Pork, The Other White Meat

So I delayed making the pork chops until last night because I didn't have pork chops ... I thought I did, but it was chicken. Anyway, I was right. There wasn't much difference between cooking them separately and together ... it was just less effort. I'm not much of a recipe follower when it comes to cooking, so here's what I did.

I took pictures because I was bored! I'm such a dork.

Brown the pork chops in olive oil after seasoning them with pepper, seasoned salt, and garlic powder. Set them aside after both sides are browned. The meat will complete cooking later, so don't worry about cooking all the way through.

Add more olive oil and one chopped bell pepper and onion to pan. Allow to sweat for a few minutes, then add garlic and pepper.

I then added about 1/3 c. of thick BBQ sauce and a large can of baked beans ... I prefer the vegetarian kind because I think the beans are less soft.

I buried the pork chops in the mixture and threw it in the oven at 350 for about an hour (covered). Then uncovered and baked for another 30 minutes to try to get it to thicken.

The original recipe called for brown sugar and chili powder, but I forgot the chili powder and am just not a fan of adding sugar to things ... I eat enough sugar in chocolate! Then good things about preparing it this way was the use of only one pan and the pork chops seemed to be less dry then when I make then separately. That's probably just because I always overcook my meat ... Kevin's biggest complaint when it comes to my cooking (if I had to take a guess)!

If I had thought about it last night, I would have made something else to go with it. Some seasoned red potatoes would have been good.


On a different note, Lubbock had his first "Day Out." I am so amazed sometimes at what I can accomplish when left alone! I didn't get as much done as I wanted to because my friend Heather and I met at Four Beans (our local organic, fair-trade coffee shop ... shop local!). We were laughing because we have never hung out during the day without the kids and the only times we've hung out without kids (at night), it's been over a beer or two. So, we meant to only be there for 30 minutes before getting to work, but that turned into an hour. It was time well spent in my opinion still because it was just very relaxing to not have our conversations interrupted and not have to keep one eye on the fight about to ensue over a toy.

So, I got home and cleaned swept and mopped and wiped down and made a few calls that required complete silence and before I knew it, time was up. When I got home, I set the timer on the microwave for 99 minutes (the most it will go). It was funny to look at it because I always feel like it take "FOREVER" to sweep the living room. Oh, it only takes two minutes? Why does it seem like such a chore. It only takes four minutes to unload the dishwasher? What do I do with myself all day? The time flew by, though. I was able to listen to some music and get things accomplished ... again, in peace.

The only things I didn't get done were mopping the bathroom and cleaning the toilet. But, now that Lubbock's asleep, I will eat lunch and then do that.

My timer just went off for my lunch to be done. I'll see if I can't write about my exciting bathroom plans later this afternoon. We're going to get tile ... YA! I'm so sick of the plastic surround and linoleum I could scream!

Oh, yeah ... and I need to figure out how to clean an oven. I've never lived anywhere long enough that I needed to clean it! I've always just paid someone to clean my places when I move out. So, if there are any good products that anyone uses ... Dad?