cooking a quick piece of meat while putting together the rest of the meal might be the best way to go. My goal is for Sara to not have too much clean-up on her hands, and to keep it simple, she's a very busy lady. But, most of all I want her to enjoy what time she does have to spend in the kitchen to execute these meals.

I'll be posting the side dishes separately this week. If you'd like to see them posted with the main dish, drop me a line, I'd be happy to give that a go, too.

Pork Chops with Herbs de Provence and Honey

makes 2 chops

Ingredients:

• 2 Pork Chops
• 1 tsp Herbs de Provence
• Salt and ground pepper
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1/2 tbsp Honey

Method:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Place a grill pan or skillet on the stove and turn the heat to high.
• Place pork chops on waxed paper.
• Coat with olive oil.
• Sprinkle herbs de provence, salt and pepper over the chops.
• Roll the chops in the olive oil to coat on both sides, distributing the herb mixture over the whole chop.
• Put into the pan and sear for about 4 minutes.
• Turn chops over and sear on the other side for another 4 minutes
• Drizzle honey over the chops.
• Place the pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let the chops rest in the pan for 5 minutes.

Enjoy!

Chicken Picatta

Have you ever had a dish that just makes you smile? This dish does that for me. Gran Fran made this for me and Joe a few weeks back and it reminded me of weeknight meals from my childhood.

My parents were (and still are ) the King and Queen of the multi-task. Both Gran Fran and Joe worked at the same office. They took shifts getting the younger kids (mostly me) to school. Gran Fran would head into the City early (around 7am, I think) and Joe would go in after he dropped me at school (around 8:30am). The afternoon shift would mostly fall to my older brother and sisters, and we did live in a town where we could just go out and play, ride bikes or walk down to the store without too much trouble.

Gran Fran would arrive home around 5pm, in time to get dinner on the table. She did, however, instruct us post-school over the phone on how to prep the dinner and get anything in the oven that we could handle before she got there. This was before cell phones and e-mail, so Gran Fran called us at about 3:30 to get us started.

The only issue was that she was convinced everyone around her could hear everything she said. She spoke at barely above a whisper, which sometimes led us to some odd conclusions on ingredient measurements and cooking temperatures. The best part about her behavior was that for a good number of years, she was in an office with her door closed whilst having these illicit conversations with her children.

Gran Fran and Joe managed to raise another generation of multi-tasking adults in my brother, myself and my sisters. It is both a blessing and a curse. A Claro can get done in half a day what it takes a normal person a full day and half to do. I often get comments when I arrive at work (around 8am) after I've recounted the amount I've accomplished between the hours of 5:45 and 8am. It seems normal to me to finish two loads of laundry, put away the dishes, make breakfast and lunch for myself and my daughter, get the dinner ingredients organized, shower and get out the door. I guess it's a bit much.

The chicken picatta featured above makes for a nice easy weeknight meal. Not much fuss, lots of flavor and not too many dishes after cooking. It's the perfect end to an otherwise crazy day.

Chicken Picatta

serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 lbs. thinly sliced chicken breast
•  1/4 cup all purpose flour (I use Rice Flour)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper tp taste
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 12 ounces mushrooms, cleaned, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic quartered
• 1 1/2 cups marsala
• 3 tablespoons Italian parsley, minced

Method:

1. Salt and pepper chicken cutlets; dredge in flour.

2. Pour oil intoheated skillet 3. Saute cutlets on both sides until golden and just about cooked through.

4. Remove cutlets from pan; add mushrooms and saute until golden.

5. Add garlic and marsala; reduce slightly over high heat.

6. Return chicken to pan,stir; cover simmer until the marsala forms a nice gravy.

7. Serve sprinkled with parsley

The Day After: Pesto

I know, you've probably all eaten your body weight in treats, ham and gooey goodness by now, but I had to share a-not-so-light recipe with you. It's traditional, I guess, to start off the post-Christmas season with light, healthy foods, but it's so darn cold, I still think we need these stick-to-your-bones dishes to get us through.

Remember how I mentioned that my sister and I made a book for Gran Fran with her recipes and my photos? Well, here is another

recipe from that project, Lasagna Geonvese. I've not made many lasagna's in my time, but figured I should give this one a go since it's different than any others I've had.

I, of course, don't eat gluten or dairy, so I only had a small taste of this. It was superb. You could adjust this easily with gluten-free noodles, but I'm not a fan of non-dairy cheese, so can't recommend anything on that front.

OK, back to the recipe. It was really fun to make. Lots of steps, as I've mentioned before, but the potatoes and pesto really made this dish stand out from your traditional lasagna. I love the colors, too, since it's a little unexpected to see a green lasagna. I do have to say, though, I don't recall when Gran Fran may have made this for us.

I do remember her excellent Pesto, and know that when we were in Italy in 1989 we did have a lasagna with pesto and potatoes in it. Yes, that's right, I (and probably Gran Fran, too) can probably recall every dish we ate that month in Italy. The fried bread (savory and salty) is one thing I have yet to be able to recreate in my own kitchen.

