Category: Pork Dishes

BBQ Pulled Pork Pizza

When making Brunswick Stew, I bought and cooked a 4.5 pound Boston Butt roast, so – clearly, I had leftovers. And, I still had some of Biz’s Skinny Pizza Dough from when I made my Blueberry Pizza. Having both of those things, I decided to make a pulled pork BBQ pizza.

I decided to keep the ingredients pretty simple: Biz’s Skinny Pizza Dough, pulled pork, Alouette Garlic and Herb spreadable cheese, Monterey Jack Cheese and Sweet Baby Ray’s Mustard BBQ sauce.

I rolled the dough out into something, loosely, resembling a circle. Then added the Alouette Garlic and Herb cheese as the base.

Then I added some of the pulled pork. It was cold, fresh from the fridge – no need to heat it up, since it is going into a very hot oven! Next, the pizza was topped with shredded Monterey Jack cheese. And, lastly, drizzled on some of the BBQ sauce.

I cooked it on parchment paper (on top of a pizza stone) in my oven, for 20 minutes, at 500 degrees.

Biz’s dough crisps up so well and really can hold a topping!

The savory flavor of the Alouette garlic and herb cheese, coupled with the tangy sweetness of the BBQ sauce was AMAZING!! So good!!

BBQ Pulled Pork Pizza

Biz’s Skinny Pizza Dough
 Pulled Pork
Alouette Garlic and Herb Spreadable Cheese
Monterey Jack Cheese

  • Roll out the dough (doing it on parchment paper makes it easier to put it in and take it out of the oven)
  • Add Alouette Garlic and Herb cheese to the top of the dough
  • Top with pulled pork and Monterey Jack Cheese
  • Drizzle on the BBQ sauce
  • Cook for 20 minutes in 500 degree oven

** Note I didn’t measure anything when I was making this, so just kind of eyeball it, depending on how much dough you use.

by Michelle

Brunswick Stew

One of my favorite things growing up in South Georgia was Brunswick Stew. Despite that – until this week, I’d never made it. As I normally do when I develop a recipe that is inspired by something I’ve had before, I thought about all the things that I like about the dishes I’ve had. For Brunswick stew – I like corn, potatoes and lima beans. I like both shredded chicken and pork. And, I like a little bit of a ‘bite’ or acidity. These are some of the items I included (in addition to the meat, potatoes and onion).

This recipe started with cooking the meats. I did the chicken thighs in the instant pot. I used the same method as I mentioned, when I made Chicken Noodle Soup/Stew the other day. Both in cooking and in shredding the chicken. Again – I will never do it another way again, ever!

The pork was a whole other thing. I started by trying to cook the boston butt roast in the crock pot, but despite the fact that I cooked it on low for 8 hours – and then turned it up to high for another 2 hours, I simply could not get it up to 190 degrees, internally, which is needed to get it to shred. Ultimately, I moved it to the instant pot and finished it off there. For the most part, I shredded it the same as the chicken – using a hand held mixer.

I kind of made this dish in stages: I did the pork the day before, I did the chicken in the AM, I prepped the onions and potatoes in the afternoon (Then I went to see Downton Abbey!) and, finally, made the Brunswick stew in the evening. I mention that to say that you have the option to do all the prep work ahead of time – and then ‘throw it together’ for a pretty amazing (and relatively quick) dinner!

Once I was home from seeing Downton Abbey (If you haven’t seen it, and you’re a fan of the show, you should!!), I started putting it all together. Starting with browning the onion and garlic in my dutch oven. The rest was pretty much dumping things in and letting it all come together in the pot – so not a lot of pictures.

Despite this being the first time that I’ve made Brunswick stew – it will definitely not be my last. I’m not even sure what has kept me from making it! The flavors that I pulled together in this one are EXACTLY all the things that I love about Brunswick stew!

