Onion-Apple Pork Tenderloin

For his birthday dinner, Caleb requested pork tenderloin.  My go-to pork recipe is this cranberry-dijon pork roast, but Caleb wanted an apple-flavored pork rather than the cranberry.  This recipe is what I came up with, and Caleb loved how flavorful it was.  I hadn't made a crockpot dinner in a while and my love for my crockpot has been renewed.  I had forgotten how nice it is to throw a few ingredients together in the morning and then forget about dinner and let the crockpot do its magic...and make our house smell wonderful in the meantime!  

Onion-Apple Pork Tenderloin

1 boneless pork loin (1.5 - 2 lbs)

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 envelope Lipton onion soup mix

2 Tbsp firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup apple juice

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

salt and freshly ground pepper 

Spray the inside of a crockpot with cooking spray.  Place pork loin in crockpot.  In small bowl, combine olive oil, soup mix, brown sugar, apple juice, applesauce, salt, and pepper.  Stir to combine well.  Pour mixture over the pork loin in crockpot.  Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.  Slice or shred pork before serving.  Ladle juice into small bowl to serve on top of meat.  Serves 2-4.

Summer Dinners

When it's warm summer weather outside, the last thing I feel like doing is spending a lot of time in a hot kitchen making dinner.  In the summer I want quick and easy recipes, and it's a bonus if there's fresh fruit or veggies on the side. When I saw this pulled pork recipe, I knew I had found a winner.  It takes 10-12 hours to cook, so I had everything in the crockpot by 8 that morning.  Then I chopped up some veggies to toss together a pasta salad and squeezed some lemons to make some strawberry lemonade (here).  Delicious summer dinner, hardly any prep, and the rest of my day to get other things done!

Crockpot Pulled Pork

1 large onion, sliced thin 

2 Tbsp packed brown sugar

1 Tbsp paprika

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 (4-6 lb) boneless pork butt, shoulder, or loin (I used loin)

3/4 cup apple cider vinegar 

4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp dry mustard

1/2 tsp garlic powder 

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Place onions in crockpot.  Rinse pork under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.  Place on top of the onions.  In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, paprika, salt and pepper; mix thoroughly.  Rub mixture all over the top side of the pork; then flip, and rub remaining mixture on the other side until it is well-covered.  

In a medium bowl, combine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, red pepper flakes, sugar, mustard, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper; whisk to combine.  Drizzle half of the vinegar mixture over the pork.  Cover and refrigerate remaning vinegar mixture.  Cover crockpot; cook on low for 10-12 hours.  

In the last 1/2 hour of cooking, pull the meat apart with two forks (this should be very easy to do).  Drizzle remaining vinegar mixture over pork, and re-cover for last 30 minutes of cooking.  Serve with your favorite BBQ sauce (Jack Daniels in this house!)  Serves 6-8.

Note:  This also freezes well.  Allow to defrost in fridge for 24-48 hours before heating and serving.

source:  recipe slightly altered from my baking addiction