Family Dinner

Randy and I spent the weekend searching apple recipes, and settling on a favorite we made last year for dinner with my parents.  This is something he often teases me about, the fact that I will make something amazing and never make it again because I get too excited about new recipes!  As far as faults go, I suppose this is a good one.

The menu settled to:  Appetizer of heirloom tomatoes tossed with an easy viniagrette, brined pork chops with a spiced apple sauce, sautéed green beans from that mornings farmers market, roasted red potatoes with rosemary and parmesan cheese, followed by a home made apple pie for dessert.

The pork chop recipe I took from Tyler Florence’s ULTIMATE cookbook. The pork chops soak in a brine for 2 hours, making them fall-apart-in-your-mouth tender.

I was happy to use up many apples from the previous weekend’s pickings.  I was also proud of myself for realizing that these fresh apples were much sweeter than the green ones I usually use for the pie, and cut out a lot of the sugar I usually use.

It was so much fun to have my mom, dad, and grandma come visit me at my new house, and compliment me on my cooking skills.  We had a wonderful evening of food, family, and fun.

A Taste of Autumn – Oktoberfest and Apples in Julian

For those of us who live in Southern California, there is not much in the way of seasons.  Yes its October, but it still feels like June.  To get a bit of that fall color you see elsewhere (and really, just a bit) many head out to the mountains on the eastern edge of San Diego.  Which is exactly where I was headed this past weekend.

Randy and I took a day trip to Julian for their Oktoberfest.  Note to self, go a different weekend!  Julian is always crowded this time of year- like I said before, it’s pretty much the only place that remotely feels like fall – but this was especially packed!  The Oktoberfest was pretty cool.  They had music, and we got some delicious bratwurst and sauerkraut, but I think for future trips we’ll go a different weekend.

While in Julian we also picked up apple pies for the parents.  Julian is semi-famous for their apple pies, so it would be horrible to skip them.  Did a little browsing of the country themed shops, and walked around almost enjoying the old-towny feel of the place.  I say almost because of the crowds.

The best part of the day was that on the way home we stopped at an orchard.  I was hoping to get to walk around and pick my own apples, but at this point in the season they have all already been harvested.  Randy didn’t get my fascination with picking them, reminding me that we can pick fruit off of his trees all summer.  I still forget about that.  We did get to buy a bag and fill it with as many apples and pears as we wanted.  I loved that we got a chance to taste all of the apples that they offer before selecting them.  I filled up a giant basket and am looking forward to finding many apple-inspired recipes.

We finished off our day picking lemons at Randy’s house, sending me home with tons of fresh produce.

Lemon Tree at Randy's