Spiced Pork and Apples

An Asian twist on a classic. Pork chops and apples enhanced with sesame oil and five~spice powder. This is really flavorful, no need for added spices or salt. In fact, I would use the less sodium soy sauce in this recipe, if you don't already use it. The pork needs to marinate for 4~12 hours. Get it going in the morning and when you are done with a busy day, it won't stress you out. It's a really quick and easy dinner to pull off. Serve it with some coconut rice or even some plain rice and you are good to go.

4~6 thin cut (about 1/2 inch thick) boneless pork chops
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons dry sherry
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon five~spice powder
1 2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
2 large baking apples, cored and cut into thick slices
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 green onions, diagonally sliced into 1 inch pieces
2 tablespoons honey

Place pork chops in a resealable plastic bag set in a shallow dish; set aside. For marinade, in a small bowl combine oil, brown sugar, soy sauce, sherry, sesame oil, five~spice powder, and ginger. Pour marinade over pork chops. Seal bag; turn to coat chops. Marinate in the refrigerator for 4~12 hours, turning occasionally.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Drain chops, reserving 1/3 cup marinade. Arrange chops in an ungreased 3 quart baking dish. Arrange apples around chops. Drizzle apples with the reserved marinade. Sprinkle apples with cinnamon.

Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add green onions. Bake, uncovered, for another 10~15 minutes or until chops are cooked through (160 degrees) and apples are tender. Arrange chops and apples on a serving platter. Drizzle with honey.