Stork Meal 12: Italian Pork Chops (grill, crock, or oven)

This is one of those go-to meals for me when I forget to defrost something but need to feed the natives. I always have the ingredients on hand and it's always a crowd pleaser.

Momma-to-be agrees! So in it goes to the Stork Meal vault.

And, of course, I forgot to take a picture before we'd gobbled, so I took one when I was packing away the leftovers for some lucky man's lunchbox. (Note, I made three cheese rellanos, smoked paprika brussel sprouts, and the kids favorite Rice-a-Roni... so that is in the picture too).

What you will need:
Pork Chops (bone in or boneless, whichever you prefer)
Dry Italian Seasoning (You will find this next to the dry ranch seasonings)
Oil
Water
Vinegar

If you are making this for a freezer meal, make sure you get fresh pork chops. They don't recommend you freeze and refreeze meat, so just don't do it.

Pork Chop Tip: Did you know that a Boneless Pork Loin Roast is just a really long pork chop? Most of the time, it's a fraction of the cost of already cut pork chops. Sometimes even cheaper then buying bone-in pork chops. And you get to decide how thin or thick you want your chops to be. Usually one boneless pork loin will give me 15-20 chops!

Directions for the chops: For the freezer: Put 4-6 pork chops in the freezer bag and add dry Italian seasoning. Massage into the pork well and then add the recommended vinegar, water, and oil to the bag. Press all the air out, then seal.

Write on the bag: Defrost. Grill, bake, or crockpot until internal temperature reaches 165.

Now, I know what you are thinking. Why not just use the bottled Italian dressing. For me it's easy. I can't have soy (which most dressings have), so this is a no brainer. Plus there are no additional additives I don't want (like high fructose corn syrup). AND I before I was allergic, I used a bottle of italian dressing and it surely wasn't the same. The mean wasn't as flavorful or tender. So trust me when I say this is the way to go, BUT, you can use a bottle of Italian dressing in a pinch.

All in one CrockPot Meal: A lot of times I throw raw potatoes and carrots in the bottom of my crockpot then the seasoned meat and dressing over the top.  If you want to make this an all in one crockpot meal, just dice red potatoes and carrots in large chunks and put it in a separate bag. Both freeze well and will hold up great in the crockpot. I also really like sprinkling fresh parmesan over the top of my veggies when they are done.

Meatballs for Spaghetti

2lbs of uncooked meat (can be 3 different kinds mixed together for additional flavors)
1/2 Bread Crumbs
1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese
1 egg
Italian Seasoning
Salt and Pepper
Garlic

Directions: Combine meats. Add garlic, egg, cheese and seasonings. Blend in Bread crumbs. If your meatballs are too dry add a bit of water teaspoon at a time. Meatballs should be moist and hold their shape.

Freezing: Place in Zip Lock bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

Cooking: Place frozen meatballs in a crock pot and cover with spaghetti sauce. Cook on low 7 hours. Or defrost meatballs and place in skillet and cover with spaghetti sauce; Cover and cook on medium until done.OR you can put in a covered dish in the oven and cook in the same manner. OR you can fry in oil in a skillet and add over the top of your sauce when you serve.

Italian Meatloaf

2lbs of uncooked Ground Meat
1/2 cup of Onion (or onion powder)
Garlic to taste
Italian Seasonings
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
3 cups of Spaghetti sauce (or Italian tomato sauce pureed)
8 oz of your fav Italian cheese

Directions: Combine first 6 ingredients. Form a meatloaf and place it into your 9x9 pan. Slice your Italian cheese and set aside. Then slice your meatloaf long ways and insert cheese into the middle of the meatloaf. Place top back down onto the meat and seal meat around the cheese. Put sauce in a zip lock baggie and place next to the meat.

Freezing: Use Saran wrap or press and seal over the top of the pan and then Foil it all the way around to ensure air tight. OR if you have space issues, wrap in saran wrap and then aluminum foil and freeze. Store in the freezer up to 2 months.

Cooking: Defrost. Pour sauce over defrosted meat and cook covered at 350 for about an hour or until done.

Spicey and Savory Tilapia

Ingredients:
4 Frozen Tilapia Fillets
1 bottle of Zesty Italian
1/3-1/2 cup of Cooking Sherry (or chicken broth)
2 cans of Rotel Tomatoes
6-8 pieces of crumbled bacon (don't do bacon bits)

Directions: Pour the Zesty Italian, Sherry and Rotel Tomatoes into a small bowl and mix well. Place frozen Tilapia into a 9x13 pan and top with Sauce. Garnish the top of each fish with bacon.

Freezing: Use Saran wrap or press and seal over the top of the pan and then Foil it all the way around to ensure air tight. Store in the freezer up to 2 months.

Baking: Bake from frozen, uncovered, for 40-60 minutes or defrost and bake uncovered for 20 minutes on 400 or until fish flakes with a fork. Use defrosted fish within 24 hours.

Variation: Use canned diced tomatoes and capers instead of Rotel.

Recipe by Heather Neff
Serves 4