Gourmet calls this Pork Chops Saltimbocca. After reading Wikipedia’s entry on Saltimbocca, I’m not convinced this dish is true to it’s heritage, but hey—I’ll give Gina Enriquez the benefit of the doubt.

To make a long story short, I wasn’t impressed with this dish. It’s a downright shame because the Fontina and the prosciutto were excellent quality and freshness; they were both bought late yesterday afternoon at the lovely Giuliano’s Delicatessen and Bakery. The cheese, which I’ve never sampled before today, was soft, creamy, and rich. The prosciutto was sliced paper-thin and neither too moist nor too dry. Unfortunately, the sage was not at peak freshness, and the pork chops were garden-variety Albertsons bone-in thick cut. Still, one would think that putting these four ingredients together would not be so underwhelming. But before I criticize the recipe, let me offer a few critical remarks about my own technique.

1. With so few ingredients, it's crucial to obtain high quality materials. So next time spring for quality pork chops from a good butcher. Oh—and don't forget the really fresh sage!
2. Despite oversearing one side, the pork inside was cooked perfectly.

   NB: five minutes was a terrible estimate for time spent in the oven. The pork chop took somewhere near 10 minutes to achieve an internal temperature of 160°F. (Yes, I know some brave folks like to eat pink pork closer to 130°F, but I’m not there yet. Use your meat thermometer to achieve the perfect temperature of choice.) Also, if you transfer the pork chop to a separate pan for the oven, be sure the pan is preheated!



3. One minute and thirty seconds was the sweet spot for searing time on the stove top.


4. Be very careful to balance the salt, cheese, and prosciutto. The first time I made this dish (pictured above), the saltiness was slightly overpowering.

My own personal opinion: this entrée is simply too heavy to eat as a main course. It sinks like lead in the stomach and without something to cut the intensity of the sage and greasiness of the cheese, I feel mired in herb-marinated artery-clogging sludge. The sautéed spinach would be a relief, yes, as would a glass of wine. The bottom line is cheese-stuffed pork really isn't my favorite fare.

My husband, sweetheart that he was, made me a replacement meal: caramelized onions and a nice lean ground pork patty with sage, prosciutto, salt, pepper, and garlic powder (see above). Such a simple dinner was much more to my tastes and will probably receive some attention as a-recipe-to-revisit-and-tweak.