One Pot Chicken and Rice

Oh little blog, how neglected you are!  I've been cooking and crafting away since the holidays, but not taking time to enter the fun details here.  This recipe is the perfect example.  I made it for the first time December 10th (according to the date stamp on the photo) and have easily made it a half dozen times since then.  Each time I have to go to the pin, rather than using my own tweaked notes!  Crazysauce.  So let's try to remedy that, shall we?

The original recipe comes courtesy of Natasha's Kitchen, and kudos to her for finding such a flavorful way to pull these common ingredients together.  I've tried other chicken and rice casseroles that included broccoli and cheese but somehow failed to come together as well as this one does.  I'm also happy to share that after just a couple times making this recipe, I was able to find the tweaks I needed to get it just right in my eyes.  One of those involves knife skills.  Fun!

One Pot Chicken and Rice

Prep time: 15 minutes  Cook time: 30 min

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, diced
• 2 large carrots, cut into matchsticks (skinny sticks, ~2" long; see tutorial here), though I prefer julienne
• 2 teaspoons sea salt, divided
• 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 1 cup white wine, such as Chardonnay (or 1/2 cup water:1/2 cup chicken broth mixture)
• 5 cups hot chicken broth (I usually warm it up in a separate pot, which makes this a two-pot meal, but you can microwave it, too)
• 2 cups Jasmine rice
• 1 head garlic, top and some of the peel cut off but leaving root in tact (see here)
• 1/3 cup fresh curly parsley (not flat leaf), chopped
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for topping

Directions

1. You definitely need to prep all of your ingredients beforehand!  Have them nicely laid out in the order you'll need them.
2. Heat oil and 2 tablespoons of the butter in a dutch oven (large, heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid) on medium/high heat.  Stir in onion, carrots, and 1 teaspoon of the salt and turn heat down to medium.  Sautee until soft and golden, 8-10 minutes.  If onion begins to brown too quickly, turn heat down to medium/low.
3. Add chicken, the other teaspoon of salt, pepper, and bay leaves.  Saute until chicken is golden all over, 5 minutes.
4. Turn the heat up to high and add the white wine.  Boil down the wine, scraping the bottom, until most of the wine has evaporated (3-5 minutes).
5. Add the hot chicken broth, then stir in the rice.
6. Nestle the cut and partially peeled head of garlic into the center of the pot.  Bring to a rolling boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 15-20 minutes or until rice is fully cooked.
7. Turn off the heat, scoop out the garlic head and discard, and stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter until melted and incorporated.  Then stir in the parsley and 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese.  Serve with a small sprinkle of Parmesan on top.

Looks so great as it all cooks up!  I can taste it now.  Gaah!

Lasagna Roll Ups

Lately I've been seeing more and more pins of lasagna rolls on Pinterest.  This piqued my interest, because it seemed like a much easier way to approach lasagna than the rickety, slippery layers we all know and fight with when it comes time to serve up that delicious pasta.  I was frustrated when I went searching for one to make, though.  So many with bacon!  I just wanted a regular lasagna recipe that happened to be rolled, with proven cooking times so I didn't have to monitor my stove like a nut trying my own approach.  I finally found a keeper from My Joy Filled Life, and share it here with modifications to just make half of her giant serving.

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder (or 1/2 cup diced onions)
• 1/2 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 jars pasta sauce, divided
• 12 uncooked lasagna noodles
• Drizzle of olive oil
• 7.5 oz-container ricotta cheese
• 1/2 egg (sorry- I know this is awkward!)
• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 3/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon parsley flakes

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water with a drizzle of olive oil to boil.  Set out a cookie sheet covered with wax paper, to lay out your lasagna once it's cooked.  Add lasagna noodles to boiling water and cook according to package directions (likely ~10 minutes).
3. While your water comes to a boil and your lasagna cooks, brown your beef with the garlic, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.  Drain and return to pan.  Add 1 jar of pasta sauce and heat through.  Set aside once sauce is heated.
4. In a large bowl, mix the ricotta cheese, 1/2 egg, parsley, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese, and 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
5. Drain cooked lasagna noodles and rinse with cool water, to stop cooking and make them easier to handle.  Lay noodles out on cookie sheet covered with waxed paper.
6. Spread 1/4 cup of jarred pasta sauce in bottom of a 13x9 baking dish.
7. Spread the cheese mixture evenly down the center of each noodle.  Top with meat sauce in an even layer.  Roll up noodle and place seam side down in baking dish.  Repeat with remaining noodles.  You may not use all 12 because some tear while cooking or you run out of filling.
8. Once all noodles are rolled up and placed in pan, spread remaining pasta sauce (jarred and/or meat sauce) over top of noodles.  Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses and 1 tablespoon of parsley flakes.
9. Tent baking dish loosely with aluminum foil; make sure it isn't touching the pasta and cheese at all.  Bake at 375° for 35 minutes or until heated through.
10. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Mmmmm.  Lasagna-y goodness!

