Thursday, September 20, 2018

Language, Florence,

Had to contact Toshiba yesterday and as usual ended up with someone who's first language was not English. It is frustrating, most of them know the words to say but they are frequently incomprehensible - their employers should give them a course on the spoken language. I am having the same trouble with my shopping orders. They call me and say they haven't got such and such is this OK to replace. I have to fight to understand what they are saying. More important for technicians of course. Most of these people know what they are talking about, but I don't know what they are saying.

Just heard from a friend in North Carolina who lives near the coast. She says it is terrible where she lives, although she went north during the storm, she lives in a mobile home and has been told the park was flooded so she doesn't know if there is any water damage to her mobile home. Another friend posted pix on Facebook and his yard is littered with trees which came down, none on the home apparently. Looks worse than anything we were involved in although as I often say, we lost 19 trees to hurricanes during the time we lived there. Heard indirectly that another friend "who rode it out" is OK and lost a couple of big trees. He used to have pecan trees, not sure if he still does. I remember one storm when the nuts were all blown off his trees and ended up miles away. They weren't ripe either.

I love recipes from Giada de Laurentiis. She is a cook I really admire. If you decide to try this, do buy the real Mascarpone. There are many versions which are not from Italy and which carry preservatives. These preservatives tend to sweeten the cheese which is not good for a savoury meal. The real thing is more expensive of course, but it is a much better product.

Pork Milanese with Creamy Caper and Lemon Sauce

Creamy Caper and Lemon Sauce

2/3 cup Mascarpone cheese
3 Tbs mayonnaise
¼ cup whole milk
¼ cup capers, drained and chopped
1 lemon, zested
1 Tbs fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Pork Milanese

¾ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt, plus more for seasoning
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup seasoned Italian bread crumbs
3 Tbs vegetable oil
6 thin-cut pork chops

Creamy Caper and Lemon Sauce

Combine the mascarpone and mayonnaise in a medium bowl. Slowly add the milk, stirring as you go, until all the milk is incorporated. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir to combine. Set aside.

Pork Milanese

Combine the flour and the 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper in a shallow dish and stir together. Crack the eggs into another shallow dish and beat until combined. In a third shallow bowl, place the breadcrumbs. Season the pork with salt and pepper. Dip the pork, 1at a time first in the flour, then the eggs, then the bread crumbs. Warm the vegetable in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot place the breaded pork in the pan. Cook until golden and cooked through, about 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer the pork to a serving platter and serve with the sauce alongside.

Yield: 6 - 8

Author: Giada De Laurentiis

Have a great day
 

12 comments:

  1. Glad your friends are all right even if the one may not have a home anymore. Yes, there is a lot of flooding in the area right now. It's done more damage inland than the hurricane itself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wasn't it Floyd which did the same thing years ago Alex, hanging around and raining, flooding low land areas. I remember seeing pix of houses under water.

      Delete
  2. Hi Jo - communication is key isn't it ... it is becoming less easy as the years go by. The Pork dish looks delicious. I'm glad your friends seem to have come out relatively unscathed, though your friend in the flooded mobile park - I hope theirs is not flooded - seems unlikely sadly - still they are safe. All the best - Hilary

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It surely is Hilary. Trouble is, they do speak good English just not with a good accent. As for my friend, hopefully the insurance will pay a lot.

      Delete
  3. Glad to hear all your friends are safe. I love trees, until there is a storm. Then I wish I had shrubs. LOL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know exactly what you mean Liz. Dangerous things in a storm.

      Delete
  4. I think Florence was worse than Matthew as the winds hung around longer and the poor coast got pounded.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't remember Matthew Diane. I do remember Floyd hanging around for days and causing a lot of flooding. Not near us but further north as I recall.

      Delete
  5. I hope your friend's house is OK. One of mine lives inland by an hour and she and her dogs were boat rescued. Her house didn't flood thankfully but the water was very high. She was forced to leave.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. She left JoJo, but was told water came up to her underpinning. I was only flooded once, in the UK, and that wasn't funny. Even then it was only knee deep.

      Delete
  6. It is hard when I cannot understand then and I don't understand how that's okay. Sometimes I have to ask for someone else or call back another time.

    Very sorry to hear about her trailer and the frustration of not knowing what is flooded and what is not. We have big black walnuts that come crashing down on our trailer. They sound so much bigger than they really are.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know, but that's a nuisance too isn't it Ivy.

      I can imagine they sound like bombs hitting the roof.

      Delete