MONDAY MORNING RECIPE - JUICE BAKED PORK CHOPS - 4 servings

We made these on Tuesday, May 13th, 2025. Dear Other Half had bought home pork chops that were very thick, and as neither of us wanted to fuss much in the kitchen, I found this relatively simple recipe at The Endless Meal hosted by Kristen Stevens. The original recipe is here.

I found Kristen's suggestions for cooking times very useful, including them below. 

"How long do pork chops take to bake at 400 degrees?

"Boneless pork chops should cook for 7 minutes per ½ inch of thickness in a 400-degree Fahrenheit oven. 

If you use bone-in pork chops, cook them for 8 minutes per ½ inch. 

Boneless pork chops 1-½ inches thick should be baked for 21 minutes.

Bone-in pork chops 1-½ inches thick should be baked for 24 minutes.

If you're new to making roasted pork chops, using an instant-read meat thermometer is the best way to tell if they are fully cooked. Pork should be cooked to an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit. We use our meat thermometer to make sure the meat doesn't overcook."

Other tips:

"Baking dish: Choose a baking dish that is just the right size for the pork chops. There shouldn't be too much room between them, or the juices will evaporate in the oven. If you don't have the right-sized baking dish, use a cast-iron or ovenproof frying pan instead. 

Elevation: This recipe has been tested at sea level. As elevation affects cooking time, you may need to cook your pork chops a little longer if you live at a higher elevation. 

Spice blend: You can switch up the spices in this recipe. If you have a seasoning blend you love, go ahead and use it!"

Juicy Baked Pork Chops - 4 servings

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 18 minutes

Total time: 23 minutes

1 tablespoon paprika

2 teaspoons onion powder

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)

4 boneless pork chops

Turn your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Measure the thickness of your pork chops so you know how long to bake them – see above for notes on that.

In a small bowl, mix together the paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and oregano.

1 tablespoon paprika, 2 teaspoons onion powder, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon salt

Drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over both sides of the pork chops. Sprinkle the spice mix evenly over both sides of the pork chops, then place them in a baking dish.

Drizzle them with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.

Bake the pork chops uncovered for 7 minutes per ½ inch of thickness, or until they reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit – for 1 ½ inch pork chops, you'll bake them for 21 minutes. 

Once you remove them from the oven, let them rest in the pan for 5 minutes before serving.

Gregg made a sauce to drizzle over the pork  I don’t have the measurements but he used a little peanut butter and low-sodium soy sauce, plus a little hot sauce. 

We served it with a leftover baked potato from the day before, sliced them and sautéed in a little olive oil until they were brown and crispy.

Also a mixed salad went very nicely.

These pork chops came out of the oven perfectly. As they were thick, we sliced them thinly to serve. 

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE 12-23-24

Even though this is a recipe for lamb chops, we used it for pork chops instead, although I have left the ingredient list alone.  I came across the recipe at Living Lou hosted by Louisa. The marinade used was excellent and we knew it would be just as good using the pork chops we had just bought. I wanted something a little different, and found a recipe for the Greek-style marinade at Lou's food blog. 

The internal temperature needed for the pork is 145 degrees, instead of 135 for the lamb. We cooked the pork five minutes on each side to get the desired degree of doneness. You can look at Lou's recipe link above to read all her tips for making this dish.

Greek Lamb Chops - serves 4

8 lamb rib chops

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup lemon juice, plus extra for serving

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon oregano

1 teaspoon salt

In a large glass bowl, whisk olive oil with lemon juice, garlic, oregano and salt. Add lamb chops and toss to coat. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes to 6 hours.

Pre-heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb chops, and cook for 2-3 minutes per side until browned and lamb reaches an internal temperature of 135F. Repeat with remaining lamb chops.

Lou's suggestion to serve with these chops was a  traditional Greek salad, and also homemade tzatziki on the side. These would also be just as nice with the pork chop.

Cooking the pork chops was a last-minute decision and all we were having that night was the last of the cheesy vegetable chowder we made. Gregg cooked the pork chops and we had a bowl of soup with it.

Here is the full address for the recipe, and I have added it in case you would like to copy and paste instead of using the link at the beginning of this page:

https://www.livinglou.com/greek-lamb-chops/

Thanks for looking everyone 

and I hope your day is a great one.