Easy Chicken and Orzo

Another reliable dish for my weeknight meal lineup is this delicious Parmesan and basil orzo from My Tiny Oven with some diced Italian chicken mixed in.  Simple, tons of flavor, and even better you just set things to cook and walk away for most of the cook time.  Love it!

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 cups orzo
• 3 cups low sodium chicken stock
• 6 tablespoons fresh basil
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt/pepper to taste
• 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Italian seasoning

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.  Place chicken in a baking dish and season with salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning to taste.  Bake 28-35 minutes or until cooked through.  Cut into bite-size pieces.
2. While chicken bakes, prepare the orzo.  Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the orzo and saute for a few minutes, until it starts to turn golden brown (5-10 minutes).
3. Add the chicken stock, cover, and simmer 20 minutes until stock has been absorbed.
4. Remove orzo from heat and stir in the Parmesan, salt, pepper, and cooked chicken.  Serve with additional salt and/or Parmesan on top.

Tasty tasty!

One-Pot Pasta with Shrimp

I should probably just sign up for a daily Martha Stewart recipe or something by now, because I seriously love pretty much every recipe I've tried from this woman's domestic machine.  The most recent of these is a one-pan pasta dish, which I only modified a bit.

What an appetizing bowl of pasta to serve up for the family!

Ingredients

• 12 ounces linguine
• 12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
• 1 onion, thinly sliced (about 2 cups' worth)
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (I used a little less because I worry about heat, but could have easily done the full 1/2 teaspoon or more)
• 2 sprigs basil, plus torn leaves for topping
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more to taste
• 4 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 to 1 pound shrimp, peeled and tails removed (I actually used pre-cooked shrimp)
• Drizzle of olive oil
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving (I actually skipped this, and liked it better just with olive oil)

Directions

1. Place all ingredients except for shrimp and Parmesan cheese in a large straight-sided skillet or pot.  I used a pot because I was not confident that all of this would fit in my largest pan.  Bring to a boil and toss with tongs occasionally.  Boil 9 minutes, or until pasta is al dente and water is almost all evaporated.  Add shrimp to pot the last minute of cooking time and cook until just pink and beginning to curl.  Do not overcook.
2. Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Garnish with torn basil, drizzle of olive oil, and Parmesan cheese.

Seriously, how easy is that?!?  Some chopping and 15 minutes to boil/cook everything, and you have a pretty impressive dinner to dish out.  Perfect for a weeknight meal.

Everything all situated in my stock pot.

Bubble bubble!  This is the last minute when I tossed in my shrimp.

Ham and Cheese Pretzel Pinwheels

This recipe is SO easy and super tasty- the perfect thing for a quick snack, low effort meal, or impressive appetizer when your friends stop by.  I got the recipe from Tablespoon, and my only change was in the dipping sauce.  Rather than use the cheese sauce, I mixed up some honey dijon mustard with mayo for a milder flavor for me, and my husband doused his in yellow mustard.  I say mustard is 100% the way to go with these!

Make them.  Now.  :)

 

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

• 1 can Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough (I like the classic one; Tablespoon used the thin crust)
• 8 slices of cheddar cheese
• 8 slices deli ham
• 1 egg, beaten
• Coarse sea salt
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1/3 cup honey dijon mustard
• 1/3 cup mayonaise

Directions

(Pictures follow)

1. Preheat oven to 425°.  Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick spray.
2. Unroll pizza dough onto a cutting board.  Top evenly with cheese slices and then with ham slices.
3. Tightly roll up dough length-wise.  Pinch seams to seal.  This is important!
4. Slice log into 16 equal slices.  Be careful to cut with a sawing motion, not just by squishing.  Set each slice on the prepared baking sheet.
5. Brush slices with beaten egg, then sprinkle sides and tops with coarse sea salt.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes until golden brown and cheese is melted and bubbly.  Note: My cheese always browns.  I'm not sure if a lower temp over a longer time would alleviate that.  I just peel away the darker bits, so no sweat there.  Just a warning/idea.
7. Remove from oven and brush with melted butter.  Sprinkle with more salt.
8. Mix mustard and mayo until well combined and serve in prep cups with the pinwheels, or in a bowl in the middle of your pretzel platter.

