Carb Diva's Pork Steak and Cheesy Potato Casserole

We could dine out every night -- but we don't.

We could eat take-out every night -- but we never will.

I love to cook, and (even more importantly) I hate to spend money foolishly. I love a bargain. And my grocer is offering an amazing deal this week on pork chops, seasoned chicken breasts, and steaks "Buy 1, get 2 free".

How could I resist?

So now I have two packages of pork steaks in the freezer and one sitting in front of me. It's a small package--a little under a pound (2 steaks). Just the right amount for Mr. Carb Diva and myself. Yes, I could toss them on the grill with a slap of barbeque sauce, or sear them on the stove and serve with baked potatoes....or I could bake them in a casserole with onions and creamy potatoes, and cheese, and......

Be still my beating heart!

(Yes, I recognize that there is a cardiology joke hidden in there, but I'll ignore that for now and hope that you will do the same).

Carb Diva's Pork Steak and Cheesy Potato Casserole

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 pound boneless 1-inch thick pork loin steak
• 1 cup minced onion, about 1 medium
• 4 cups russet potato, thinly sliced, about 3 medium
• One 10.75-oz can cream soup, (see suggestions below for alternatives)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup shredded cheese, (cheddar, mozzarella, provolone, or parmesan)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Heat oil in the bottom of large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Sear the pork steaks in the hot oil, about 3 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside.
3. Turn heat to low. Add the sliced onions to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften and begin to brown.
4. Lightly spray a baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange one-half of the potatoes in the bottom of the dish. Cover with one-half of the onions. Repeat layers. Next place the seared pork steaks on top.
5. Stir together the cream soup and milk. Pour over the pork steaks. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
6. Remove baking dish from oven. Remove and discard foil. Evenly spread cheese over cream soup mixture. Return baking dish to the oven and bake 30 minutes more.

Suggested Cream Soups

• Cream of chicken
• Cream of chicken with herb
• Cream of chicken with Mushrooms
• Cream of mushroom
• Cream of mushroom with roasted garlic
• Cream of onion
• Cream of celery

What If You Can't Find Pork Steak?

This particular cut of meat has several different names. It might also be called:

• blade steaks
• shoulder steak
• shoulder blade steak

Unlike pork chops which come from the loin, the pork steak is cut from the blade Boston roast or the shoulder blade roast. Like the roasts, the steaks are flavorful and contain a significant amount of fat to keep them moist while cooking. Because the blade steak is cut from an active muscle location on the pig, it will be less tender. That makes it perfect for this recipe.

The "When Harry Met Sally" Chocolate Cake

I love chocolate cake. No, let me rephrase that—I LOVE chocolate cake.

Today our church will hold a picnic/potluck.

Some people bring hamburgers or brauts to grill, or perhaps hotdogs and baked beans. Others take the easy route and provide chips and dip or colas. I always bring a salad and dessert, often trying a new recipe.

I spent Friday afternoon looking through my recipe files, hoping for a bit of chocolate inspiration. I didn't find anything new. Rather, I found something old—a yellowed clipping from a newspaper, all but forgotten at the bottom of my card file. And what an intriguing name—"Better than Sex" cake, or as I prefer to call it ...

The "When Harry Met Sally" Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

• 1 box of chocolate cake mix, any kind will do

• 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk, (NOT evaporated milk)

• 1 jar ice cream topping, (see note below)

• 1 small container of frozen whipped topping, thawed

• 1 cup walnuts, chopped

Instructions

1. Prepare the cake mix according to package directions. Stir in the espresso powder. Bake in a 9x13-inch baking pan and let cool for about 10 minutes.
2. Poke 12 evenly-spaced holes in the cake with the handle of a wooden spoon. Fill the holes with the condensed milk. This will take a few minutes. You will need to fill the holes one at a time, wait a moment while the milk soaks in, and then repeat the process until all of the milk is used.
3. Next cover the top of the cake with the ice cream topping. Save about 1/4 cup of topping to drizzle on the finished masterpiece. Place the cake in the freezer for about 20 minutes. This will allow the ice cream topping to firm up a bit. Remove the cake from the freezer and cover with the whipped topping. Drizzle with reserved ice cream topping and then sprinkle on chopped nuts.
4. That's it—cover the cake and store it in the refrigerator.

What Makes This Recipe Work?

• Only 6 ingredients. It's easy peasy-lemon squeezy

• No tedious cake-mixing instructions. Use a cake mix and follow the simple directions on the box.

• Use whatever flavor of ice cream topping you wish. I love chocolate fudge, but you could substitute milk chocolate, caramel, butterscotch, etc.

Easy Weekday Spaghetti Carbonara

Some time ago at Delishably.com, I wrote an article entitled You Can "Carbonara" Just Like Olive Garden where I explained in great detail how to replicate a meal that was, at that time, being served at Olive Garden restaurant. 

It's a great recipe (if I do say so myself), but not one that you can quickly whip up when your family is starving. It's more of an I-have-all-Sunday-afternoon-to-cook type of recipe. If you do have all afternoon, please visit my Delishably page. If you don't, try this one. 

Easy Weekday Spaghetti Carbonara

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3/4 pound turkey bacon, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 12 ounces of dry spaghetti
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup half and half
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat until the butter melts and begins to foam. Add diced onion and turn the heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion begins to turn golden. Be patient. This will take about 10 minutes. Return the heat to medium; add the diced turkey bacon and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is cooked and crisp. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from heat.
2. Beat together the egg, half and half, and parmesan cheese. Set aside.
3. Cook spaghetti in boiling salted water according to package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water. Drain the spaghetti well and return to the pan.
4. Immediately add the onion/bacon mixture and toss; add the egg/half and half mixture and toss again until spaghetti is coated with sauce. If the sauce seems a bit thick, add a bit of the reserved pasta water.

Makes 4 generous servings. Top with additional grated Parmesan if desired.

Easy-Peasy Fruit "Pudding" Dessert

I don't remember the source of this recipe, but the card on which it is written is old and faded. It has been around for a very long time.

This is an easy-to-do recipe that even the kids can help with:

Fruit "Pudding" 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 cup milk
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 can fruit pie filling (any flavor except lemon)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Melt butter in a 12x9-inch glass baking dish
3. In a large mixing bowl combine 1 cup of sugar, flour, baking powder, and milk
4. Pour mixture over melted butter. DO NOT STIR
5. Pour over this 3/4 cup sugar. DO NOT STIR
6. Pour in pie filling (including juice). DO NOT STIR
7. Bake for 1 hour. Serve warm with whipped topping or vanilla ice cream.

YUMMY!

Photo Credit: Image by Ulrike Leone from Pixabay