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE - SLOW-COOKER KALUA PORK

A menu today.

Slow-cooker Kalua Pork 

White Rice

Summer Garden Pasta Salad

I found this menu at The Magical Slow Cooker which you can find here.  Sarah is its host and she has some delicious recipes on her blog so I will be going back a lot.  

Slow Cooker Kalua Pig 

To find the actual page for this recipe you can click on this link.

3 lbs. pork butt roast

1/4 teaspoon ground pink Himalayan sea salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 cup water

2 teaspoons liquid Hickory Smoke

Sprinkle the roast with the salt and pepper.  In a large skillet set to medium-high heat, heat up the oil and sear the roast on all sides.  Add to a 6-quart or larger slow cooker.

Add the water and the liquid hickory smoke.

Cover and cook on low for 12 hours, without opening the lid during the cooking time.

Drain the juices from the slow cooker, reserving some if you want to serve the roast with them.

Shred the pork in the slow cooker with two forms, discarding fat.

Serve with rice and pasta salad.  Sarah also suggests using Sriracha hot sauce over the top.  

Summer Garden Pasta Salad - serves 6

You can find that actual recipe here at That's My Home.

1-1/2 cups mayonnaise

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon chopped dill weed

1 cup diced celery

3 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced

1 cup sliced snow peas

1/2 cup diced red onion

1 (15-oz.) can whole kernel corn

1 pound box bow tie pasta, cooked according to package directions

In a small bowl whisk the mayonnaise, buttermilk, lemon juice and dill weed until smooth.  Set aside.  

Drain and rinse the cooked pasta in cold water, and drain again.

Add the pasta to a large bowl.

Add the chopped vegetables to the pasta bowl and pour over the dressing.

Stir until the dressing thoroughly coats the vegetables and pasta and serve.

What did we think of these two dishes?

They both complimented each other beautifully and tasted great.  

In the pasta salad I couldn't find any fresh dill at the supermarket so used 1 teaspoon of the dried.  

One of us wanted rice, one of us wanted pasta, so we compromised and made both. I followed the directions on the rice package and made two servings. 

I made the pork dish the day before the main meal, refrigerating and reheating. 

There were leftovers for the next day also.

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE POST - STIR FRY WITH VEGGIES AND GROUND PORK

This was a very fast meal, and one of those times I forgot to make a note of a link. It was one I may have found on Instagram, a video, so not written down that I could find anyhow, and then it was gone and I was onto something else. Happy to say it was a delicious meal.

1 lb. ground pork (you can use any favorite protein)

1 whole diced onion

4 finely chopped garlic cloves

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (you can use the powdered one - a teaspoon maybe, to your taste)

1 tablespoon chili paste (or any favorite seasoning that gives it a bit of a zip, or leave this out, entirely up to you)

1 14 oz. bag of coleslaw mix

3 extra carrots sliced into thin sticks (you can leave these out.  We just like carrots)

1 diced cooked potato (we had one leftover baked in its skin from the day before - it was a great addition - you can leave this out also but we enjoyed)

A handful of cilantro leaves, or you can use Thai basil, or baby spinach leaves (again, only if you like, not really a necessary addition. It wasn’t in the original recipe)

1/4 cup water

1/8 cup of soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of hoisin sauce

Get all your ingredients measured out and ready. 

Heat your pan on medium-high (we put ours on 6 - electric stovetop).

Start with putting your meat and onions into a large-ish frying pan, stir and cook until meat is no longer pink. We added the carrots at this time. It said to drain grease when done but there really wasn't any with the ground pork we had.  I think this is if you use ground beef as we have had to do this when we have used it.

Add in the chopped garlic and ginger, mix in.

Do the same with the chili paste (here is when you can use your favorite seasoning instead).

Next mix in the bag of coleslaw, along with the 1/4 cup of water. Let everything cook down for a few minutes.

Stir in the soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar and desired amount of hoisin sauce.

Add in the Cilantro, Thai Basil leaves or baby spinach leaves if using.

Simmer on low until the veggies are as tender as you like them to be.

Serve and garnish with sliced green onions at the table.

Thoroughly enjoyed this recipe.  We made four servings and we will have the rest for tomorrow's dinner.

We thought it would be nice to add a poached egg on the top.

