Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Pork Loin ~ stuffed with feta, spinach and olive tapenade


I had this beautiful pork loin in the freezer that I had gotten on special, and needed to use it. I pulled it out of the freezer the night before I was going to cook it, and I planned to figure out what to do with it the next day.

This recipe was inspired by what I had on hand, and I have to tell you it was delicious.
Next time I may throw in a few sun~dried tomatoes and maybe pine nuts. Also, this technique with veggies and a pesto I believe would be wonderful as well.

Since it was a weeknight meal, I did not make any sauce to go over it, but it would be great to do that for a company dinner. What sauce, I do not know, but if you come up with one, let me know!


Pork Loin ~ stuffed with feta, spinach and olive tapenade

1 boneless center cut pork loin roast (around 3 lbs)
1 cup olive tapenade (I used store-bought)
handful baby spinach, washed, dried, and chopped in slivers
1/2 cup (or to taste) feta cheese
garlic, optional
Something to hold the roast shut ~ skewers, twine, toothpicks

Preheat oven to 450 degrees with rack in the middle position. take pork loin and slice from one side to almost the other, opening like a book. Mix olive tapenade, feta, and spinach slivers (some garlic here if you like) in a bowl. Spread mixture on the pork, and close. You can use twine to tie it shut, all I had on hand were some bamboo skewers, so I 'sewed' the pork shut with those. ( Tip: If you think of it, soak the skewers in water first. I did not, and they were scorched on the tips, but it did not affect the roast at all.)

I brushed the top of the roast with Greek salad dressing (not creamy!), but you can just put salt and pepper, or olive oil, or any seasonings you like.

Place in oven for 10 minutes. Without opening the door, lower the temperature to 250 degrees. Roast another hour; then check to see if it's done. A meat thermometer should read 150 to 155 degrees. Check every 10 to 15 minutes until you get that reading.

Take out of oven, tent with foil, and let sit for 10 minutes. Cut and serve.

Cheers!!



13 comments:

Anonymous said...

that looks really tasty! I have this jar of olive, artichoke heart tapenade/bruschetta in the fridge, that could be excellent in something like this. I never would have though of it. thanks!

karen

Carrie said...

OH Yum!!! That is such a wonderful idea!! Looks fantastic SM!! I bet that would also be good in the middle of a burger!! I need to buy a pork loin when they go on sale again! You can do SO much with them!!

Liz said...

That looks great! I like the idea of adding pine nuts and sun-dried tomatoes, too.

Every other week there seems to be a pork loin buy one, get one free special at my local Roche Bros. Now I know what to do with my extra!

Mrs. G.F. said...

Karen ~ I am so glad to share. Artichoke hearts, now that's an idea!!

Carrie ~ My fellow pork lover! Stuffed burger, now that sounds so good. :)

Good eatah ~ Are you from MA? I am thinking so, since I grew up there, and that 'sounds' like a MA accent to me! :)

Sondra said...

That looks so good. I think I will have to try that with chicken. (pork allergy!). I love spinach and feta!

Mrs. G.F. said...

Sondra ~ I have done something akin to this with chicken breasts. I just cut a pocket in the thick part of the boneless breast and stuff it in. Yummy!

:)

Sheltie Girl said...

This sounds simply delicious. All that feta, spinach and olive tapenade...Yum!

Sheltie Girl @ Gluten A Go Go

Liz said...

Hey Slacker Mom! I sure am. I "pahk my cah in hahvad yahd." See! ;)

I'm just south of Boston. Where did you grow up?

Mrs. G.F. said...

Sheltie Girl ~ Thanks!!! :) Gotta love feta.

Good eatah ~ I grew up just north of Boston, and I now live even more north. :) Nothing like that MA accent. I love going back to Bean Town and hearing it. :)

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Karen said...

Oooo, I just love pork and chicken with feta! This recipe is right up my alley. I am have a feeling I am going to LOVE this recipe. Thanks for posting it!

Karen
http://glutenfreefoodreviews.com

Unknown said...

I'm super excited for these recipes! I am 21 and in college and just recently got diagnosed with celiac...so you can imagine how hard it is to eat well (especially when everyone runs out and orders take-out!). Anyways, I love your blog but I was just wondering at what temperature you would use when adapting this recipe for chicken? Thanks!
Michaela

Mrs. G.F. said...

Michela ~ That must be tough, being in college and having to deal with celiac. You go girl!!

I would cook them at 350 for about 30 minutes. Make sure that the chicken is cooked through. You could do this 'en papillote' a French method that sounds fancy but is really easy.

Basically, you wrap each breast loosely in tinfoil, making the folded crease at the top of the foil so the juices don't run out. You don't even have to stuff the breasts, you can just put everything on top. Cook at 450 for about 25 minutes. be careful opening, there will be steam. You can freeze other breasts for a quick meal.

This method is also great with fish, and you can add any veggies you like in there as well.

Also, check out the Blog in my links sidebar, Don't Need No Stinkin' Wheat. She doesn't write much lately, but she was a college student with celiac that blogged all the easy recipes she created and tried. Sounds like that would be a great resource for you too. :)

Good luck, and let me know how it goes!!

Danielle

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