Pork tenderloin entree an elegant holiday option

For the next few weeks, I will feature recipes that will make your Thanksgiving or Christmas celebrations more special. This week's dish — glazed stuffed pork tenderloin — is quite a delicacy, complex in flavor yet easy to prepare.

The stuffing, made with dried apricots and walnuts, is simple and will keep the tenderloin moist while baking. This recipe is designed to be prepared a day or two before it is served.

The cranberry sauce will have a slight touch of sourness.

As an accompaniment, I included a cinnamon-nutmeg basmati rice and a vegetable medley of Brussels sprouts, green beans, carrots, onions, zucchini and bacon.

At Café Collage, we will serve this pork tenderloin for the next few weeks. (We will be closed on Thanksgiving Day.)

GLAZED STUFFED PORK TENDERLOIN

Serves six to eight

4 small pork tenderloin (about 1 pound each), generally found in a package of two tenderloins

Kosher salt and ground pepper, to taste

16 ounces butter, divided use

3 cups fresh orange juice

For stuffing:

3 cups chopped dried apricot

1 cup toasted chopped walnuts

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

With a sharp knife, split each tenderloin lengthwise about three-fourths of the way through. Open each tenderloin and lay it flat on a cutting board. Using a meat tenderizer, flatten each open tenderloin to a 1⁄2-inch height. Sprinkle salt and pepper on each open tenderloin.

Stir the stuffing ingredients together in a bowl, then spread the stuffing evenly on one long side of each of the butterflied pork tenderloins to within 1 inch from the edges. Tightly fold the tenderloins and tie closed with kitchen string.

In a large frying pan, melt 8 ounces of butter over medium heat. Sprinkle the stuffed tenderloins with salt and pepper and then sear until each side is dark brown. Transfer the tenderloins to a baking pan. Add the orange juice and bake, covered with aluminum foil, for one hour.

Let it cool for two hours and then refrigerate.

When ready to serve, remove the kitchen string and cut the tenderloins into 1-1⁄2-inch slices. Reserve the orange sauce from the pan. Melt 8 ounces of butter in a frying pan and sauté the slices over medium heat for two minutes on each side.

Pour the orange sauce over the slices and cook, covered, for 10 minutes. You might need to prepare two or three batches, depending on the size of your frying pan.

Once heated through, serve the pork tenderloin slices with the basmati rice, cranberry sauce and mixed vegetables. Drizzle the caramelized orange sauce over tenderloin and serve hot.

CRANBERRY SAUCE

8 ounces unsalted butter

1 pound fresh cranberries

1 cup fresh orange juice

1 cup organic raw sugar

1 cup raw honey

1 cup dessert wine, sherry or white sweet vermouth

Preparation

In a casserole, melt the butter over low heat. Lightly sauté the cranberries. Gradually add the orange juice, sugar and honey. Let the mixture cook for 30 minutes, then add the wine. Let the sauce cook over medium heat until the cranberries are tender and their sourness is reduced to a minimum. Add more wine, if necessary. Once the sauce is ready, serve the cranberries while warm with the sliced pork tenderloin.

BASMATI RICE

1⁄2 pound long-grain basmati rice

4 ounces butter

3 cups warm water (or enough to cover the rice by 1 inch)

1 tablespoon ground nutmeg

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Preparation

Thoroughly wash the rice before cooking. In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat, then add the rice. Using a wooden spoon, stir the rice until it the grains are coated with the butter. Add the water, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt.

Stir well and cook for 30 minutes, or until the rice gets fluffy.

Transfer the rice to a large bowl and add the oil. Use a wooden spoon to stir gently until the rice is evenly coated.

VEGETABLE MEDLEY

8 ounces butter

2 large zucchini, cut in julienne

1 red onion, thinly sliced and blanched

1 pound Brussels sprouts, blanched

4 carrots, peeled, cut in julienne and blanched

1 pound French green beans, blanched in hot water

1 cup crisply cooked, chopped bacon

Preparation

Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Sauté the zucchini, onion, Brussels sprouts, carrots, green beans and bacon for 10 minutes over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add a bit of water, if needed.

Serve while hot.

Salim Ben Mami is head chef and owner of Café Collage restaurant in Oregon House, Calif. Contact him at 530-692-2555 or ccollage@succeed.net. His website is cafecollage.net.