That's about it.  If you think I have left anything out, or haven’t made it clear enough, let me know in the comment section.  This meal is a great one for making it yours, tailoring it to the ingredients you have in your own supplies.

Thanks for looking, have a great week and...

MONDAY MORNING RECIPE - PORK POT ROAST COOKED ON THE STOVE TOP - SERVES 6

Today's recipe came from a food blog called Cook2EatWell, hosted by Elizabeth.  The original recipe can be found here.  I always recommend looking at the original recipe, in case I have missed anything out. She adds a lot of tips (several I have included below but I am sure there are more), and I always enjoy their photos.  The finished result we were very happy with, and it was so tasty!  

Pork Pot Roast (cooked on the stove top)

Serves: 6

Approximate calories per serving: 591

Elizabeth's equipment she used:

Large, Heavy Pot - 7-quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven

Kitchen twine - to tie the roast for even cooking

Aluminum foil - to loosely cover the pork after browning.

Cooking time: 3 hrs. 30 mins (see my notes at the bottom).

4-5 pound Boneless Pork Shoulder picnic or pork butt

2 teaspoons Salt

½ teaspoon Black Pepper

3 tablespoons Olive Oil

1 Medium Onion finely diced

1 Celery Rib Diced

3-4 Garlic Cloves minced

1 tablespoon Tomato Paste

½ cup White Wine

2-3 cups Chicken Broth enough to cover ¼ of the roast

3-4 Thyme Sprigs

1 Rosemary Sprig

1 Bay Leaf

2-3 Carrots cut into ½ inch rounds (about 1 – 1½ cups)

1 pound Small Red Potatoes keep whole, do not cut

Tie the roast with kitchen twine to hold it together and to ensure even cooking. Season the pork with the salt and pepper.

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the pork shoulder.

Cook for approximately 3 minutes, or until browned. The meat will release from the pot when a crust forms on the outside. If it is hard lift and is sticking to the pot, give it another minute or so.

Turn the pork a quarter turn and cook 3 minutes to brown the side. Repeat with the remaining two sides until the entire piece is browned.

Take the pot off the heat. Remove the pork roast from the pot and place on a pan or a large platter. Loosely cover with aluminum foil.

Do not wash the pot. Place it back over medium heat. Add the onions and the celery. Cook the vegetables for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently.

Next, add the garlic and tomato paste to the pot. Stir well and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.

Add the white wine to the pot and stir while gently scrapping any bits off the bottom of the pot. Continue cooking until most of the wine has cooked out, about 1-2 minutes.

Return the pork roast to the pot, along with any juices collected on the pan. Add enough chicken broth to go ¼ way up the thickest part of the roast.

Next, arrange the potatoes, carrots, rosemary, thyme, and bay leaf around the roast.

Raise the heat to medium-high and let the broth to come to a simmer. Then, lower the heat to medium-low and cover the pot.

Cook for approximately 3 hours or until it is tender. It should give and tear easily when a fork is inserted and twisted.

During the cooking time keep the liquid at a simmer. If it’s boiling too vigorously, lower the heat a bit. If it’s not simmering, raise it. Check on it every ½ hour or so, especially after raising or lowering the heat.

Remove and discard the rosemary, thyme stems and the bay leaf. Serve the roast with the carrots and potatoes and a side of rice, a piece of crusty bread, Texas toast or your favorite side dish.

Elizabeth's Notes:

If you don’t drink wine or don’t have any on hand, use broth instead and follow the same instructions (this is what we did).

Make sure to use a pot that’s large enough to fit the roast and arrange the carrots and potatoes around it (we have a funny story about this below).

Tie the rosemary and thyme together with kitchen twine to make it easy to pick out the stems (we had no twine and didn't really have a problem removing the herbs, though I can see how it would help).

Full nutritional information can be found on the website.

A good tip from Elizabeth is to choose small red potatoes to avoid cutting them in half or quarters.  (I am all for cutting down on steps when cooking.)   Also, with the long cooking time the whole potatoes will hold their shape best (We couldn't find the small potatoes and cut ours into large-ish chunks).

Her other tips I am including are If you do not have fresh herbs, you can substitute dry herbs but reduce the amount. Use about ½ teaspoon of each.

If you do not use wine, deglaze the pot with chicken broth instead. Use the same amount and follow the same instructions.

