Pork Chops

Cold weather gives us all insatiable appetites. These robust pork chops do the trick, yet are browned in only a small amount of oil. They're simmered with onions, dried apricots, prunes, chicken stock and red wine. PORK CHOPS WITH APRICOTS AND PRUNES 8 center-cut lean pork chops, about 1/2-inch thick (total weight 3 pounds), trimmed of all excess fat Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 1/3 cup flour 6 tablespoons oil 2 large onions, sliced 5 cups chicken stock 1 1/2 cups dry red wine 16 pitted small prunes ( 3/4 cup)

At Mike Ditka's downtown restaurant, you can't tell the entrees without a program. There is linguine and clam sauce a la Tom Lasorda for $6.95. Or if you prefer, an Andre Dawson steak sandwich for $8.95. Vinny Testaverde's paglia e'fieno is a bargain at $5.95 - that is, if it doesn't get intercepted on the way to your table. Even baseball announcers make Ditka's culinary lineup, as in Harry Caray's fried calamari. (What, no Holy Cowburger?) Surely we can expect to see the Buddy Ryan stuffed pork chop on the Ditka's menu any day now. "It won't happen," Eddie Minasian, the restaurant manager, said yesterday.

An elderly man was found axed to death yesterday at a boarding house in North Philadelphia after an argument with a fellow boarder over missing pork chops, police said. The other boarder admitted slaying the man and taking his pork chops, police said. The incident occurred just before 3:45 p.m., when police found Oliver Hawkins, 65, who lived at a boarding house in the 1500 block of West Oakdale Street, lying on the floor of his room with several ax wounds to the head. Mitchell Zimmerman, 27, also a resident of the two-story rowhouse, was arrested and charged with murder and possession of an instrument of crime, police said.

Come in from the dark, crisp cool of an autumn night to the welcoming aromas of comfort foods. Our latest installment of "In a Hurry" features a menu of seasonal treasures, such as juicy pork chops, golden butternut squash cubes, fragrant fennel and freshly harvested pears - all making up a meal that satisfies appetites whetted by the brisk fall weather. The chops cook beautifully, without extra fat, in a heavy skillet and are served with a low-calorie cream gravy made with low-fat yogurt and brightened with Dijon mustard.

Angelo Lutz brought it all to the witness stand yesterday, from his disdain for the government to his recipe for pork chops. Testifying in his own defense, the loquacious, 5-foot-5, 400-pound reputed mob associate described himself as a degenerate gambler whose addiction led his elderly parents to go $200,000 into debt to pay off his gambling losses and failed business ventures. But he repeatedly denied that he was an extortionist for the mob, as the government has alleged.

Orrechiette With Broccoli Rabe . . . 2 Prosciutto and Onion Frittata . . . 2 Rigatoni a la Norma . . . 2 Pork Chops w/Cider and Apples . . . 3 Crustless Zucchini Pie . . . 4

The freezer compartment of our refrigerator is a running joke in our household: You open it and run fast before you're bonked on the head by flying, foil-wrapped food. Unfortunately, I can't pass up a food bargain, especially the 2-for-1 sales on meat. Like Noah, I start with two of everything - two chickens for the price of one, two pounds of ground beef, two club steaks and two pork chops - and pray the freezer will hold them all. In theory, this works well. I cook one-half of my bargain immediately and freeze the remainder for a second meal.

Fran Andracchio of Chestnut Hill is an avid cook and reader of cooking magazines. But she had never entered a recipe contest until this year, when she submitted her recipe for Stuffed Pork Chops Sicilian Style to the second annual McCall's/Sonoma Dried Tomato Recipe Contest. "I was shocked," she said, to learn she was a runner-up and the winner of a $1,000 prize. Andracchio's recipe was one of 3,000 received for soups, appetizers, salads, main courses, side dishes and sandwiches.

State store pick of the week Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Gris Oregon $15.99 PLCB Item No. 3347 White wine made from this red-skinned grape comes in two styles. We are most familiar with it under its Italian identity pinot grigio, where it is typically light-bodied and very neutral in flavor because it is harvested early. When winemakers use its French name pinot gris, they are typically signaling that the wine is inspired more by the opulent style of Alsace pinot gris, where the same grape is ripened longer and develops both richer texture and more peachy fruit flavor.

