A Delicious Autumn Meal

Apple, Bacon, Sage and Fontina Stuffed Pork Chops
(print recipe) 

6 bacon slices
2 Gala Smith apples, peeled and diced
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 cup fontina cheese, cubed
4 boneless pork chops
1 1/8 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 red potatoes, scrubbed and cubed

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp; remove bacon, and drain on paper towels, reserving 2 tablespoons drippings in skillet. Crumble bacon, and set aside.
Sauté the chopped apples, shallots, and ginger in hot drippings 5 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat; stir in sage.
Stir together apple mixture, bacon, and cheese in a bowl. Do not clean the pan.

Cut a horizontal slit through thickest portion of each pork chop, cutting to, but not through, other side to form a pocket. Sprinkle both sides and pocket of each pork chop with salt and pepper. Spoon apple mixture into pockets.  Reserve any extra "stuffing".
Sear pork chops,in same skillet apple mixture was sauteed in over medium-high heat 1 to 2 minutes on each side or until golden. (You may need to add some additional olive oil).  Surround with cubed potatoes, sprinkle with some salt and pepper and  drop the extra "stuffing" over potatoes
Bake at 425° for 25 to 30 minutes or until done.

Labels: apple, fontina, pork chops

Read more: http://www.thesaucygourmet.net/2011/11/apple-bacon-sage-and-fontina-stuffed.html#ixzz28j8lzyS8

I loved all the components of this recipe. Really...can anything with bacon not taste great! The only thing I left out was the ginger. Of course I left a garden full of sage back in CT and the supermarket here in AZ was out of fresh sage which meant I had to buy jarred sage. :(

I also opted not to make a dessert. I used the pumpkin ingredient to make a soup. In spite of the fact that I did not use fresh pumpkin, it was very good and I would make it again. I used one can of pureed pumpkin and made some minor adjustments with the other ingredients to get the consistency right. It would be a nice starter to a Thanksgiving meal. Here is the pumpkin soup recipe. BTW I did not serve it in the cute little pumpkins.  Bowls were just fine for Bob and I. 

http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/soups/pumpkin-soup-2/?print=1/#size3x5

Prep Time 5 Minutes Cook Time 1 Hour

Servings 8

Difficulty Easy

Ingredients

• 2 whole Pie Pumpkins
• 1 quart Vegetable Or Chicken Stock
• ½ cups Heavy Cream
• ⅓ cups Maple Syrup
• Dash Of Nutmeg
• Salt To Taste
• Extra Cream, For Serving

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place pumpkins on a cookie sheet and roast them until slightly shriveled and soft. Allow to cool slightly, then slice in half and carefully scoop out seeds and pulp. Scoop yummy flesh into a bowl. Set aside.

In a pot, heat up the pumpkin flesh with the stock and maple syrup until simmering. Mash out the big chunks, the transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor (or use an immersion blender) and puree until velvety smooth. Add cream and nutmeg, then blend again.

Reheat if you need to, or just go ahead and serve in a hollowed-out pumpkin of whatever size you’d like.

Overall, I would encourage you to try these recipes.