Pork Chops with Blueberry Sauce

When I saw a picture of this on Love & Olive Oil, my mouth literally started watering. I'm not a pork chop person by any means - I've never cooked them before and they were always my least favorite meal when my mom made them. They always just seem so dry and chewy. Not my thing. But these... something about the blueberries in the sauce peaked the interest of my sweet tooth.


The original recipe called for boneless pork chops, but those weren't looking so great in the store so I went with the bone-in version. Probably not the best choice. As usual, these were very dry and I could barely eat them. Even the sauce didn't make up for it - way too buttery for me. I'm not going to blame the recipe, but rather the cook. It just looked so promising that I think I might have to try it again with a few tweaks - boneless meat and less butter for sure.

Pork Chops with Blueberry Sauce

(from Love & Olive Oil)

4 boneless pork chops

1/2c red wine

1/2c blueberries

2T butter

1 shallot, finely diced

1/4c water

1/2 of a lemon (zest and juice)

fresh parsley, chopped

(1) Preheat the oven to 425.

(2) Season both sides of the pork chops with salt and pepper.

(3) Brown the pork chops, 1-2 minutes per side, in a skillet with about 1T olive oil.

(4) Place the pan with the pork chops in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

(5) Heat about 1T olive oil in another skillet and saute the shallots until golden brown.

(6) Add wine and water to skillet and boil down, about 2 minutes.

(7) Add the blueberries.

(8) When the blueberry skins begin to burst open, add the lemon zest and juice.

(9) Continue to boil until thick, then take off heat and stir in the butter and a pinch of salt.

(10) Serve sauce over pork chops, garnished with parsley.

BBQ Pulled Pork

For my birthday in August, my mom bought me a slow cooker. I've been wanting to use it, but wanted to wait until it got cold outside and I was craving a hearty meal. Well that time is finally here, and with long work days, it's nice to come home to a ready-made dinner.

This pulled pork recipe took me about 5 minutes to prepare the night before, and less than 5 minutes to get started in the morning. The apartment smelled SO good when I got home, I could barely wait for this to be done. Unfortunately it snowed the day I made this, so I wasn't able to get to the store to buy buns, but it was just as good on its own.

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

(makes 12)

4lb pork shoulder

3T brown sugar

1 1/2T paprika

1 1/2T salt

1 1/2T pepper

1t garlic powder

1c beef broth

2 bay leaves

20oz barbeque sauce

Mix together brown sugar, paprika, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Coat meat with spice mixture.

Put meat, broth, and bay leaves in slow cooker on low for about 10 hours.

Remove bay leaves and some fat. Shred pork.

Stir in barbeque sauce. Cover and cook about 2 more hours.

Serve on toasted buns.