22 August 2007

Pregnant Lady’s Still Gotta Get Her Booze On


Well if I can’t drink anymore, I’m going to have to supplement my daily alcoholic beverage(s) with something just as delicious…

Hmmmmm….after much thought, I still have not discovered an adequate replacement for the libations that once brought so much joy into my life. I guess my only option is to add alcohol to my cooking instead of consuming it in liquid form.

This grilled pork with apricot-brandy glaze (recipe below) does just the trick. The small amount of hooch in the glaze is still enough to keep hair on my chest, but not enough to cause the little Nugget to be born with the IQ of a toad.

For those like me who are also suffering from an insufficient alcoholic intake, may I suggest some additional substitutions:
Beer can chicken (beer turns into steam; steam keeps chicken moist while grilling)
Tiramisu (just a wee bit of rum in the syrup!)
Beer sponge baths (no explanation needed)

By the way, I apologize for the long break in Fancy Toast posts. I soon hope to be posting more regularly! The constant nausea of the first trimester has passed, and I can finally look at photographs of food and be hungry instead of queasy. Now when I want to feel queasy I just look at photographs of myself in seventh grade when my perm was halfway growed-out and the top half of my hair was straight and the bottom half of my hair was a holy mess of floppy squiggles.


Pork Chops with Apricot-Brandy Glaze
~ adapted from Grilling by Chuck Williams and Denis Kelly

This is my standby grilled pork recipe. Delicious. Never fails to yield juicy, slightly spicy pork chops with the perfect amount of sweetness from the caramelized glaze.

Ingredients:
8 pork chops, at least 1-inch thick (I prefer bone-in for the juiciness)

Spice Rub:
1 tablespoon sweet paprika (I used a combination of sweet and smoked)
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1.5 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

For the apricot-brandy glaze:
½ cup apricot jam
2 tablespoons brandy or apricot brandy
1 tablespoon dry mustard
juice of 1 lemon

Directions:
Mix all ingredients of spice rub together in a bowl.
Rub generously on both sides of each pork chop.

To make the glaze, heat the jam in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir in the brandy, mustard, and lemon juice. Remove from heat and set aside. When ready to use, reheat while whisking contantly.

Grill the pork chops over medium-high heat, turning once, about 3-4 minutes per side. Move the chops to an unheated part of the grill and brush the glaze onto both sides. Cover the grill and cook for 2-4 minutes. Pork chops should be just faintly pink inside. Try your hardest not to overcook them, as they become dry in just a few too many seconds over the coals. (My husband never grills without his trusty digital thermometer. He lets the pork chops come to 150 degrees Fahrenheit and then he lets them rest for a few minutes under tin foil.)

30 comments:

Helene said...

When you posted the cauliflower soup I had a moment of hesitation because that is exactly the kind I was making for my neighbor during her first trimester.
Recipe looks mouth watering and finger licking good. Glad to read you are feeling better.

Anonymous said...

YAY!!! I am so glad to see you back, and to congratulate you and the hubby on the impending nugget. So exciting!!

And, yum, pork chops. Must de-encrust grill left to us by former tenants. Or throw it out and find one on clearance.

Teobromina said...

Very, very glad to see a new post! And I agree 100%: You still gotta get your booze on. Those chops look... yum!

I'm not much of a drinker myself, but I have a special category for all my alcoholic recipes: drunk food. Here's a sample: Drunk Cake. Hope you'll like it.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations! And glad to see a new post!

Aoife said...

Duuuude! Congratulations! Also, nice grill marks, I'm very impressed.

Kim said...

Awww... congratulations, soon-to-be mama.

I was wondering where you'd gone.

please let us know how things are going! :)

Kim Lane / editor
www.austinmama.com
Celebrating a mama's world:
the heart-soaring,
sacred
mess of it all.
*Award-winning concept
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Anonymous said...

I'd been thinking that there would be a good reason for no posts, and man - do you have a good reason! Congratulations!

I also love my digital thermometer, it's really cut down on incidents where I have to say things like "But the outside is done...maybe if we put it in the oven for a while?...damn."

shaz said...

Hey there, just wanted you to know I'm in the same boat - alcohol-free, sashimi-free, (almost) caffeine-free diet. Someone just kill me. Btw, i'm at 28 weeks. counting down to sane diet again! Yeh!

Anonymous said...

you're pregnant! wonderful news, congratulations!

Patricia Scarpin said...

Erielle, congratulations on the baby!

Amalee Issa said...

Erielle, so glad you're back and feeling a bit better. I love the part about the not wanting a Nugget with the IQ of a toad. What a brilliant sentence! Welcome back.

Amalee

Anonymous said...

oh yay! Congrats! I have missed your posts - you are in for a whirlwind of adventure coming up, so it will give you lots to blog about, at the same time it is stealing all of your blogging time. :)

Linda said...

what stunning photographs. you are such a talented photographer! love your style.

and congrats on your new adventures to come with your pregnancy!

evinrude said...

Congrats! And a big YAY! to have you back and posting! I was desperately waiting for a post other than granola bars even though I do love granola bars =p

Noah Oliphant said...

Wow. Just wow.

Beautiful pictures and it makes me want to eat a chop for breakfast.

www.reciperate.com

J said...

I had almost pulled you from my blogroll, thinking you were giving up blogging! Those pictures make me glad I didn't.

Congratulations on your happy news, and I'm glad you're past that horrid nausea.

Toni said...

Congratulations and I'm happy to hear you're feeling better. Morning sickness can really get you, especially when it is all day. I love the looks of the chop and hope to it soon. Enjoy the nesting time, that little chick will be here before you know it.

Anonymous said...

Yay you're back ! :) Congrats on the impending bub.
Another good use of beer is in a quick braise with fish. Made it last week and can vouch for it being very tasty. (Or beer battered fish?)

Inne said...

Congratulations Erielle! I was wondering where you had disappeared to, glad to hear you're feeling better. The pork chops look delicious.

ER said...

You are one (important) step closer to educating your babies with Macaroni and Cheese and Buffalo Chicken goodness. High maintenance, high quality children are sure to ensue. Congrats!

Linda said...

looks delish! i adore that first photograph. perfect. you style your food very well.

Anonymous said...

Ha! When I was pregnant, I would smell my husband's wine. Heavenly. Remember, it only lasts 9 months, that is, unless you breast feed the little bug. (But even then, there are ways.)

Elise of Simply Recipes made some Spicy Citrus Ribs with a bourbon glaze that will have you licking your grill grates. Worth a try for a girl who's all dried up.

http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/005302grilled_spicy_citrus_ribs.php

Anonymous said...

congrats on your preggers!!!

so exciting and glad to see ur finding creative ways for alcohol intake. lloks delish!

Amalee Issa said...

Hi Erielle, hope everything's ok.

PeppyPilotGirl said...

Just don't bother with those de-alcoholized wines. Not worth it. Like grape juice in a wine bottle. I'm not out of my first trimester yet and I'm already craving a vodka gimlet with a vengeance.

Anonymous said...

Your photo of the chop with the exact amount of coal burn ratio to slathers of sauce makes me want to risk it all and go off my raw food diet for a night.

Anonymous said...

Everything on that plate looks amazing!

Unknown said...

Are you ever going to post again? :)


Miss your blog!

Kim

Terri said...

Wow! These look wonderful. Love your blog and your photographs are out of this world!!!

Terri
www.burningkitchen.blogspot.com

J said...

You've given up on us, I see. Sigh.

Baby's here by now, right? Babies are delicious, so maybe you could post a pic?