Pork Chops with Oozy Gorgonzola, Honey and Toasted Pecans

I was lucky enough to get amazing seats last night for the Jay Z 9-11 Memorial Benefit at Madison Square Garden. The special guests started with Alicia Keys then spread to John Mayer, Beyonce, Rihanna, Kanye, Mary J Blige, and P Diddy among others.

Jay's tribute to the lives lost on 9-11 as well as to the city of New York was stunning. Photos of the departed scrolled behind him for a good part of the show and there was an amazing graphic treatment of the city skyline at night to kick off the show. I particularly loved that he plugged his Texas lady's hometown (and mine) twice with a shout out to H-town. Such an amazing show - I still have goosebumps.

Anyway this post is supposed to be about pork chops, right? Right.

This recipe has everything going for it - savory yet sweet with the wonderful texture of toasted pecans. If it was a person you would hate it.

You'll want a good quality gorgonzola here - preferably one that you can smell/taste first before buying as there are so few ingredients in this recipe and you don't want any of them to drag the whole dish down with them. You could also substitute brie if you're not a gorgonzola fan, or any cheese that you like a good hit of mellow sweetness to contrast against.

What's your favorite sweet/savory recipe?

Pork Chops with Oozy Gorgonzola, Honey and Toasted Pecans

Ingredients:
2 thick cut pork chops, seasoned well on both sides with salt and pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 thick slices Gorgonzola, to place over the chops (cut 'em THICK - no one's looking;)
2 teaspoons honey
2 tablespoons chopped pecans, lightly toasted in a 350 oven for 6 minutes

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350. Place aluminum foil over a small baking sheet and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Let the oil heat through for 1 minute, until a beautiful sheen develops and it willingly crawls across the pan. Add the chops (dip one edge in first - if you don't get a 'hissing' sound, wait until the pan heats up more and/or raise the heat.) Cook the chops for about 4 minutes, until a golden crust develops. Flip to the other side and cook another 3-4 minutes, just until golden as well.

Remove to your waiting sheet pan and top with the Gorgonzola slices. Place in the oven for 6-8 minutes, until the chops are just cooked through and the gorgonzola has melted nicely, oozing over the edges.

Remove from the oven, drizzle with honey in an evenly zig-zagged strip over the top, and sprinkle with the pecan bits.