Recipe: Apple-Chipotle Stuffed Pork Chops

It seems to happen all too often that I am back-logged with blog posts. I bake or cook something and take a photo of it, and then forget about it until I load all my photos on to the computer and remember that I had intended to blog about said cooking or baking. This is the case today, where a while back I cooked up a rather delicious meal for dinner one evening – applewood-smoked pork chops stuffed with an apple and chipotle filling.

We stumbled across the pork chops at the butchers and were just simply delighted with their smoky flavour when we bit into them. Combined with the chipotle and apple filling, and, well, we could hardly eat them fast enough. We enjoyed them so much in fact, that we raved about it to each other for the next week: “Mmmm, do you remember those stuffed pork chops?”

Since then, we have cooked them for my brother and his wife, although I’m not so sure that they loved them as much as we did. The original recipe called for chicken, but substituting the pork chops turned out to be a winner. And anything that has bacon as the first ingredient, well, I’ve simply got to try!

INGREDIENTS

2 bacon strips, diced

1 small tart apple, peeled and coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons dried minced onion

2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce

1/2 to 1 teaspoon chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped

2 pork chops/chicken breasts

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 teaspoon all-purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened apple juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

COOK bacon in a small skillet over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove to paper towels; drain, reserving 1 teaspoon drippings. Saute apple in drippings until tender. Add the onion, applesauce, chipotle peppers and bacon; saute 2 minutes longer.

CUT a pocket in each pork chop; stuff with apple mixture. In a small skillet, brown pork in oil on both sides. Transfer to an ungreased 8-in. square baking dish. Bake uncovered, at 425° for 12-15 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 170°.

MEANWHILE, add the flour, apple juice, salt and pepper to the skillet; stir to loosen browned bits. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with pork.