A Simple Sunday Dinner

What can a sick person make for her family for dinner? Something that is first brined for maximum flavor before being seared and then roasted sounds perfect. And you might have noticed that this post is just a few days late, as I have been busy recovering from my common cold. But no matter; it was all good.

A while ago I had made a Bacon-Wrapped Maple Pork Loin that I declared was excellent and would be made again. Now seems as good a time as any to make good on that promise.

The brine was assembled and quickly cooled with ice cubes.

The thawed pork tenderloin was added to the brine. The bowl was then covered with plastic wrap before being put in the refrigerator for several hours.

Once the pork tenderloin came out of the brine and was patted dry, the silverskin was removed. Silverskin is not good eats.

Deviating (once again) from the recipe, I sauteed the bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin in my cast iron skillet (did I mention that my dear mother-in-law got that for me for Christmas? Thanks!)

Once the bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin was lightly seared, I carefully placed the remote digital temperature probe in the meat. This then went into a 400 degree oven until the internal temperature hit 130 degrees. At that point I took the pork tenderloin out, drizzled more maple syrup over the top before returning the meat to the oven. The thermometer was then set for 140 degrees. When the alarm went off, the pan was pulled from the oven and aluminum foil covered the pan.

After the meat had rested for 10 minutes, it was cut into slices. And remember, pink pork is not a bad thing, as long as the internal temperature is above 138 degrees. The temperature will continue to rise as the meat rests.

Some broccoli florets were tossed in olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. These roasted in the 400 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Yukon Gold potatoes were cleaned and cut into 3/4-inch pieces. These were lightly tossed in olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper before going into a 400 degree oven for one hour.

After 30 minutes, half a sliced shallot and two chopped slices of bacon were added to the baking sheet. This went back into the oven for the remaining 30 minutes.

The pork tenderloin was so moist and tender that no sauce was needed. My husband even came up and thanked me for dinner. Now, that's praise indeed.

Sunday Evening Dinner

Pork loin was on sale this past week, so I just had to get a small roast for us. The preparation for this meal actually began Saturday evening.

I found a recipe for Bacon-Wrapped Maple Pork Loin that sounded perfect. Bacon and maple syrup - what's not to love?

Here I have 4 cups water (since I have a smaller roast), whole black pepper corns, garlic, fresh sage, bay leaf, pure maple syrup, kosher salt and my pork loin.

Oh goody, I got to use my new mortar and pestle.

I heated the water for 5 minutes in the microwave before adding the bay leaf, the torn sage leaves, cracked black pepper corn, kosher salt, smashed garlic clove and maple syrup. I then added 2 cups of ice to cool down the brine and bring the liquid up to the right level.

After carefully placing the pork loin in the brine, I covered the container tightly with plastic wrap and placed it in the refrigerator.

While I waited for the brine to do its thing, I cleaned out my fridge and cleaned the containers in the sink. Now I have a clean refrigerator, clean plastic containers and clean dishwater hands.

All right, now back to the pork loin. I have dried sage, corn starch, maple syrup, three thick-cut slices of bacon, two large garlic cloves and the brined pork loin.

I removed the pork from the brine and patted the meat dry. I placed a rack in a baking dish to keep the roast off the bottom of the pan. The grated garlic, sage and one tablespoon of maple syrup were mixed together before being spread on the loin.

The bacon was wrapped over the pork loin. Then, since I had room, I cleaned and chopped some red-skinned potatoes and placed them in the bottom of the baking dish. I salted and peppered the potatoes and inserted a remote digital temperature probe into one end of the pork loin. This went into a preheated 350 degree oven.

I ignored the recipe's temperature suggestions in favor of Ina Garten's recommendations. When the probe alarm went off at 130 degrees, I removed the pork loin from the oven and brushed a mixture of one tablespoon apple cider and one tablespoon maple syrup over the bacon-wrapped pork loin. This went back into the oven so that the meat could continue cooking and reach an internal temperature of 140 degrees.

I removed the pork loin from the oven and covered it with foil and a kitchen towel so it could rest and reach a final temperature of 145 degrees. The meat will be slightly pink on the inside, but it perfectly is safe to eat, not to mention moist and delicious.

Meanwhile, I placed the potatoes in a bowl and returned them to the still-warm oven until service time.

After draining the excess grease from the baking dish, I poured the juices into a small pan and added one teaspoon water with 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch mixed in to the pan. I stirred and removed from the heat before adding in one more tablespoon of maple syrup. This was then poured over the cut pork loin roast.

Now we are ready to eat.

This pork loin was tender, moist and delicious. The maple flavor was a nice companion to the pork but it was not overpowering.

The potatoes were crisp and had absorbed some of the flavors from the drippings from the bacon and the roast.

I think this dish will have to go into my recipe rotation. It was that good.