Anticiplate

“My picture today is not particularly amazing (hahah! to say the least), but that is because in the past two days I have broken both of my memory cards in BOTH of my cameras. I am obviously doing something wrong. Thank goodness for the camera on my iPhone!” *(I updated the picture this evening because the photo was BEYOND horrible) 

This recipe stemmed from many different people. The first person is one of my best friends and fellow-foodie, Kylee. She is the master at making pork tenderloin. The other day she said that she made a dinner where she stuffed it with goat cheese! Delicious. I knew I had to try it. The second person who inspired me for this recipe is my fellow Seattle food-blogger friend Matt Wright. He made dandelion greens about a month ago, and I knew I just had to try them, after seeing his delicious post. Lastly, I adapted a recipe that I found on another blog I love called Closet Cooking(and he adapted it from a recipe on Food Network). So, Thank you to all of my inspirations. The dinner was a success. I served this with the Truffle Potato Mash with Mascarpone that I made the other night. However, I left out the truffle oil:) 

Serves 2-3

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

1 (1 lb.) pork tenderloin, butterflied (ask your butcher to do this)

Kosher salt and black pepper

4 oz. soft goat cheese, brought to room temperature

1 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves

Zest of one whole lemon

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 c. red wine, I used a Pinot Noir

1/2 c. dried bing cherries

1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

3 sprigs fresh thyme, for garnish

1 bunch dandelion greens, stems trimmed and discarded 

2 tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic

Pinch of red pepper flakes

Kosher Salt and Cracked black pepper

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Open up pork tenderloin and season with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix together the goat cheese, zest, thyme and cracked black pepper. Stuff the tenderloin with the goat cheese leaving about a 1-inch border around the outside. Roll up and wrap tightly with kitchen twine about every inch. Rub with olive oil and season the outside with salt and pepper. 

Bring a large, oven-proof skillet to medium-high heat. Bring another large pot of water to boil. Once the skillet is very hot, add in the pork tenderloin and brown on all four sides (about two minutes each side). Once all of the sides are brown, put in the oven for 12-15 minutes ( I cooked mine for about 13 minutes and it was still slightly pink in the middle), or until the pork is firm to the touch.

In the pot of boiling water, add the dandelion greens for 4 minutes, or until stems are tender. Drain and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking. Squeeze the greens of the excess water. 

Once you take the pork out of the oven, cover with tin-foil. In the same skillet over medium-low heat, add in the wine and scrape up the brown bits from the pork. Then, add in the cherries and reduce for 4 minutes or until cherries are plump. 

Meanwhile, in a non-stick skillet, heat 2 tbsp. oil over medium heat. Add in the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute for 30 seconds. Add in greens and heat through for about 3 minutes, or until warmed. Season with salt and pepper. 

In the wine-reduction, add in 1 tbsp. balsamic and season with salt and pepper if needed (mine did not need it, but I salted my pork heavily). 

To serve, place dandelion greens on the base of the plate. Slice the pork into 1-2 inch pieces. Place on top of the greens. Drizzle with the cherry balsamic reduction.