Pork and Pear Sauté with Lemon Vodka Sauce

Last weekend we picked up our half of a organic pig, we got ribs, bacon, hot dogs, roast, ham steaks, and pork chops. When we were trying to figure out what we wanted for dinner this evening I suggested we try the chops and find a good recipe to go with them. Cooking Light to the rescue again! I got my Cooking Light cookbook at Costco for about $20 dollars, a great deal for all the recipes we have made out of here.

 

 

Pork and Pear Sauté with Lemon Vodka Sauce

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  olive oil, divided
• 2  (4-ounce) boned center-cut loin pork chops (about 3/4 inch thick)
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1/2  teaspoon  cracked black pepper, divided
• 2  peeled Anjou pears, cored and halved (about 1 pound)
• 1/4  cup vodka or dry white wine
• 2  teaspoons  grated lemon rind
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1  tablespoon  chopped fresh chives

Preparation

Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle the pork chops with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add pork chops to skillet; sauté 3 minutes on each side or until pork is done. Remove pork from pan, and keep warm. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in pan over medium heat. Place pear in pan, cut sides down. Sauté 2 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove pear from pan, and keep warm. Stir in the vodka, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, rind, juice, and chives, and cook for 1 minute.

 

 

For a side we roasted broccoli with 1 clove of garlic and a drizzle of olive oil for 20 minutes at 400 degrees, I love roasted broccoli- especially when the ends get crispy! Tonight’s wine is a 12 Mile Trail Merlot- a good basic merlot. I know a lot of people think merlot is boring but it can be great for a nice everyday kind of wine.