MARIE'S MUSES

Words are fascinating things. They have the power to make grown men cry, and they have the power to make them laugh. They can be instruments of war and they can be instruments of peace. Hearts are won by them and hearts are lost by them, likewise friendships. Written down on the pages of a book, they have the power to carry you away to other worlds and places, and when accompanied by music they move hearts and souls and bodies. They are the most important way we have of communicating with each other, with our loved ones, with our God. They have the means to irritate, to entertain, and to inspire. Words give voice to our thoughts. Words are powerful.

“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue, keepeth his soul from troubles.” ~Psalms 21:23

“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.”

~1 Cor. 13:1

I got this e-mail yesterday filled with interesting facts about words and I thought I would share them with you this morning:

Stewardesses is the longest word typed by using only the left hand. (try it, it’s completely true)

And Lollipop is the longest word typed by only the right.

Here’s one for Kath, No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple.

'Dreamt' is the only English word that ends in the letters 'mt'.

The sentence: 'The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog' uses every letter of the alphabet.

The words 'racecar,' ‘kayak, and 'level' are the same whether they are read left to right or right to left (palindromes).

There are only four words in the English language which end in 'dous': tremendous, horrendous, stupendous, and hazardous.

There are two words in the English language that have all five vowels in order: 'abstemious' and 'facetious.'

TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.

And now you know more than you did when you first started reading this!

As you know, Todd loves pork chops. I am always trying to come up with a way to cook them that keeps them moist and tender and doesn’t dry them out. I think I succeeded with this one. Not only are they moist and tender, but they are mighty delicious as well! The secret to it’s success, is not to over cook it.

Serves 2

As written this recipe serves two, but can be easily multiplied to serve more. Covered on the outside with a crisp coating, tender and moist on the inside and accompanied with a deliciously sweet, yet tangy sauce, there’s much to love with this one!

2 boneless pork loin chops

Salt and pepper

1 cup dried seasoned bread crumbs (I used Italian)

1 large egg

2 TBS milk

2 TBS olive oil

1 small red onion, peeled and minced

½ cup dry white wine or apple juice

1 TBS grainy mustard

1 tsp Dijon mustard

2 TBS honey

¼ cup heavy cream

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/375*F.

Put the two pork chops into a heavy plastic freezer bag and then pound them as thinly as you like with the side of a rolling pin, until they are roughly twice the size you started out with. Try hard not to tear the meat.

Beat the egg and milk together in a shallow plate. Place the bread crumbs into another shallow plate.

Dust the beaten pork chops on both sides with some salt and pepper. Dip each one first in the beaten egg to coat, allowing the excess to drip off and then roll each in the bread crumbs, coating them well, using your fingertips to help them to adhere. Repeat once more, so that they are double coated. Let sit for about 10 minutes for the crumbs to dry on well.

Take a heavy bottomed skillet and heat it over medium high heat. Add the oil and when it is starting to shimmer add the pork hope. Reduce the heat to medium and then brown them well on both sides, about 3 minutes on each. Put them onto a small oven tray and place them into the heated oven. Turn the oven heat off and let them sit in the oven while you make the sauce.

Add the chopped onion to the skillet and cook it in the drippings, stirring it frequently until it is quite soft, but not browned. Add the white wine and cook for a few minutes until it is reduced by about a third. Stir in the mustards and the honey. When the honey is melted and they are completely amalgamated together stir in the cream. Heat through.

Remove your chops from the oven and place on warm plates. Serve with the pan sauce spooned over. I like to serve a green vegetable and some type of potatoes with this