** Note: you can add more chicken stock if it is too thick, but remember that Brunswick Stew should be thick.

Brunswick Stew

Total cook time: 20 min prep, 90 min cook

1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp garlic
5 cups chicken stock
1 large (28 oz) can diced tomatoes, with juice
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
2-3 chicken thighs, shredded
3 cups pulled pork
1/2 cup Sweet Baby Ray’s Regular BBQ sauce
3/4 cup Sweet Baby Ray’s Mustard BBQ sauce
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
12 oz package of frozen lima beans
12 oz package of frozen whole kernel corn
6 potatoes, diced
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
Avocado oil spray

  • In large dutch oven, brown onions and garlic in avocado oil
  • Add worchestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire Sauce, tomatoes and chicken stock to dutch oven and bring to a boil
  • Add in the vegetables, BBQ sauces, chicken, pork, salt and pepper – reduce heat to simmer.
  • Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, for best blending of flavors – you can actually eat it anytime after your vegetables are done – it just gets more depth of flavor the longer it simmers.

*** If needed to thicken, create a slurry with a small amount of cold water and cornstarch and add to pot, allowing it to thicken.

by Michelle

Pork Chop Skillet

I thawed out some pork chops in the fridge for dinner tonight. Originally, I was planning to do something with pesto that I need to use up, but that didn’t sound appealing to everyone – so, I put my thinking cap on and tried to come up with something different.

It’s been a bit of a trying day – you know – the kind of day that you want some good old comfort food. For me, that usually means something creamy, starchy and that reminds me of meals I loved as a kid (casseroles or one pot meals!). But, I had to use the pork chops, since I’d already thawed them out – enter Pork Chop Skillet!

For creamy, I decided to use some cream of chicken soup and heavy cream. For starchy, I decided to use some jasmine rice. Add in the pork chops, some veggies and spices and I think we’re on our way.

I chopped my veggies so that they would be ready to go when I needed them.

To help the pork chops brown (and to give a little extra flavor), I lightly coated the chops in a mixture of flour and umami seasoning. I always like to do this in a gallon size storage bag (easy clean up!).

I started by browning off the pork chops in the skillet, with a little bit of avocado oil and butter, shaking off any excess flour before putting them in the pan. I didn’t need to cook the pork chops through, but I did want to ensure that they were nicely browned on both sides – when they were, I removed them from the pan.

I had 1/4 of an onion in the fridge, so I knew I would use that. I also had a few stalks of celery and some carrots (from the chicken noodle stew I made the other day), so these were the veggies I chose. I added the chopped veggies with some garlic and seasonings and let it cook in the skillet until the vegetables were starting to soften.

Then I added in the rice, mushroom soup, chicken stock and heavy cream and brought the skillet up to a boil.

Then, I reduced to a simmer – added the pork chops back in, covered and allowed the it to cook for 30 minutes.

Once done, I added some chopped green onions and we were ready to eat!

We ate the pork chops and rice/veggies with some roasted brussel sprouts (I’ll share my recipe for that in another post – couldn’t be easier!).

Pork Chop Skillet

4-6 boneless pork chops
1 tbsp Umami seasoning
3 tbsp all purpose flour
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 stalks of celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1/4 of a medium sized onion, chopped
1 tbsp garlic
2 cups rice (I used Jasmine, as that is what I had on hand)
3 cups of chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
Avocado oil spray (or other cooking spray)
2 tbsp butter
green onions to garnish

  • Add flour and Umami seasoning to plastic bag and lightly coat pork chops
  • Add avocado oil spray and butter to pan – heat until butter is melted
  • Brown the pork chops (on both sides) and remove from pan
  • Add onion, garlic, celery, carrots, salt, pepper and paprika to pan – cook until vegetables start to get tender.
  • Add rice and stir for 3-5 minutes, coating the rice
  • Add stock, heavy cream and can of cream of mushroom soup and stir and bring to a boil
  • Return pork chops to pan, reduce heat, cover and cook for 30 minutes
by Michelle

Sausage and Spinach Baked Frittata

On Saturdays or Sundays, we like to do a brunch type meal – rather than a breakfast AND lunch. Frittatas are one of our ‘go to’ meals, for sure. We love eggs and a frittata, often, gives us the opportunity to ‘use up’ smallish leftovers in the refrigerator. Today’s frittata started with some Hillshire Farms sausage that was opened yesterday!

Not a pretty picture, but one that’s real. Also, didn’t use the pre-grated cheese in the picture, I had enough once I grated the block cheese.

