Bacon-Wrapped Pork Loin with Apples and Sage

If you don’t live in Ontario, then you are not lucky enough to be able to pick up, for free, the LCBO’s Food & Drink magazine. This magazine has some of the best food recipes around. None of them are healthy. None of them are particularly easy, but all of them are luxurious, rich and interesting. The 2010 Autumn edition has a beautiful photograph on the cover of this recipe.

If you love pork and bacon and apples and sage and garlic, you must try this out. D and I oohed and aww’d over, not only it’s beauty, but it’s rich, complex flavours, despite it’s simple ingredients. Without the sage and garlic, this recipe would just be a pork tenderloin wrapped in bacon. Add in the pungent fresh sage from the garden and the aromatic garlic and you’ve got something special. The apples and onion compliment these flavours and add just a touch of je ne sais quoi! You must try this out.

I did a slight variation from the recipe below, because there are only 2 of us eating, I choose to use only 1 pork tenderloin and 2 apples. Enjoy!

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Loin with Apples and Sage

2 large pork tenderloins; silver skin removed.

10 fresh sage leaves, very finely chopped, or 1 tsp of dried sage

2 to 3 large garlic cloves

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

9 to 10 slices of thick-cut bacon; best quality

Kitchen Twine

3 to 4 large cooking apples such as Cortland or Spy (I used Wealthy)

1 large cooking onion

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups chicken broth or stock

1. Take the sage, garlic, salt and pepper and bash up in a mortar and pestle. Rub all over the pork.
2. Lay out the bacon strips snugly together to form a rectangle. Place the loins across the bacon so the bacon ends emerge from each side. The loins should be placed beside each other, fat ends opposite for even cooking. Beginning at one end lift the bacon end over loins at a 45deg angle. Then, alternating sides, continue lifting the bacon ends down the length of the roast forming a chevron pattern of bacon on top.
3. Cut five 12-inch lengths of twine and one 30-inch length. Place 5 shorter lengths of twine under the loins widthwise. Working out from the roast centre, firmly (but not causing deep indents to form) tie up each piece of twine, spacing evenly apart. Then tie up the roast lengthwise with longer piece of twine. Trim twine ends; discard. (Roast can be prepared, covered and refrigerated for up to half a day. Add 10 to 15 minutes to roasting time).
4. When ready to roast, preheat oven to 425deg F. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Light brown roast on all sides, about 15 minutes in total. Transfer to a baking pan lined with a rack. Place in oven; set time for 30 minutes. Check and continue roasting until a meat thermometer reads 145deg F. Remove from oven; transfer to cutting board. Cover roast with foil; let rest 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, peel, core and slice apples. Thinly slice onion.
6. Drain most of fat from frying pan; place back over medium heat. Add onion; cook 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute. Stir in chicken broth; add apple slices. Bring to a boil; simmer, covered, 5 to 10 minutes or until apples are tender and sauce is lightly thickened. Add more broth if too thick; keep covered and hot.
7. To slice pork, snip off lengthwise string. Then slice about 3/4 inch thick, removing crosswise strings as they are encountered. Place a few saucy apples on each warm serving plate, top with a couple of slices of roast and drizzle with more sauce. 

Serves 6 to 8.

I served this with the Scalloped Potatoes with Porcini and Bacon. The starter was the Caramelized Onion Crostini. A decadent meal, to say the least!