Pat's Pork Chop Casserole

Early yesterday morning the indestructible parakeet finally clapped out for good and all.  I swear I did not think I would live to see this day.  

(Its name was Pat, after the ambigendrous Saturday Night Live character from the 80s – please tell me someone else remembers that.  Although I’m fairly sure that the bird was, in fact, female, it was some time before we had any degree of certainty about that; hence the name.)

And then about an hour later we got slammed with that nor’easter that wreaked havoc in the southeast earlier this week.  It was a terrific storm, the kind that drops a foot and a half of snow in a matter of hours, blows like hell, stops traffic, brings down electric lines and compels cynical teenage boys to dig forts and make snow angels.

Comfort food was called for, and nothing screams “comfort food” like some combination of pork chops, stuffing and cream of mushroom soup.  

Pat’s Pork Chop Casserole

For the pork chops:

4 bone-in pork loin chops, ½ - ¾” thick

1 tablespoon olive oil

For the stuffing layer:

2 tablespoons butter

1 stalk celery, sliced

1 yellow onion, diced

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried rubbed sage

1 tablespoon parley flakes

1 1-lb loaf hearty white sandwich bread, lightly toasted and cubed

2 cups chicken stock (approximately)

For the mushroom topping:

2 tablespoons butter

2 yellow onions, sliced

1 13-oz can sliced mushrooms, drained

1 tablespoon minced garlic

2 cans condensed cream-of-mushroom soup

½ cup vermouth or white wine

French fried onions

Chops:

Season pork chops liberally with salt and pepper.  Sear in oil over medium-high heat so they are golden-brown.  Remove to ungreased 13 x 9 baking dish.

Stuffing:

Melt butter in stock pot and sautee celery, diced onion and garlic until tender.  Season with thyme, sage, and parsely, plus salt and pepper to taste.  Stir in bread cubes and enough chicken stock to moisten.  It should hang together.  Spread on top of the pork chops.

Topping:

Melt butter in a skillet and sautee sliced onion, mushrooms, and garlic until tender.  Stir in cream of mushroom soup and vermouth and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Spread on top of the stuffing.

Cover the baking dish with foil and bake at 350 for 1 hour or until pork is done.  Remove foil and sprinkle with French fried onions; return to oven for 15 minutes.  Serve.