Grilled Lemon Herb Pork Chops

The more we eat pork, the more fond I am becoming of it! (Especially the affordability...I found these really nice assorted pork chops for $.97/lb at Kroger last week!) As I typically do, I doubled the marinade ingredients and I allowed the pork chops to marinate for a good 24 hrs. I think one of my major "turn-offs" regarding pork in the past has been that it always seemed to dry out so easily. Now that we've gotten the hang of watching our cooking times more closely, we've really found that we enjoy incorporating it into our meal rotation more regularly. This is a great, quick, weeknight meal--especially if you marinate the pork ahead of time, which I would highly suggest...they were absolutely delicious! Also, if you are grilling them, make sure to check them after the 5-7 minutes on each side to avoid overcooking them. Several reviewers on Allrecipes.com said that they actually broiled and/or baked theirs, so that's always an alternative if you don't care to go outside in the dead of winter! I haven't personally tried them that way, so I can't attest to the exact cooking times, but just to give you a rough estimate, one reviewer said she used 3/4 inch center cut pork chops and broiled them on each side for 5 minutes and then covered them with foil and baked them for an additional 10 minutes at a lower temperature. If any of you try them baked/broiled, please let me know how they turn out!

Grilled Lemon Herb Pork Chops

1/2 cup lemon juice
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon pepper
6 (4 ounce) boneless pork loin chops

Directions

In a large resealable bag, combine lemon juice, oil, garlic, salt, oregano, and pepper. Place chops in bag, seal, and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight. Turn bag frequently to distribute marinade.

Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. Remove chops from bag, and transfer remaining marinade to a saucepan. Bring marinade to a boil, remove from heat, and set aside.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill pork chops for 5 to 7 minutes per side, basting frequently with boiled marinade, until done.

Source: Adapted from Allrecipes

Marinated Pork Tenderloin

If you want to see how this pork should really look, make sure to check out Donna's (My Tasty Treasure's) blog...her pictures were WAY better!!! We had some minor issues as far as the cooking time goes and had to cut into it several different times. I had to laugh, because I bought a pork tenderloin, having absolutely no idea what I was going to do with it and then I came across this recipe on Allrecipes.com. To my surprise, Donna posted the very same recipe the next day! She is an absolutely amazing cook, so the fact that she recommended it, let me know that it was definitely worth trying. It was wonderful, although I think I ended up using a 3 1/2 pound pork loin instead of (2) 3/4 lb pork tenderloins, so I should have researched the cooking time a little more thoroughly as I grossly underestimated the amount of time it would need. Tomorrow, I'll be posting a recipe that we tried to utilize the leftovers!!!

Marinated Pork Tenderloin

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons sherry
1 1/2 teaspoons dried minced onion
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pinch garlic powder
2 (3/4 pound) pork tenderloins

Directions:

Place soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry, dried onion, cinnamon, olive oil, and a touch of garlic powder in a large resealable plastic bag. Seal, and shake to mix. Place pork in bag with marinade, seal, and refrigerate for 6 to 12 hours.

Preheat grill for high heat. Lightly oil grate. Place tenderloins on grill, and discard marinade. Cook 20 minutes, or to desired doneness. Slice into medallions, and serve.

Source: Allrecipes.com

Balsamic-Glazed Chicken Breasts

We've been trying to eat more chicken and I'm always on the lookout for new and exciting recipes to switch things up a bit! This recipe happens to come from one of the cookbooks that I had listed on my giveaway: Pillsbury Best Ever Chicken. It was absolutely delicious! My kids both really seemed to enjoy it--the chicken had the slightest hint of "sweetness", but in no way was it "too sweet". I really enjoy using balsamic vinegar and I think that balanced out the sweetness of the brown sugar. This recipe was perfect "as is"...the only thing I would want to make you aware of is that we found that the chicken took significantly longer to cook. Perhaps that could be an issue with our grill, but anytime we've ever made the split chicken breasts, we've had them on the grill for 45-50 minutes...if not closer to an hour! (The recipe made it seem as if they'd be done in 20-22 minutes, but there was NO WAY!) I'm fairly certain that our chicken took about 55 minutes to an hour and it still was incredibly moist! This would be a great recipe to use for company!

Balsamic-Glazed Chicken Breasts

Glaze

1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

Chicken

4 bone-in skin-on chicken breasts (8 oz each)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Heat gas or charcoal grill. In small bowl, mix glaze ingredients; set aside. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place chicken on grill, skin side down, over medium heat. Cook 10 minutes. Turn chicken; brush half of the glaze evenly over chicken. Continue cooking and brushing with remaining glaze 10-12 minutes longer or until juice of chicken is clear when thickest part is cut to the bone.

Source: Pillsbury Best Ever Chicken

Kentucky Grilled Chicken

I saw this posted on Heidi's blog (Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi) and love that she always has a way of posting recipes for ingredients that just so happen to be on sale :) My one regret with making this recipe was that I didn't allow it to marinate longer--it was only in the refrigerator for about 3-3 1/2 hours, but I would like to try it again soon and leave it overnight. The chicken was unbelievably moist and had wonderful flavor...I can only imagine how much better it would have been if I had remembered to get it going earlier in the day!

I would very much suggest checking out Heidi's blog for any of you who haven't already and I would also highly recommend looking at Krista's blog, as that's where the recipe is originally from. I'm constantly looking at new blogs (especially when other bloggers post links) and was very excited to "meet" Krista. It turns out that she and I have a lot in common...we both grew up in Indiana, both got married in June 2003 and both have two small children--small world! Enjoy this chicken...it's sure to please!

