Apple & Maple Pork Chops!

Due to some overzealous pick your own apple shenanigans we have an overabundance of apples (although the pie did put a nice dent in them). I was flipping through my fall magazines when I saw this gem: Pork Chops with Maple Apples. I had two pork chops, an abundance of apples, and I love maple...what could go wrong? Absolutely nothing!

This recipe was divine. The sweetness of the apples with the onions and pork was amazing. While I was cooking I panicked that one pork chop wasn't going to be enough for the manly Mr. Lawyer so I threw a couple of frozen hash browns into another pan. In my wedding addled brain (we were yelling back and forth about tux pick ups over the sizzling of the pans) I rationalized "pork and potatoes, latkes and applesauce, soooo apple pork chops and hashbrowns!". It was completely random but totally delicious. This is definitely a make again recipe. It was so good that I started eating it before I got a decent picture.

A weird but delicious combination!

I swear there are pork chops under the apples!

Sizzling away.

Pork Chops with Maple Apples

(adapted from Better Homes & Gardens Magazine)

Ingredients:
2 boneless pork chops, 3/4" inches
Salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 apple, cored and thinly sliced
1/2 small red onion, cut into thin wedges
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup apple juice
1/3 cup light whipping cream
2 tablespoon pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons snipped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Directions:
1. Trim excess fat from chops. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a 12-inch nonstick skillet heat oil over medium-high heat. Add pork chops. Cook for 8 to 12 minutes, turning once halfway through cooking. Remove from skillet. Cover with foil. Let stand 3 minutes.
2. Add apples, onion, and garlic to skillet. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

3. Add apple juice. Cook about 4 minutes more or until most liquid has evaporated and apples are crisp-tender. Put pork chops back in pan with apple mixture. 

4. Stir together whipping cream, maple syrup, and thyme. Pour over pork and apples in skillet. Cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through and sauce starts to thicken. 

5. Remove from heat and serve!

Apple Pie Time!

Yaaaaaay Fall! I made an official "Fall Bucket List" for Mr. Lawyer and I to complete. I have always had an unofficial one that included the basics: pick apples at Beak & Skiff, eat the apples, drink lots of cider, consume some cider donuts, eat Grandma's apple pie with cheddar cheese. Beak & Skiff is this wonderful family owned orchard (since 1911!) in LaFayette, NY (just outside Syracuse). I have wonderful memories of going there almost every year with my grandparents. Grandpa Bruce and I would always split a hot dog and look at the beehive (you can see inside it!) while Grandma Nancy got her apples for pie. When I started going to school at SU I introduced my Beak & Skiff tradition to Mr. Lawyer and our friends.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the 1st trip. Nyk was pointing out the specific apples she wanted and Mr. Lawyer obliged. I think she wore footwear that wasn't conducive to ladder climbing. Beak & Skiff has some wonderful old and gnarly apple trees that are huge.

Mr. Lawyer knew that I missed this tradition and decided to surprise me with a trip to a New Jersey Orchard! Now I'm partial to my B&S but this orchard was very kid friendly and had a pumpkin patch! The trees seemed very young in comparison to what I am use to but the apples were still delicious. 

He's always in the trees doing the heavy lifting!

See what I mean about the little trees though? No ladder needed.

We managed to get quite the jump on our Fall Bucket List, including making an apple pie (bonus: with apples you picked yourself!). 

Confession: this is the first apple pie I've ever made. I mostly just eat Grandma's pie. 

A word about eating apple pie: It is essential that you eat the pie with sharp cheddar cheese. Mr. Lawyer asked me what the cheese was for when I pulled it out of the fridge. Adorable. I guess it's a NY/New England thing. It's delicious. Have a bite of pie, have a bite of cheese. Heaven.

I have this really cute kitchen towel that tells you how to make apple pie. It made the perfect backdrop.

Cheese time!

It's not Grandma's pie but it was pretty delicious for a first attempt.

Apple Pie

(from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
1 pastry recipe for a 9 inch double crust (I used pre-made crusts)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon allspice
4 to 8 Granny Smith apples depending on size- peeled, cored, and sliced
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add water, white sugar and brown sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer. Add the spices and mix well.
2. Place the bottom crust in your pan. Toss apples in liquid and then place apples and most of the liquid into the pie pan. Cover with a top crust. Pour any remaining sugar and butter liquid over the crust.
3. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes until apples are soft.

Crunchy Salad

So we have ourselves a hit and a miss. I loved this salad but I enjoy asian inspired dressings and nuts on my salad. Mr. Lawyer dislikes asian inspired dressing and nuts on his salad. That being said I loved the crunch of the snow peas, apples, and nuts. The dressing is tart and intense. It all felt very summery.

Spinach and Snow Pea Salad with Cashews

(from Fast, Fresh, and Green)

Ingredients:
Spinach and napa cabbage
Sliced snow peas and apples
Cashews
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoon cider vinegar
2 teaspoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons lime juice
2 teaspoon hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
Directions: 
1. Mix the dressing ingredients together and whisk well.
2. Toss the spinach, napa cabbage, apple slices, snow peas, and cashews with the dressing and enjoy!

Apple Pie!

Yesterday I came to the sad realization that apple cider prices were probably going to stay outrageously high because of the wonky growing season. Sighs. Just like maple syrup the other year/still. This drink was well worth the money I spend for that gallon of cider! I might have to make another one tonight.

Apple Pie Martini

(Pinterest Find!)

Ingredients:
1 ounce vanilla or whipped cream vodka
2 ounces apple cider
a sprinkle of cinnamon
Directions:
1. Add ingredients to an ice filled shaker. Shake well. Strain into glass.

Bite Sized Fall Tradition

Since tonight was leftover crispy cheesy chicken nugget night I decided that there should be some kind of yummy dessert. Enter: Caramel Apples. I inherited this kit from Nyk and dragged it all the way to Philly so there was going to be caramel apples this fall come hell or high water. Now there are two major flaws with caramel apples: to start with everyone knows that the caramel to apple ratio is off. Way off. You never have enough caramel. Also, caramel apples are messy. Enter my genius idea of bite sized caramel apple pieces. On a toothpick. Things are always cuter on a toothpick. Good caramel to apple ratio, no mess, toothpick. Amazing.

Here's the state traveling kit! It was super easy, all you needed was milk and sugar.

Why is making caramel always so scary?!

I'm totally going to have a little kid ate too much sugar tummy ache tonight. 

Muffin Mania!

What to make on a cold, blustery December day?

Apple Strudel Muffins!

12-18 full size muffins
(allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup softened butter

½ cup white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1¼ teaspoon vanilla

1-2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg

3 cups apples (half chopped, half shredded)

Strudel Topping:

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon flour

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon melted butter

Optional: Oatmeal

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease your muffin tin.

2. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together.

3. In a second bowl mix butter, brown and white sugars, and eggs until smooth. Mix in vanilla and apples. Then combine with flour mixture.

4. Mix strudel topping ingredients in a different bowl.

5. Pour batter into muffin tin, top with strudel and bake for 20 minutes.

These work well as mini muffins too, just bake them for a few minutes less. If you’re feeling ambitious you can double the strudel mix and layer it into the middle of the muffin. The strudel is my favorite part so I always make a double batch and really layer it on. Mmmm gooey melty strudel. Mr. Lawyer loves these and I doubt they will last through the week.