Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Organic Summer, Yellow, and Acorn Squash
Whenever I choose organic produce..or anything organic for that matter I use only the simplest of preparations so that I can highlight their flavor. There just isn’t any comparison between organic products and commercially farmed ones. It’s what food used to taste like. It’s even more special when it comes from a local farm like Worden Farm in Punta Gorda, Florida. Instead of days from harvest to my table, it’s a matter of hours. Immediately after being harvested produce begins to lose water and nutrients so the sooner you can get produce after harvest the better.
In this dish, I roast a pork tenderloin that I’ve marinated in extra virgin olive oil, crushed garlic, fresh rosemary sprigs, kosher salt and black pepper. The marinade for the three types of organic squash from Worden Farm is even simpler: extra virgin olive oil, dried thyme, kosher salt, and black pepper.
INGREDIENTS
Pork:
- One whole pork tenderloin, silver skin removed
- 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves of garlic crushed
- 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary (or 1 Tbsp dried rosemary leaves)
- 1 tsp of kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp of black pepper
- 6 8-inch segments of cooking twine
Squash:
- 2 each summer and yellow squash
- 1 acorn squash
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 Tbsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
DIRECTIONS
Preparation:Pork tenderloin marinade:
- Crush whole cloves of peeled garlic.
- Wash and pat dry fresh rosemary sprigs (dried rosemary is ok but use half the amount of dried as fresh; dried is more concentrated).
- Mix extra virgin olive oil, garlic, rosemary sprigs, kosher salt, and black pepper.
Pork:
- Cut away any silver skin from the tenderloin.
- Place the tenderloin inside a sealable plastic bag.
- Add the marinade to the bag, seal.
- Marinade in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours.
- Remove the tenderloin from the bag, drain and pat dry; set aside.
- Cut 8-inch segments of cooking twine and lay across cutting board about 4 inches apart.
- Place tenderloin on top of cooking twine and tie each segment of twine snugly using a square knot.
Squash
- Wash and pat dry summer, yellow, and acorn squash.
- Cut acorn squash in half; remove and discard seeds and membrane.
- Slice each squash lengthwise (or crosswise; your preference).
- Place in a flat plastic or glass container.
- Pour extra virgin olive oil, dried thyme, kosher salt and black pepper.
- Mix well; allow to marinade 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Cooking:
Pork:
- Place oven rack on the second level from the top of the oven.
- Pre-heat oven to 450° F.
- Browning the pork tenderloin:
- Place a large saute pan on the stovetop and set the burner to medium-high heat.
- Add 2 Tbsp of olive oil to the pan.
- Just as the oil starts to smoke place the trussed tenderloin on the pan.
- Turn the tenderloin as it browns until all sides are nicely browned.
- Place on foil lined oven-safe cooking tray.
- Place the tray into the oven.
- Cook for 25-30 minutes or until center of pork tenderloin reaches 145° F (for medium well) or 150° F (for well).
- Remove from the oven and allow to rest at least 10 minutes before slicing.
- The tenderloin will continue to cook because of the residual heat in the meat.
Squash:
- Place the marinaded cut pieces of squash on an aluminum foil lined oven-safe cooking tray.
- Immediately after removing the tray with the pork tenderloin (see above) place the tray with the veggies in the oven.
- Cook for 7-10 minutes, turn the veggies over, then cook for another 5 minutes.
- Remove from the oven.
- The veggies are now ready to be plated with the sliced tenderloin.
- Garnish with fresh pomegranate seeds that have been chilled.
ENJOY!
Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Organic Summer, Yellow, and Acorn Squash
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