Pork Chops with Cherry-Vanilla Sauce

I adore vanilla and I add it to almost all of my desserts, whether the recipe calls for it or not. Every once in a while I sneak a touch of vanilla into a savory dish and I'm rarely disappointed.

Makes 4 servings

For Cherry-Vanilla Sauce:

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 shallots, finely diced
2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme
¼ cup dried cherries
½ cup red wine
1 cup chicken stock
½ vanilla bean, scraped, or 1 teaspoon vanilla paste
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1½ teaspoon of cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon of water
1 tablespoon butter
½ teaspoon kosher or sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

For Pork Chops:

4 thick cut bone-in pork chops
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

To make the cherry-vanilla sauce, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat and sauté shallots until translucent and softened, about 3 minutes. Add thyme sprigs and dried cherries and sauté for 1 minute more. Add red wine, chicken stock, vanilla bean (or vanilla paste) and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce to medium-low heat, and simmer until mixture has reduced by one-third, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove vanilla bean and thyme sprigs and stir in cornstarch mixture. Whisk in butter, and season with salt and pepper.

Heat oven to 450° F. Pat pork chops dry with a paper towel and season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large ovenproof skillet over high heat until oil is hot and shimmers. Lay pork chops in pan and sear them, 3 to 4 minutes, until a golden crust forms. Turn pork chops and sear the second side for another 3 to 4 minutes, and then place in oven and roast for about 8 minutes until pork chops are fully cooked, but still moist inside. Remove pork chops to a platter and let rest for several minutes. Just before serving, ladle half of the sauce over the pork chops and serve any remaining sauce on the side.