One great thing about the changing weather is that comfort food, like my delicious Baked Pork Chops and Apples, is back on the table.  

I really like this recipe for Baked Pork Chops and Apples because it’s quick and easy (of course). But if you hit the farmers markets, you’ll find an amazing assortment of apples that can really make this an interesting dish.

I don’t know why pork and apples play so well together. Maybe it’s because pork needs the sweetness of the apples to bring out its flavor. Or maybe, if the pork is cooked properly, the apples add just the right amount of moisture to the meat to make the flavors pop.

And speaking of overcooking your pork— don’t!

If you like it dry and white and hard, that’s fine (yes, I’m judging). But, really, there’s like zero chance of you getting trichinosis or some other wild disease if your pork chops are slightly pink in the center. They’ll be moist and delicious and taste like they should, not like a cooked shoe.

I’ve added a little apple cider vinegar to my Baked Pork Chops and Apples because it brings a little brightness to the dish.

What is brightness? It’s that little mouth spark that you get when you first bite into something delicious that makes you want to keep eating it.

Meat needs a bit of brightness because it has very little natural acid. And acid (think lemon juice) helps enhance flavors.

Fall has fallen. Cooler weather is on the way. But there’s comfort in what I’ll be putting on the table over the next few months.

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I’ve always assumed that all of the meat I bought in the supermarket originated in the United States.

Wrong!

I had no idea that the pork roast I served for Sunday dinner might have come from China… or that the roast beef sandwich I just consumed was from South America… or that the chicken I ate was from Canada.

Boy, was I naive.

I stumbled upon this knowledge when I learned that meat processors are blasting a new USDA regulation requiring meatpackers to include country-of-origin information on supermarket meat.

Like everyone I know, I thought all the meat I found in the grocery store originated in the United States. And yes, I know that a lot of our seafood comes from overseas, like Indonesia or Europe.

The new rule on meat, which goes into effect this Saturday, would require meatpackers to track and label every major step of livestock processing and meat production: where a cow (or chicken or pig) was born, where it was raised and slaughtered, and where it was packaged.

Giant meatpacking companies, like Tyson and Cargill say this tracking process is expensive… and doesn’t benefit the consumer.

Really? I mean… REALLY?

There’s one obvious benefit for the consumer: We’ll all be able to decide whether we really want to buy a rump roast from a country that has sub-standard sanitation and food safety laws.

Needless to say, American ranchers and farmers are VERY MUCH in favor of the new regulation, hoping that more of us will opt to buy “locally” (even if “local” in this case means anywhere in the entire United States).

The meatpacker’s lobby is working furiously to amend this regulation in their favor before it becomes law this weekend.

Do you want to know where your meat comes from?