Pork Tenderloin with baked apples and onion:

I made some new friends at UCSD and (hopefully--hint, hint) they can get some leftovers tomorrow.

This is really easy to make as the majority of the work is prepping the onion and apples, but sure is tasty.

Here's what you'll need:

1 large pork tenderloin (about 14 ounces)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons whole grain Dijon mustard ( I use creole mustard for a nice grainy texture)
2 teaspoons fennel seeds
1 large onion, sliced
2 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1/2 cup dry white wine or apple cider

Important! Remove the pork from the cold and let it come to room temperature. I treat pork just like raw chicken, be careful of cross contamination, e.g, cutting boards, knives etc. I always was my hands after touching any uncooked meat. Season the meat with salt and pepper.

In a large skillet, heat oil ( I prefer grape seed oil to olive because you can get it hotter without it smoking) over medium high heat.
Brown the meat on all sides until golden, ~8 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool 5 minutes.

Add the last tablespoon of oil to the pan, return pan to heat. Add the onions and apples, brown until soft about 6 minutes.

In the meantime, rub the creole mustard over the meat and press in the fennel seeds. Arrange the meat in the middle of the apples and onions, I call it putting it to bed. Brush up the blankets next to the meat--the apples, onion.
Pop into a 400 degree oven until the apples brown or until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees. (about 20 minutes).

After the pork is finished cooking, remove it from the pan leaving the apples and onions. Make a foil tent over the pork on a plate to keep warm [HINT--by making a tent and not simply covering the meat, you actually keep the meat warm by it's heat liberating and heating the air around it. If you just cover the pork with foil touching the meat, the heat from the meat simply radiates through the foil and cools off fast]

After you remove the pork, add the wine to the onions and apples and just a touch of butter, less than a tablespoon, which makes the sauce creamy.

Slice the pork at an angle across the grain adding the slices on top of the onions and apples.

I would recommend a slice of onion and apple slice with a bite of meat. The contrasting sweet/onion flavor with the mustard and fennel meld very well.

I served this with roasted baby new potatoes with olive oil, rosemary and paprika. We had a salad for a green dish....

I hope you ENJOY!!!!!