Random Cookbook of the Week - 1951 Joy of Cooking

My mom married my dad in 1952. (I was their late-edition surprise oopsie Gen-X child born in 1971--I have three Baby Boomer brothers.) She received a 1951 Joy of Cooking for a wedding present, one that six decades on bears the stains of long use, especially in the pie and candy sections. It's one of several "family" books she gave me during her last illness, along with a few other cookbooks, my father's and grandfather's Bibles, and a 100-year-old speller with my great-uncle's name penciled on the inside cover.

The 1951 Joy is an intriguing mix of the timeless and the very much of its era. My chosen recipe fell into the latter category, but made for a good dinner for a fall evening nonetheless:

Pork Chops Baked in Sour Cream
4 servings

Prepare for cooking:
- 4 loin pork chops 1/2 inch thick

Dredge them with:
- Seasoned flour

Insert in each chop:
- 1 clove

Brown them lightly in a little hot pork fat or lard. (I used a tablespoon of butter, because, this being 2013, I don't have a canister of lard by the stove like my mom used to before she and Dad got put on low cholesterol diets.) Place them in a baking dish. Combine, heat, and pour over them:

- 1/2 c. water
- 1/2 bay leaf
- 2 T vinegar (I used white wine vinegar)
- 1 T sugar
- 1/2 c. sour cream

Cover the dish. Bake the chops in a moderate oven (350 F) for about 1 hour.

The pork chops came out tasty enough, and the sour cream sauce made a nice gravy, but it was a little sweet for my taste. I'll probably make it again, since it was so simple and such a nice cool-weather dish, only I'll omit the sugar and brown some mushrooms, capers, and garlic or shallot along with the pork chops.