For this dish, the first thing you want to do is to slice your sausage – I decided to be ‘fancy’ and slice a few pieces (6 – because my frittatas are usually sized for about 6 slices/servings) diagonally, to put on top of the frittata prior to putting it in the oven.

I, personally, could probably stand more than 1/2 of an onion – but, that might be overwhelming to some, so I stuck to 1/2 of an onion for this dish.

Combine the sausage and onion in a skillet, over medium – high heat.

Cook until the sausage has a sear and the onions are translucent. If you do the ‘fancy’ slices of sausage – cook them separate from the rough chopped sausage and onion, and set this all aside to cool a bit.

Grate your cheese (I ended up with about a cup, shredded, given the amount of block cheese I had left – but, you can just add as much cheese as you like – I am a big cheese lover, so rare is the occasion that I think it is ‘too much’ cheese) and chop your spinach.

In a bowl, whisk your eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Then add the other ingredients and mix well (I usually hold back a little bit of cheese, to top the mixture, as I love how it browns in the oven). Pour the mixture into a lightly greased pie plate (this is what I use) or frittata pan. Top with any reserved cheese and the diagonally sliced sausage.

Bake for 40-45 minutes (or until eggs are cooked through and top is nicely browned).

Sausage and Spinach Fritatta

6 eggs
7 oz Hillshire Farms smoked sausage (1/2 of a 14 oz rope)
1/2 onion
1 cup chopped baby spinach
3/4-1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 tbsp milk (or half and half or cream)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

  • Preheat oven oven to 400 degrees
  • Slice sausage (if you want, slice 6 slices cross ways to ‘top’ the fritatta)
  • Finely chop onion
  • Combine onion and sausage in skillet over medium – high heat. Cook until sausage is seared and onion is translucent – remove from pan and set aside to cool a bit
  • Shred cheese and chop spinach
  • In bowl, whist together the eggs, milk, salt and pepper
  • Add sausage/onion mixure, vegetables and cheese to eggs – mix well
  • Pour mixture into a lightly greased pie plate or fritatta pan
  • Bake for 40-45 minutes (or until eggs are fully cooked and nicely browned on top)
by Michelle

Skillet Sausage and Rice

Yesterday, I was looking for something quick, easy and with little clean up for lunch. As I always do, I took a look at the items I had on hand and I ended up with this one skillet dish that turned out delicious.

It all started with a chub of Jimmy Dean sausage, asparagus, mushrooms, garlic, beef stock onion and cilantro.

As I worked through chopping vegetables, I thought of seasoning – and I decided to add a packet of ranch dressing seasoning mix.

I started by browning the sausage (medium high heat), along with the onion and garlic.

Once that was done, I added the other vegetables and cooked until semi-tender.

After the vegetables were somewhat tender, I added in the rice and cooked until the rice was somewhat translucent.

Beef broth (that was just what I had on hand, I’m sure that chicken broth or vegetable broth would work just as nicely) was added next. I added half of the cilantro to the skillet and stirred everything up. I brought the skillet up to a boil. Once it was at a boil, I covered the skillet and reduced the heat to simmer – allowing it to cook for 20 minutes (cook until rice is done).

Add the remaining cilantro and serve! Super easy, delicious, easy clean up and reheats nicely!

Skillet Sausage and Rice

1 chub of Jimmy Dean (or similar) regular sausage
2 cups of long grain rice
3 cups of beef stock
1-1/2 cups of mushrooms
1/2 bunch of asparagus (1-1/2 cups, chopped)
1/2 white onion (diced)
1-2 tbsp of garlic (depending on how much you like garlic, I used 2)
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
1 packet of dry ranch dressing mix
salt and pepper to taste

Crumble sausage in skillet, with diced onions and garlic on medium high heat. Cook until sausge is browned and onions are translucent.

Add asparagus and mushrooms, cook for another 5 min (until vegetables are semi-tender).

Add rice and ranch dressing and stir to mix, cook until rice is translucent.

Add beef stock and 1/2 of the cilantro. Stir and bring to boil.

Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook for 20 minutes (until rice is done).

Add remaining cilantro and serve.

by Michelle