I'm making up a list of recipes to test ahead of Thanksgiving dinner; first up is one for soft, fluffy dinner rolls. I'm looking at one that's made all in one day, and another that calls for letting the dough rise overnight in the refrigerator. I strongly suspect that the latter is going to be the best, but I'm not going to say no to TWO batches of home made rolls! I'll need to make beef stew to go along with one of the batches. It's still getting up into the mid 70s here, but the temps drop to around 60 at night, so it's really starting to feel like fall. 

For the recipes this week, first up, a salt and pepper pork chop; the salty spicy combination begs for a pan of slow roasted, caramelized sweet potatoes to serve with the pork. Next, perfect poached shrimp, one of my all-time favorite meals. This scales up easily and can be made a day in advance, making it a perfect choice to serve cold at a cocktail party. My preference is for spicy cocktail sauce on the side. And finally, a gorgonzola-stuffed burger; I have some good Point Reyes blue cheese in the fridge and this may be what's for dinner Saturday night.

Enjoy these recipes, stay safe and healthy, and, as always, let me know what's on your mind.

Best regards,

Susan Ford, Publisher and Editorial Director

Louisiana Kitchen & Culture

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Previous week's recipes:

 • Zea's Roasted Corn Grits • Smothered Chicken and Rice • Seafood Boulettes in Tomato Gravy

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Salt and Pepper Pork Chops

This is from The World in a Skillet by Milk Street. I love a fried pork chop, and the addition of the spicy fresh topping is wonderful. Omit the Sichuan pepper and Chinese 5-spice if you don't have it on hand; this will still be good.

The corn starch delivers more crunch than a flour coating would. If you can't find pork cutlets, carefully cut thicker chops in half horizontally.

Perfect Poached Shrimp

This is from chef Isaac Toup's excellent cookbook, Chasing the Gator.

Per the chef: "This is the perfect way to cook shrimp to put out for a party that’s not a backyard shrimp boil. This is also how my kids prefer to eat shrimp — finger food time! Served with a little aioli, a little cocktail sauce — they’re perfect. You can multiply this recipe to make more for a bigger group."

Gorgonzola-Stuffed Burger

I love blue cheese on a good steak, and really love a salad with thinly sliced flank or skirt steak and a good blue cheese dressing. So of course I'm excited with this recipe that stuffs the cheese inside a burger. I can see making mini meatloafs like this also.