Kentucky Grilled Chicken

1 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup canola oil
5 tsp Worcestershire sauce
4 tsp hot sauce
2 tsp salt
6 split chicken breasts (it would probably be great with legs or thighs, too!)

Directions:

Combine first 5 ingredients to make marinade. Place 1 cup of marinade into large ziploc bag and add chicken. Swish around to coat chicken and let refrigerate at least 4 hours. Reserve remaining marinade for basting. Spray grill with cooking spray. Cook chicken over indirect heat for 20 minutes. Turn and grill 20-30 more minutes or until juices run clear. Baste occasionally with reserved marinade.

Source: Tried-and-True Cooking with Heidi, originally from Krista's Kitchen

Santa Fe Grilled Chicken

This is definitely unlike any recipe I've ever tried! I'm a bit "on the fence"--I think it would be a great quick, weeknight meal, but it seemed to lack something. I think the basic recipe is good and would recommend it, but I wish someone would help me out with a suggestion as to what might enhance the flavor a bit more! I definitely liked the pepper jack cheese (as opposed to just using Monterey Jack) and the salsa complimented the chicken very well, but there's just a little something missing. Then again, the problem may have been that I held back too much with the taco seasoning--I was afraid it would be too spicy/overpowering, so the next time I make it, perhaps I will be a little more generous when I sprinkle it on the chicken.

Santa Fe Grilled Chicken

8 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix (from 1.25 oz package)
8 slices Monterey Jack cheese (We used Pepper Jack, b/c I couldn't find sliced Monterey Jack)
1 cup chunky salsa

Directions:

Heat gas or charcoal grill. Brush both sides of chicken with oil; sprinkle with taco seasoning mix. Place chicken on grill. Cover grill; cook over medium heat 15 to 20 minutes, turning once and topping each chicken breast with cheese during last minute of cooking time, until juice of chicken is clear when center of thickest part is cut (170 degrees). Serve chicken topped with salsa.

Source: Pillsbury Potlucks & Reunions

Hearty Hoedown Burgers

Oh my goodness--this picture does not do these burgers justice! We had a late dinner last night and this was the best picture I was able to get...after about 30 attempts! I think I'm seriously starting to drive my husband crazy, but he usually waits patiently to start eating until I sit down with my plate :) Back to the burgers, though! First of all, I am a BIG fan of adding Worcestershire sauce to burgers, so that alone, led me to believe that this recipe would be outstanding! I was a little nervous about my husband's reaction with the onions and peppers, but he really seemed to enjoy his burger! I have never bought "sandwich spread" at the store and spaced buying it for this recipe, so I improvised at the last minute. I found a recipe on Cooks.com for a "Special Sauce Burger Topping" and I thought it tasted a lot like the sauce on McDonald's Big Macs. My first thought was actually to use Donna's sauce recipe (from My Tasty Treasures), but I didn't have any French dressing. I'll include the sauce recipe below, in case you don't have any sandwich spread on hand!

Hearty Hoedown Burgers

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/3 cup finely chopped onion (1 small)
1/3 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 slices American cheese (we used Smoked Provolone)
6 burger buns, split
1/4 cup sandwich spread (found in the mayonnaise section of the grocery store)
Red onion slices, if desired

Directions:

Heat gas or charcoal grill. In a medium bowl, mix ground beef, onion, bell pepper, Worcestershire sauce, seasoned salt, garlic powder and pepper until well blended. Shape mixture into 6 patties, 1/2 inch thick.

Place patties on grill. Cover grill; cook over medium heat 13 to 15 minutes, turning once, until meat thermometer inserted in center of patties reads 160 degrees. Top each patty with cheese slice; cook just until cheese is melted.

Spread cut sides of toasted buns with sandwich spread; top with onion slices. Place cheese-topped patties on buns.

Special Sauce Burger Topping

1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 Tbsp sweet pickle relish (I only had dill relish, so I added a teaspoon of sugar to cut the tartness)

Combine all ingredients and serve over burgers. (I would suggest chilling if you have time, but if not, it's not the end of the world!)

Source: Pillsbury Potlucks & Reunions

Hoedown BBQ Chuck Roast

Finally the grilling season is upon us! I absolutely LOVE this time of year!!! I've been searching for new recipes and have come across many wonderful grilling ideas. This was another recipe I found, while searching through my Mom's cookbooks and I can't begin to tell you how yummy it smelled while cooking! My husband was so kind as to do the actual grilling and he chose to wrap the meat in foil before placing it on the grill. This worked out really well, because it seemed to prevent the meat from burning and I would certainly do this again--or I guess I should say that I'd have my husband do this again, as grilling is more his thing! The only thing that was slightly disappointing was that the meat seemed a little tough, but I think the marinade itself would be delicious on a more tender cut of meat.

Hoedown BBQ Chuck Roast

1 boneless beef chuck roast (4 lb), 2 inches thick
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 to 2 garlic clove, minced
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:

Trim fat from beef roast. In 12x8-inch (2 quart) glass baking dish or large resealable food storage plastic bag, mix remaining ingredients. Add roast; turn to coat. Cover dish or seal bag. Refrigerate 6 hours or overnight, turning once or twice to marinate.

Heat gas or charcoal grill. Remove roast from marinade; reserve and refrigerate marinade. Place roast on grill. Cover grill; cook over medium-lw heat 50 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes or until of desired doneness, turning once and basting with reserved marinade during last 15 minutes of cooking time. Discard any remaining marinade.

Note: To bake the roast, place in shallow roasting pan; bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes, turning once and basting with reserved marinade during last 15 minutes of baking time.

Source: Pillsbury Potlucks & Reunions