Back on Track.

So, I've severely neglected this poor blog. I did set up an "If This Than That" action to send all photos from Twitter to here... not sure how much good that did though. 

We've made some really tasty food here lately at the "House of Bocktenbeck", as I'm sure you've noticed from all of the photos. Tonight's meal was so good! I love Italian food as the much as the next girl, but I certainly outdid myself this time. 

When I went off to college (the first time) back in 2005,
my mother made sure that I had a 5 good cookbooks to use.
One of them was "Rao's Recipes from the Neighborhood"

This is such a wonderful book; not only is it full of simple southern Italian recipes, they are paired with vintage photographs and essays on Italian heritage of home-style cooking. There's a list of what a proper pantry looks like for someone who does a lot of italian cooking. (Definitely taking it into account when making my next grocery list) 

The photographs through out the book made me SO hungry that I decided that our entire dinner would come from here. It also helps that we recently stocked up our kitchen with bunches of fresh food.

First dish I decided to try from the book was the 'Broiled Breaded Pork Chops'. This dish really could not be any easier if it tried, seriously!

Serves 4

1 cup plain bread crumbs

¼ cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese (I used a wedge of Parmesan cheese from King Soopers)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh Italian parsley (dried works just as well)

1 garlic clove, minced

1 teaspoon salt (I used kosher since that's what Frank suggested at the start of the book)

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Four ¾ - 1-inch thick pork chops, butterflied (if smaller than ¾ inch, don't butterfly, the pork dries out.)

¼ cup olive oil 

Preheat the broiler.

     Combine breadcrumbs, grated cheese, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Press both sides of the pork chops into the bread crumb mixture. 

     Place the pork chops on the broiler tray (a cooling rack on a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil also works when you realize that you don't HAVE a broiling pan, like me) and drizzle with the oil. (I gave it a good coating with some olive oil spray instead.) Broil for a few minutes on each side until the bread crumbs are nicely browned. Serve immediately. 

Whole meal. There were two pork chops on my plate,
but I kind of ate one before taking the picture :-)

The second part of our oh-so-delicious meal was the 'Spaghetti con Aglio Olio'. Translation: Spaghetti with Garlic and Oil.

Seriously?! Who knew something so simple would be so yummy and make the 7 year old ask for seconds!!! 

Serves 4

1 pound of spaghetti (or the whole 12oz box)

1 cup olive oil (¾ cup when using less pasta)

8 garlic cloves, sliced into thin slivers

1 tablespoon dried red pepper flakes (I used half)

1 tablespoon minced fresh Italian parsley

Bring a large pot if salted water to a boil. (I add some olive oil to pasta water to prevent it from sticking). Add the spaghetti (we use the Barilla pasta made with veggies) and cook until al dente, about 10-12 minutes.

     Meanwhile, heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until lightly golden, about 2 minutes. Add the red pepper flakes and parsley. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside. When the spaghetti is al dente, drain, reserving ½ cup of water, and return pasta to the pot. Pour the oil-and-garlic sauce and cooking water over the spaghetti. Stir well for 1 minute. Transfer to a platter and serve. (or just put it directly on the plate like we did, because seriously, who wants to clean another dish after dinner?!)

●●●●

I'll give a true and proper update later this week. So many distractions this evening! Oscars, figuring out things to do with the extra meat and bones from deboning the pork chops, getting the kiddo showered and in bed, le boyfriend coming down with a tension headache, and possibly a snow dance or two in hopes that the kiddo has a snow day so I can stay home from work. :-)