Spicy Plum Chutney Venison Chops & Sweet Potato Fries

Last night's adventure in food...

I was home before Jamie, done with my chores, and looking for something to do.  Being close to dinner time, I went to the 'fridge for inspiration.  (Frequently our meals are the result of my rummaging through the various drawers and shelves in the refrigerator and pulling out anything I feel has been a resident for too long.)  Tonight it was the venison and sweet potatoes.  Jamie had a package of his recently processed venison loin chops thawed and waiting for their destiny in the refrigerator and I still had two sweet potatoes I'd picked up during last weekend's grocery run.


First, tenderize the chops.

 

Second - what to marinate them in...what to marinate them in...  I went to the pantry.  There, at eye-level was the still-unopened jar of The Virginia Chutney Co's Spicy Plum Chutney my sweet uncle sent us several months back.  (Some of you Facebookers may remember our Peach Chutney Vanilla Ice Cream dessert from last fall.)




So, I marinated.  Remember - one spoon for dipping in the jar and a second for spreading the chutney on the meat.

Now - let them soak.

Meanwhile, to work on the fries.  Ingredients: Chili Powder, Salt, Garlic Powder, Pepper, Ground Oregano, Ground Cumin, EVOO, and, of course,
Sweet Potatoes.

This all goes in the compost!

Mix to taste in a zip top bag, shake, shake, shake, and spread evenly on a foil-lined (or not if you really like to wash large baking sheets in the sink) baking sheet.

We decided to only cook two of the chops and let the rest continue in their bath of yumminess.  Unfortunately, the chops shrunk (much) more than we anticipated.  So, next time we know to cook twice as much as we think we'll eat.  But, ta-da!  (Oh yeah...and we're still working on knocking out the rutabagas...)

And, the chutney was too good to pass up a second use for the evening...dessert!  Just a little dab on top of slices of mozzarella cheese.  Wow.  That's all I can say about that...but, here's a couple of pictures.

And, since Homer was hanging out with his dad and not under foot for once, here's what was going on in the other room while I was cooking...