Pork Chop, Tomato, and Egg.

He was so ugly as a kid, we had to tie a pork chop around his neck to get the dog to play with him.—Saying from my youth

The above taunt was not directed at me, as far as I know. I may have used it a time or two, I confess.

I have a new love for the pig meat. My neighbor is a hog farmer…so endless supply. My son and his family live in a world where it is forbidden…so no supply. We load up on pork when they come to visit. There was more pork in this house than a congressional budget the last time they visited. This simple pork chop dish will be on the menu the next time they are here.

We had a left-over uncooked chop of decent size, so I wanted to use it for breakfast this morning. Now Mrs. Big Surf gets a little angst going whenever I ignore her Library of Congress-sized cookbook wing of the house. However I decided to make something simple because that is how my mind works best. This was not a ground-breaking culinary event here, just putting together simple ingredients for a good tasting dish, all the while knowing the missus could see there wasn’t an open cookbook.

I salted and peppered the pork chop and fried it in a skillet with a little olive oil. When almost done, I added some scallions to caramelize with it. In another skillet, I was frying two eggs, seasoned with EVERYTHING BUT THE BAGEL. The eggs should be over-light (or runny).

I divided the pork chop with the scallions between two plates and topped each with a slice of tomato. I placed the egg on top of the tomato with salt and pepper, topped the tomato with the egg and some green chopped scallions. To this I finished with some Maggi Hot and Sweet tomato chili sauce. This sauce is a favorite in the Big Surf house to eat with eggs.

Mrs. Big Surf was very pleased and so was I. She was so pleased in fact, that she is now in the mood for a dog. She thinks she has found a way to finally get a dog to like me.

Garden Tomato Pasta Sauce

Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.—Miles Kington

It was a perfect storm, a garden tomato deluge…

I was experiencing a minor horticultural miracle of some sort as my tomato plants were actually producing this year. I had just picked some beautiful tomatoes when my cousin brought me a bucket of their beautiful tomatoes that I had requested and then I saw my neighbor bringing me some of his beautiful tomatoes. This took place in a span of about fifteen minutes.

It was a lycopene squall !!!

The dilemma now at hand was how to use all of these “love apples” and not waste any of them. I gave some to a friend of mine who I am always indebted to for his many acts of kindness because free garden tomatoes covers a myriad of paybacks.

Next I used one whole tomato in a blender with hot sauce, Worchester sauce, salt, pepper, and lime juice to create a mix for a Bloody Mary so I could ponder what to do with the rest of these lovely things.

I decided to make a tomato pasta sauce so I could use up four of the tomatoes and searched online for a good sauce. I settled on Chef Ray McVinnie’s sauce I found on YouTube, https://youtu.be/ctRo3pmFaKQ.

I was shocked at how much olive oil was used. But it was delicious. As I said I used four medium to large tomatoes and followed his recipe pretty close.

Since this sauce was made, I have also eaten about two tomatoes a day. Now I am ready for more. So if anyone has fresh tomatoes, my acidic levels have neutralized in my body, so I can introduce more acid into my innards. VIVA IL POMODORO!!!