Make It: Blackened Stuffed Chop

In the March issue’s Taste department, writer Tracy Begland introduces readers to three restaurants in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex that operate from former and still-functioning gas stations. It’s the ultimate adaptive reuse. Chef Swanson Nwaeze of Watauga’s Chef Point Café maintains a mall database of recipes on his Web site (www.chefpointcafe.com), including instructions for making the café’s famous Blackened Stuffed Chop and the savory Minestrone Soup with Garbanzo Beans. We’ve adapted those recipes here. Enjoy!

Blackened Stuffed Chop

Serves 5

5 (1½-inch thick) bone-in pork chops

2 pounds angel-hair pasta, cooked

Crab stuffing:

¼ cup each of red, green, and yellow bell peppers (and use all green)
½ cup red onion, chopped
2 T butter
1 pound crabmeat
2 T. chopped flat-leaf parsley
1T chopped fresh basil
¼ cup bread crumbs
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
¾ cup shredded pepper jack cheese

Asiago Sauce:

8 ounces shredded asiago cheese
2/3 cup half & half
2/3 cup whipping cream

Blackening seasoning (you will have extra to use later):

½ cup Spanish paprika
½ cup cayenne pepper
½ cup black pepper
½ cup salt
1 cup chili powder
1 cup granulated onion 1 cup granulated garlic

Directions:

Make the stuffing: Sauté the bell peppers and onion in the butter. Set aside to cool. Press extra water from the crab meat and combine with pepper/onion mixture and remaining stuffing ingredients. Set aside.

Make the sauce: Bring whipping cream and half & half to a simmer. Add the asiago cheese and remove from heat.

Make the chops:

Cut a pocket in each of the chops, and gently stuff with the crab/jack cheese mixture. Season the chop generously with the blackening mixture. Cook chops however you’d like. (We placed the chops snugly in a casserole dish and baked in a 350-degree oven for 25 minutes.)

Serve:

Serve over angel hair pasta and cover with Asiago sauce.

From the February 2012 issue.

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