Cabbage, a good source of Vitamin C, is often overlooked by cooks because they associate this inexpensive and long-keeping vegetable with an offensive cooking odor. Most times, the objectionable odor is created by overcooking - a waste of both time and nutrients. Quick-cooked cabbage will not only free the kitchen from any objectionable odors, but it also will have a bright taste and crisp texture. And prepared in a microwave, cabbage is surprisingly mild and pleasantly crunchy.

State store pick of the week Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Gris Oregon $15.99 PLCB Item No. 3347 White wine made from this red-skinned grape comes in two styles. We are most familiar with it under its Italian identity pinot grigio, where it is typically light-bodied and very neutral in flavor because it is harvested early. When winemakers use its French name pinot gris, they are typically signaling that the wine is inspired more by the opulent style of Alsace pinot gris, where the same grape is ripened longer and develops both richer texture and more peachy fruit flavor.

OLD-SCHOOL is always in session at G&M Market in Glendora, a South Jersey town not far from the Deptford Mall. Master butcher and raconteur Hank Mariotti just celebrated 55 years at the family-run business, an old-fashioned butcher shop and deli that still makes homemade sausage and grinds and cuts meat to order. For customers with no time to cook, beef and pork are roasted fresh daily for sandwiches, and the hoagies and sandwiches are some of the best around. As he approaches his 80th birthday, Mariotti, who co-owns the business with his son Gary, still works seven days a week.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Tourists gathered along Beale Street and gawkers snapped photos of the rising Mississippi, even as more residents were told yesterday to flee their homes and the river's crest edged toward the city, threatening to soak greater pockets of the city. City employees went door-to-door, warning about 240 people to get out before the river reaches its expected peak tomorrow. In all, residents in more than 1,300 homes have been told to go, and some 370 people were staying in shelters.

Orrechiette With Broccoli Rabe . . . 2 Prosciutto and Onion Frittata . . . 2 Rigatoni a la Norma . . . 2 Pork Chops w/Cider and Apples . . . 3 Crustless Zucchini Pie . . . 4

Chimichurri sauce over sauteed pork is a Latin favorite. Parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes, oil, and vinegar are the basic ingredients for this piquant sauce that is used throughout South America.   Chimichurri Pork Chops 1. With food processor running, drop garlic down feed tube. Stop processor, add parsley and pulse to chop. 2. Add pepper flakes, olive oil, vinegar, and water and process to form a thick sauce; it will not be smooth. (if making by hand, chop parsley and garlic together and mix in the remaining ingredients.

I'll take two pork chops and a beer With even commissioner Bud Selig admitting that a new stadium is not necessarily a lifesaver for a baseball team (see Pittsburgh's lovely but mostly empty PNC Park for confirmation), at least one new park appears to be an instantaneous hit. The fans who packed Minnesota's Target Field on Monday for the Twins' first game in an outdoor setting in more than 20 years felt right at home. It's a cold-weather state and the menu features heavy, fried foods that go right with caribou season.

A man in a Wegmans uniform clutching reusable shopping bags waits for a cart with eyes downcast. When it's his turn, he cruises aisles stocked with pork chops, Annie's organic macaroni and cheese, fresh milk, eggs, carrots, cannoli, and even a $20 fruit tart. When the cart's full, he and other shoppers walk out of the Lord's Pantry in Downingtown with $200 in free food, CFL lightbulbs, and laundry detergent - enough to help the suburban poor gut out another tough month. "I've been to pantries where they just put a bag in your hand," Tammy Borden says after filling her cart.

One of my great disappointments over the last decade has been the failure of Philadelphia chefs to draw meaningful inspiration from the living tradition of country cooking that surrounds us. Yes, the "local food" movement has happily flourished, but mainly with ingredients, our farm markets blossoming with everything from free-range poultry to pawpaws and heirloom beets. But when it comes to actually tapping the rustic foodways of say, Lancaster County, our city cooks inevitably lose interest once they've played with a bit of Cope's corn and a pretzel crust or two. Of course, getting a taste of the real item takes determination, especially with a community as closed to outsiders as the Pennsylvania Dutch.

Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court nomination has generated lots of observations. Not the least of which come from her 2001 Olmos lecture recalling, among other things, that as a Puerto Rican woman she loved pigs feet and beans. While some prefer to offer conjectures on her judicial temperament, I head straight to Allegheny and 2nd to Freddy and Tony's Restaurant. As I see it, experiencing the potential justice's comfort food is part of my civic duty. Freddy and Tony's history goes back to the '70s and it's about as difficult to parse as a legal document.