Baked Pork Egg Rolls

Egg Rolls are traditionally fried, but after a very painful mishap (hot oil in my eyeball) I decided to try baking them, and they turned out delicious! The reason I recommend baking these egg rolls instead of frying is because this recipe calls for soy sauce and vinegar. The moisture from the soy sauce and vinegar will leak out of the egg roll - because it is impossible to seal the egg roll skin completely - and that moisture will cause the oil to splatter, and you will get a painful eyeball of hot oil (and yes, I was standing as far away as possible when that happened). So, I bake these egg rolls - which is also healthier.

Baked Pork Egg Rolls

Ingredients

16 oz. seasoned ground pork sausage
1/2 head green cabbage, shredded
1 cup celery, thinly sliced
1/2 carrots, grated
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. vinegar
1 Tbsp. ginger
1/4 cup sesame seeds
flour
1 package Egg Roll skins

Instructions:

1. Shred cabbage, grate carrots, and slice celery. Cook in boiling water until tender. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, brown sausage and drain.
3. Combine sausage, vegetables, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, and sesame seeds.
4. Mix water and flour together to make a paste.
5. Use fingers to spread paste along edges of egg roll skins.
6. Place large spoonful of mixture into middle of egg roll skins,

bring two opposite corners together,

pull one more corner into the middle,

roll.

7. Bake in oven at 400° for 12 minutes.

Estimated calories: 146 calories per egg roll
Suggested sides: rice, cooked vegetables

Potato-Corn Chowder

Do you love the feel  of hot soup going down your throat on a cold day? Then you'll love this one! I took two different soup recipes to create this one:

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/southwest-potato-corn-chowder-57846.aspx
http://www.cookingclassy.com/2014/09/creamy-ham-potato-corn-chowder/

The funny thing about this recipe is I like diced ham in my bowl and my husband likes bacon in his. So I prepare those separately and add them to our individual bowls. But you can add one or the other (or both) to your entire pot of soup. :)

Potato-Corn Chowder

Ingredients:

4 slices of cooked bacon*, chopped (or 1 cup diced ham)
1 1/2 lb. potatoes, cubed (about 5 potatoes)
1 small onion, chopped (or sprinkle dehydrated onions to your heart's desire)
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
3 cups milk
8 oz. processed cheese food, cubed (I use Velveeta)
10 oz. frozen corn
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Cook on medium until potatoes are soft.

OR

1. Boil potatoes separately for 15-20 minutes.**
2. Meanwhile get everything else going on medium heat.
3. Add potatoes when they are done.
4. Ready to serve when cheese is melted (I usually let it get to a small boil before turning off the stove)

*The bacon will be soft and soggy, so if you want it crunchy, cook it and add it to each individual serving.
**I do the second option because it takes less time. The first option takes over an hour for the potatoes to soften in the milk at the same time as melting the cheese. Doing them separately is much faster. :)

Estimated calories: 387 calories per serving (about 1 cup)
Suggested sides: Dinner rolls (I LOVE Pillsbury crescent rolls)

Slow Cooker San Francisco Pork Chops

Preparing dinner in a slow cooker is seriously one of the best inventions ever. The original recipe has you cooking these pork chops on the stove, but one day my mom didn't get them thawed, so she just did everything in her slow cooker. When I was ready to try them, I thought the stove top directions sounded difficult, so I did it in the slow cooker and viola! As usual with the slow cooker, it made the pork chops easier to cut, they just fell apart.

Slow Cooker San Francisco Pork Chops

Ingredients:

Pork Chops (1 per person - or 2 per person if you want leftovers!)

Salt and Pepper

1 Tbsp Oil

1 clove garlic, minced (or 1/4 tsp garlic powder)

Sauce:*

4 tsp oil

3/4 cup water, divided

1/2 cup Soy Sauce

1/4 cup Brown Sugar

4 tsp Cornstarch

Instructions:

1. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in skillet.

2. Put chops in skillet and season with salt, pepper, and garlic. Brown on both sides and move into slow cooker.

3. Combine 4 tsp oil, 1/2 cup water, soy sauce, and brown sugar.  Pour over chops.

4. Cook on LOW for at least 5 hours.

5. Mix cornstarch and 1/4 cup cold water. Add to slow cooker and turn to HIGH for 20-30 minutes. If serving with rice, cook the rice at this time.

6. Serve chops either whole or shredded.

*Note: The amount of sauce depends on how many pork chops and the size of your slow cooker. The recipe above is for approximately 4 pork chops. Be prepared to double the sauce recipe.

Estimated Calories: 288 calories per pork chop

Suggested sides: rice, fruit salad