Fiery Apple Sauce Stuffed Pork Chops

2 Pork Chops (butterflied)
2 Apples (peeled diced into fairly small chunks)
1/8 Cup(ish) Brown Sugar
1 1/2 Tablespoons(ish) Cinnamon
1/8 Teaspoon(ish) Cayenne Pepper - (gotta trust me here)
2 Tablespoons Water
The "ish" is because I didn't "actually measure these, I just am guessing at the approximate amounts I used, just play with it to your taste.

To make the applesauce filling:
Add Water, Apples, Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, Cayenne Pepper to a small pot stir, then cover and simmer, stirring occasionally 20-25 min or until the apples are soft (almost "mushy)

In the meantime, butterfly two pork chops creating a "pocket" season all sides lightly with salt and pepper.

When apple sauce is done stuff "pocket" full of apple sauce (reserve a small amount for topping) and then broil or grill until desired "doneness" achieved. Plate add bit of sauce to topping and serve.

A fairly traditional combination, apples and pork chops, but I gambled by adding a bit of Cayenne pepper to the applesauce, I think it gives it a subtle little kick that really adds a lot of flavor to the dish by creating an interesting sweet and spicy combination that plays well with a juicy pork chop.

Chipotle Orange Meatballs

1 Pound Ground Beef (or Pork, Turkey, Chicken, whatever)

1/4 cup Diced Onion

1 tsp Garlic Powder

Salt (few shakes)

Pepper (few shakes)

1/4 cup Dried Bread Crumbs

1 Egg

1 Bottle Blue Moon Beer

Zest of 1 Large Orange

Juice of that 1 Large Orange (just cut it in half you'll squeeze 1/2 in the sauce and 1/2 on the meat)

1 Bottle BBQ Sauce (My personal choice is Sweet Baby Ray's Honey Chipotle)

For Meatballs:

In a bowl combine 1 lb meat, diced onion, Garlic Powder, Salt, Pepper, Bread Crumbs, Egg. Mix WITH YOUR HANDS, using a spoon of any kind for this step is blasphemous and will result in subpar meatballs. True story. Once mixture is all combined, form into golf ball sized meatballs. Put these in a skillet and sear them over med high heat, for a couple of seconds on all sides. Pour bottle of Blue Moon and juice from 1/2 and orange into skillet, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer till desired doneness is achieved.

While meatballs are simmering, prepare BBQ sauce.

For BBQ sauce:

Combine in a bowl BBQ sauce and the zest of the orang and squeeze the juice of the other 1/2 an of the orange into the bowl and mix.

When meatballs are done, drain off juice, top each ball with BBQ sauce and cover to allow BBQ to warm up.

The orange really comes through on this dish and I think pairs very well with the spice of the chipotle, however if you don't want the spice, I speculate that any BBQ sauce will work just fine. The Blue Moon is a good beer to use in the cooking process because it has a lot of citrus/orange characteristics that give the meat a nice flavor in and of itself.

Spinach & Crab Manicotti

4 Manicotti Noodles (cook as directed)

For Filling:
4 Cloves Garlic (I love garlic, so I would actually use more next time maybe 5-6, 4 was a pretty good balance of flavor)

3/4 Bag Spinach (diced up a bit smaller than the actual leaves)
6 oz (ish) Crab Meat
3/4 of a Small Container of Ricotta Cheese

Medium hand full Italian Cheese Blend
1 Egg
Italian Seasoning
(again, this process is hit or miss, just eyeball it till you have a "good" consistent mix)

For Topping:
Small Jar Alfredo Sauce (I was cheap and went with Ragu Light Parm. vs homemade)
Small hand full of Italian Cheese Blend

1. Saute spinach in olive oil with 2 of the 4 cloves of minced garlic (save 2 cloves of minced garlic for mixture with the filling), let cool
2. In a bowl mix all FILLING ingredients and add a little salt and pepper for good measure.
3. Fill the manicotti noodles with mixture. I'm warning you now, this process is a royal pain in the arse, you WILL destroy the noodles, split them open, etc. sauce will cover them so don't get too worried.
4. Cover with Alfredo, top with some additional cheese and bake at 375 for about 30 min. Since I only cook for two, I use foil to make my own little "baking reservoirs", just make a little rectangle and spray the bottom with a little olive oil.

The seafood twist on this Italian dish is an interesting change from the standard italian sausage and ground meat. I saw this on a menu at a restaurant in Washington last week, and regretably did not order it, so I immediatly sought out to attempt a re-creation. Based on my wife's review I think I did a fairly "decent" job on the attempt.

(Sorry for all the 3/4 a bag/container nonsense....)

Step 1....

This is going to be a test project... a "Beta" Blog if you will. For those who know me know I like to cook. Recently I have gotten brave enough to make up some of my own recipes as I go. My disclaimer is this... Cooking is one of those things that has been around forever and with the Internet you are bound to find some iteration of really any recipe out there, I doubt there is anything that is truly 100% unique. That being said, my definition of "my recipe" is this: If I did not look in a magazine, cookbook, website, or reference book of any kind. I consider it my own made-up recipe. Just wanted to get that out there. Now not everything I put on here will be made up. I'm also going to occasionally post recipes that I just "like" and I will try to always cite where I get them so I give credit where credit is due.

Also, I'll include some restaurant reviews.

Lastly, if you read my other blog (Insert Title Here), then you may see a few duplicates, but it is what it is.

Comments are MORE THAN WELCOME!! if something doesn't work let me know, tastes terrible let me know, and lastly if you think you've improved upon something.... let me know.