A fancy adult meal after kid bedtime (Pork Tenderloin with fancy pan sauce and mashed cauliflower)

I was on a Pinterest rabbit hole one day and I stumbled across this beautiful blog.  I played around on it and ending up pinning this recipe for a later date.  I had some leftover heavy cream from grilled cheese and tomato soup.  I was going to use that for some Hogs for the Cause practice cooking, but I was talked out of that for a Saints watch party. The party was worth it but the watching was not!  As you know I have a hard time letting things go to waste, and I remembered that pin.  It is quite a big meal for me to have myself.  Why not do a My Shitty Kitchen on the road post!  I had a seminar early in the burbs right near my middle sister's house so I decided to cook dinner and make a sleepover out of it.  Waking up to see my nieces' smiling faces was the best!  And I got bonus time with the other sister and her kiddos!                         

I decided to serve this with mashed cauliflower.  Plain old cauliflower is kind of bland so I decided to fancy it up.  I added butter, sour cream, chives and cheddar to make it take like loaded mashed potatoes.  My sister also had a few Brussels Sprouts in her fridge and I decided to frizzle them and place them on top for some crunch and decoration.  I kind of overcooked the meat because my brother in law's BBQ thermometer is stuck on Celsius and I didn't notice until the end.  It still was totally delicious, I think stovetop cooking with liquid is the best way to keep a pork tenderloin from getting dry!  Here you go, full recipe after the montage.  It is as delicious as it looks!

The cast.  That is a very expensive bottle of white wine I had in my fridge.  White wine is my crazy lady inducing drink so I tend to just cook with it rather than embarrass myself while drinking it!

Smash the garlic and chop the herbs.  Smashing garlic is an excellent stress reliever!

Saute for a few minutes and get it fragrant.

Apparently there were two in the pack!  Slap them in there!

I tried to get a really good sear but it's a bit crowded in the pan!

Remove the pork when browned on both sides and add wine to cook out the alcohol.

Put them back in there, salt and pepper and check on it often, adding water when it looks like your liquid needs a boost.

Stir up the brown bits when you add water and you end up making a rich cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, chop up your cauliflower.

Boil it in water (I used the rest of the chicken stock and water) to cover until soft.

Add the soft cauliflower to your Ninja/blender/food processor and give it a whirl or two.

Add a pat of butter and some sour cream and mix until creamy.

Add some chives and cheese (and bacon if you have it, I didn't) and mix it up.
Not shown, this mixed up.

Take out your pork to rest and add chicken broth and mustard.  Mix well and remove from heat.

Add your cream and stir well to make a decadent sauce

It may look dry but it didn't taste that way.

Plate and enjoy!

Ingredients
1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and slice in half lengthwise
2 Tbsp. fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
1/4 cup fresh sage leaves, roughly chopped
2 lb. center pork loin (or two 1 lb. pork tenderloins)
1 1/4 cups dry white wine (plus a bit more to deglaze pan)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chicken broth or stock

1 tbsp dijon mustard
1/2 cup heavy cream

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Saute the garlic, rosemary and sage, stirring, for about one minute. Add the pork loin to the pan, carefully placing it on top of the herbs. Saute the pork for about 5 minutes on each side, then remove it to a plate. Add the wine to the pan and use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom of the pan. Cook until the smell of the alcohol has disappeared, about 1 to 2 minutes.

Lower the heat under the pan to low-medium heat. Return the pork to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Partially cover with a lid and cook for about 1 hour (probably less if you're using pork tenderloins), flipping the pork and scraping the bottom of the pan every 20 minutes or so. Keep an eye on it, making sure there continues to be some liquid in the pan. Add 1/4 cup of warm water if and when necessary.

When the pork is cooked through (if you want to test with a thermometer, it should be about 150° internal temperature) remove pork to a plate to rest. Meanwhile, increase the heat under the liquid in the pan to medium. If your pan has little liquid, deglaze with a splash of white wine. Stir well to loosen the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Allow to cook until the alcohol smell disappears (about 1-2 minutes). Add the chicken stock. Remove pot from heat and allow to cool in the pot for 20 minutes.

When the sauce has cooled, add the cream and put the pan back on the stove. Taste sauce and add salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste.  Slice the pork and place in the sauce.  Serve over mashed cauliflower or potatoes.

Happy Cooking! 

Missy