Blog Anniversary Dinner- Pork with Rosemary/Sage/Parm Crust and Lemon Risotto

 I finally was able to cook a meal with a dedication to the year one mark of Waxed Bean. Originally, I thought I would make a full meal of Amanda Hesser recipes, as a connection to the book that got me blogging. But I rethought the approach because this blog is about my cooking history and style and less about my life, like her book.

So, I decided to make two dishes that compliment each other and have a mark on this blog and my cooking style in general: one, a recipe from Amanda's book for lemon risotto and another, a recipe I have been making and changing since '03, from a recycled photocopy of Food & Wine magazine.

Pork chops with a Rosemary, Sage, and Parm crust:
4 pork chops, cut to 1/2 inch
1/2 c flour
S&P
2 t rosemary, dried and crushed
2 t sage
1/3 c chicken stock or white wine

Dredge the pork in the flour and herbs, coating all sides. Add to warm olive oil in a pan. Sear until brown, then flip. Once the second side is brown, add the liquid and let it reduce down.

Meanwhile, make a Lemon Risotto:
1 T olive oil
1 T butter
2 cloves garlic
1 c Arborio rice
5 c chicken stock
Zest of 1 lemon
1/4 c parm cheese

Add oil, butter and garlic to pan. Add in rice and coat for 1 minute.

Add the chicken stock by 1/2 cup increments until all the liquid is added. Halfway through the stock, add half the lemon zest.

At the end of the stock, add the remaining lemon zest and parm. Add a little S&P to taste.