Warm Meals for Cold Nights

Winter dinners are the best! There's nothing like something warm bubbling in a slow cooker, or the wonderful smells that come from roasting veggies. My favorite roasting treat is red onions (sliced thick) and sweet potatoes. Toss those two in olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary...and hold on. Your kitchen is about to be filled with the most wonderful smells!

Last night I made Mr. SE the recipe below from my latest issue of Real Simple. He was in the garage working away on our media center (more to come), so I decided to treat him to something special. This dish received an A+ from both of us. The best part is that I'm eating the leftovers for lunch today!

*We used boneless butterflied pork chops, which I cut in half to make 4 servings
*Added 2tbsp apple cider vinegar to the pan while the pork chops were cooking
*Used collards instead of kale- my Georgia boy loves them!
*I added red onions and sweet potatoes to the roasted squash

Ingredients

• 1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds)—peeled, seeded, and cut into 1 1⁄2-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup fresh sage leaves (used dried rosemary instead)
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 4 bone-in pork chops (each 1 inch thick; about 2 pounds total) (we used boneless)
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 large bunch kale, thick ribs removed and leaves roughly chopped (about 14 cups) (we used collards)

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400° F. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss the squash with the sage, 1 tablespoon of the oil, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Roast, tossing once, until tender, 30 to 35 minutes.
2. When the squash has cooked for 20 minutes, heat 1 teaspoon of the remaining oil in a large skillet over high heat. Season the pork with ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook until browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side.
3. Transfer the pork to the baking sheet with the squash and roast until the pork is cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes more.
4. Meanwhile, return the skillet to medium heat and add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the kale, ¼ cup water, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, tossing the kale and scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the skillet, until the kale is tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Serve with the pork and squash.

Side note: We ate dinner while watching Part 2 of the Beverly Hills Housewives reunion. Are you Team Kyle or Team Camille?

Cooking Light Success

I recently subscribed to Cooking Light and I'm obsessed! The recipes are easy and taste great- we've loved everthing so far. Also, it's great to have seasonal menu options every month. Mr. SE and I have been expirimenting with different dinner meals, and this is what we made last night.

Pork Chops are our new favorite! We've made two Cooking Light pork chop recipes and loved it. Bonus? Pork is cheap! Both of these recipes called for tenderloin, but we made them with chops instead. A+

From the magazine "Sweet spices coat lean pork tenderloin, while apples get a savory treatment with shallots and thyme. Serve with a spinach salad."

Total: 20 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut crosswise into 12 pieces (4 pork chops)
Cooking spray
2 tablespoons butter (Brummel & Brown spread)
2 cups thinly sliced unpeeled Braeburn or Gala apple
1/3 cup thinly sliced shallots
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup apple cider (mix of cider vinegar & orange juice)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Preparation
1. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Combine first 5 ingredients; sprinkle spice mixture evenly over pork. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Remove pork from pan; keep warm.

2. Melt butter in pan; swirl to coat. Add apple slices, 1/3 cup shallots, and 1/8 teaspoon salt; sauté 4 minutes or until apple starts to brown. Add apple cider to pan, and cook for 2 minutes or until apple is crisp-tender. Stir in thyme leaves. Serve apple mixture with the pork.

Are you inspired to cook seasonally? Let me know if you have any great fall recipes we should try!