Pork Cutlets with Butternut Squash, Chard, and Walnuts

Yield: 4 servings

Cutlets are thinly sliced pieces of meat, which make for a quick, healthy and delicious weeknight meal. I serve this dish over whole wheat couscous. It would also be delicious served over brown rice, quinoa, farro, or other tasty whole grain of your choice. In this recipe, good substitutes for chard include kale or escarole. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 pork cutlets (about 1 1/4 lbs. total)
• 3 shallots, peeled and cut into quarters
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 bunch chard, stemmed and chopped
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
• 1 bag (12 oz.) peeled, cubed butternut squash
• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh sage
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped walnuts

Procedure:

1. Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Sprinkle cutlets on both sides with salt and pepper. Quickly brown cutlets on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove from skillet and set aside.
2. To the same pan, add a dash of oil. Add the shallots and saute for about 3 minutes until they start to brown a bit.
3. Add the vegetable broth to the pan and scrape up any brown bits off of the pan while the broth comes to a simmer.
4. Add the  chard, vinegar, brown sugar, squash, and sage to the pan. Add a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for about  minutes 5 minutes or until the squash is soft (but not mushy).
5. Once the soft is squash, add the cutlets back to the pan for about 5 minutes until cooked and heated through.
6. To serve, place a scoop of whole grain in the center of the dish. Top grain with a cutlet and then spoon vegetable mixture on top of the cutlet. Sprinkle with chopped walnuts and dress with a spoonful of cooking broth from the pan.

Adapted from Sunset Magazine