This recipe is perfect for a busy weeknight dinner!  Super easy to prepare and so delicious.  Even your kids will flip over this sweet & savory pork.

Ingredients:
1 c chicken stock
2 tsp good quality Dijon mustard
1 tbl red wine vinegar
1/4 c apricot jam
2 tbl olive oil
6 boneless, center-cut pork chops, trimmed of the fat
2 garlic cloves, cut into large slices
1/4 c of chopped dried apricots
Pinch of salt
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
In a small mixing bowl whisk the stock, Dijon, red wine vinegar & apricot jam/preserve.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Salt and pepper the pork and place the chops in the hot pan.  Brown each side for about 7 minutes.

Remove the pork and place on a dish.  To the hot pan add the stock mixtures to the pan and scrape up the brown bits with a spatula (deglazing).  Add the garlic and diced apricots.  Reduce heat to a simmer.  Add the pork back to the pan and cook for about 8 additional minutes.  Then place the pork on a platter (tent with foil to keep warm) and turn the flame up to high to reduce the sauce further.  Pour over the pork and serve.

— Knead to Cook

This recipe is always well-received when I make it.  With a little preparation ahead of time, this dish will be a snap when dinnertime rolls around.  Would also be wonderful to make for a dinner party because you can prep it ahead of time and then just bake for an hour & serve.

Pancetta & fennel paste…

1/4 lb of thinly sliced pancetta
12 cloves of garlic
2 tsp of fennel seeds
2 tbl of olive oil
1 tbl of a good balsamic vinegar
2 tbl of a good, drinking red wine
1 tsp of chopped fresh sage
1 tbl of dried rosemary
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of ground pepper

In your food processor, blend all of the ingredients until it forms a paste.

1 boneless pork tenderloin about 2-3 lbs

Trim the excess fat, if any, on your tenderloin.  Cut some random small incisions along the tenderloin.  Then take your pancetta paste and push it into the incisions and coat the meat.  Cover and refrigerate the meat anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.  Remove the pork for 30 minutes before cooking.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Bake the pork for about one hour.   The internal temperature should be 140 degrees.  When it reaches that point, remove from the oven and tent with foil for 10 minutes.  Slice on the diagonal and serve over a bed of sautéed fennel (with olive oil and wine) or paired with vegetables and a salad.

— Knead to Cook

If you read enough of my recipes,  you will notice a common thread throughout… I love garlic!  I don’t know if it’s the Italian blood but there is something magical about it.  It makes everything taste so good.  Plus, it is so good for you.  A win – win for sure!  This recipe was created today by me, on the fly.  I was craving something different and had purchased some pork tenderloins at the store… my mind was racing.  This recipe, I have to admit, was incredibly good.  Exceptionally flavorful.  Even my kids loved it!  I hope you get a chance to try this one… or pin it!  I will be making this again very soon.

This is a rough listing for the ingredients.  I would suggest following my lead but putting your own twist on it.  Add more of what you like, subtract what you don’t prefer.

Ingredients:

Olive Oil
2 lb pork tenderloin
8 cloves garlic
3 c of baby spinach leaves
1/2 c of Panko bread crumbs
Salt and pepper to taste

I took my pork tenderloin and butterflied it.  Basically, taking a fillet knife, I cut the tenderloin like you would cut a bread roll.  You would of course, wouldn’t go through the entire tenderloin but just 3/4 of the way through so you can flap it open and lay it flat.  I hope that makes sense.  I then laid a piece of wax paper over top and flattened it with my mallet.  The meat was still about 1/2 inch thick or more.  Salt and pepper the inside and place on a glass 13×9 pan (that you’ve sprayed with Pam) or on a cookie sheet that you’ve also sprayed with a non stick spray.

On the stove, heat a skilled with a 2 tbl of olive oil.  The pan should be hot but not searing.  I set the flame to medium.  In the pan I added about 3 handfuls of baby spinach leaves and 8 chopped garlic cloves.  I cooked for about 6 minutes until wilted.  I then added about 1/2 a cup of Panko bread crumbs.  Toasted those up with the spinach/garlic mixture for about 4 minutes.  Remove from the heat.

Get your baking twine ready 🙂  If you don’t have twine, use toothpicks.

You are going to spread the spinach mixture onto the pork (open side that is facing you).  Then flap one side over to the other (like closing a book).  I used twine and wrapped several pieces around the meat and tied it.  If you’re using a toothpick – just push the toothpick along the edges to seal them (straight through).  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake uncovered in a 425 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until the temperature of the meat reaches 170 degrees.  Remove from the oven and tent with foil for 10 minutes.  Slice and serve.

 

— Knead to Cook