A beautiful, relaxing weekend...

Hi friends! What a gorgeous weekend we had! I worked Saturday, but was done early enough to still have some time to relax. So, Saturday afternoon, I did my meal planning, made my grocery list, and went to the store (a very calming ritual for me!). Saturday night, I decided to make maple-mustard pork chops with winter squash puree (from Cooking Light). I saw this recipe in the March edition of the magazine and thought it looked delicious. Well, not only does it look and sound good, it tastes amazing! Here is a link to March 2010 recipe index, but I can't find this one on the list, so here it is:

Maple mustard pork chops

Cooking Light March 2010

4 (6oz) bone-in center cut pork chops
1/2 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp black pepper
cooking spray
1 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. finely chopped shallots
1/4 cup fat-free, less sodium chicken broth
2 Tbsp. dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
2 Tbsp. chopped flat leaf parsley

Sprinkle both sides of pork with 1/4 tsp salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium- high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork to pan; cook 3 min on each side or until cooked through, but with a slight blush in the center. Remove from pan; keep warm. Return pan to medium-high heat. Add butter to pan, swirling to coat. Add shallots; saute 3 min or until tender and translucent. Add broth; bring to a boil, and cook 1 min. Stir in mustard, syrup, and remaining salt; cook 1 min or until slightly thick. Return pork to pan. Cook pork 1 min each side. Serve pork with sauce, garnish with parsley.

Winter Squash Puree

1/3 cup fat free, less sodium chicken broth
2 12 oz packages frozen cooked butternut squash
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp grated orange rind
1 and 1/2 tsp maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Place squash and broth in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cover and cook 15 min until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally. Add butter and remaining ingredients, stir until combined.

I served this with some steamed green beans...



Today we took the canoe out on the reservior and enjoyed the sunshine. I took my new camera to practice taking pictures. Here are some shots from the day... We saw a sleeping aligator...and snuck up on him for a photo shoot.








Tonight, for dinner, I made Cooking Light's Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic. I am now obsessed with this recipe. I really don't like chicken, and I ate every bite of mine! A big deal for me...I usually just eat the bread and veggies. Here is the recipe:

Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic

Cooking Light

2 (3-pound) whole chickens
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
40 garlic cloves, peeled
1 1/4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup dry white wine
24 (1/4-inch-thick) slices diagonally cut French bread baguette
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)
Preparation
Remove and discard giblets and neck from chickens. Rinse chickens with cold water; pat dry. Trim excess fat; remove skin. Cut each chicken into 8 pieces. Combine butter and oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle salt and pepper evenly over chicken. Add half of chicken pieces to pan; cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Repeat procedure with remaining chicken.

Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic; cook 1 minute or until garlic begins to brown, stirring frequently. Arrange chicken on top of garlic. Add broth and wine; cover and cook 25 minutes or until chicken is done.

Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Increase heat to medium-high; cook 10 minutes or until liquid is reduced to about 1 cup. Serve sauce and garlic with chicken and bread. Garnish with chopped parsley, if desired.

I made some roasted potatoes to go with this lovely chicken dinner. Also, I added some tuscan seasoning mix along with the salt and pepper on the chicken. The garlic gets soft and spreadable...perfect for the baguette slices...mmmm.