I'm finished class for the year. I'm on Christmas break until the 9th of January. Thank God.
At least I can clean this place up now.
So a quick apology for the lack of posting due to the above reasoning. I had quite a few projects due in the last week or so of class and an exam at 8am Monday morning last week. I did actually manage to cook every now and again, but I wasn't going to post until class was over. So here we go!
One of the last things I actually cooked and not insta-dinnered while I was studying was
Pork Chops à la Grand-Mère. It was a multi-layered process, but I think it came out quite well. The spare chop was surprisingly edible the next day, and the spare potatoes made a great fry up later as a study dinner. This
is another Canadian Living special.
Pork Chops à la Grand-Mère (serves 4)
By The Canadian Living Test Kitchen
roll over and click star to rate
Ingredients
4 (about 1 inch/2.5 cm thick) porkloinchopbone-in pork loin centre-cut chops
3/4 tsp (4 mL) each of salt and pepper
3 tbsp (45 mL) extra virgin olive oil
2 lb (907 g) oniononions, about 5
1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp (1 mL) granulated sugar
2 tsp (10 mL) white wine vinegar
2 lb (907 g) peeled potatoYukon Gold potatoes
1/2 tsp (2 mL) dried thyme
3/4 cup (175 mL) sodium-reduced chicken broth4(about 1 inch/2.5 cm thick)bone-in 3/4tsp(4 mL) 3tbsp(45 mL) 2lb(907 g) 1/4cup(50 mL) 1/4tsp(1 mL) 2tsp(10 mL) 2lb(907 g) Yukon Gold 1/2tsp(2 mL) 3/4cup(175 mL) centre-cut
Preparation:
Sprinkle chops with 1/4 tsp (1 mL) each of the salt and pepper. In large skillet, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the oil over medium-high heat. In batches, brown chops, about 6 minutes. Transfer to plate. Drain any fat from pan.
In food processor with slicing blade, cut onions into 1/8-inch (3 mm) thick slices. In same skillet, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the oil over medium heat; cook onions, parsley, sugar and 1/4 tsp (1 mL) each of the remaining salt and pepper, stirring often, until onions are golden, about 20 minutes. Stir in vinegar.
Meanwhile, in food processor, slice potatoes. In 12-cup (3 L) casserole, toss potatoes with thyme and remaining oil, salt and pepper. Pour broth over top. Place pork chops and any juices on potatoes; cover with onions.
Cover and bake in 425°F (220°C) oven until potatoes are tender, 50 to 60 minutes. Uncover and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
This was the fry up I did later! I just fried the potatoes a bit and had some scrambled eggs on the side.
So yummy!
I'm doing something quite different this year by way of being active in the blog world. I decided to join a card swap. I found this one through Craftzine, being organized by the lovely Vane Broussard of Brooklyn Bride. We gave her our info by a certain date and she sent out a group of addresses for us to send homemade Christmas cards to. I was the lone Canadian in my group, which had a Brit and five Americans including Vane. Kirsa's card was sent out almost a week and half ago to make it in time for Christmas, but here's a picture of the rest of them before I send them off tomorrow!
You may notice that the picture is of the reverse of the postcards I made. That's because I don't want the recipients to see the cards prior to receiving them. I'll post pictures of the finished card after Christmas, along with the ones I receive from the group!
Otherwise, I'm working on Christmas gifts at the moment. I am so disorganized this year, I barely have anything! I've gotten gifts for my sister and roommate, and that's about it. Threadless and Etsy saved me there in both cases. I'm planning on doing a run to Outer Layer here in Toronto for my Mom soon, my Dad however will be the hard one. As per usual. With any luck the presents that I ordered for myself from Society6 and Torrid will be arriving soon.
In other news, we're going to New York City! Again! We found a good deal on a bus ride and the hostels still have some space for early January, so hopefully we can take advantage of it soon and head out for the New Year. I already have a list of restaurants and food carts I want to go to!
