... two is always better than one. Jennifer and Matthew have a blog. Together.

This is the story of what we do together.

19th December 2009

Post

Dinner and a Movie

I’m making dinner for Jennifer tonight.

Recipes modified from recipes found on the Internet. Here are the recipes:

Mulled Wine

1 bottle dry red wine 2 ounces tawny port 2 ounces of orange juice 2 cinnamon sticks 4 mulling spice tea bags (leftover from cinder mulling)

Combine ingredients in a large pot and bring to a simmer. Do not allow mixture to boil. If you do, the spices will get bitter.

This didn’t turn out so bad. … Less spices next time though.

Grilled Cheese Bruschetta

Modified from: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/grilled-cheese-bruschetta-recipe/index.html

This is what I ended up making.

  • 8 (1/2-inch) thick slices of bread
  • 1/4 cup olive oil mixed with 4 cloves crushed garlic
  • 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, finely grated
  • 8 ounces soft goat cheese (this ended up being Brie)
  • 2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

Preheat grill. Brush each slice of bread with the garlic oil. Grill, oil-side-down until lightly golden brown. Turn each slice over and top with 2 tablespoons of Monterey Jack, 1-ounce of goat cheese and black pepper. Grill until cheese just begins to melt.

I didnt’ really use the original type of bread in the recipe…. because…. I didn’t have any on hand. Also, did not have one of those fancy brushes … so I dipped the side of the bread in the oil mix on a plate.

Cuban Pork Chops

Modified from: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/cuban-pork-chops-with-mojo-recipe/index.html

  • 1/2 cup plus 1/8 cup orange juice, divided 1/4 cup plus
  • 1/8 cup fresh lime juice, divided
  • 1/8 cup vinegar (apple cider)
  • 3 (1-inch-thick) bone-in pork chops
  • 1/2 tablespoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoons kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
  • steak seasoning
  • 1/8 cup chopped red onion
  • 1 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1/8 cup white wine (more like … 3 glugs from the bottle)

So… I didn’t have lime juice, but I did have alot of limes. I cut them up and squeezed. them and then added them into the marinade.

In a gallon-sized resealable plastic bag, combine 1 cup orange juice, 1/2 cup lime juice, and vinegar. Add pork and let it sit and marinate for about 1 hour in refrigerator. For me … this ended up being like… 4 hours.

In a small mixing bowl, combine all dried spices. The original recipe had alot of spices and I thought that we had them also, turns out… we didn’t so I used more salt and pepper with a little steak seasoning. This was rubbed into both sides of the pork.

Heat oil in a large saute pan over high heat. Place the pork chops in the pan and sear on 1 side until brown. Flip over and turn the heat down to medium-low. Add onion and saute for 2 minutes. Then add the garlic and continue to cook until garlic begins to brown. Pour in the remaining 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup lime juice, and white wine. Simmer until the liquid is slightly reduced and begins to thicken. The chops should be cooked through.

Remove the chops from pan and put on a warm plate. Scoop the onion / garlic / pepper mix onto the top of the chops.

This was served with some green beans, served with lemon pepper and some butter.

The pork chops were really good. The salt / pepper rub combined well with the orange juice so that it was kind of like a citrusy/salty pork chop.

Pro - tip: more spices, less salt next time. Maybe more lime.