Chili Dusted Pork Chops

This is a perfect weeknight meal. I love the heat of the chili and the relative sweetness of the caramelized garlic and perfectly cooked chops. The method is to sear the pork chops on both sides and then finished them in the oven. This gives a juicy chop that has a great crunch. Mark, in typical Mark fashion, turned his nose up at my yogurt sauce. He missed out because it is fantastic and adds a great balance to the dish. I loved the sauce and I highly recommend it, but it is possible to enjoy boring and yogurt-less like Mark.
Chili Dusted Pork Chops
Ingredients:
2 bone-in pork chops
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. chili powder
1/4 cup yogurt
1 Tbs. cream cheese
1 lemon
2 Tbs. chopped parsley or cilantro
1. To make the rub, combine salt and pepper in a bowl and add the finely minced garlic (I used my microplane to grate it extra fine).
2. Add the chili powder to taste. Mark added about 4-5 really hearty shakes and we loved it. Mix it up good and spread it evenly over the pork chops.
3. In an oven safe skillet, heat about 2 Tbs. oil over high heat until nice and hot. Cook the chops for 4 minutes per side until they are nicely caramelized.
4. Place the skillet into a preheated 425 degree oven for 10 minutes, until the chops are cooked through.
5. To make the yogurt sauce, mix together yogurt, cream cheese (both should be very soft and room temperature to make it easier to mix them), zest and juice from half a lemon, and finely chopped herb. Add a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
6. After the chops have rested for 5 minutes or so, top with the yogurt sauce or serve it on the side and enjoy.

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