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Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Pork chops and applesauce!

I've always been a fan of the Brady Bunch, and that's where I first heard of "Pork chops and applesauce."

And I thought that was the strangest thing; Pork chops and applesauce?

Evidently, it's a common dish in the midwest, which is not where I am from.  

Twenty five years later, I still had never made nor tried "pork chops and applesauce."

So I decided to try it!  And it was very easy.

Center cut pork chops.  Season with black pepper.

Lay out on a cast iron skillet, and pour applesauce on top.

The chops will take longer to cook due to the applesauce.

Into the oven at 400, and cook until the internal temp of the chops measure 160 degrees.

The applesauce will caramelize in the oven of course.  Yum.

I believe on the show, they had plain pork chops, with applesauce on the side.  

But I loved the applesauce cooked on top of them.


Sunday, August 12, 2012

My first fish tacos

When I first heard of fish tacos, I thought, yuck, fish tacos?

Because after all, tacos are made with beef, right?  I've always had tacos made with beef.

But I decided to try making them for the first time.

There are several different varieties of fish tacos.

Some are made with fried fish, and some are made with grilled fish.

Almost any white fish will do, but I decided on grilled tilapia fillets.

And, some are made with soft flour tortillas, some with corn tortillas.

I like crunchy taco shells, so that's what I used.

And then the toppings can also vary.

Some like them with shredded cabbage or cole slaw.

I used chopped tomatoes, chopped fresh cilantro, and shredded mexican cheese mix.

The sauce is usually a lime sauce.  I made my lime sauce by mixing sour cream and fresh lime juice.

Some like their fish tacos with tartar sauce, but I loved the lime sauce.

So to summarize how I made my first fish tacos:

Grill some tilapia fillets.  

Warm some crunchy taco shells in the oven; Be sure to watch them so they don't burn!

Have some chopped tomatoes, chopped fresh cilantro and shredded mexican cheese handy.

Make the lime sauce by mixing sour cream with fresh lime juice.

Assemble the fish tacos and eat!

They were good, but I still can't wrap my brain around the idea of tacos made with anything other than beef.

Although I've been told that shrimp tacos are delicious, too.