Tonight's Dinner: Pork and beans

There's a new show over on ABC called The Chew. I'm sure you've seen the ads: It's the newest daily talk show, but instead of having a ton of guests you either have or haven't heard of, this show has five chefs who get together and talk food. Of course I was in from the moment I saw the first advertisement. It wasn't just because the show was going to be all about food. I mean, there are plenty of shows and even a few networks that are devoted to cooking and food. It was because it took five well known chefs and paired them together with all their different styles. So unlike other food shows where you get one or two recipes over the course of the broadcast, here you were going to get five recipes and they were all going to be completely different because they were coming from five different chefs who all have different styles.

Anyway, the first episode aired and I knew I'd made the right decision by setting my DVR. There were two recipes I wanted to make right off the bat. This pork and beans recipe from Michael Symon was such a novel way to make pork cutlets and he made it look so easy that I knew I had to give it a try. It was just as simple as he said it was. And since he was using pork cutlets, white kidney beans and kale, I knew it was not only going to be healthier than your typical pork and beans, it would fit perfectly into my October Unprocessed challenge as well. So if you love pork and beans but aren't really excited about those processed hot dogs or barbecued baked beans, go the unprocessed route and give this version a try. You won't be disappointed.

Pork and beans

Ingredients:

• 8 pork cutlets
• 1/2 bunch Italian (flat leaf) parsley
• 8 slices prosciutto
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 shallot, minced
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon
• 1 (12 ounce) can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 4 cups kale, chopped

Directions:

1. Using a meat mallet, pound each cutlet to 1/4 inch thick. Place one sprig of parsley and 1 slice of prosciutto on each cutlet and fold over to form a sandwich. Pound lightly with the meat mallet.
2. In a large skillet, heat two tablespoons of butter and the olive oil over medium-high heat.
3. In a small bowl, season the flour with salt and pepper. Dredge each cutlet lightly in the flour mixture, add to the skillet and cook for two minutes on each side. Transfer the cutlets to a platter and keep warm.
4. Add the remaining butter and shallots to the skillet, reduce the heat to medium and cook for one minute. Pour in the wine and stir with a wooden spoon to dislodge the browned bits. Add the kale and toss to combine. Add the beans, lemon zest and juice and stir to combine.
5. Spoon the kale and bean mixture onto serving plates, add two cutlets to each mound of kale and serve.

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