Slow Cooked: Pork Chops and Spinach

I've cooked a pork loin in the crock pot before, but I never even thought about it for pork chops until my sister-in-law gave me this recipe. Thank you!

The best thing about this, is the leftovers. For 4-6 pork chops, there is still way more spinach and broth than you need to serve with this. Don't throw it out, don't even take it out of the crock pot. There is a recipe below that will give you the easiest overnight soup ever, and my lunch today. Go leftovers!

Slow Cooked: Pork Chops and Spinach

4-6 pork chops, thick
1 10oz package frozen spinach
2 tbsp Garlic Olive Oil
2 cups vegetable broth
1 apple, peeled and minced
2 onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup flour

Pour the flour into a shallow plate or wide bowl. Drizzle the olive oil over the pork chops and dredge them in the flour.

Add the broth, apple, and onions to the crock pot. Lay the pork chops on top and cover. Cook for 6-8 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high.

When you turn the slow cooker on in the morning, set the package of spinach out to thaw. At the end of the cooking time remove the pork chops to a plate. Break open the spinach and stir it it to the crock pot. Let it cook for about 5-10 minutes so that it is fully heated through.

Serve the pork chops with a few spoonfuls of the spinach mixture over it.

Leftover: Spinach and Potato Soup

2 cups vegetable broth

10 chopped small potatoes

Leftover spinach broth

Add the vegetable broth and potatoes to the leftover spinach broth from above. Cover and cook for 8 hours on low. 

Put it in some jars and you have your lunch! Add another swirl of Garlic Olive Oil to really punch it up.

Pork with Black Beans and Escarole

I know that pork and beans are a classic pairing. Add greens and you have a perfect soup. But I find that that works best with ground pork or sausage and I had a couple pork steaks still in the freezer from last week. So instead of soup, I sliced up the pork and made this awesomeness!

Pork with Black Beans and Escarole

serves 2-4

2 pork steaks

1 sm head of escarole, rough chopped

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

2 tbsp Blood Orange Olive Oil

1 tbsp Vanilla Balsamic

salt and pepper

1 tbsp Basiks, Southwest Blend

Heat the olive oil to medium high heat and add the pork steaks. Cook 2 minutes each side, or until you get a good sear on them. Remove from the pan and let cool a little. Slice into strips and return to the pan. Add the Southwest Spices(optional) and the salt and pepper. Finish cooking now, give them 2-4 minutes a side. 

Add the black beans and the escarole and stir to combine. Cover and let simmer together about 3 minutes, or until the escarole is well wilted and the beans are heated through. Stir in the Vanilla Balsamic and serve!

Pork Chops with Hot Slaw

Pork chops can be very boring, unless you cook them in a flavored oil! So that's what I did today. I was in the mood for some spice, so I used the Zesty Onion Oil and tossed some of our red pepper paste in the slaw. No boring pork chops here!

Pork Chops with Hot Slaw

1 pkg (4) pork chops or pork steaks
2 tbsp Zesty Onion Olive Oil
1/2 head escarole, rough chopped
2-3 carrots, cut in matchsticks
1 apple, diced
1/2 cup raisins
2-3 tbsp fresh dill
2 tbsp red pepper paste

Preheat your oven to 350degrees. Heat the oil to medium high in an oven safe pan large enough for all the meat. Season with salt and lightly brown each side. Cover lightly with a sheet of foil and place in the oven for 30-45 minutes.

Remove the chops to a plate and put the pan back on the stove top. Toss all the slaw ingredients together with the pan juices and warm through until the escarole is wilted down. About 5 minutes.

Serve immediately.

Cherry Mint Pork Chops

I have so much mint growing in my backyard. Someone planted it years and years ago and it has taken over a whole planting bed and is starting to creep around the side of the house.

When we got the Cherry Balsamic in, I knew just what I wanted to do with it!

Cherry Mint Pork Chops
Serves 4

-1 package thin sliced pork chops
-Basil Olive Oil
-Cherry Balsamic
-Sun-dried Tomatoes
-Mint leaves
-Sundried-Tomato Sea Salt

Heat 3-4 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over low heat. Increase the temperature to medium-high and arrange chops in the skillet. Cook, turning only once about 3 minutes a side. Set aside.

For the sauce:
Chop 6 to 8 tomatoes and place in a food processor. Chop mint and add(I put in a good handful). Start food processor and stream in enough Balsamic to make a thick sauce. I added almost a 1/4 cup.

Scrape sauce into your skillet and cook over low heat until it is hot and bubbly, no more than 5 minutes.

Spoon the sauce over the pork chops and serve with salad.

Dressed with Cherry Balsamic and Basil Olive Oil of course!