Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Lose

Well the title says it all. Last night I made a Pork Chop Dinner. My daughter said, "Please don't make this again."

In the morning I took out a package of frozen pork chops and decided I would make those for dinner. It was a very busy day with tennis, softball, Destination Imagination practises and my author day at the library. We finally made it home by 5:00. We normally eat dinner around 6:00. So I had an hour to work magic. Plenty of time!

With no plan in place, other than the pork chops, I viewed the contents of my pantry. I spotted a box of pork flavored stuffing mix which I think I have had for awhile. I remembered a recipe I had cut out of the newspapers along time ago before I had kids that included these ingredients. Working on memory, I spread the stuffing mix on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baker and placed the pork chops on top. I remembered that the recipe had Cream of Mushroom Soup poured on top. I hardly ever buy any of the cream of soups. So on to the stove top to make a cream type sauce. I made a roux with butter and flour; added water, powdered milk and chicken stock crystals. Meanwhile, I discovered a 1/2 used bag of frozen corn in the freezer and sprinkled that on top of the pork. The cream sauce went over the entire baker. I covered it and put it in the oven at 400.

What went wrong. I needed to add some liquid to the stuffing mix. I mistakenly thought the juice from the pork and cream sauce would make it down to the stuffing mix. Mostly it did, but there were some dry spots.

Having said that, we did eat all of it for dinner. Nothing went to waste, but it was not my best. Maybe I should have used the recipe instead of relying on my memory. However, I read cookbooks like others read novels. I don't follow recipes while I am cooking, only while I am baking. Even with baking, I will sometimes substitute ingredients or add a healthier ingredient. I have more successes than failures in the kitchen. But really, who cares if you have a failure! Cooking isn't brain surgery. If you make a mistake, no one dies (usually). So go experiment and have fun!