MAIN DISH

Pork Chops and Apple Sauce

Makes 4 servings

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

The trick to a good pan sauce is to have plenty of reduced juices and charred bits clinging to the bottom of the pan. You can scrape these up with a wooden spoon and let them dissolve in a flavorful liquid like wine, stock or, in this case, apple juice. You'll get a better sauce from a cast-iron, aluminum or Calphalon pan than you will from a skillet with a slick, nonstick surface. Also, the higher the heat, the better the meat browns. You will be much more comfortable sautéing over high heat if you cover the skillet with a wire mesh splatter guard or, lacking that, a metal pizza pan with many small holes in the surface.

4 boneless pork chops, about 1 inch thick

Salt and pepper

Oil for frying

1 cup apple juice

1 tablespoon cider or white wine vinegar

1/2 cup heavy cream

Season the chops with salt and pepper and cook them in a skillet over medium-high heat, about 8 minutes on each side, until they are just pink in the center. Set aside on a plate covered with foil. Deglaze the pan with apple juice, stirring up any dark bits clinging to the pan. Stir in the vinegar and boil vigorously until the liquid is thick and syrupy. Add the cream and boil until a wooden spoon swiped through the sauce leaves a momentary trace. Stir in any juices accumulated on the pork plate. Adjust seasoning and serve.

Per serving: 324 calories (percent of calories from fat, 64), 21 grams protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, 23 grams fat, 92 milligrams cholesterol, 55 milligrams sodium.

DESSERT

Caramel Sauce

Makes 10 servings

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

The beauty of homemade caramel sauce is threefold. One: It's easy. Two: Most prepared caramel sauces are loaded with harmful trans fats rather than wholesome cream. Three: You can make the sauce as sweet or as bitter as you like. I like it on the bitter side, so I wait to add the cream until the caramelizing sugar gives off a faint burnt odor.

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup water

3/4 heavy cream

Mound the sugar in the center of a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Pour the water carefully around the sides of the pan so that it pools around the mound of sugar. Carefully stir the sugar into the water with a clean metal spoon, making sure none of it splashes on the sides of the pan. Place the pan, covered, over a medium-high flame.

After 2 minutes, remove the cover. Continue cooking the sugar, watching it carefully, for about 4 minutes, until it begins to color. Give the pan a gentle swirl. When the color changes from golden to a richer brown and begins to smell bitter, turn off the heat and add the cream, being careful not to splash. When the bubbling subsides, mix the caramel well with a fork. Bring to a bubbling boil, then turn off the heat. When cool, refrigerate.

Per serving: 120 calories (percent of calories from fat, 48), trace protein, 15 grams carbohydrates, no fiber, 7 grams fat, 24 milligrams cholesterol, 7 milligrams sodium.

SIDE DISH

Creamed Celery

Photos: PHIL SKINNER/AJC Styling: JEANNE BESSER/Special

Makes 4 servings Preparation time: 5 minutes Cooking time: 5 minutes

When there's no other green vegetable in the fridge, celery can make do. This makes a nice side dish for almost any meal.

4 large stalks celery

2 teaspoons butter

Salt and white pepper

1/4 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 tablespoon chopped parsley or dill

With a small, sharp knife, pull or cut the strings from the surface of the celery. Cut on the bias into 1/2-inch slices. Sauté in a pot or large saucepan with the butter and salt and pepper. Add the chicken broth and the cream, cover the pot and cook for about 4 minutes, until the liquid has reduced slightly. Garnish with parsley.

Per serving: 52 calories (percent of calories from fat, 81), 1 gram protein, 2 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 5 grams fat, 15 milligrams cholesterol, 105 milligrams sodium.

SIDE DISH

Hashed Brussels Sprouts

Makes 6 servings Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 5 minutes

These are always a huge hit -- people like the sophisticated cabbagey flavor but don't miss the boiled-eyeball texture of typical brussels sprouts.

1 pound fresh brussels sprouts

3 green onions, slivered

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 tablespoons heavy cream

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons toasted, chopped almonds

To hash the sprouts, cut into quarters, remove and discard the small cores, then slice into slivers. Sauté the sprouts and the green onions in the oil in a skillet over a medium-high flame. When the volume has reduced slightly and the sprouts have turned a bright green, add the cream and toss to warm through. Season and serve with the almonds strewn on top.

Per serving: 95 calories (percent of calories from fat, 59), 3 grams protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 7 grams fat, 10 milligrams cholesterol, 21 milligrams sodium.

SAUCE

Mustard Green Peppercorn Sauce

Photos: PHIL SKINNER/AJC Styling: JEANNE BESSER/Special

Makes 6-8 servings

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 5 minutes

This version of a classic French sauce goes well with beef tenderloin, pork loin, sautéed chicken breasts, tuna and swordfish steaks. Look for green peppercorns packed in brine; the dehydrated ones are no good.

2 tablespoons minced shallots

2 teaspoons butter

1 tablespoon peppercorns in brine, drained

1/3 cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard

1/2 cup heavy cream

Salt to taste

In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, cook the shallots in the butter until they are soft and translucent -- about 4 minutes. Raise the heat to medium-high and add the peppercorns and the wine. Reduce volume by half. Stir in the mustard and cream and boil until the mixture reduces slightly -- just enough to coat a spoon. Season to taste.

Per serving, based on 6: 81 calories (percent of calories from fat, 76), 1 gram protein, 3 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 6 grams fat, 21 milligrams cholesterol, 54 milligrams sodium.

MAIN DISH

Mussels With Cream and Poblanos

Photos: PHIL SKINNER/AJC Styling: JEANNE BESSER/Special

Makes 4 servings

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 5-8 minutes

This version of Billi Bi has a muted kick.

2 pounds mussels (or combined mussels and clams)

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 small shallot, peeled and slivered

1 large garlic clove, peeled and slivered

1 to 2 tablespoons slivered poblano pepper

1/4 cup white wine

2 to 3 tablespoons heavy cream

Scrub and, if necessary, debeard the mussels. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a pot. Sauté the shallot, garlic and poblano pepper briefly, until fragrant, then add the mussels and wine and cover the pot. After all the mussels have opened (about 3-5 minutes), remove from the heat. Tilt the pot so that the mussel liquor pools in one side of the pot away from the shells and swirl in the cream. Serve in deep bowls with bread for dipping.

Per serving: 265 calories (percent of calories from fat, 38), 27 grams protein, 10 grams carbohydrates, no fiber, 10 grams fat, 74 milligrams cholesterol, 654 milligrams sodium.

BREAD

Cream Biscuits

Makes 12 servings

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

This is James Beard's famous recipe that Marion Cunningham has recently reprinted in "Lost Recipes." These biscuits make a perfect shortcake substitute when strawberry come into season.

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

2 teaspoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 to 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1/3 cup (5 tablespoons) butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Have ready an ungreased baking sheet.

Toss together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl, stirring with a fork to blend and lighten. Slowly add 1 cup cream, stirring constantly. Gather the dough together; when it holds together and feels tender, it is ready to knead. If the dough seems shaggy and pieces are dry and falling away, slowly add enough additional cream to make the dough hold together.

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for 1 minute. Pat the dough into a square that is about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into 12 squares and dip each into the melted butter so all sides are coated. Place the biscuits 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the biscuits are lightly browned. Serve hot.

Per serving: 193 calories (percent of calories from fat, 59), 3 grams protein, 17 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram fiber, 13 grams fat, 41 milligrams cholesterol, 359 milligrams sodium.