Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Stuffed Cuban Pork Tenderloin and Summer Squash

This recipe was very simple and quick. We did marinate the squash a couple of hours ahead of time but that was also very quick to put together - then it just sat until grilling time!
The pork came out sooo good! We have tried this recipe before, about a week before we decided to start keeping track of these in the blog. Last time, we noticed that some changes needed to be made - we used more pickles this time, and not bread and butter. We used mozzarella cheese this time, but it is still not ideal - perhaps Gouda next time? Anyways - this was DELICIOUS, and definitely saved to use in the future. Also, we had previously used toothpicks to hold the pork roll together, we used twine this time and would definitely recommend using the twine. The twine really held it together well so the meat roll did not fall apart. The squash were sooo good too, they were perfectly citrus and herb infused! The squash came from our neighbor's garden. You can't really compare store squash to fresh garden grown, it's just so much better! This year our garden didn't really quite work out the way we planned it, with chickens eating it and watering system set up..but hopefully next year we can do better. In the meantime, we are thankful we have people like our neighbors to share their wonderful garden grown food with us :)

Here's the original recipe for the pork tenderloin: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/stuffed-cuban-pork-tenderloin

Here is the squash recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/marinated-zucchini-and-summer-squash-recipe.html

Plated
Featuring: Summer Squash!

Grilled Pork tenderloin

Grilled Summer Squash

Stuffed Cuban Pork Tenderloin

Cooking on the grill!

Ready to grill!

Marinating

Ingredients:

Cuban Pork Tenderloin:
1 (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed
3 tablespoons whole-grain Dijon mustard
1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese
5 spears of dill pickles
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray

Summer Squash:
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (juice from 1 lemon)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons thyme leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound squash, cut into diagonal circles

Directions:

Squash:
1. Combine white wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, black pepper and olive oil in a bowl and mix together.
2. Add squash circles and mix to coat.
3. Let marinate for a couple of hours
4. Grill in a grill basket for about 10 minutes

Pork:
1. Pre-heat grill to medium high.
2. Cut a lengthwise slit down the center of the tenderloin two-thirds of the way through the meat. Open halves, laying tenderloin flat. Place tenderloin between 2 sheets of plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or heavy skillet.
3. Spread mustard evenly over pork. Arrange cheese and pickles over pork in a single layer. Roll up, starting with long side; secure pork at 1-inch intervals with twine. Sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper.

3. Place the pork on a grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill 22 minutes or until a thermometer registers 155°, turning after 11 minutes. Remove from grill. Let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Cut into 12 slices.

What we liked:

This was sooo good. The best pork tenderloin we have ever had... or made!

What we didn't like:

The cheese was still not quite right, but neither was the swiss when we made it with that. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

He was more into dinosaur chicken nuggets.
Astrid however, thought that the squash were amazing and felt great against her teething gums. She just loved it! She also loved the meat too. 

Next time:

Try a different cheese

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