Smoked Pork Nachos for Jessica’s All-Star Virtual Baby Shower

The Internet is a beautiful thing. You can pay your bills, watch live TV, make international phone calls, and even celebrate the ones you love. Today’s virtual baby shower is in celebration of the upcoming arrival of Jessica’s daughter. She is due October 17th and as one of my best blog friends, I’m thrilled to share in her celebration. Be sure to check out Jessica’s blog, The Jey of Cooking. It’s wonderful, just like her! When I met Jessica in Seattle this past year, it was evident that she is just as genuine and real in person as she is on her blog. 🙂

Jessica is a die hard Cubs fan (just like myself — gluttons for punishment). She and her husband frequent the games with their son and so appropriately, this shower theme is BASEBALL!

When I think of baseball, especially the Cubs, the first thing that comes to mind is Old Style Light. And well, the Cubs fans embrace that fact and tend to reserve the partaking of such unimpressive brews at games and only games.

The second thing that comes to mind is nachos! Not being a huge hot dog person myself, nachos are a ballpark staple.

Mr. Prevention and I live close to a sports bar that just changed ownership. On their new menu were nachos similar to these Smoked Pork Nachos and they served as the inspiration for these bad boys. I think Wrigley Field concessions should give these some serious consideration for next season. This is ballpark food done right, food blogger style.

This is what baby shower food should be like. Finger sandwiches, what?

Jessica, I wish you all the best in the homestretch here! While the Cubs are sitting at 58 wins and a whopping 88 loses as I type, you most certainly still root on the best team in baseball. You’re also one heck of a mom and soon to be one heck of a mom to 2 rather than just 1!

So get a little dirty with this ballpark finger food, my dear! 🙂

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Smoked Pork Nachos

Pork:
2 lbs boneless center cut pork loin, trimmed
5 cloves garlic, cut into slivers
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp adobo seasoning
2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup low-sodium beef broth
2 bay leaves
1 tsp liquid smoke

Nachos:
32 corn tortillas
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups 2% cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
2 large tomatoes, diced
1 bunch green onions, diced
1/2 red onion, finely diced
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2-3 jalapenos, seeded and minced

Directions:

Trim meat and using a sharp paring knife, pierce meat and insert garlic slivers. Season with pepper, cumin, adobo, and garlic powder.

Heat the oil in a large skillet until rippling. Add the meat and brown on both sides — about 3 minutes per side; transfer to a crock pot.

Pour the broth over the meat and add the bay leaves and liquid smoke. Cook on low 8-10 hours; shred with 2 forks.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Using a pastry brush, brush each tortilla with oil and stack on top of one another (the oil from the top of one tortilla will coat the bottom of the next). Using a large knife, cut the tortillas into 8 wedges each. Arrange triangles on baking sheets and sprinkle with the salt. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until browned. Remove chips and sprinkle with cheese. Return chips to the oven for 3-4 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Divide chips into 8 portions (~32 chips each) and top with 4 ounces of pork, 1 tablespoon of barbecue sauce drizzled over the top, a dollop of Greek yogurt, and the tomatoes, onions, cilantro, and jalapenos, if desired. Serve immediately.

Yield: 8 servings (~32 chips with 4 ounces of meat, 1 tablespoon barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon yogurt, and veggies)

Nutrition Information (per serving): 573 calories; 19.6 g. fat; 115 mg. cholesterol; 1327 mg. sodium; 60.4 g. carbohydrate; 5.4 g. fiber; 43.1 g. protein

Result: Deeelicious! Sweet, smoky, and lots of heat from the jalapenos if you want some spice. To make this a simpler recipe, you can use store bought chips. You can also use beef or chicken in place of the pork — whatever you prefer. Enjoy!

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It was a great weekend in Chicago — friends, family, and an Oktoberfest with great beer 🙂 We also enjoyed chili recipe #2 for this year’s chili contest and it was a hit among all that tried it…which was quite a few people!

Busy week ahead!

Be well,