Dough rolled out and topped with cheese.  I know I said to do this on a cutting board, and here I am showing you that step on the baking sheet.  Trust me, I was happier when I did this on a cutting board.  My bites also turned out better when I didn't jam cheese onto every square inch, and instead used just 8 slices.

Top with ham.  Overlapping is good in my opinion!

Log all rolled up and seam pinched.

Cut into even slices, each about 1-2" thick.

All baked.  See what I mean about some of the cheese getting really dark?  I just used a fork to grab the darker bits and peel off before serving.

Honey Lemon Chicken with Herbs

I recently came across this tasty looking pin on Pinterest, but it was one of those convoluted goose chases.  The link goes to an image, which goes to a web page in another language.  At least Chrome translated well enough for me, and the original pin had the basics covered in the description.  Cue some adaptations and winging it and I came out with a really flavorful way to make chicken!  I can't WAIT to give this a go on the grill.

Ingredients

• 2 boneless chicken breasts; recommended to make with skin on, though I didn't
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• Zest of 1/2 lemon
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Optional- reserve the used lemon to cut slices as garnish
• 1/2 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon Herbs de Provence (I used Penzey's Parisien Bonnes Herbes)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick spray.
2. Mix garlic, lemon juice and zest, honey, olive oil, and herbs in a small bowl.  Arrange chicken on prepared baking dish, and brush with honey lemon mixture on both sides.
3. Bake 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway through, until fully cooked.  If using lemon slices as garnish, place on chicken during the last 10 minutes.

I recommend making this with my cheesy zucchini bake, which is what I did last night.  YUM.  Each dish had a lot of flavor, but they complimented each other rather than overwhelmed.  Definite keeper.  And like I said, I can't wait to try this chicken recipe on the grill.  I'm sure it'll be amazing.

Update:  Grilling is just as yummy!  My husband really liked that approach.  Just placing the chicken directly on the grill, though, I lost the herbs so it left a stronger lemon flavor without as much of the herb flavor.  Perhaps using a grill tray or something else would help keep more of the herbs in tact!  I also have no idea why one piece came out all grillified looking and the other looks the same as when I made these in the oven.  *shrug*

Baked Cheesy Pasta with Prosciutto

Once again, Giada delivers on her promises of tasty recipes that, with just a little bit of something extra, take normal pasta dishes into something amazing.  She called her recipe Baked Rigatoni with Bechamel Sauce, and I just have to say that it's a disservice when she doesn't mention the prosciutto!  Talk about burying the lead.  Anyway, you can have this great dish all wrapped up and ready to serve within 45 minutes.  Add garlic bread and a salad, and you've got a killer weeknight meal here.

Saucy hammy goodness right there.

I usually halve these recipes because I only need 2-3 servings, but here's the full size which will easily serve 4-5.

Ingredients

• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 quart (4 cups/32 ounces) whole milk, room temperature
• Pinch ground nutmeg
• Sea salt and white pepper to taste (I cheated and used black pepper)
• 1 cup grated Fontina cheese
• 1/2 pound thinly sliced prosciutto, julienned
• 1 pound (box) dry rigatoni or other short pasta.
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425°.  Grease a 9" x 13" baking dish and set aside.
2. Set a large pot of generously salted water to boil.  While waiting for water to boil, make the cheese sauce.
3. In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour until smooth and cook until golden, about 2 minutes.  Stir continually and slowly add the milk, whisking until smooth and creamy.  Simmer until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 7-10 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the nutmeg, 1/2 cup of the fontina, the prosciutto, and salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside.
4. Your water should be boiling by now.  Add your pasta and cook just 5 minutes.  Because you're baking the pasta, it will cook the rest of the way in the sauce in the oven.  Drain the pasta and transfer pasta to the pot with the cheese sauce.  Stir until the pasta is generously coated.
5. Pour the pasta and cheese mixture into the prepared baking dish.  Sprinkle with the remaining fontina, then dot with the diced butter.  Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

YUM.  A friend made these for our last Pinterest party, and I knew immediately that my husband would love them.  The warm gooey cheesy ham middle with the mustard sauce is just awesome.  This is the recipe she used, and I adapted it just by halving everything because I was making it as a quick dinner to use some of our Easter ham, not as an appetizer for a party.  Easy, quick, and super tasty, this recipe is all around win.