You will have a well-rounded meal with the added potatoes and carrots, but Elizabeth also suggests serving it with a side of rice and crusty bread, a slice of Texas toast or your favorite side dish.  (The first time we just had it on its own.)

Store leftovers in an airtight container, in the refrigerator for 3-4 days or freeze for 2 months.

What we thought:

It was delicious and we have lots of leftovers.  Here's the funny story which Gregg wanted me to include.  He enjoys giving people a smile too.  Also, maybe it will help newcomers to check the labels thoroughly before purchasing.

While it was cooking I mentioned that it was awfully big for a 2 lb. roast and he said he was sure on the size as he had checked the label thoroughly.  I was grateful he had done the shopping.  I got a call from him to say he could only find a 2-pounder. I said that would probably be better for us anyhow, size-wise, no problem.  

My brain doesn't do portion size very well, and even for me it looked too big for the size of the pot.  It was the biggest one in our cupboard.  He mentioned he wasn’t sure whether all the vegetables would fit, and I watched as he poked them around the edge and down the side to fit them in. Vegetable purée I was thinking.  It wasn’t easy! 

We often go back and forth when we are in the kitchen. I am the corner-to-corner person, he is the adventurer, I have to measure everything, he throws it all in, which works great as he has given us some excellent culinary results with his seat-of-the-pants cooking style.  Gordon Ramsey would be impressed.  But, pain that I am, I again said that looks REALLY big.  He was emphatic that it weighed 2.15 lbs. when he purchased it.  Okay, I won’t say any more.  However!

I couldn't stop thinking about the size.  In the middle of the cooking time, me, "Do we still have the wrapping?"  I can’t stop myself, I was curious.  I really wanted to check the weight as the meat seemed to be taking a lot longer than the recipe called for. 

I think Gregg was wondering himself now as he said, “Okay, I’ll check.” and went back into the kitchen to look for the wrapping in the trash. There was silence and then I heard him having a chuckle. More silence and when he came back he had a big smile on his face. It wasn't the weight he had looked at.  It was actually the price per pound, which was $2.15, so the number he looked at while in the store was the price per pound and not the weight. Turns out the weight was actually 8 lbs! 

We had a good laugh and I hope our story gave you a smile.  I am so glad my portion-size scrambled brain was not so portion-size scrambled this time!  

And, we have a lot of leftovers! 

As for the cooking time, it took forever to cook this roast. "Surely it should be done by now?” to which Gregg replied, "It's 8 lbs!  It's going to take a while."   I think it took well over an hour longer to cook, maybe more as we were supposed to keep it on slow.  You should be okay if you follow the exact weight measurements, and not have the problem we did.  Check your packaging thoroughly would be my advice.

The first meal we ate was incredibly tasty.  But there is a lot of fat.  After one night in the fridge, a layer had solidified on top.  I got a large spoon and scooped it off.  It still had an excellent taste and we also added a very nice crusty roll that second night.

If I haven’t mentioned it before, the broth/gravy is excellent!

Next time I will buy a more leaner cut but final result? It was a delicious meal.  On a chilly day, comfort food at its best.

I try to remember to add the full address of the website, in case you prefer to copy and paste instead of using the link above this page:

https://www.cook2eatwell.com/pork-pot-roast/

MONDAY RECIPE POST - EASY BONELESS PORK ROAST

Today's recipe comes from Vered Deleeuw who hosts Healthy Recipes.  The original can be found at this link.  There are a lot of tips that I don't include here.  Worth a read and I certainly recommend a visit, also to view other healthy recipes.

PORK EASY BONELESS PORK ROAST

Preparation time: 40 minutes.

Cooking time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Resting time: 15 minutes

Total time: 2 hours 25 minutes

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: approximately 494kcal per serving

Olive or avocado oil spray

1 tablespoon kosher salt (not fine salt)

½ teaspoon black pepper

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon paprika 

1 teaspoon dried sage

1 teaspoon dried thyme

3 lb. boneless pork shoulder roast

Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and fit it with a wire rack. Spray the wire rack with olive oil.

In a small bowl, mix together the kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, paprika, sage and thyme. 

Pat the meat dry with paper towels. Place it on the wire rack. 

Rub the spice mixture all over the roast. Spray the top liberally with olive oil.

