Project Foodie - North Pond: Pork Chops

North Pond: Pork Chops

Save Recipe: Grilled Pork Chop, Cinnamon-Orange Honey, Apples

North Pond is the home of native Chicagoan Chef Bruce Sherman who was nominated for the 2007 James Beard award for "Best Chef: Great Lakes". Chef Sherman's cuisine is an innovative and seasonal blend of contemporary French-American with influences from his travels to Paris, Southeast Asia, and London. Today, Chef Sherman shares with us his fall inspired grilled pork chops. The pork chops are glazed with a cinnamon-orange infused honey and served with a luscious apple sauce. Yum!

Grilled Pork Chops, Cinnamon-Orange Honey, Apples

Chef Bruce Sherman, North Pond
Serves: four
Prep time: 30 minutes

Infused Honey

1/2 cup organic farm honey
1 stick whole cinnamon, broken into 3 pieces
1 orange

Pork Chops

4 10-12 oz. pork loin chops
2 Tbl vegetable oil

Apple Sauce

2 firm, sweet apples, peeled, diced into ¼" pieces
1/3 cup orange juice - from honey process
1 Tbl butter, unsalted, chilled
salt and ground white pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Light grill/barbecue.

Use a vegetable peeler to carefully shave five strips of orange zest off outside of orange. Combine honey, zest, and broken-up cinnamon stick in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook until mixture turns an amber color, about 8 minutes.

While mixture cooks, juice orange and set aside 1/3 cup.

Remove pot from heat and carefully stir in remaining balance of orange juice - approximately 2-3 tablespoons. Let mixture rest and infuse for 10 minutes, then strain out zest and cinnamon and discard. Reserve honey for later use (this honey can be made up to one week in advance).

Lightly rub pork chops with oil and season them liberally with salt and pepper. Place on grill and cook over a medium-hot fire until lightly browned and still pink in center, about 5-6 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, brush with some honey, and let stand for five minutes.

As pork chops cook, heat a medium-sized heavy bottomed frying pan for 1-2 minutes, until quite hot. Quickly drop in apples - they will smoke - and allow them to briefly caramelize/color for 10-15 seconds, then shake pan to caramelize another face of the fruit. Allow this side to color briefly, then turn heat to medium and pour in reserved orange juice. Use a spoon to scrape brown bits from bottom of pan and reduce liquid until no more than 3-4 tablespoons remain, about one minute. Sprinkle with some salt and add in chilled, cubed butter. Stir to homogenize and set aside sauce off heat.

Place a pool of apple sauce on each place, generously brush some warmed honey on pork chops and carefully place them on sauce to serve.

About North Pond

Situated within the grounds of Lincoln Park, at the edge of a pond overlooking Chicago's dramatic skyline, North Pond can easily claim the city's loveliest setting. The structure that houses North Pond was originally built in 1912 as a warming shelter for ice skaters, and has been redesigned according to the Arts and Crafts tradition. Chef Bruce Sherman holds true to the Arts and Crafts ideal in the culinary philosophy of North Pond restaurant. Drawing inspiration from the local market, he utilizes exceptional ingredients at the height of their season. Whenever possible, Chef Sherman supports small local farmers and treats their products with respect in his kitchen. The path from earth to plate remains clear and his cuisine reflects the décor of the dining room - complex layers of subtle craft beneath a simple decorative style.