Broiled Horsey Chops with Savory Apples, A Meal For Your Man

What a weekend it's been, once again I am a proud Tia (auntie) of a beautiful baby boy! And yesterday my gorgeous little sister celebrated her birthday. Felicidades (congratulations) to both of my beautiful and wonderful sisters, I love you guys. Plus tomorrow is Valentine's day, an anniversary of sorts for my hubby and I. Because of the holiday everywhere you look you see sweets and dessert ideas for that special someone. But you can't just eat cookies and chocolate, you've got to make him a special meal he will love. This recipe is guaranteed to satisfy any man in your life! How can I guarantee this to you? Well, a wonderful man created this recipe, my husband. He is a fantastic cook and he taught me many things about cooking and also introduced me to world cuisine and to many "exotic" ingredient (like in this dish). I say exotic because to an immigrant Mexican girl horseradish IS exotic. I don't recall my mother ever making us tacos or tamales with horseradish... nope don't think so. Maybe we should try that sometime, you never know.

In our previous flat we had a large kitchen in which we used to cook together. It was our way of catching up and a great opportunity for me to learn his recipes. Our current kitchen is smaller than a closet, so nowadays I do the majority of the cooking. Not because he doesn't like to cook, but because it's my way of paying him back for all of those years he cooked. Ok, maybe it's also because he can't get enough of the Mexican food that I cook :) Sometimes we'll both squeeze into our tiny kitchen to cook together and I love it. Cooking with your special someone is something that I highly recommend, it is fun and a great way to let go of the day's stress.

Horsey Pork Chops Ingredients:
Bone-in pork chops, I make 2 per person
prepared horseradish, use as much as you like
salt
ground black pepper
vegetable oil to lightly coat

TIP* to prevent too much mess in the oven, cover a baking sheet with aluminuim foil and place right underneath the oven rack with the pork chops. Then just remove after broiling is done or easy cleanup.*
1. Preheat broiler for 10 minutes, Pat dry the pork chops and brush with a little bit of vegetable oil. Rub the pork chops with a little bit of salt and black pepper on both sides. Place the pork chops directly on oven rack right underneath broiler. Cook for 10 minutes then flip and continue cooking for another 10 minutes. Pour some prepared horseradish onto a small bowl. Use a spoon to spread a thick layer of horseradish ontop of each pork chop. Slide the coated pork chops back under the broiler and cook until the horseradish is dark and charred. Check on them often to prevent smoking and burning. **For more tips on broiling times and distance please read this article : Grilling and Broiling Pork on recipetips.com. **

My husband says he got the idea for these pork chops from his mom's pork roast that is rubbed with a little bit of horseradish coating. The name Horsey Chops, it seems that he got the inspiration from Arby's Horsey sauce. Typically we serve it with mashed potatoes and steamed Brussels sprouts. This last time I made the Horsey Chops I decided to serve them with some savory baked apples, and it was a great combination of flavors.

Savory Baked Apples Ingredients:
3 small apples, (I used a local variety of Jonagold)
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tbsp. ghee (clarified butter) or 1 tbsp. sunflower oil

1. Preheat oven to 200C or 392F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or baking mat then set aside. Core the apples and cut into even sized wedges. Mix all ingredients until apple wedges are well coated with the spices and oil. Spread the apple wedges on a baking sheet, bake in the center of the oven for 10 minutes or until tender.

This meal is super easy to make, fast, you won't have to wash many dishes, inexpensive, and so delicious. You could call it the perfect meal for your man but you'll also love it. Delicious enough for a special occasion and easy enough for any night of the week.

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Bratwurst mit Sauerkraut

Bratwurst mit (with) Sauerkraut and a beer is a meal made for a man! Okay us ladies will also really enjoy this meal for it's flavors and if it's your turn to cook dinner for it's convenience. Sauerkraut is the German word for a fermented finely shredded white cabbage. Sauerkraut is somewhat sour and has a slight crunchiness or crispness to it. It is a common ingredient in not only German but several Slavic dishes and let's not forget a delicious French dish called Choucroute Garnie made with sauerkraut, sausages and some salted meats. I really liked Choucroute but other than that I mostly have seen or have used Sauerkraut used as a topping for grilled sausages and both as a side dish and inside of Polish Pierogi dumplings.

Bratwurst means sausage in German, the sausage is made of either Veal,pork or beef. The Bratwurst I like the most is the one made from Veal and it is the one that I will use for this recipe. In the US when you think Bratwurst you think of a grilled sausage inside a hot dog bun or roll, usually served with mustard, grilled onions and or sauerkraut. On our trips to Germany and Austria, we have been served Bratwurst with sauerkraut and either mashed or boiled potatoes. Usually there is some assorted mustard and breads on the table to go with the meal. If you are looking for fast food style Bratwurst in either Germany or Austria you can find such a variety of Bratwurst ,depending on the region, just from small cafes or vendors. Oh, and don't forget to try their famous Currywurst, made from pork and seasoned with a sauce made of ketchup and curry powder.

Every trip we make to Germany and Vienna we always have at least a couple of Bratwurst meals. It's a meal we both enjoy and want on more occasions than just on trips. This is my recreation of this yummy dish, did I mention that it's super easy and fast to make? Well it is just perfect for nights when you don't have a lot of time to cook.

Your ingredients:
Serves 2

1 bag of Sauerkraut ( 500 grams / 17.64 ounces ), drain most of the liquid
6 juniper berries
Pinch of salt
Pinch of black pepper
1 large onion, sliced
Sunflower oil

3 Bratwurst, use as many sausage as you want or each person eats

optional:

Mustard

Mashed or boiled potatoes

bread

1. Slice the onion, in a large frying pan heat about a spoonful of oil and fry the onion until it becomes translucent. Next add the juniper berries and the partially drained sauerkraut, salt and pepper. Stir and combine all the ingredients, cover and leave to cook for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauerkraut will start to turn golden , this is what you want. Don't allow it to burn , if you need to you can add a little water to prevent the cabbage from sticking to the pan.
2. While the sauerkraut is cooking you can either grill the Bratwurst or cook in in a frying pan with a little bit of oil.


If you want you can also fry some more onion to put on top of the Bratwurst. You could also serve with mashed potatoes or boiled potatoes on the side and mustard. Ah don't forget that beer goes great with this meal, your man will be very pleased :)
Here are a couple of snapshots from two different trips one to Berlin and the other to Vienna. I unfortunately couldn't find a snapshot of Bratwurst with mash potatoes from our trips.

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