Stuffed Pork Chops, A One Stop Meal..

My wife was laid off Friday, with assurances of being called back in two weeks.. She was OK with that, but still a little annoyed. I thought one of her favorite meals would be nice Friday night- Stuffed pork chops! We have a premier meat market in our neighborhood that makes a pretty fair one, so I picked up two of them = $17.00 ! I ordered them without looking at them, and one fed the two of us- they had to weigh close to two pounds each! One, I just don't like them that much, and two- we could have had two steaks for that amount of money! Well, hung for a sheep, hung for a goat- so it was press on, regardless..With a quick sprinkling of appropriate spices and herbs, baked for an hour. I made up a pork gravy for the meat and stuffing just before they came out of the oven.. Good, but huge!
Last night was another mega wedding at another beautiful downtown church, with reception at an upscale dining complex in Grand Rapids called The B.O.B.. It stands for Big Old Building(really!) a totally refurbished 4 story building with about 6 restaurants and banquet rooms..Food was great, with a designer salad, Beef tenderloin, broiled scampi, mini squash, and garlic mashed potatoes.. Dessert was upscale cupcakes. They had a photo booth for keepsake photos for them and us, and a penny candy table where you built your own take home treat..Nice affair, but parking downtown is a pain!
Today, neither wife nor I are interested in food, so we'll wait until Monday to figure it out!

Pasta Salad For A Guy, And Stuffed Pork Chops For A Girl

Earlier this week, I decided to make pasta salad- my wife enjoys this as a lunch or a side dish... I take my version into the "one stop meal" range, by the ingredients I put in it!
First, I hard boil and peel a couple of eggs, and let them cool. I then get the spiral, multi-colored pasta underway, boiling salt water, and cooking to Al Dente, shocking it after draining in a colander with cold water.. I then start chopping... Onions, celery, green olives, pepperoni, ham, Monterey Jack cheese, sharp Cheddar cheese, the hard boiled eggs,and- darn! Out of bell peppers! Oh well, there is a substantial amount of stuff in this already.. I then mix with a zesty Italian dressing, with a creamy Italian dressing and pour over the added pasta and other ingredients- chill for a couple of hours, draining a bit of dressing off as moisture in salad settles.. This is a popular dish to haul to summer potlucks, or picnics!
Yesterday afternoon, I got a light trim of a haircut(I'm trying to grow a pony tail for the first time in my life!). I was close to a good butcher shop, which makes a wife-favorite treat- stuffed pork chops! I bought two for dinner. When I got home, I seasoned the pork with salt, pepper, and savory blend.. sprayed with olive oil and baked covered for 1-3/4 hrs. They swelled, as shown in the photo, stayed moist as I roasted uncovered for 15 min. With a little gravy on the side, it made for a pleasant surprise for my wife...