Date Night In: Stuffed Pork Chops
On the Farm, they keep a pig or three every other year. That fills their freezers and their bellies for a good two years, just in time for the next round to begin. But, as you can imagine, towards the end of that two years there’s a lot of less-than-desirable cuts of meat to be had and prepared. Something in the way of pig hearts and livers.
Which explains the delight of the Farmer’s Wife when she found the pork chops, hidden away under a pile of roasted tomatoes and grated zucchini.
“I know just what I’ll do with you!” she exclaimed, as she reached down to grab them, nearly falling in the freezer, herself.
And so, a Date Night was proclaimed. Children were fed and sent on their way and the Farmer’s Wife set about making these, her Stuffed Pork Chops.
First, the Stuffing is made. And to do that, a half cup (stick) of butter is set in a saucepan, along with a heaping tablespoon of Stuffing Mix. Oh. You didn’t spend all summer drying Sage, Sweet Onions, and Celery, and then macerating all that hard labor into little bits, so an entire Summer’s Worth of Work fits in a quart sized jar? Well then. You will need to make do with a substitute. Add a teaspoon of dried minced onions, and one of celery and one of sage. That will get you close enough. Add to this a cup of good chicken stock (homemade is best, but store-bought bone broth will work as well) and set to boil. Once it is, a half-cup good white wine is added—the Farmer’s Wife tends to go with Riesling for her cooking. And since the Farm is right by the Finger Lakes, there are many good Rieslings to pick from. Today she goes with Dr. Frank’s. And yes, she sips a bit just to make sure it’s still good.
While that’s bubbling away, she crushes three cups of garlic cheese croutons, setting one cup aside. One of these days, I will share the Farmer’s Wife recipe for these, but for now, just go buy yourself some from the store. Also, she cuts into halves a cup of dried cherries.
Once the pot on the stove has bubbled and boiled for five to six minutes, it’s turned off, and two cups of crushed croutons and the dried cherries are added and stirred once. Twice. And the pan is covered with a lid and let sit. After five minutes or so, the lid is lifted, and the stuffing tasted. Salt and pepper is added, if needed.
In the meantime, a pocket is cut in the pork chop. And by that, I mean she slices along the meat edge through the middle until she (almost) hits bone. They’re set aside. The Farmer’s Wife found a package of four chops, but the stuffing recipe above is better suited to stuff six. So, maybe you should go with that.
The cavities are filled with the stuffing and the outside of each are rubbed down with mayonnaise, nice and thick. Once this is done, press both sides into the reserved one cup crushed croutons. If you’re doing it right, you’re going to find yourself at the sink half the time, washing your hands. But trust me. The mayonnaise is worth it. The chops are placed on a baking sheet and sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan cheese. They’re baked in a preheated three-hundred-and-fifty-degree oven for twenty-thirty minutes, depending on the thickness of your chops. The Farmer’s Wife’s are about an inch thick to start, so hers take twenty-five. While they’re cooking away, she makes the mashed potatoes that’s she’s serving alongside. You know, the Farmer’s fa-vor-ite. And she pours herself another glass of wine, you know, just to make sure.