Ingredients (makes 12 sliders; enough to serve 3-4)

• 12 dinner rolls (I used mini kaiser rolls)
• 12 pieces honey ham
• 12 small slices Swiss cheese
• Mayonnaise (about 1/3 cup will be enough for all 12 sandwiches)

Poppy seed sauce

• 1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 3/4 tablespoons yellow mustard
• 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter, melted
• 1/2 tablespoon minced onion
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Spread mayonnaise onto the inside of both halves of each roll.  Assemble sandwiches with a slice of ham and cheese on each roll.  Place snugly in a baking dish or rimmed cookie sheet (I used a 9x13 baking dish).
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the poppy seed sauce ingredients.  Pour evenly over all of the sandwiches.  Set aside 10 minutes or until butter sets slightly.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350° 12-15 minutes until cheese is melted.  Uncover and cook 2 additional minutes until tops are slightly brown and crispy.  Serve warm.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

I'm not kidding when I say that I have several months worth of old recipes and projects saved on my computer, just waiting to be written up into blog posts.  This is just the first of many catch up posts.  :)

This casserole I found on Pinterest is a great way to get the flavors of chicken enchiladas in a simpler way, without all that hand rolling of individual enchiladas.  I really loved it, and just wish my guys enjoyed Mexican food as much as I do so I could make this more often.  Instead, I get to wait for the next Pinterest party to make this yummy dish.

Ingredients

• 2 large cooked chicken breasts, shredded
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 15-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 4.5-oz can diced green chilies, drained
• 10-oz can green enchilada sauce
• 4 medium corn tortillas (9", burrito size)
• 8 ounces sour cream
• 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°.  Season chicken with salt and pepper and bake in a pyrex dish 25-30 minutes until cooked through.  Keep oven heated to 375°.
2. Shred chicken into bite-size pieces in stand mixer.  Add cumin, chili powder, garlic, black beans, enchilada sauce, and green chilies.  Mix on low speed until well combined.
3. Spray an 11 x 15" baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.  Place 2 tortillas on the bottom of the dish, then spread half of the chicken mixture on top.  Spread half of the sour cream on top in an even layer and sprinkle with half the Mexican cheese.  Repeat layers.
4. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes until cooked through.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Marinated Lime Chicken

This is a really tasty dinner that doesn't take much work, and got approvals all around the dinner table.  I've made this a couple times now, but found out it's hard to photograph it in an "ooo that looks yummy!" way.  Anyway, thanks to Rachel Schultz's blog for this recipe!

Ingredients

• 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• Juice and zest of 1 lime
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
• Pinch of salt and pepper

Directions

1. Place chicken breasts in a ziplock bag.  Mix remaining ingredients in a small bowl, and pour over chicken.  Shake/wiggle bag to coat chicken evenly.
2. Refrigerate for 1 hour to allow the flavors to develop and settle in.
3. Preheat oven to 375° (or grill- mmm).  Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, spray with Pam, and set chicken on top.  Pour any marinade from the bag over the chicken.
4. Bake for 27-35 minutes or until fully cooked.  I recommend serving with rice, which you can prepare while the chicken bakes.

Crispy Crock Pot Pulled Pork Tacos

Digging myself out of the pit of overdue posts, I present these amazingly flavorful carnitas (aka: pulled pork). They were a bit spicy, but in a good way.  That heat in the back of your throat way, which I can deal with more than the singing my tongue all the way through way.  I pinned these courtesy of Gimme Some Oven, which is a rising star in my favorite recipe sites.  An honor well earned, if this recipe is any indication for you.

