Category: Pork

Baked Italian Meatballs

Italian Meatballs are really simple to make and you really add any flavors you want! I’m Italian and I learned a lot from seeing my grandparents cook when I was very young and also from seeing my parents cook as well. Italian meatballs are really easy to make, there is no need to buy the store bought ones! You can put this recipe together in now time!

This recipe is a pretty basic Italian meatball recipe! I used ground beef as it was all I had but you can use a mixture of ground beef and ground pork that also comes out delicious! My grandmother use to fry the meatballs, but to make these a little healthier I bake them! You can simmer these meatballs in sauce, enjoy with pasta or eat them on their own. I personally eat them with a little drizzle of oil and some delicious shaved Italian cheese with a chunk of bread! Yum!!

Baked Italian Meatballs

Ingredients:
2lb ground meat (beef or a mixture of beef & pork)
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1/3 cup grated Romano cheese
1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
1/2 Tbsp Garlic & Herb Seasoning (See below for Amazon Link)
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
4 garlic cloves, grated
1 shallot, grated
2 tsp olive oil

Extras:
Olive oil cooking spray

My Favorite Amazon Items: https://www.amazon.com/shop/garlic_and_oliveoil_veins

Directions: Preheat oven 375°. In a medium bowl add all the ingredients above and gently mix with your hands (Yes, your hands) until everything is fully mixed together. Do not over mix the meat, this is important to keeping a moist meatball.

Next grab a few pinches of meat and form your meatballs. Don’t overly work the meat mixture. You want to just gently roll into balls. Make the meatballs any size you want. Add the meatballs to a greased cookie sheet leaving a little room in between. Bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes until fully cooked through. There is no need to flip the meatballs during the cooking process. Adjust the cook time based on the size of the meatballs. Enjoy the meatballs with pasta, simmered in sauce or just on their own!

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Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin

I just recently purchased an air fryer! So far, I’m loving it. I’m going to probably be expermenting with it often, so I will definately be sharing any tips and recipes with you.

This first one is going to be for a pork tenderloin. It came out PHENOMNAL. I loved the extra little char on the pork. The flavor was delicious and it cooked rather quickly. Check out the recipe below. I also added the air fryer oven that I have on my Amazon items I use at the top of this page.

Air Fryer Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:
1 pork tenderloin, 2-3lbs
1/2 T olive oil
2 t ranch seasoning
2 t garlic & herb seasoning
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Directions: Preheat your air fryer at 400° for 4 minutes. (Note: That’s my air fryer preheat, 400° for 4 minutes you can preheat however long your specific air fryer recommends) Next rub the pork with olive oil and season with the seasoning. Rub in to make sure pork is fully coated. You don’t want a lot of extra oil on the pork. Just enough to get the nice char.

Add to your air fryer rack or basket. Cook at 400 for 18-20 minutes. Flip half way through. Remove from oven and let rest. I like my pork completely cooked, meaning very little if no pink at all. You can reduce or add time depending on your preferred doneness. I recommend you use a instant read thermometer to check temperature.

Note: Every air fryer is different. You may have to adjust the recipe to your specific type and model of air fryer. The best thing to do is use an instant read thermometer to check your pork. My air fryer is listed in Items I use on top of this page as well as the garlic & herb seasoning

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Smothered Mushroom Pork Chops

These smothered pork chops are a delicious and quick week night dinner. I enjoy pork dishes but sometimes I need to spice it up a bite. This dish does it. I put together one night and luckily I took pictures along the way because it came out delicious. Give it a try! Yum!

Smothered Mushrooms Pork Chops

Ingredients:

6 boneless pork chops, (about 1/2 inch thickness)
2 T olive oil
16 oz sliced mushrooms
1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups of half and half (or heavy cream)
3 T whipped cream cheese
2 T Worcestershire
1/4 cup Romano cheese, finely grated
2 t rosemary
salt (more for seasoning pork)
pepper (more for seasoning pork)
chives, optional

Directions: Heat a large sauté pan on high heat. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper generously on both sides. Add in 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan and let heat 1-2 minutes. Next sear pork chops on both sides till you get a golden color. About 2-3 minutes per sides. Cook in batches if needed. Once pork chops are browned, remove from the pan and set aside.

Next add in the last of the olive oil. Let heat. Then add in the mushrooms, garlic and onion and let cook until tender. Cook the mushrooms until most of liquid cooks out. Season with salt and pepper. Add in the Worcestershire.

Once veggies are tender, pour in cream and let simmer 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next add in the cream cheese and continuously stir till the cream cheese melts. Mix in the Romano cheese and season the sauce with rosemary and salt and pepper to taste.

Add the pork chops back to the pan and let simmer on low 5-6 minutes till the pork chops are cooked through and the sauce has thickened.

To serve add the pork chop and top with a generus amount of mushrooms sauce. Top with chopped chives if so desired.



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Italian Sausage Stuffing

One of my favorite things to make around the holidays is stuffing. I don’t always stay home, so when I don’t I still make this around the Thanksgiving. It’s the stuffing I’ve grown up and I have to always make it! Super simple. When I usually make it I don’t make a turkey to stuff it in. However, I will explain to you in this recipe how to enjoy it either way. I prefer stuffing to have some texture to it and not be super soggy. Just how I like it.

