For a while I thought of pork chops as uninspired. I don’t know exactly when that changed, but it has. The last few months I’ve been buying (mostly boneless) pork chops quite regularly. I’ve grilled them, I’ve pan-fried them, both in butter and in oil, I’ve baked them. They’re quick and easy and as long as you make sure you don’t overcook them, they’re juicy and tender. Quick and easy for a work-night-dinner with a simple pasta, some roasted potatoes or whatever other carb or veggie you like to quickly whip up.
The way I treat them can vary. Sometimes I slice them very thin (in half, or thirds even, about 1/4 to 1/3 of an inch thick) and marinate them for 15 minutes in olive oil, crushed garden and resemary I picked from my garden. Just drop them in a dry skillet, turn once brown and you’re done. They’re great when they’ve cooled off as well, so you can make them in advance and just serve them in a cold dinner with a salad on hot summer evenings.
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Laurens and I both had a 4-day weekend last week. Thursday was a nationally observed holiday in the Netherlands, and I had Friday off. Laurens decided to take Friday off as well, so we could have a nice long weekend together.
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Since we wanted to visit Laurens’ parents, who had just returned from Italy, we figured we could finally go to the ‘Drunense Duinen’, a National Park near his parents town. The Drunense Duinen are beautiful. They are natural sand dunes in the middle of dry land. No water in sight. The only big problem in the Drunense Duinen is that nature is doing too well. Trees and bushes that aren’t supposed to grow in dunes have been thriving and a very large part of this amazing dune-land has been overgrown with forests. The preservation societies are actually cutting down trees there, to preserve nature. It’s a strange phenomenon.
A little while ago I recieved an e-mail from a co-worker. She stated that another co-worker had presented her with a chocolate cake and she wanted to share it with the rest of the office. Being the nice person that I am, I was obviously willing to help her eat it.
When I saw the cake, I thought it was actually a brownie. I was pleasantly surprised when it wasn’t. Not that I have anything against brownies – not at all. But this cake had a completely different, but very appealing structure. It was light and airy, slightly sticky, like the inside of an almost-baked meringue and it had a little bit of a grainy structure in it, which obviously came from nuts. It was delicious!
I thoroughly realize that I’m no George Lucas, writing a prequel before going through the actual event and at least 2 sequels, but that’s just how I roll.
I heard about Food Blogger Connect for the first time right around the time it happened last year. I couldn’t make it, but ever since I’ve been hoping that this year it’d be around a time I’d be able to go.
Halfway through february all up us pre-pre-registrants (aka the people who commented on the website and said, “heck yes, keep me informed, I so want to be there!”) received an e-mail, stating that early registration was now open and to be quick to see if you wanted a pass for the special workshop, as there were only 20 spots.
I went and checked it out and decided to go without the workshop, but immediately did register. A couple of days later my confirmation was in and I was on my way too FBC. Figuratively speaking – obviously – as it was still February. Even if I’d walk there, I wouldn’t need so much time to get there.
Sometimes simplicity really is the key to a wonderful meal. Sometimes you don’t really have to do anything, to make something delicious. That’s the case with this zucchini recipe. Actually, I shouldn’t be calling it a recipe. Honestly, I don’t feel this is a true recipe. A recipe to me is something where you actually need to follow directions, have a number of steps and create something totally different from the ingredients. Or something like that. I probably don’t explain it correctly, but for something to be a recipe, it needs to be more difficult than this dinner.
I know not everyone thinks about this the same way. I honestly saw a ‘recipe’ written out somewhere, the other day, for an almond butter and apple sandwich. It had an ingredient list and steps stated. Take bread, smear almond butter, then put slices of apple on top. Ooh dang, now I’ve committed plagiarism, or not, I’ve shortened it, significantly, and I’m not one known for writing short.
Oh well. Recipes.
Networks