Also?  Tacos are REALLY hard to photograph.  Just sayin.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4.5-lb lean boneless pork roast, excess fat trimmed (of which there was much in my particular cut; I actually find that to be the norm), cut into 3-inch pieces
• 8 ounces of beer (Mmmm, beeer.  Note this is not a full can- you get to drink the rest!  Bonus!)
• 1 large white onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder (and yes, this does make a difference; don't cheat with regular)
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (see?  we use two kinds for a reason!)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Sear the pork on all sides until browned (6-10 minutes total).  Remove pork with a slotted spoon and transfer to a crock pot.
2. Add remaining ingredients, with a gentle stir to mix.  Cook on low 6-8 hours until the pork is tender and shreds easily with a fork.  Shred all of the pork.
3. Once the pork is cooked, preheat your broiler.  Herein lies the crispy magic.  Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and with a slotted spoon transfer the pork from the crock pot to the baking sheet.  Reserve the remaining liquid.  Spread the pork into a single layer, using two baking sheets if necessary.
4. Broil 5 minutes or until the edges are crispy but the pork is still juicy/not dried out.  Drizzle with 1/4 cup of the reserved juice from the crock pot, and gently stir to coat.  Broil another 5 minutes, remove from oven, and ladle with another 1/4 cup of reserved juice.
5. Serve with tacos, burritos, on sandwich buns, on salad, etc.  I personally think the soft taco approach is a home run.

Pasta with Spinach Sauce

First off, let me apologize for neglecting my blog so much lately!  It's actually been for a good reason.  I'm operating at a bit of a less-than-whirlwind pace the last couple months, and spending more 1:1 time with my son, so I count that as a good thing.  Now, I've still been trying new recipes and projects around the house, so I actually have a backlog of posts.  Once those start to pile up, I can get a bit immobilized by the "oh noes, where do I start?" feeling.

Anyway, jumping back into it with this SUPER tasty dish.  Giada never steers me wrong.  I'm pretty sure my cooking trinity right now are Martha, Giada, and the Barefoot Contessa.  Also helping: reading The Tao of Martha by Jen Lancaster.  Hilarious and great.

Ingredients

• 1/2 box of pasta (I stuck with Giada and used penne this time)
• 1 garlic clove (I used 2, and it was WAY too much; stick with 1 for these proportions, and I'd even shy away from the full 3 in the original, larger batch recipe)
• 1 ounce goat cheese (though being generous won't hurt HERE!)
• 1/2 ounce cream cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 3 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup pasta water

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, in generously salted water.  Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water.
2. While the water is boiling/pasta is cooking, prepare the spinach sauce.  Let me prepare you now: it is going to be a startling shade of green.  Like, you're going to think you're serving Slimer from Ghostbusters on your pasta.  But it's HEALTHY!  ;)
3. Mince the garlic in a food processor.  Add the goat cheese, cream cheese, salt, pepper, and half the spinach.  Blend until smooth and creamy, and set aside.
4. Place the remaining spinach in a large bowl.  Scoop 1/2 cup of the pasta water and set aside.  Drain the pasta when cooked through, and add the warm pasta to the bowl with the spinach.  Add the spinach and cheese mixture, and stir until pasta is completely coated, adding the pasta water to the mixture as needed to make it smooth.  Season to taste with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese to serve.

Grilled Spiced Pork Chops with Amazing Peach Salsa

I absolutely *love* this dish courtesy of my Food Network calendar from 2012, especially the grilled peach salsa.  Amazing, I kid you not.  The pork chops are super tasty, too!  Om nom nom nom.

Ingredients

For the pork

• Vegetable oil, for the grill grate (or grill pan, as I used tonight)
• Kosher salt (though I didn't use any)
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 bone-in pork loin chops (I actually prefer boneless)

For the salsa

• 2 large ripe peaches, quartered and pitted
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 1/4 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lime juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs, such as chives, parsley, or mint (I used chives and parsley flakes, but I think this would be awesome with cilantro!)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper (I didn't use any)

Directions

For the pork

1. Prepare an outdoor grill for direct grilling on a medium-high fire and indirect grilling (or heat a grill pan to medium-high heat).  Lightly brush the grill grate/pan with the oil.
2. Mix 2 teaspoons salt, the chili powder, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Divide the mixture evenly among the chops and rub all over.  Should coat generously.
3. Place the chops on the hot grate directly over the flame and grill until marked.  Rotate 90 degrees to get professional-looking grill marks, and cook halfway through, about 5 more minutes.  Flip the chops and move to a cooler area of the grill.  Rotate after a couple minutes to get the same grill mark effect on both sides.  Cover and cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thicket part of the chop registers 140° (about 5-10 minutes).  Transfer the chops to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes.  Can return to heat for 1-2 minutes to warm up before serving.

For the salsa

1. Toss the peaches with the oil and grill until marked and softened, 2-3 minutes.  Roughly chop the peaches into bite-size pieces and place in a medium bowl with the tomatoes and onion.  Add the lime zest, lime juice, and herbs, and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Serve on top of the cooked pork chops.  Applaud yourself for making an excellent meal.