There is nothing more satisfying than a savory meal in the wintertime. It warms your soul. It happifies your heart. It makes you create new words in your food happiness delirium. I always imagine winter meals against the white of snow…which is not really how a sane person imagines his or her meals. You probably imagine them on a plate. I imagine them brightening up the winter months that are usually snow covered. As if I am going to take my food, throw it on the snow, take a picture, and then eat it afterward from the snow. That sounds very outdoorsy, very life on the range while on a hunting trip in the mountains. …how exactly did we get here?
Here’s how this meal started:
These carrots were staring at me, asking me to buy them. So I listened. I peeled them quickly, and cut off a few inches of the tops still leaving some greens on there for flavor and the look. I threw ’em on a foil lined cookie sheet, then drizzled some extra virgin olive oil all over them. After a generous sprinkle of salt, a sprinkle of chopped parsley, and a bunch of cracks of pepper, I threw them in the oven at 350 until they were able to be pierced with a fork (about an hour).
When they came out, I sprinkled some more chopped parsley on there for color and flavor. Love!
The protein for this meal was a pork tenderloin that I had marinating in my fridge for a bit. Here’s how I built the marinade and cooked it:
– 1/3 cup of pears, chopped – this is what I had leftover
– a few sprigs of thyme leaves (strip leaves from stems)
– 1 tsp of minced garlic
– 1/2 tbsp of honey
– 1/2 orange, juiced
– 1/2 lime, juiced
– pinch of salt
– 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
I put this in a bowl, and stirred, then added the tenderloins, smeared all over them, and covered for a few hours. I would do this overnight for a night or two if I could, but I just didn’t, and it was still delicious.
When it came time to cook:
Preheated oven to 400 degrees. Lined a baking dish with some foil for easy cleanup later – and it’s also easier to pick this up later and get all the good bits and juices. Placed all marinade and pork tenderloin on the foil, and cooked for 45-55 minutes or until the center registered about 155 -160 degrees on a meat thermometer. I let it stand on a cutting board for 10 minutes after cooking.
The juices and honey complemented the savory thyme leaves, pepper, and garlic perfectly. My husband loved this. My tummy loved this. My winter heart was warmed.
by.mc.jewelry 