So Many Dishes

I have loved football ever since my dad started taking me to games when I was about 8 years old. We would watch his alma mater (the same college that I attended for undergrad), since the school was in our hometown. I remember, when the weather was cold, being bundled in an old army blanket, then drinking hot chocolate when we got home. My brother wasn’t interested, and neither was my mother. So it was my dad and me, and it was special.

The love of football has remained, and I’m fortunate that Ken feels the same way. We brainwashed our kids, and they are rabid fans, especially of the Philadelphia Eagles, the NFL team we follow. When Ben married Annie, their wedding was on Super Bowl Sunday, and the reception was a watch party. So maybe we are all a little bit crazier about the game than most!

With the Eagles playing for the conference championship yesterday, it meant that I had to plan my cooking around the game, and the texts that were flying on our family group chat. I did as much prep ahead of time as I could, but I did have to spend part of the game in the kitchen. Fortunately, everything came out great, and I was able to at least see the replay of big plays I missed live.

The dish we decided to try was definitely a special occasion meal. I recently found a pork tenderloin in cherry sauce in a Skinnytaste post. I subscribe to the Skinnytaste weekly menu email. I don’t often make one of Gina Homolka’s recipes, but her site is great for inspiration.

I love the versatility of pork tenderloin. It grills so well, but I also have a number of wonderful recipes for tenderloin sliced into medallions, sautéed, and served with some delicious sauces. This recipe has you brown the whole tenderloin on the stovetop, spoon a glaze over it, then quickly roast it at a high temperature. The remaining glaze serves as a sauce for serving.

We made a variation of the sauce recipe. The main ingredients are given as balsamic vinegar and cherry preserves. But the recipe offers substitutions: for the balsamic, she suggests sherry vinegar, wine vinegar, or port wine; you can also use different fruit preserves. We stayed with the cherry preserves, but opted for port as the liquid. Ken and I have both come to appreciate port, so this was an opportunity to enjoy a glass.

As sides, I made one of my favorites, simple pilaf from the Side Dish Bible by America’s Test Kitchen. It’s a bit more time and effort than plain rice, but so worth it. Alongside that I cut up and steamed a small head of cauliflower. It was a mostly monochrome meal, but it was delicious and healthy. And it tasted even better because the Eagles won!

The recipe calls for two pounds of pork tenderloin, and it’s definitely enough glaze for that much. I had a one-pound tenderloin, and had plenty of sauce to add when serving. I probably could have cut the glaze/sauce in half. I did halve the seasonings that went onto the meat before cooking. We only have two slices of pork leftover; I wouldn’t count on two pounds feeding more than six people, if that.

Because of watching football, I wasn’t thinking about taking photos. Sorry!

Pork Tenderloin with Cherry Sauce

• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar or port wine
• 1/2 cup cherry preserves or other fruit preserves
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
• 2 lbs. pork tenderloin (2 one-pound tenderloins preferred)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Bring balsamic or port to a boil, and cook over low heat until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Stir in preserves; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in thyme.

Combine garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Rub over pork.

Heat a cast iron skillet (I used my enameled cast iron skillet) over medium high heat, and add olive oil. Brown the pork tenderloin on all sides. Spoon half of the glaze over the pork and transfer to the oven. Bake until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees. Depending on thickness, this should take 10 to 15 minutes.

Let the pork rest, tented with foil, for 10 minutes before slicing. Spoon remaining cherry sauce over the pork. Serves 4 to 6.

Since I didn’t take pictures as I was cooking, here’s a photo of our new wooden kitchen utensils. After reading about the dangers of using black plastic cooking utensils, we bought these to replace our plastic. Spiffy!

Happy eating!