A week or so ago, I bought pine nuts and faced huge sticker shock when I saw the receipt. Since I couldn’t very well return them (they were a bulk food item), I decided to experiment. And let me tell you, we sure have enjoyed a our pine nut recipes, including this stuffed pork loin.
Stuffed Pork Tenderloin:
1 Pork Tenderloin (1.5-2 lb) – $4.77
2 Tbsp pine nuts) – $1.50
2 garlic cloves, minced) – $.25
3 Tbsp Parmesan Cheese) – $.25
3/4 tsp Sea Salt – pantry
1 tsp Pepper – pantry
2 tsp Canola Oil – pantry
1 pkg Pork Gravy (powdered) – $.69
2 cups waterCOST: $7.46
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. You will want to roll cut or butterfly your loin. I like roll cutting myself, but I’m still perfecting my method. Do your best. You basically want your loin at about a 1/2 inch thick.
To roll cut a roast, place the trimmed roast on a cutting board so that one end is directly in front of you. Take a very sharp knife and begin cutting on the side, parallel to the cutting board. As you cut, “unroll” the roast. This is kind of like unrolling a roll of paper towels.
Drizzle 1 tsp canola oil on small roasting pan. Lay tenderloin in roaster and sprinkle with parmasen, garlic and pine nuts. Roll up, making sure rolled opening is down. Salt and pepper loin and roast for 45 minutes to 1 hour or 160 degree.
Allow finished loin to sit about 10 minutes before cutting into 1 1/2 inch serving pieces. Make gravy according to package, but add 2 cups water vs. 1. Regular gravy tends to be too salty. My husband said he did not like it with gravy, so you can serve plain too. It’s very moist and flavourful.
Of course, a great salad is a perfect compliment. Peppers were on sale this week, so I loaded up the salad with beautiful red ones. Yum!
Bell Pepper and Tomato Salad:
1/2 head Romain Lettuce – $.50
1 Tomato – $.40
2 Red Bell Pepper – $.70
1 Cucumber – $.50
1/4 cup Green Onion, chopped – $.30COST: $2.40
GRAND TOTAL: $9.86
Pingback: Tweets that mention $10 buck dinners! » Blog Archive » Parmesan, Pine Nut and Garlic Stuffed Pork Loin -- Topsy.com
The tenderloin recipe looks good (except for the envelope of gravy mix), and I plan on making a version of it tonight. But even if I think back to last spring, those prices are unrealistic, at least for the pork tenderloin and red bell peppers. Regular pork loin, maybe. But I can’t remember the last time I saw red bells for $.35 each.
I hear you on the gravy, but there are times when homemade isn’t an option. Personally, I rather kick up a envelope mix than use can or bottle. But yes, homemade is best. On the pricing, you have to shop at farmers markets and hit sales. I haven’t hit a sale on Pork Tenderloin in a LONG time, hence no new recipes. But, I just picked up bell pepper for 4 for $1 this week at my produce market. Maybe it’s a CA thing and we have more options on produce. In main stream grocers, bell pepper are outrageously priced. You must make use of your local markets and farmers. I can’t tell you the last time I stepped foot in a Vons or Albertson’s. On a side note, seems that sausages, chicken & even lamb, have been the best prices lately. Pork in general has been high.