Heat the oven to 425 degrees F. 

Allow the roast to sit at room temperature while the oven is warming, about 30 minutes. 

Insert a meat thermometer into the middle of the roast and place the pork in the hot oven. 

Roast on 425 degrees F. for 15 minutes, then lower the heat to 375 degrees F and continue roasting until the meat thermometer reads 145 degrees F. 

Remove the roast from the oven. Loosely tent it with foil and allow to rest for 20 minutes.

Carefully remove butcher twine from around the meat if it was wrapped this way.  Ours did not have any. 

Slice and serve. 

I included a few of Veree's notes.  She suggests:

If your roast is bigger than 3 lb., you will need to cook it for longer. If the top seems to be browning too much after 75 minutes, loosely cover it with foil.

Cook your pork until the internal temperature is 145 degrees F.

It's very important to allow the fully cooked roast to rest for at least 20 minutes prior to slicing it. This allows the juices to redistribute and settle. If you cut into the roast too soon, yummy juices will be lost, and the meat will end up dry and not as flavorful.

Changes we made: 

Our roast was about 3-1/2 lbs.  A bit too big for the two of us, so I cut it in half and put one half in the freezer after tightly wrapping with aluminum foil.

Our oven always runs cooler for the recipes I choose.  After the suggested cooking time, it was still very pink.   We put it back until it was cooked to our taste, no pink.

I had no sage and used basil instead.  We resupplied and I will use the sage next time.

This was a very easy roast.  We served it with mashed potatoes and peas.

That's it! 

MONDAY RECIPE POST - PAN-FRIED THIN CUT PORK CHOPS

 

This week's recipe came from The Today Show, no link but if you put "Today Show Thin-Cut 'Minute' Pork Chops" in your search engine, it should take you to the recipe.  There are a lot of advertisements on this page.  It was a very fast, very easy way of cooking, and the soy and balsamic vinegar gave it a very nice flavor.  We will definitely be making this again.

Thin-Cut 'Minute' Pork Chops

4 thin-cut, bone-in pork chops

1 tablespoon dark soy sauce

1 tablespoon dark balsamic vinegar

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine soy sauce and vinegar in a large bowl.  Add pork chops and thoroughly coat with the mixture.  Remove chops and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  

Heat butter in a sauté pan that's large enough to hold your pork chops without overlapping (we only cooked two but didn't change anything).  When butter has started to brown (we used regular butter and not the unsalted), add chops and cook for 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until the chops have reached an internal temperature of 145 degrees F.

Serve and enjoy!

I'll challenge anyone to try and stick a thermometer in one of those thin pork chops.  (If you have a technique please share.) Gregg cooked our pork chops for five minutes on each side and they were just right.  I would say you be the judge on how long you cook them.  This is what worked for us and the pork wasn't dry at all.  

We liked the combination of soy and balsamic vinegar very much.  Definitely cooking this again.

We cheated a little and served it with Bob Evans already prepared original mashed potatoes  - we haven't found any better store-bought mashed potatoes, to our taste anyhow.  The Brussel Sprouts were frozen.

You can tell we were going for an easy, no fuss meal, and it was very tasty.

Thanks for looking, have a great week and...

MONDAY RECIPE POST - OVEN-ROASTED PORK LOIN WITH HERBS

We have made a couple of old favorites this week, Chicken and Dumplings and Cheesy Cheddar Chowder.  If you click on their names, I have provided a link to each recipe.  There were leftovers and we ate each dish for two or three days.  Therefore, I didn't make a new recipe for today, but found an old menu to share from my old blog.  

Oven-Roasted Pork Loin with Herbs

I found this recipe at "Best Recipe Box" in October 2013. Unfortunately, when I did a search for the link I used originally, there wasn’t one.  I found the blog but not the recipe.  There were other pork recipes available but not this one, unless I missed it somehow.

Oven Roast Pork Loin Roast with Herbs - serves 4 to 6

Times may vary depending on your oven temperatures. A meat thermometer put in the thickest part of the meat should reach 145 degrees F.  Your roast should be done but the suggestion was not to go past 145 as the roast will start to get rather dry.

