Thick Center Cut Pork Chops, leftover hash browns, yellow and green squash, apples

8 thick, center cut pork chops
2 cups hash browns potatoes
2 eggs
1/2 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese
4 yellow squashes
4 zucchini squash
2 apples
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
dry ranch dressing powder
1 cup panko bread crumbs
butter
Preheat Oven to 350 degrees and line a roasting pan with tin foil and spray generously with Pam or other oil spray.  Butterfly your thick pork chops. (this means to slice them open horizontally but do not slice completely through). Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together your shredded hash brown potatoes, eggs, and cheddar cheese.  Divide this mixture into 8 equal portions and place each portion on 1/2 side of the butterflied pork chop. (if they are smaller pork chops, you may need to use less)  Fold the empty side over the top of mixture and if necessary, use a toothpick to secure the two sides together. They don't have to be sealed, just held together.  In a small bowl, mix together ranch dressing (you choose how much--some people like it really strong) and your panko bread crumbs.  Make sure that you have all the pork chops touching, and sprinkle over the whole grouping of chops your panko bread crumbs and ranch topping. Bake for 35-45 minutes (depends on thickness of pork chop) until your pork has reached a temperature of 145 to 150 degrees.
While this is baking, cube, skin on, your yellow squash, zucchini squash and your apples.  Once cubed in a large skillet, using butter, saute your cubed mixture.  They should remain crisp tender.  Sprinkle over the whole mixture, the brown sugar, ground ginger, cayenne pepper.  It should be all in one bite, tangy(ginger) sweet(brown sugar) and a little kick of heat(cayenne pepper).
As an additional side dish, I like to heat up sauerkraut and diced beets.  This makes for a very colorful plate.  Also, a basket of corn bread muffins is a great compliment to the meal.
ENJOY!

Anonymity.

I interrupt this blog on dish ideas to talk a bit about anonymity.  It's funny that the whole purpose of the Internet is to share information.  However, there seems to be a little too much sharing of that information.  Too much really bad stuff.  From the innocent that discovers porn through a popup to a very bad person who seeks to find victims.  The internet is allowing crime to explode and harm so many people.  And yet, there are those who can easily hide behind the anonymity of open wifi hotspots, and made up names and it is mind-blowing that the "authorities" are unable to catch them.  I am saddened that so many people are hurt.  And yet, one of the things that we depend on is that privacy, that anonymity.  The ability to learn.  To research.  To teach, even.  Is there a line that is crossed?  You bet.  But who is to define that line?  Governments?  Religions? Or the people themselves?  Well yes.  All three.  We need to govern ourselves.  We need to make right choices.  We need to go to the religious leaders and even if we find fault with them, they mostly stand for truth and righteousness.  I hate that we can't always depend on them...but they are, after all human and suspect to human frailties. The government?  Yes the government.  If there was a way to "police" the internet as much as they are able to hand out speeding tickets through speed traps, then we would be able to have a cleaner place to do all of that research.  So anonymity offers privacy.  But it also offers protection to those that would do wrong.  What do we sacrifice?  Why do we sacrifice?  For me, it would be nice if, like on TV there was a sensor.  That porn would be eliminated from the internet.  Trust me it's easy to find and to get to.  Why?  Because they charge for it and the know that corrupt minds lead to addiction of corrupt actions.  And the sale of illegal substances, guns, and other horrible things would be policed with just as much vigor.  And so , I would be willing to have a little less anonymity, if there could be some entity that would police the content for its value on the INTERNET.  It is a tool of good quality.  It is also a tool of evil.  Beware how you use it.  Because you are NOT anonymous.  Not to everyone.

Beef and dumplings! Yes!

1- 3 pound pot roast.
4 large carrots, diced
2 large onions, cubed
1-12 ounce bag of frozen peas
1-4 pack of cheap biscuits
1/2 cup flour
3 tablespoons butter
water
2 cups flour
salt and pepper

In a slow cooker or the oven cook your pot roast as you normally would with the carrots and onions.   I usually cook it at 350 for about an hour. And set aside.  In a large pot, melt the butter to an almost brown state...not burnt, and of the half cup of flour, add at least 3 tablespoons and stir to make a paste.  I add salt and pepper too.  Then add water a little at a time to make a great gravy for your "beef and dumplings".  Go back to your beef and shred it to pieces.  Pour your beef and carrots and onions into the pot with the gravy.  Leave it on warm.  Now, take the biscuits and roll them out flat in the flour and then, using a pizza cutter or a very sharp knife, cut into strips about 1/2 to 1 inch wide.  Turn on your beef mixture and bring it to a boil and add the peas (I add chopped up mushrooms as well) and drop a couple at a time the biscuit strips.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, until the dumplings puff up and cook.  Remove from heat and let it sit for about 15 minutes.  Serve in a warm large bowl.

 

Cubed Steak, potatoes, beets.

