Oven Fried Pork Chops

This recipe is as old as the hills. Some people will scoff at using mayonnaise, but it really helps to keep the pork moist and tender. This is also a recipe that I think you have to be willing to get a little messy in the kitchen. I've never been able to do the "wet hand, dry hand" method of breading, and believe me, when you've worked in a kitchen frying chicken by the 5 gallon bucket loads... you'll try every method available... So get in there and get your hands dirty! :-)

Served here with Greek Potatoes

and Skillet Fried Corn

6 Pork Chops


Wet Mixture:
1 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
salt & pepper, to taste

Dry Mixture:
1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking pan or large casserole dish with oil. In a flat dish, whisk together mayo and seasonings. In a separate dish, combine bread crumbs, flour and seasonings. Coat the pork chops with the mayonnaise mixture (I actually used my fingers), and then coat with the bread crumb mixture. Place on a cookie sheet and bake pork chops for 30 minutes (or until golden brown and crispy), turning and pouring off excess oil once during cooking.

Baked Tomatoes

Ever hear of the southern dish Tomato Pie? This recipe has the same basic flavors without the crust. The ingredients can be changed to your taste and can be used as an appetizer, side dish or even a main meal, when you add sausage or ground beef. You can even add rice instead of meat for a vegetarian meal.

6 medium tomatoes
Kosher Salt
1/2 cup homemade breadcrumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
1/2 cup Mozzarella or Cheddar Cheese
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 cup mayonnaise
Kosher Salt
Pepper
1/2 tsp Basil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wash the tomatoes and trim off the tops and cut a small flat spot on the bottom so they will stand up in the pan. Hollow out each tomato using a small knife or a spoon leaving the outer shell in tact. Sprinkle the inside with Kosher salt and sit up-side down on paper towels to drain out some of the moisture. Chop up the pulp you scooped out of the tomatoes and place in a medium size bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Stuff each tomato and top with a little extra cheese. Place in a baking dish and bake for 20-30 minutes.



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Okra Chips

If you have ever been to the Farmer's Market in Charleston, SC, you have probably seen a funny looking bag of green fried stuff called Okra Chips. The majority of people that buy a bag, come back for more. They are really like chips... you can't eat just one!

I started out just like I would if I were making regular fried okra. I mixed up the flour, bread crumbs and seasonings in a plastic bag... but I prepared the okra totally different. I tried to remove as much of the seeds as possible...

I cut the tender cooked okra right under the cap (stem end)

 and slit it down through the end.

I turned it and cut it again leaving four dangling 'legs' on each pod.

I then took the knife and scraped out the seeds.

16 oz bag of frozen okra, thawed
1 cup bread crumbs
1 cup flour
2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Oil for frying

Heat oil to 350 degrees.
Mix the bread crumbs, flour and seasonings in a plastic bag. Place the okra in the bag, in batches. (The okra is pretty slimy at this point and does not require an egg wash.) Seal the bag and shake to coat. Only coat as much as you are frying in one batch. I pulled each pod out by the stem end and shook off the excess coating and even wiped some around in the coating to separate the four strips so they would fry up nice and crisp. Make sure the oil is up to temp before adding okra, or the coating/breading will fall off. Gently place the okra in the oil. Cook until browned and crunchy. Remove from oil and place on paper towels or butcher paper. I used popcorn salt to season since regular salt basically bounces off the crispy coating!

Parmesan Crusted Chicken served with Sweet Pea and Cucumber Salad

This recipe is as old as the hills. Some people will scoff at using mayonnaise, but it really helps to keep the chicken moist and tender. This is also a recipe that I think you have to be willing to get a little messy in the kitchen. I've never been able to do the "wet hand, dry hand" method of breading chicken, and believe me, when you've worked in a kitchen frying chicken by the 5 gallon bucket loads... you'll try every method available... So get in there and get your hands dirty! :-)

Served here with Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

and Sweet Pea and Cucumber Salad! (bonus recipe below)

8 chicken breasts tenders
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking pan or large casserole dish with oil. In a flat dish, combine bread crumbs, cheese and seasonings. Place mayo on a plate. Coat the tenders with mayonnaise (I actually used my fingers), and then roll in the bread crumb mixture. Bake tenders for 25 minutes or until no longer pink inside.

Can you tell the Hubby likes pepper??? Good Grief! LOL

Sweet Pea and Cucumber Salad

1 can small sweet peas, drained

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced

1/2 mayonnaise

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp bacon bits (or more for more bacon flavor)

1 tbsp red onion, diced (optional)

Mix ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Toss to combine well. Chill until ready to serve.

Bacon Cheeseburger Meatloaf

Good down home cooking... just about every household has it's own meatloaf recipes. The possibilities are endless. This is a good basic recipe with a twist at the end. Yeah, I know I can never leave well enough alone!

Meatloaf mixture...

2 pounds ground chuck

2 eggs

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tablespoon mustard

2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

1 (1 ounce) package dry onion soup mix

1 cups Italian-style dried bread crumbs

salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Place in the center...

1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1/2 cup bacon pieces
Add a sprinkle of basil, garlic powder and pepper

On top...

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Mix meatloaf ingredients in a large bowl. Place half in a loaf pan or bread pan. Make a trench in the center and place cheddar cheese and bacon inside. Cover with the other half of the meat mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes.

Remove meatloaf from oven at 40 minutes... drain off an oil/juice standing in pan and top with 1/4 cup of Parmesan Cheese. Return to oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden brown.

Zucchini and Cheddar Tartlets

These little vegetable tartlets are so yummy and can be made with almost any veggies you may have on hand. I had yellow squash, so that's what I used!

1 cup zucchini or yellow squash, seeded and grated
1/4 cup grated onion
1/4 cup Italian flavored bread crumbs
1/4 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded fine
1 large eggs, beaten
Basil, Garlic Powder, Salt and Pepper, to taste
Basil leaves, for garnish

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray mini muffin pans with cooking oil. Combine ingredients in a bowl and drop by spoonfuls into pans. Pat mixture down. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown. Pull tartlets from pans with the edge of a knife. If stuck, run a knife around the edges and they should pop right out. Arrange on a plate and sprinkle with basil leaves.
Makes 12 mini tarts.