THE ORIGINAL ‘RECEIPT’

BAKED PORK TENDERLOIN (Mrs. Currie.)

Split the tenderloin through lengthwise.  Make a dressing of bread, seasoned with salt, pepper and some kind of sweet herb, stuff the tenderloin and tie a string around it to keep the filling in, add 1 cup of water and bake from 40 to 50 minutes.

~ Three Hundred Choice Recipes from Ladies’ Aid Society. Hamilton: St. Giles’ Presbyterian Church, 1909.

THE UPDATED RECIPE

• 1 large pork tenderloin
• 2 c. bread crumbs
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 c. water
• optional: 1/2 an apple chopped up and mixed in with the stuffing. (YUM!)

Preheat oven to 350F.

Using the fingers, crumble sufficient bread into small pieces to make two cups of crumbs.

Using a mortar and pestle, break the rosemary into small, fine pieces.

Add the rosemary, salt and pepper to the bread crumbs, and mix to distribute evenly.

Add half a cup of water to the seasoned crumbs, to form a moist dressing. Stir in the chopped apple, if using.

With a sharp knife, halve the tenderloin lengthwise.

Spread the dressing on one half of the meat, then place the other half on top, and tie securely with a string at each end. 

Place the stuffed tenderloin on a wire rack, in a baking dish or cast-iron frying pan, and place the remaining half cup of water in the bottom of the pan.

Bake at 350F in a preheated oven, for approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until well-browned and tender. (Time will vary, depending on the size of the tenderloin, but look for an internal temperature of 145F when a meat thermometer is inserted into the centre).

Allow it to rest, and then slice. This can be served either hot or cold.

Yield:  about 3 to 4 servings

Stuffed pork tenderloin was a family favourite when I was growing up;  it is still one of my preferences for special occasions.

Note: other herbs may be substituted for the rosemary.

A note from Patricia: With my oven currently on the fritz, I made this yummy pork tenderloin recipe, shockingly, in the toaster oven, and shockingly, it turned out beautifully. I used about 4 slices of gluten-free bread pulsed in the food processor to make the 2 cups of breadcrumbs, and I also added half of a chopped apple to the dressing because it felt like the right thing to do. I didn’t split the tenderloin all the way through, and ended up tying it 4x along the length to keep all that delicious stuffing in. I rarely eat pork, but I enjoyed this recipe immensely, and served it with some Sweet Potatoes Au Gratin, and a lovely Russett Apple Salad. It was tender, simple, packed with flavour, very fall-like, and looked really lovely sliced up on the plate!

PORK TENDERLOIN

Split tenderloins in halves, fill with nice dressing, and roll up.  Roast like chicken, basting well.  Very nice.

~Culinary Landmarks or Half-Hours with Sault Ste. Marie Housewives. 3rd Edition. Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario: St. Luke’s Woman’s Auxiliary, 1909.