2 pounds pork loin roast
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon dried herb mix (basil, oregano and/or thyme)
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
Fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

3 medium to large potatoes, peeled, cut into large pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

(Add potatoes to a saucepan, lightly salt and bring water to a boil.  Par-boil for at least 10 minutes.  Drain and surround the pork roast with the potatoes.  Add them the last hour of cooking and turn half-way.  Baste with the pan juices at the same time as you baste the meat. They had a lovely flavor.)

Rinse and pat dry pork loin and then season with salt and pepper.

Heat a large oven-safe skillet on medium-high heat.

Add oil and heat for about 1 minute.

Sear the pork loin on all sides until a crust forms, about 1 minute per side.

Remove pork loin from the pan and set aside.

In the same hot pan add the butter, garlic, Worcestershire sauce and mustard.

Stir and cook the sauce until the butter is completely melted, then remove from heat.

Coat the pork loin with your mixture of dried herbs by patting all over the pork roast.  

Place the pork back into the skillet (along with the potatoes) and spoon sauce over the pork loin and the potatoes.

Cover with foil and transfer to the oven for 30 minutes.  

Remove the foil, spoon some more sauce over pork and potatoes, turning the potatoes at the same time so that they are well coated.  Cook for about another 30 minutes, or until the internal temperature of pork reaches 145 degrees.

Remove from the oven and cover with foil to keep warm.  Let rest for about 15 minutes.

Slice thin and serve hot.

We enjoyed this very much and there were leftovers.  The next night we had it again.  There were a few potatoes left over also but we sauteed them in the morning and had them as part of our breakfast.  To replace them for our evening meal I made cauliflower cheese, which I served with the peas, also left over, and the pork roast. 

To me, Cauliflower Cheese is very much a nostalgia food from childhood. I have my own recipe but am always looking to trying something new. I found the recipe at Smitten Kitchen.  Fortunately the link still works and you can see the original recipe here.  It was very close to my Mother's recipe and my dear other half enjoyed it very much also.

Cauliflower Cheese - makes 4 side dishes

1 medium head (about 2 to 2-1/4 pounds) cauliflower
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons mustard powder
Salt to taste
Freshly ground pepper
2 cups milk (I used low-fat and this dish still tasted very creamy)
1-1/4 cup, plus 2 tablespoons extra sharp, grated cheddar cheese

Parsley for garnish, chopped

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Trim the cauliflower and remove the core. Cut into 1 to 2 inch florets.

Steam in a saucepan for about ten minutes, or par-boil six to seven minutes until firm but tender.

Drain thoroughly to get rid of as much moister off the cauliflower as possible. Put it into the casserole that you are using to put in the oven and set aside. The casserole should be a 2-quart oven-proof baking dish.

Meanwhile in a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium-high heat.

Add the flour and whisk to combine; cook for 1 minute while stirring. You want to get rid of that uncooked flour taste.

Add mustard powder and a pinch of black pepper, stir to combine.

Drizzle milk in a little at a time, whisking gently to get rid of any lumps. Keep adding a little at a time and repeat whisking until all the milk is in the pan and the sauce is smooth.  

Season with salt and bring mixture to the point where you can see a bubble or two on the surface, but don't bring to a rolling boil.  Keep stirring so as not to burn the bottom of the sauce.  If it seems to be sticking at the bottom of the pan, turn it down a little and keep stirring. The mixture should be thickening by now.

Stir in 1-1/4 cups of cheese, a handful at a time. Wait for the cheese to melt before you add the next handful.  It won't take long.

Taste carefully and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Spoon the sauce over the cauliflower and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons cheese.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until there is a nice golden brown on top of your Cauliflower Cheese.  I sometimes turn the broiler on for the last couple of minutes, but watch it very carefully so that it doesn't burn.

What did we think of this menu?  Delicious!  Both the Pork roast and the Cauliflower Cheese recipes will be used again.  My thanks to Best Recipe Box and to Smitten Kitten for two great dishes.  

I used sage and thyme for my herb mix for the roast.

I also line the roasting pan with heavy foil.  This makes clean up a snap.

The second night was just as delicious as the first.

The Cauliflower Cheese and the peas were a perfect accompaniment to the roast and we didn't miss the potatoes.

We have yet more leftovers, enough pork for sandwiches for lunch and the Cauliflower Cheese will make a nice light supper.

Thanks for looking, enjoy your day and...

