Cranberry-and-Brie-stuffed Pork Tenderloin With Maple Mustard Glaze

Ingredients

• FOR THE GLAZE:
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• FOR THE PORK:
• 1 1/2 to 2 pounds pork tenderloin
• 1 to 2 cups dried cranberries
• 6 to 10 ounces brie , rind removed and room temperature, or crumbled goat cheese

directions

• 1
  To prepare the glaze: In a bowl, combine syrup, mustard, vinegar and soy sauce. Set aside.
• 2
  To prepare the pork: Slice the meat horizontally, nearly but not all the way through. It should open like a book. Place meat between 2 sheet of plastic wrap, and pound with a mallet to an even ¸-inch thickness, being careful not to break through the meat. Remove from plastic, and slide segments of kitchen twine beneath meat in 1- to 2-inch intervals. Spread brie or sprinkle goat cheese evenly on the meat and cover with a layer of dried cranberries, leaving a 1-inch border along edges. Starting at the long side of the tenderloin, roll up jellyroll style, tucking filling in as you go. Secure with twine. Place in a ziptop bag or bowl and cover with maple glaze. Marinate in refrigerator for 1 to 24 hours , turning occasionally.
• 3
  When ready to bake, preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil (some of the filling might seep out). Place meat on foil or on an oiled rack. Bake until a meat thermometer inserted into center registers 165 degrees (about 20 to 30 minutes). The glaze will burn easily, so if cooking directly on the sheet, check after 15 minutes and turn pork to prevent the bottom from overcooking.
• 4
  — Adapted from Cooking Light and Susan Nicholson

Source: Jennifer Halm

Serves 4-6
Weight Watchers Points Plus between 10 and 12 depending on serving size (I used the recipe builder, so maybe not exact)

 

Pan-Seared Atlantic Salmon with Basil-Goat Cheese Sauce and Vegetable Tian

A good friend of mine let me borrow a cookbook called SHARING THE VINEYARD TABLE A Celebration of Wine and Food from the Wente Vineyards Restaurant. I've had it for awhile now and have read it like a novel! I promised our friends that I would have them for dinner soon and cook something from the book. Our friends Mike and Bee, my husband Roger and I share a love for good food and wine. Matter of fact, the four of us make our own wine together right from our homes. Our home winery is called "EMPTY NESTERS" which is fitting now that our children are grown. Also, we both have been blessed with grandchildren!! Bee came up with the very appropriate name, I designed the label, Roger came up with our slogan (More Wine, Less Whining) and Mike is the brains and brawn behind the science of our winemaking. Enough of my rambling...Let's get to the yummy recipes!

VEGETABLE TIAN

1 Zucchini, sliced as thinly as possible
Kosher Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 TBSP minced garlic
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled and cut into julienne
2 Anaheim Chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and cut into julienne
1 summer squash, sliced as thinly as possible
two tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 cup vegetable stock, reduced to a 1/4 cup

BASIL-GOAT CHEESE SAUCE

1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed (reserve stems)
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup mild fresh goat cheese

4 (6-ounce) salmon filets (I used 2 thick pieces approx. 2 lbs)
2 TBSP olive oil

To prepare the tian: Preheat oven to 350. Arrange the zucchini on the bottom of a 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle lightly with garlic and Parmesan. Repeat the layering with pepper and chiles, the summer squash and finally the tomatoes, lightly sprinkling with garlic and parmesan between each layer. Pour the reduced vegetable stock over the top. Sprinkle the top with parmesan cheese. Bake until golden brown on top, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest about 10 minutes.

While the tian is baking, prepare the Basil-Goat Cheese Sauce: In a non-reactive saucepan, combine the basil stems and cream and bring to a simmer for about twenty minutes. Remove from the heat and let steep another 5 minutes. Strain the stems out and transfer the cream to a blender or food processor. Add the basil leaves and goat cheese and puree until smooth. Keep warm on top of stove.
Pan sear the salmon. To serve, cut the tian and divide among 4 plates. Place a piece of salmon on each plate and spoon the Basil-Goat Cheese Sauce over the fish. Serve immediately.

I have enclosed the "thank you" email sent to us from Bee and Mike!

Enter Chateau Veilleux. Candles casting a warm glow over a harvest table set with colorful dinnerware. Stemware, three deep, enticing us to the table. Cloth napkins fanned out in the stemware.  In the background, a fire casting warmth from a stone fireplace.  A little jazz filled the air, accompanied by tantalizing aromas coming from the kitchen.  Are you kidding me?  Pinch me, I must be dreaming!

Roger greeted us with his new favorite find, a Merlot, Carmen Gran Reserva—vintage 2010.  This is a Chilean wine, the terroir passes over the tongue casting a hint of clay co-hosting with blackberries and offering the sweet smell of roses—I can see why Roger loves it. This wine had just the perfect body, a little meaty, to hold us until our meal began.

 

Our hostess, Jane, in her own element—at her stove.  Amazing smells of garlic, basil, salmon, red peppers, summer squash…give me a napkin please…I’m drooling!  On the menu: Caesar Salad with homemade dressing, shaved Parmesan  cheese, and ever so crunchy homemade croutons.  Pan seared salmon, seared in a well seasoned and much loved cast iron skillet…cooked to perfection and capped with a fresh basil and goat cheese dressing. Amazing! Melt in your mouth! Garlic creamy potatoes, sided with the most delicious summer squash, red pepper, collage of colored vegetables with a reduction sauce that made you wanting more.  And if that wasn’t enough she paired it with a Toasty Head “Barrel Aged” Chardonnay—Yolo County, California.  A smooth ménage a trios of oak, butter, and apple hint—with a bouquet of vanilla. Vintage 2011. 

 

What was for dessert you ask?  A little chocolate candy man, in the shape of an egg, painted into a tuxedo and filled with chocolate mousse, his cane made of chocolate mint, he was topped with fresh raspberries that tasted as though they came right from the raspberry patch…sided with a flaky, moist, chocolate and peanut butter brownie.  Paired with a chocolate raspberry port made by none other than the Empty Nester’s Winery…made from a kit, but paired with this desert, it made your palate think there was a party going on in there. Wow!

 

But the best pairing of all was four friends sitting together, enjoying each other’s company—laughing, sharing food, drinking fine wine.  Appreciating the love put into our meal, and the appreciation for blessed friendship.  We started another chocolate raspberry port that night…yum.

 

Thank you Jane and Roger for a memorable evening.

God Bless,

The other half of “Empty Nesters”, Bee and Mike  J