Well this is easy.  Pan fry the cubed steaks coated with salt, pepper and flour.  Leave bits and pieces in the frying pan and add some flour and water and make a gravy.  Cube your potatoes.  In a separate pan, using a little oil and butter, fry the potatoes for a "home fries" dish.  Lastly, heat up your beets in a pot with the liquid from the can and some apple cider vinegar.  Serve as 3 separate parts of a meal.  No need for casseroles tonight.

Shrimp, pasta shells, zucchini, bell peppers.

Whew!
Okay.  I am not sure that any of these items really go well together.  I am going to give it my best shot below.
So here's what I have come up with:
Shrimp,
pasta shells,
zucchini, diced
bell peppers, diced
parmesan cheese
2 crushed garlic cloves
flour
butter
red pepper flakes
salt
black pepper
2 cups milk
Boil pasta in salted water until al dente. In a large skillet, stir fry your diced bell peppers and zucchini just enough to "crisp" the edges.  Remove from pan and set aside.  In your skillet, add 1 tablespoon of butter and saute your crushed garlic.  Add two more tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons flour.  Stir to make a paste.  Slowly add the 2 cups milk and 1 cup parmesan cheese.  Add your vegetables and pasta and lower your heat to warm.
In a separate skillet, place your shrimp toss with parmesan cheese, salt and pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.  This should take only a couple of minutes.  Be careful on the red pepper flakes because too much will ruin the meal.  Serve shrimp on top of the pasta.

Polska Kielbasa Sausage, pasta, frozen veggies-several different ones

Wide Noodle Pasta

Polska Kielbasa Sausage

Steamers with broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and cheese sauce x 2

Velveeta cheese 1/2 block

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

Boil your noodles and set aside.

Slice up the sausage into diagonal 1/4 inch slices.  In a frying pan, pan fry the sausage till there is a crispy outside edge.  It adds flavor.

In a separate pot, melt your butter and slowly whisk in the flour to form a paste.  Slowly add milk to make a thick sauce.  Melt in the Velveeta cheese.  If you like a thinner sauce, feel free to add more milk.

In your microwave cook the steamers as directed on the package.

Mix your steamers into the cheese sauce.  Toss in the noodles and make sure that your noodles are completely covered with your sauce and mixed well with the veggies.  Add more if you like.  I like lots of veggies.  Then when it is all well blended, toss in the cooked sausage pieces.  Serve!

I know it doesn't sound sexy or gourmet or even "wonderful".  But trust me it's good.

Second Menu

Wide Noodle Pasta

Polska Kielbasa Sausage

Frozen peas and carrots

Campbell's french onion soup, 2 large cans

Red pepper flakes (to taste)

Mozzarella cheese, finely shredded

Boil your noodles.  The last five minutes of cooking, add your frozen peas and carrots.  Immediately drain after al dente and set aside.  Fry up your sausage in slices in a hot pan.  In the pot with your noodles, peas and carrots add your onion soup and a 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes and bring to a boil.  At the very end add the sausage.  When serving in a bowl, sprinkle with the finely shredded Mozzarella cheese.  

Canned Tuna, Carrots, Potatoes, Cheese, Almonds

Whew!!!  This one was hard.  Of course I had in mind when I saw tuna the traditional tuna casserole.  But with no noodles, I had no choice but to come up with something else.  I did find out that she does have so frozen peas as well.  And so, the following was born:

Tuna Au Gratin

8 large potatoes
2 cans tuna in water
1 bag frozen peas
2 large carrots diced
4 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
6 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons flour
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
4 cups milk

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.  Slice the large potatoes into 1/4 inch slices and add the two cans of tuna by tossing together with the peas and the diced carrots.  Make 2 layers of potatoes first in a buttered deep large casserole dish.  This part doesn't have to be layered but they can be as long as you make sure that the tuna is dispersed nicely among the vegetables.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Set aside.
In a pot on the stove, melt butter and slowly stir in the flour, salt, and pepper over medium heat, whisking CONSTANTLY.  DO NOT STOP OR YOU WILL GET LUMPS IN YOUR SAUCE.  Add milk a cup at a time until sauce is smooth and silky.  When it has thickened add in three and a half cups of the finely shredded cheddar cheese.  Continue to stir until cheese is completely melted.  This should be about a minute.  Remove from heat immediately.  Pour over the casserole dish filled with your potatoes, tuna, peas and carrots.
Cover with tin foil and bake for 1 and a half hours. (90 minutes).  Just before moving this from the oven, in a frying pan on the stove, toast your slivered almonds.  (I would add some seasoning like garlic salt, or cayenne pepper,)  When the casserole comes out of the oven, remove tin foil and top with the remaining 1/2 cup cheddar cheese.  Bake another 10 minutes to form a top to the casserole.  When you remove it from the oven for the last time, sprinkle with the slivered almonds and serve.