Italian Sausage Stuffing

Ingredients:
1 lb ground Italian Sausage
1 loaf of white bread, cut into small cubes and toasted
1 stick butter, melted
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 celery stalks, diced
1 large onion, diced
1-2 cup turkey or chicken broth
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Direction: Heat a medium sauté pan on medium high heat. Add in the Italian sausage and cook until browned, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Once cooked remove sausage from pan and drain on paper towel and set aside. Leave some fat in the pan to cook the veggies but drain the rest. Add in the garlic and onion and cook 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Next add in the chopped celery, sauté until slightly tender. Add in butter and let melt completely. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the sausage back to the pan and mix completely.

Add toasted bread cubes into a large baking pan or dish. (I use a disposable half try aluminum pan.) Mix the sauage mixture with the bread fully coating it.

If you are going to stuff some into a turkey, take half of the stuffing (or whatever fits) and add into the turkey cavity. Once you remove the turkey from the oven remove the stuffing and mix well with the remaining stuffing.

If you aren’t stuffing into a cavity, drizzle the stuffing with turkey or chicken broth. Add as much liquid as you like. This depends on if you like your stuffing on the wetter side or dryer side.

Add the stuffing to a 350° oven and bake until warmed through. About 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven and enjoy.

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Keto Chicken Cutlets

Anyone who wants to reduce the amount of carbs in their daily diet, will loves these chicken cutlets. They are made with pork rind crumbs and they honestly come out so delicious. The cool thing about these chicken cutlets is you can use any flavor pork rinds you have. For example, they have spicy pork rinds and that would give the chicken a nice kick! If you are looking for more of a traditional chicken cutlet, stick with the plan flavor pork rinds. If you are craving a nice delcious chicken cutlet, and want a low carb option, please give this a try!

Keto Chicken Cutlets

Ingredients:
6 thin chicken breast, pounded into thin cutlets
2 cups plain pork rinds, finely chopped (use a food processor) (Or you can get the already crumbed pork rinds)
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup Romano or parmesan cheese, finely grated
2 t Italian seasoning
1 t garlic powder
1 t onion powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 lemon, optional

Directions: Heat a large sauté pan on high heat. Add in the olive oil and let heat until hot. About 3-4 minutes. Add pork rinds to a medium flat bowl. Whisk in the Italian seasoning, garlic powder & onion powder, cheese and half the salt and pepper. In a second bowl beat 2 eggs. season the chicken cutlets on both sides with the rest of the salt and pepper. Start breading the chicken. First add the chicken into the beaten egg and then into the breading mixture. Completely coat the chicken cutlet with the breading and add to a plate. Complete with all the remaining chicken cutlets.

Once ready to cook, make sure the oil is hot. Add in chicken cutlets to the pan, one by one. Let cook 3-4 minutes on high until golden brown and then turn over and cook another 3-4 minutes until golden. Remove from sauté pan and set aside. If you can’t fit all the chicken in one batch, do in 2 separate batches. Finish with a squeeze of lemon over chicken, if so desired. Enjoy!

Notes: If you can’t find think chicken cutlets just buy regular chicken cutlets and pound them to your desired thickness. Cooking times will vary depending on how thick your chicken breasts are.

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Bacon & Mozarella Stuffed Meatballs

Homemade meatballs are so delicious and easy to make. You can mix it up and really make them your own! These meatballs are a pretty basic recipe with a twist. You can use any ground meat you like. Beef, pork, veal, turkey and chicken. I personally prefer beef meatballs and sometimes I add in ground pork as well. My recipe calls for little fresh mozzarella balls and bacon. When you cut into them you taste that salty bacon and the mozzarella is nice and gooey! They are delicious!

Bacon & Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

Ingredients:
Meatballs:
2lbs ground beef (could use 1lb beef & 1lb of pork)
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup seasoned panko breadcrumbs
1/2-3/4 cup Romano or Parmesan cheese, finely grated
2 T Italian parsley, finely chopped
1 small onion, grated or very finely chopped
1/4 cup water or milk
1 T olive oil
2 t Italian seasoning
2 t kosher salt
2 t pepper

Extras:
6-8 slices bacon, cooked, chopped in half inch pieces
8-10 oz fresh mozzarella pearl balls
2 T olive oil, for frying

Directions: Preheat oven 350°. In a large mixing bowl add in all the ingredients above for the meatballs. Next using your hands mix meat until fully incorporated with ingredients. Using a large scoop or melon baller form meat into balls. Flatten out the balls and add in 1-2 pearl mozzarella balls and 1-2 pieces of bacon and roll into a ball. The meatballs should be golf ball size. Add to a baking sheet covered with foil. Continue with all the meat.

Options for cooking is either pan fry on the stove or you can bake in the oven. Sometimes I like to sauté in a pan to get a nice brown exterior and then finish baking through in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. To bake in the oven only cook for 30-35 minutes depending on the size. The meatballs should get nice and golden brown. Serve either on their own or with pasta.

Notes: You may need more bacon and mozzarella depending on how big the meatballs are. If you can’t find the pearl balls you can use any other cheese or fresh mozzarella and cut into small pieces.



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