Roast Pork Tenderloin with Bacon and Brown Sugar Glaze

As a start to my overly ambitious week, I crossed off the third dish of this week's menu plan: Roast Pork Tenderloin with Bacon and Brown Sugar Glaze.

It was so good that I just had to share it with you today. I made it last night. We were out for most of the afternoon yesterday and came back home a bit late. I knew this was going to take some time in the oven but I've had it bookmarked for a few weeks now and just had to make it. After all, we just made our big shopping trip for the month and finally had tenderloin in the house again. Along with bacon. Sweet sweet bacon.

Anyhow, I was starving and got to work on mixing together all the spices, rubbing it into the pork and sliding it into the oven. It smelled amazing in my kitchen as it roasted- especially after pouring on the glaze. The bacon, sugary mixture was so fragrant, you would have thought I lit a bacon sugar candle.

However, there's a problem when I make dishes that have a long cooking time. I get extremely impatient. I pace around the kitchen, picking up things to wash, setting them back down, opening and closing the fridge, all the while resisting the urge NOT to open the oven door (although I did, several times). So I got to work on the sides and cubed up potatoes, found a bunch of asparagus that was just about to see the last of its days and threw those in the oven as well. Then I was done. What to do...

I was itching to make the brown sugar glaze but it was waaaay too soon. I can't tell you how many sauces I've ruined because I was dying to make them and the chicken/pork/fish wasn't anywhere near done yet. This glaze has to be done right before you take the pork out of the oven. Then you pour it over and stick it back in to roast a bit more.

The torture!

I ended up whisking the glaze for about 30 seconds, when it should really be for about a whole minute. Please follow directions (unlike me) and whisk it for one minute. It really makes a difference. Mine was thicker than I would have liked.

When it was finally ready, I hollered for the husband. He was so wrapped up in the video game he was playing (Dead Space 2), he didn't have a clue what I was cooking. He laughed when he noticed the platter I had taken out, knowing it was for the blog world in an attempt to assemble a pretty presentation. It looked so much better in person, don't let my poor photography skills discourage you from making this! It was phenomenal.

 
1 boneless pork loin, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds
2 slices bacon
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Glaze:
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard


Heat oven to 350° F. Place pork loin in a roasting pan or deep casserole dish lined with aluminum foil. Combine the rub ingredients in a small bowl and rub over the pork. Cut each strip of bacon in half and lay strips over the pork loin. Roast for about 40 minutes.

Combine the brown sugar, flour, cider vinegar, and dry mustard in a saucepan. Simmer for 1 minute. Spoon over the pork and return to the oven. Roast for about 15 minutes longer, or until pork registers 160°. Let sit for 2 minutes after removing from oven. Slice and serve.


Make this. You will not be disappointed!