Basil and Peach Pork Chops

I have a new found love for the combination of peaches and fresh basil. It started by subbing peaches for tomatoes in a caprese salad before all the peaches I had on my counter began to rot. It was truly one of the best things I've ever thrown together to see what might happen in the kitchen.  And now I don't want to eat anything peaches without some fresh basil.

We have been getting a lot of pork from our meat share at 1st Generation Farms and I am thrilled to have found a new summer goto recipe for them since my previous pork goto included a crock pot and sauerkraut and typically tasted best with a side of Sunday afternoon football. Add in the fact that I used the peaches and basil from my CSA and I feel like a true locavore, supporting local farms and eating fresh and in season. It makes my heart sing.

So I've done cooked down peaches over pork before and it's pretty complimentary. BUT this time I added some basil and it took it to the next level. Not to toot my own horn but *toot toot* this may have been one of the best dinners I ever made.  So far I've made it twice. Once with the bourbon butter sauce and once with some Paleo substitutions to make it compliant for my Whole 30.

The substitutions didn't really alter the awesomeness of this recipe, even if saying a bourbon butter sauce makes it sound so much tastier. (Because it does. I've gone over it in my head and will always want to choose the one with the bourbon and butter sauce.) Truth be told,  it wasn't as sweet (skipped adding a little maple syrup) and it didn't have quite the depth of flavor from the bourbon but it was still summery and glorious. I subbed ghee in for the butter so there was still a buttery sauce even if ghee doesn't sound quite as delicious and buttery as butter. But really WHY HAVE I NOT BEEN TOLD ABOUT THE GLORIOUSNESS OF GHEE AS A COOKING FAT BEFORE NOW. Or why have I not paid attention. Because it rocks my socks.

I am going to post both variations below.


Happy Eats!


Peach & Basil Pork Chops

• 4 bone in pork chops (or whatever you have on hand)
• salt & pepper - to taste
• dried basil - to taste
• 1 to 2 teaspoons ghee (or other cooking fat)

• 1/2 small onion, diced*
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 fresh peaches, sliced
• 1/2 cup homemade chicken stock
• 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup**
• a handful of fresh basil, cut into long thin strips (chiffonade)
• 2 TBS bourbon**
• 2 TBS grass fed butter (or ghee)

Sprinkle pork with salt, pepper and dried basil.

Add 1-2 teaspoons ghee to a large skillet. Add pork to skillet and cook until browned on both sides. About 3 minutes each side.

Remove from pan and keep warm.

Add onion and garlic. Saute until onion begins to become translucent. Add peaches and broth and maple syrup. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally for another 3-5 minutes. I like to make sure the peaches are getting good and cooked down. Add bourbon, ghee and fresh basil. Cook for 5 minutes until sauce looks like it is beginning to thicken.

Pour on top of pork chops and garnish with more fresh basil if desired.

Enjoy and marvel at the healthy, fancy pants dinner you just made.

xoxo


*I think green onion or glamming it up with some shallots here would be amazing but I only had a small yellow onion on hand. It is what it is.

**skip for 21 Day Fix or Paleo/Whole 30 (trust me it's still good)
** sub apple cider vinegar for 21 Day Fix or Paleo/Whole 30

21 Day Fix Containers:
1 red
1 purple
2 Teaspoons

Quick and Easy Watermelon Frozen Yogurt Pops

I have been toying with the idea of getting popsicle molds for a while. And I look at some. And add them to my Amazon cart. And delete them from my Amazon cart and figure I will just wait and get some when I need them.

Well I recently moved into an area where the ice cream truck comes multiple times a day. Playing it's Pied Piper music that drives my four year old to the place where she has to have a popsicle or she is going to lose it. (She is just slightly dramatic.) And since we weren't even close to summer when this started happening, I figured I needed to bit the bullet and finally commit to some ice pop molds.

And in my best fashion, I continued to put it off. We found ourselves in mid-July when I finally gave in and ordered some molds. And then a few weeks later I ordered another set because they were awesome. And I was kicking myself for waiting that long in the first place.

The molds we ended up with were FoodWorks Silicone Popsicle Molds and I fell in love with them for a few reasons.

• They weren't a drippy mess. I had visions of my four year old coming in the house or standing in my kitchen with popsicle goo dripping on my floors and down the front of here. With these, even if she takes forever to eat them they are a squeezy tube. No drippy messes.

• The caps seal really well. I was a little bit afraid to just stick the cap on and throw them into the freezer on their sides or wherever I could stick them. But no problems. And B can recap hers, stick it back in the freezer and finish it another day (that doesn't typically happen but at least its an option.)

• I can stick them anywhere I want in the freezer. I don't need to have space for a stand or holder or a flat area where they need to be chilled so they don't spill everywhere. 

• Dishwasher safe. Enough said. 

For the past month we have been playing with recipes. This one is my absolute favorite. 

Watermelon Lime Yogurt Pops

What you need:

2 cups of cubed watermelon

3/4 cup greek yogurt* 

Juice of 2 limes (about 1 TBS)

Sweetener of choice to taste**

Blend it all together. Pour into popsicle molds. Freeze and enjoy! 

* to make them dairy free I have also used coconut milk yogurt

**I used about a tablespoon of raw honey to sweeten ours

21 Day Fix Conversion: (For 2 popsicles)

2/3 Purple

1/3 Red 

1/2 Teaspoon (if using honey)

(Truthfully...there is so little greek yogurt per serving that I tend to not count it. Especially if I only have one. Because 1/6 of that container is like an extra bite of chicken. I would be a little more concerned if it was something I ate everyday.)