MONDAY RECIPE POST - EASY PORK AND CABBAGE STIR FRY - SERVES 4

Today's recipe I found at a blog called Savory Moments hosted by Amy.  You can see the original recipe here.  Amy has lots of wonderful recipes on her blog, and I know you will enjoy if you would  like to visit her.  Her Sour Cream and Raisin Oatmeal Squares are something I would like to try soon, among many other recipes.   We made this for the first time on March 6th, 2021.

Easy Pork and Cabbage Stir Fry - serves 4

For the sauce:

1/3 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup cold water

3 tablespoons rice vinegar

2 packed teaspoons brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 teaspoon (more or less to taste) Sriracha

1 tablespoon cornstarch

 

For the stir fry:

1 lb. ground pork

4 green onions, sliced with greens and whites separated

4 cups packed chopped green cabbage

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 cup white rice, cooked to package directions, for serving

Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients in a large glass measuring cup or a bowl. Set aside.

Heat a wok or heavy-bottom skillet over medium-high heat. When hot, add the pork. Cook, stirring frequently, until it is cooked through. 

Pour the pork into a colander and drain all but about 2 teaspoons of fat.

Place the pan back on the stove and stir in the cabbage and white portions of green onions. Cook for about 2 minutes, just until the cabbage starts to soften. 

Return the pork to the pan.

Stir in the sauce and let it come to a bubble and thicken. Stir to coat and stir in the cilantro.

Serve immediately with a side of rice and extra Sriracha, if desired.

This was an excellent meal, thank you Amy!

A few changes.

We had no cilantro so used parsley.  A lot of times and when low on certain ingredients, I am using what I have on hand just before our next shopping run.  However, parsley was a good substitute and I like the color it added.

We had no green onion so used regular white onions.

Hubs added a tablespoon of his hot chili paste.  We would add more next time for more heat.

At the table we added a dash or two of low-sodium soy sauce on the top.

There are plenty of leftovers and we are looking forward to enjoying this for two or three days.

I think this would be a good meal to freeze.

Thank you for taking the time to stop by. Have a great week and Bon Appetit!

MONDAY RECIPE POST - HOISIN PORK TENDERLOIN

Taste of Home is a food blog I go to all the time for ideas. I had two pork cutlets (not a tenderloin) in the freezer and instead of our tried and true recipe, I wanted something a little different. It worked out well. It is really fast from prep to table, about 30 minutes.  This is another Asian dish we now enjoy and you can find the original recipe here.

Hoisin Pork Tenderloin - makes 4 servings

Calories for 3 ounces cooked pork with 1/2 cup noodles and 2 tablespoons sauce: 458 calories.

1/3 cup hoisin sauce

3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce

3 tablespoons sugar

3 garlic cloves, minced

Dash crushed red pepper flakes

1 pork tenderloin (1 pound)

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons butter

2 packages (3 ounces each) ramen noodles or 2 cups hot cooked rice

Sliced green onions

 

Preheat oven to 475° F.

In a small saucepan mix the first 5 ingredients.  Set aside. 

Place tenderloin on a greased rack in a foil-lined 15x10x1-in. pan; brush with 1/4 cup hoisin mixture (it took about as long to cook our cutlets as they were quite thick).

Roast until a thermometer reads 145°, 15-20 minutes.

To the saucepan with the hoisin fixings, add the water, mix in thoroughly and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer uncovered to allow flavors to blend for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, stir in butter and keep warm.

Remove pork from oven; let stand 5 minutes before slicing.  Check with thermometer to make sure it is cooked through.  With oven temperatures being a little different, ours needed an extra five minutes.

Cook noodles according to package directions, removing the seasoning packets.  Drain.

Serve with pork and top with sauce and green onions.

Instead of the noodles we made a simple vegetable stir-fry using bok choy, sliced mini seedless sweet red peppers, sliced onions and sliced mushrooms cooked in a little olive oil. Just before they were done we added chopped cilantro.  When the vegetables were cooked we added some of the hoisin sauce.  A great addition as it made our vegetables very flavorful and did not clash with the pork cutlet.  Another one for the make again folder.

There is enough sauce left to use with our next meal, and also veggies.  I have some tofu in the fridge that I think I will use for the leftover sauce.

Thanks for looking and enjoy your week.