Sweet Garlic and Herb Pork Tenderloin

Pork tenderloin is one of my favorite cuts of meat.  When cooked properly, it's tender and juicy and melts in your mouth which is not a characteristic you normally find in such a lean cut of meat.  It's also one of those things that I don't think to make. 

That's why I was excited to find this recipe from Lick the Bowl Good.  This Sweet Garlic Herb Pork Tenderloin recipe takes your basic tenderloin and kicks it up a notch to a company worthy dish. Monica has awesome step by step instructions on her blog and an amazing selection of dessert recipes so go check her out.

Normally, I like to mix things up a bit, but the only thing I did differently was to marinate the pork in the fridge for a bit to enhance the flavor.   I used herbs de Provence because I had some on hand that I have been anxious to try out.  You could also use rosemary or thyme.    

This recipe serves 6-8 depending on your family.  We have 2 adults and 2 small children so we had enough for dinner and shredded the rest to make pork bbq sandwiches later. 

The entire family enjoyed this recipe and went back for seconds so I'll be adding this to the regular rotation. 

Sweet Garlic & Herb Pork Tenderloin
Ingredients:
2 pork tenderloins, about 2 lbs. total
3-4 garlic cloves, sliced into thin pieces
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
4 Tbsp. honey
2 T. fresh orange juice (or grapefruit juice)
1 1/2 tsp dried herbs de Provence (thyme or rosemary)
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 T. olive oil

Directions:

1. In a gallon zipper bag combine, soy sauce, mustard, honey OJ, herbs, pepper and olive oil.  Seal bag and shake to combine.
2. Remove tenderloins from package, rinse and pat dry.  Cut 1 inch slits into front and back of tenderloins.  Place garlic pieces in the slits.  Add tenderloins to bag.  Remove air from bag and seal.  Marinate 2-4 hours.
3. Empty tenderloins AND marinade into greased 9x13 pan.   Bake for 40-45 minutes at 350° or until a meat thermometer inserted in thickest part reads 160-165°.  Baste at least once while cooking.  If juices start to dry up, add some hot chicken broth, a little at a time.  Remove from oven, cover with foil and allow to tenderloins to rest 10 minutes before slicing.
4. When serving, slice into 3/4 - 1 inch slices and spoon juice over the top.  

This would be delicious on a bed of rice!
WW- 8 servings @ 5 Points + each (I entered all ingredients into WW recipe builder.)

Printable Recipe

Ultimate Chicken Marinade

Here is a quick and easy chicken marinade recipe that gives you tons of flavor and requires no crazy ingredients.  It easily marinates 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of chicken.

To get the most flavor, pound your chicken breasts out into 3/4 inch thick pieces.  This will also make your chicken easier to grill evenly and help with portion control.   Mentally, a thin wide piece of chicken looks bigger to me than a thicker piece of chicken that weighs the same amount, but takes up less room on my plate.  Maybe I'm crazy.

I always double this recipe and save the extra chicken for quick salads, quesadillas and pizza.  I'm all about quick and easy.  You won't be sorry you made extra!


Recipe
Adapted from AllRecipes.com
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbps red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, minced or crushed
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tsp dried parsley

Combine all ingredients in a ziploc bag along with 1 - 1 1/2 pounds of chicken.  Squeeze as much air as possible out of the bag, seal it and place it in the fridge for at least an hour.  The longer you refrigerate it, the better the flavor.  (I like to marinate my chicken about 4 hours.)  Grill chicken as desired.

Linked to:
Church Suppers - Gooseberry Patch Recipe Roundup -This Weeks Cravings -

Fabulous Steak Marinade

Someone once told me that a properly seasoned steak doesn't need steak sauce.  I thought they were just being smug.  Well, I did until I tried this super simple marinade.  It flavored our steak beautifully and needed no extra sauces, salt or pepper.  It was steakhouse perfection and this is coming from a girl who loves her A1.  

When I saw that this marinade was called "Best Steak Marinade in Existence", I had to try it.  Unfortunately, I can't comment on whether or not it was the best since unlike the author of this recipe, I have not tried every steak marinade in existence, but it was pretty tasty.  : P

Enjoy!

Recipe
1/3 c soy sauce
1/2 c olive oil
1/3 c lemon juice
1/4 c Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp minced garlic
3 Tbsp dried Italian Seasoning
1 1/2 Tbsp dried parsley flakes
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp ground pepper
a pinch of cayenne

Mix all ingredients in a resealable bag and add 6-8 medium sized steaks.  Squeeze out air and seal bag. Refrigerate up to 8 hours- the longer the better!  Grill as desired.

Source: AllRecipes.com

Linked to:



What's Cooking Wednesday 
Full Plate Thursday 
This Chick Cooks Link Party 
Gooseberry Patch Recipe Round Up