Sweet and Spicy Jalapeno Glazed Pork Chops

Ive always been a big fan of sweet and spicy food, especially when the spice and sugar are balanced and one doesn't overbear the other. After searching for a Honey Jalapeno Glaze from a restaurant (Rio Bravo) that went out of business a few years ago, I stumbled across this simple mix and decided to give it a try on Pork Chops.

Ingredients: 1 Cup Jalapenos

1 Cup Vinegar

2 Cups Sugar

3/4 Cup Honey

1 tsp. Salt

Package of Pork Chops

For the Glaze:

Chop the Jalapenos into 1/4 in. thick slices (enough for 1 Cup)

In a large pan, add the Sugar

Vinegar

Jalapenos

Salt

And Honey together mixing well

Stir over medium heat until boiling

Reduce the heat and simmer for *10-15 minutes (stirring constantly)

Remove from heat, cover with a lid, and let cool

For the Pork Chops:

Season both sides with Salt and Pepper (to taste)

Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate thirty minutes

Once cooled, place the Chops into a large pan over medium high heat just long enough to lightly sear the outside

Flip over and repeat on the other side

After all of the Pork Chops have been seared, place them all into the pan

Pour the Jalapeno Glaze over the top

Cover tightly with tinfoil and bake in a preheated oven at 350F for thirty minutes

Check to make sure they're fully cooked

Then serve and enjoy

The Pork Chops have a great sweet and spicy flavor, but the Glaze wasn't reduced enough (*simmer longer) and didn't really soak into the meat to give it a WOW flavor. Next time Ill tenderize the chops ahead of time and let them sit in the sauce overnight before searing the outsides.The Jalapeno slices on the other hand turned out wonderful, they have a candied flavor to them, sweet at first, then tingly hot afterwards. I definitely plan to make this Glaze again, but next time think it'd be better suited for rib meat.

Cream Cheese Oreo Dips

I received a e-mail not to long ago from a friend (The Todd) asking if I had ever had Cream Cheese and Oreos rolled into balls and covered in Chocolate. I replied that I hadn't but would like to have the recipe, to which his reply was of course, the recipe. So I went out and gathered the ingredients and below is my attempt at recreating the instructions.

Ingredients: 2 Packages Oreos (or generic store brand)

16 oz. Cream Cheese

White/Milk Chocolate for Dipping

Place the Cookies into a sealable bag

Then smash them into powdery pieces

Combine the crushed Cookies and Cream Cheese together in a bowl

Mix thoroughly

Roll into balls and place onto wax paper, then freeze for thirty minutes

In separate bowls, melt the two chocolates while the Cookies harden

Once cooled enough, remove the Cookies from the freezer

Dip both sides into the Chocolate

Make sure to get a even coating

Then place back on the wax paper 

Once all the Cookies have been dipped, put them back into the freezer until the Chocolate solidifies

Eat and enjoy

At first I was skeptical of what kind of concoction Todd had e-mailed me, especially after seeing the blackened grey mess all the ingredients mixed together made. However, after waiting for the finished product to cool then trying one for myself, it put all my skepticism aside. The Cream Cheese really adds a nice flavor to the Oreos (while holding everything together), and the Chocolate ties it all together without being too overbearingly sweet. Ill definitely make these again, but next time Id like to try a different flavored creme cookie other than Oreos.

Cinnamon Rolls

While at the Used Book Superstore the other day in New Hampshire, I happened upon a cookbook from a local church in Winterset, Iowa that has tons of southern style recipes and stories collected from their older members over the years. After reading through its vast array of breads, desserts, and family traditions, I decided to try my hand at making the Cinnamon rolls since the recipe and description both sound amazing.

Ingredients: 2 1/2 Cups Water (lukewarm)

2 Packages Yeast

1 Box Yellow Cake Mix

6 1/4 Cups Flour

3 Eggs

1/3 Cup Oil

1 tsp. Salt

Butter (softened)

Sugar

Cinnamon

In a large bowl, mix together the Yeast

And Water (let sit three minutes)

Stir in the Cake mix

One Cup Flour

The Eggs

Oil

And Salt, beat until bubbles form

Start adding the remaining Flour a Cup at a time until a soft Dough forms

Turn the Dough out onto a lightly Floured surface and knead until smooth (about 8-10 minutes)

Return the Dough to the bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size (40-60 minutes)

Once risen, uncover and punch down the Dough

On a lightly Floured surface, roll out the Dough into a 1/4 in. thick rectangle

Cover with the softened Butter

Then sprinkle well with Sugar

And Cinnamon

Roll the Dough from one side to the next jelly roll style

Tuck the ends under and pinch the seam shut

Mark the size of Rolls you want with a knife before cutting, then slice and place on a lightly oiled sheet pan

Once finished, place the unbaked Rolls into a preheated oven at 350F

Bake 25-35 minutes (depending on Roll size) or until golden brown on top

Remove from the oven, cover with icing or powdered sugar

Serve and Enjoy

The Cinnamon Rolls turned out good, but not great. The consistency and chew are both excellent, but I feared overdoing the Cinnamon and Sugar flavor so I went light on both and paid the price, they have a mild flavor and are more bready tasting than anything. My suggestion if you give this recipe a go is to double, maybe even triple the amount of Cinnamon and Sugar that I did in the pictures.