Pork Tenderloin with Cider Reduction, accompanied by Potato Celery Root Cauliflower Mash, White Asparagus, and Apple Crisp

Dinner for Four

This dinner is suitable for company and perfect for an autumn weekend. Pork tenderloin is just uncommon enough to be remarkable – which is kind of surprising, because it’s a delicious cut of meat and very easy to cook. The potato mash – again, just a little left of common – comes from one of the food blogs I love to follow, Havoc in the Kitchen. To top it all off, nothing says “home-cooked meal” like apple crisp.

You could probably make this meal, start to finish, in about 3½ hours.  Rather than power through it, though, I suggest spreading out the work. You’ll be more relaxed during dinner, and by the time your guests have gone and you’ve put the house back in order, you’ll drop into bed satisfied and not exhausted. If you can swing it, make the apple crisp the day before and do dinner prep the morning of. Equally good: apple crisp two days before, dinner prep the day before.

Stored in the fridge, covered, a fresh apple crisp will keep perfectly a couple of days. You can serve it cold, but I think it should be served at room temperature or warm. The butter in the oat mixture seems too heavy when it’s cold – although many of my friends love it straight from the fridge. Click the link for our Apple Crisp recipe.

When it comes to shopping, I suggest you start with the celery root. Weight it. It needs to weigh about 12 oz. if you want the resultant mash to feed four. If it weighs more, go with it and match its weight in potatoes. If in the end you wind up making more mash than you need … is that really a problem? Feel free to use Yukon Gold potatoes, even though white are obviously called for. One head of cauliflower is going to be as much as or more than you need, but you should have no problem using up what’s left. If you can’t find celery root, use celery stalks.

When making a special dinner, the big question always is, “How do I get the main course and the sides to come out at the same time?” I’ve meshed the instructions together into a single thread, so that you can conjure up this entire meal like a wizard.

Dinner Prep

Assuming the crisp is already made, dinner prep will take about 1 hour at a relaxed pace. Start with the cider reduction.

2 cups cider, preferably unpasteurized
3 Tbs heavy cream
1 tsp pure maple syrup

Set a timer for 30 minutes. Over moderately high heat, bring the cider to a boil. Once it reaches full boil, stir it for about a minute. Then, allow it to continue to boil, stirring it only on occasion, until it is reduced to ½-cup, stirring it again during the last few minutes of cooking (which should occur just after the timer goes off). Off heat. Stir in cream thoroughly. Over medium heat, continue to stir the mixture while bringing it back to a boil. Off heat. Stir in syrup. Set aside or refrigerate until ready to use.

2 cups peeled and cubed white potatoes
2 cups peeled and cubed celery root
2 cups cauliflower florets
Fresh lemon thyme

While the cider’s boiling, prep the mash. Follow this link to the recipe. It’s part of a delicious-looking pork stew post; scroll down to find the mash. You’ll need to double it, so I’ve given you the doubled amounts. If you’re doing this prep more than four hours in advance, cover the peeled potatoes completely in water, or otherwise take steps to prevent them from turning brown. If your favorite grocer is out of celery root, use 1½ cups of minced celery (from about 3 large stalks), which you should sauté (to soften them, without browning: about 16 min over low heat) beforehand and then add to the mix during the mashing phase. Even though softened, the celery will nonetheless add a bit of crunch to the mash, but if you do more of a smash than a mash, it will work. Pat yourself on the back if you know where to find fresh lemon thyme. I have some growing at my place in the Hamptons, but when I’m too busy to schedule the private jet, I settle for dried thyme and a pinch of lemon zest, very finely grated. But don’t tell Jeffrey; I want to surprise him.

16 stalks of white or green asparagus

Prep the asparagus by trimming the tough ends. Clean up a bit, and then prep the pork.

2 pork tenderloins, 2 pounds total

Tenderloins are usually packaged two-to-a-pack. Pat them dry with paper towels. Remove any large pieces of fat, as well as the fat film (silver skin). If you don’t have a pan large enough to accommodate the tenderloins’ length – hell yeah if you do – cut them in half. Wrap them in plastic and refrigerate if you’re prepping in advance. Sanitize your work area and take out the garbage.

Cook Dinner

Plan on having your guests arrive in the middle of all of this.

½ cup light cream
2 Tbs butter
A splash of white wine
Salt and pepper
3 Tbs olive oil

Psych yourself up for a whole bunch of multitasking … but don’t worry, it’s far easier to manage than it sounds.  Set the table. Light a fire under the potatoes and celery root. Preheat the oven to 500°F and start in on the pork. Heat the pan as you pat the pork dry (again). Season the pork generously. Add oil to the pan, and brown the pieces over high heat, 4-5 minutes per side. Don’t be shy; blast it and get a nice, brown crust. Add the cauliflower to the potatoes just as the water comes to a full boil. Count on it taking about 7-9 minutes from this point to get the veggies soft. When the veggies reach the proper tenderness, off heat and cover. Meanwhile, ready butter and cream for the mash. Microwave or steam the asparagus. Ready a temperature probe, set to 141°F. Ready a plate and some foil. As you turn the last batch of pork to its second side, return the first batch to the pan, insert the probe, and place the pan in the oven. Be careful to insert the probe into the center of the fattest end of the largest piece of pork. If it registers 100°F or more, adjust its location to make sure that you can’t find a cooler spot. Plan on the pork being in the oven only about 15 minutes.

Straighten up a bit.

Drain the potato mixture, finish the mash, and cover. Once the pork comes out of the oven, turn the oven off. Place the mash and asparagus in the oven, and prop the door open with a wooden spoon. Move the pork to a plate, tent it a bit firmly, and let it rest at least 10 minutes, during which time its temperature should mount to 145°F. Meanwhile, deglaze the pan with wine while you warm up the cider reduction. Pour the juices from the rested pork into the deglazed pan; stir, reduce until somewhat syrupy, then scrape the entire contents of the pan into the cider reduction. Raise the heat under the reduction and thicken it, if necessary. Correct seasoning. If you have the wherewithal to let the sauce cool a few minutes, that’d be nice. Don’t worry; the pork will stay warm. Take a few deep breaths, wipe the sweat off your brow, and pour yourself a glass of chilled white. Slice the pork, and serve.

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