OKAY! Here we go with an EASY and guaranteed winner (picked this up in Italy this summer and then found it all nicely spelled out on the web too . . . IT IS WONDERFUL . . . no side dishes are needed as the onions and pears serve well . . . it looks BEAUTIFUL and tastes MAGNIFICENT!)

Recipe for :
Oven Baked Chops with Red Onions and Pears

Ingredients

2 cups balsamic vinegar
3 Tblsp. olive oil
6 garlic cloves, crushed
4 center cut pork rib chops, each about 12 oz. and 1 1/4" thick
1 large red onion (about 12 oz.) cut into 8 wedges
Salt & freshly ground pepper
2 ripe but firm bosc pears, peeled, cored and cut into 8 wedges
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 Tblsp. honey

Method
In a small saucepan, bring the balsamic vinegar to a boil over high heat. Adjust the heat to a gentle boil and boil until the vinegar is syrupy and reduced to about 1/3 cup. Set aside.

Heat oven to 425º. In a large heavy skillet with a heatproof handle, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the garlic and cook, shaking the skillet, until brown, about 2 minutes. Add the chops and cook until the undersides are browned, about 6 minutes. Remove and reserve the garlic cloves if they become more than a deep golden brown. Turn the chops and add the onion wedges to the pan and continue cooking until the second side of the chops are browned, about 6 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper. About halfway through browning the second side, tuck the pear wedges in between the chops.

In a small bowl, stir the red wine vinegar and honey until the honey is dissolved. Add the vinebar/honey mixture to the skillet and bring to a vigorous boil. Return the garlic cloves to the skillet if you have removed them. Place the skillet in the oven and roast until the onions and pears are tender and the juices from the pork are a rich syrupy dark brown, about 30
minutes. Once or twice during roasting, turn the chops and redistribute the onions and pears. Handle the skillet carefully. It will be extremely hot.

Remove the skillet from the oven. Place a chop in the center of each warmed serving plate. Spoon the pears, onion and pan juices around the chops. Drizzle the balsamic vinegar reduction around the edge of the plate.
Serves 4