Welcome back to our celebration of sugaring season. Hopefully, you have visited our first four articles in the series and had a cup of Vermont Fancy Coffee, a Sweet Potato Breakfast Bowl, (or a Blueberry Maple Power Smoothie), or maybe a Vermont Turkey Sandwich.
For those of you who missed the start of this series, allow me to share. A couple of years ago, I traveled to Vermont with my best friend and our combined five children to visit her family. I had never been to Vermont, but I’ve long been a lover of all things maple syrup. I think I ate a “Maple Creemee” every day we were there, and I still crave them. Adding maple syrup to my homemade yogurt is the closest thing I’ve been able to do. Recently I met a woman from Vermont who is a fantastic storyteller and loves to cook with maple syrup. She offered to share some of her stories and recipes here on the blog. So in honor of the “sugaring” season, for six days, I’ll be sharing a different recipe made with maple syrup.
The recipes will start with morning coffee, followed by two options for breakfast, including a power smoothie, lunch, dinner, and dessert. If you happen to be a homeschool mom, or really any mom and would like to teach your children about maple syrup, it’s history, and how it’s made, be sure to visit my Maple Syrup Homeschool Resources post.
Somebody ring the dinner bell. It’s dinner time!
Winter in Vermont means a few things: maple syrup, pork, and Brussels sprouts. After mulling over this combination, this recipe of maple pork chops and Brussels sprouts was created. By smearing bacon fat on the pork, one is able to achieve a nice caramelized crust on the outside of the pork chops. Combined with roasted Brussels sprouts, it’s a perfect winter meal pulling from local offerings up here in the Northeast Kingdom.
One of the world’s healthiest foods, Brussels sprouts are high in folate, manganese, vitamin C, K, B1, and B6, dietary fiber, choline, copper, potassium, phosphorus, and omega-3 fatty acids. As a rich, dense vegetable, it’s a great winter option to load up for those long, hard days. Brussels sprouts are also a cancer-preventative food, due to the high levels of glucosinolates found in this superfood.
The Northeast Kingdom has a lot to offer that requires a hearty meal at the end of the day. From fat tire biking to snowshoeing and dog sledding, there’s a myriad of winter activities that can be found in nearly every small town across the Kingdom. It’s a great time of year to visit this area, regardless of the crazy snow-ice weather we get. This time of year it snows almost daily in some portions of the Kingdom.
Today, we had an adventurous day hiking through a state park near Stowe. It’ll be good to cuddle up with this meal, a bottle of Kis Kombucha, and a good book.
Maple Pork Chop and Brussels Sprouts
Ingredients
- 1 lb Brussels sprouts
- 4 boneless pork chops
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tbs of bacon fat
- 2 slices bacon, cooked and finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp dark maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Mix the salt, pepper, and 1 Tbsp brown sugar in a small cup. Rub the pork chops on both sides with the mixture.
Cut the Brussels sprouts in half.
Whisk together mayonnaise, dark maple syrup, bacon fat, chopped bacon, and 1 Tbsp of the brown sugar. Smear a thin layer on the pork cutlet. Coat the Brussels sprouts with the remainder of the mayonnaise mixture.
Place the Brussels sprouts in a baking dish and place in the oven for 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to roast evenly.
Place the pork chops in a heated skillet. Sear on high heat for a few minutes on each side, or until there is a golden crust.
Place in the oven when the Brussels sprouts have 5 minutes left. Remove from oven after 5 minutes.
Allow pork chops to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
- 1 lb Brussels sprouts
- 4 boneless pork chops
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tbs of bacon fat
- 2 slices bacon, cooked and finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp dark maple syrup
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Mix the salt, pepper, and 1 Tbsp brown sugar in a small cup. Rub the pork chops on both sides with the mixture.
- Cut the Brussels sprouts in half.
- Whisk together mayonnaise, dark maple syrup, bacon fat, chopped bacon, and Tbsp of the brown sugar. Smear a thin layer on the pork cutlet. Coat the Brussels sprouts with the remainder of the mayonnaise mixture.
- Place the Brussels sprouts in a baking dish and place in the oven for 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to roast evenly.
- Place the pork chops in a heated skillet. Sear on high heat for a few minutes on each side, or until there is a golden crust. Place in the oven when the Brussels sprouts have 5 minutes left. Remove from oven after 5 minutes.
- Allow pork chops to rest for 10 minutes before serving.