Enjoy a piece of this right out of the oven.

original recipe courtesy of Fran Claro of The Italian Pantry

Lasagna Genovese

Serves ten

Pesto

• 3 cups basil leaves
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, roughly grated
• 1 to 1 1/4 cups extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2   teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• Dried red pepper flakes to taste

1. In blender or food processor, pulse all ingredients, until sauce is thick and creamy.
2. Add more oil if necessary.
3. Set aside.

Lasagna

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

• 1 pound curly edge lasagna noodles
• 10 fingerling potatoes, scrubbed, salted, thinly sliced, steamed until tender
• 1 pound green beans, sliced on the bias, salted, steamed 5 minutes
• 1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, coarsely grated
• 1 pound fresh mozzarella, diced
• 2 cups whole milk ricotta, drained
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 3 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley, minced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• Pesto

1.  Boil noodles in salted water, according to package directions, drain well.
2.  Blend mozzarella, ricotta, and eggs with parsley;  salt and pepper to taste.
3.  Layer pesto, noodles, green beans, pesto, grated cheese, potatoes, blended cheeses, pesto.
4.  Continue stacking ingredients in the same order, ending with noodles, pesto, and a sprinkling of Parmigiano.
5. Cover loosely with aluminum foil; bake 35  minutes; remove foil; bake 10 minutes, or until golden brown.
6. Let rest 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

Fish Stew: For Now or Later

It has been a long time since I spent Christmas Eve in New York with Gran Fran and Joe. My sister is here in San Francisco and we have our own family gatherings, but I do miss Gran Fran's Feast of the Seven Fishes. We do a pretty good job of it, if I may say so myself, out here in SF.

I remember one of the first times she made Boulliabase (which is essentially the same sort of recipe as the below). We drove out to the docks in Long Island and got the freshest shellfish there was. A story for another time, was when we got live Lobsters from the same fishermen and I had to sit in the back of the car with a plastic bag of crawling Lobsters near my feet.

But  I digress. My tale today is about making this stew, and serving it to your friends and family as part of any celebration or just as a weekend treat. You may have noticed, I have a thing for soups. Well, stews rank right up there, so this is another favorite of mine.

Gran Fran always uses the liquor Anisette mixed with vermouth for her version. I don't always have that in my cupboard, so use dry vermouth with fennel seeds. Let me tell you, there is a huge difference. The Anisette has a depth of flavor that you just can't get with my version. But, of course, as I always say, make do with what you have and you'll still end up with a great dish.

When I was home during Thanksgiving, Gran Fran was kind enough to make this wonderful fish stew for me. She let me take pictures while she cooked. I usually cook and shoot everything I post. It was eye-opening to try and work in real-time shots while Gran Fran cooked and not get in her way. We often communicate via yelling (not I'm angry-type yelling, more of an I'm just trying to make my point kind of yelling). And so, you can imagine, that Joe decided to excuse himself from this particular event, hiding out in their office.

In the end, the food was wonderful and I loved being able to document Gran Fran while she actually cooks. When she posts on her blog, I end up cooking the recipes myself here in SF and posting pictures for her. Oh the greatness of technology. But, there is nothing like having a tried-and-true dish made by the person who first served it to you. Mine is always good (and my sister and her husband's versions are great, too), but Gran Fran just adds a certain something.

Make this and add your own personal touches. Except for the method, you can add or subtract any amounts of fish to your liking.

Merry Christmas to you all!

recipe courtesy of Fran Claro, reposted from The Italian Pantry

Friday Night Fish Soup

Serves six

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups potatoes, diced
• 1 cup carrots, diced
• 1 cup celery, diced
• 1 cup onions, diced
• Salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespons tomato paste
• 4 tablespoons anisette or other licorice-flavored liqueur
• 1/4 cup dry vermouth
• 2 bay leaves
• Sprinkle of red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon dried basil or 1 tablespoon fresh
• 2 quarts boiling water
• 1 1/2 pounds cod fillet, skinned, rinsed
• 3 dozen little neck clams, well scrubbed
• 1 pound mussels, debearded and well scrubbed

1. Warm oliveoil in a pot large enough to hold all ingredients.
2. Add vegetables; sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Saute vegetables until golden, about 15 minutes.
4. Add tomato paste;  saute over low heat 10 minutes.
5. Add anisette and vermouth; reduce by half.
6. Add herbs, pepper flakes; cover all ingredients with boiling water.
7. Bring to boil; reduce to simmer.
8. Partially cover; simmer 30 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
9. Add cod; simmer 10 minutes.
10. Return soup to boil.
11. Add clams and mussels.
12. After 7 minutes, check if shellfish open; remove from shells.
13. Cook shellfish until most open;  discard any that have  not opened.
14. Add shelled seafood to soup.
15. Serve soup with crusty bread.