The house filled with the sweet, spicy smell of pumpkin bread emanating from the oven around 3 p.m. yesterday. I was making Halloween dinner for the Kit Drive clan … Trader Joe’s style. Pumpkin bread … topped with homemade cinnamon whipped cream … from my free bag o’ groceries was our delicious dessert.
As I mentioned, when I went to claim my prize I did a little shopping. While perusing the cheese section an intoxicating smell grabbed my attention and I was drawn to the sampling area. An amazing stuffed pork tenderloin awaited … after a taste and a glance at the simple recipe, I knew it would be dinner for the neighbors.
My free groceries included organic penne pasta and an incredibly tasty puttanesca sauce that I didn’t have to doctor a bit, unlike other jarred sauces. Plus, the ingredients were real … free of any preservatives or high fructose corn syrup.
T.J.’s frozen French-cut green beans mixed with butter, garlic salt and sautéed sliced almonds and a loaf of French bread completed the dinner. It’s the perfect dinner party or date night fare because it looks complicated, but was fairly easy to pull together … and it was yummy.
Stuffed Pork Tenderloin
Pork tenderloin (marinade overnight, see below)
1 jar T.J.’s Roasted Red Pepper Tapenade
¾ cup grated parmesan
Slice tenderloin* nearly halfway through.
Mix antipasto with ½ cup parmesan and stuff inside cut tenderloin.
Sprinkle top with remaining parmesan.
Roast at 350 degrees until internal temperature reaches 160 (begin checking temp at about 40 minutes, based on size); let rest before slicing.
*The sample I tasted was made from a garlic herbed tenderloin. At T.J.’s, it wasn’t large enough for my crowd so I decided to attempt it on my own. I drizzled olive oil over the pork; sprinkled it with dehydrated garlic, onion, cracked pepper and Kosher salt; and wrapped it in plastic wrap overnight. It was good … although maybe not quite as tasty as the T.J.’s offering.
