Hot Summer Meals

For those of you who read this that are not in Minnesota, we are experiencing really high temperatures. Heat indexes are in the 100's. We're under an excessive heat warning until Wednesday night. Often times, when it's super hot out, the last thing I want to do is fire up the stove and cook. However, now it's more important than ever to stay well fed and hydrated.

Tonight I made Caesar Pork Chops & Pasta from the Kraft Food & Family magazine, Spring 2011 edition. It was fantastic! The only vegetable that Bobby will eat is cooked spinach, and this recipe has that in it!

A few tips for this recipe:

*It doesn't say to use oil in the skillet with the pork chops, I didn't and all of the cheese breading stuck to the pan. I would suggest a minimal amount of oil just to prevent sticking, or at least a non-stick spray.

*I used garlic powder for the pasta because I didn't have fresh garlic, it tasted just as good.

*We didn't use tomatoes because we don't like them, it was still yummy.

*I used whole wheat penne, it was fabulous!

*The dressing I used was Newman's Caesar, it's my favorite caesar, but I'm sure any brand is fine.

I'm don't have a good habit of taking pictures of my dishes. My dish looked very similar to the photo on the Kraft website. Enjoy!