Pentathletes Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Romenesco, & Espinacas con Garbanzos
On Saturday, March 8, 2014 a group of 5 brave individuals fittingly named “Snow Stoppin’ Us” competed in the Steamboat triathlon. (Stay tuned for the full race report on ActivePerformance.org). To celebrate our triumphant winter race we had a team dinner with our awesome supporters. We served a Pentathletes Pork Tenderloin, Roasted Romenesco, and Espinacas con Garbanzos. The highlight perfectly cooked pork was highlighted by the smoky and sweet blueberry chipotle sauce. This was paired quite nicely with the cumin flavored, Spanish inspired, espinacas con garbanzos. The baked romenesco finished off the meal with a little flare! Nothing like a healthy and hearty meal to share with friends and reminisce about the winter pentathlon.
Espinacas con Garbanzos (Spinach with Garbanzo Beans)
While Ashley and Colin were traveling in Seville, Spain they came across this delicious tapas dish everywhere. Today we added some fresh kale to the mix.
Ingredients:
– 2 tablespoon olive oil
– 6 cloves garlic, minced
– 3/4 onion, diced
– 1 bunch of fresh kale, stems removed, rough chopped– 1 box frozen chopped spinach, thawed & drained well
– 1 quart of garbanzo beans (see instructions for fresh soaked beans below)
– 2 tablespoon cumin
– 2 teaspoon salt
Garbanzo Beans – Fill quart sized mason jar 1/3 full with dry garbanzo beans (chick peas) and 1/3 full of water. The garbanzo beans will soak up the water and expand overnight. Water naturally removes enzyme inhibitors named phytates from the beans. This process takes 24 – 48 hours. There also are no additional additives and preservatives when you soak your own beans versus buying the canned ones. But, if you’re short on time, grab a couple cans of garbanzo beans and don’t forget to drain the water before cooking!
Cooking Instructions:
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over low-medium heat. Cook the garlic and onion in the oil until translucent and fragrant. Add the chopped kale and ½ cup of water and cover the skillet with a lid. Let the water steam the kale. Once the water has steamed off, remove the lid and add the spinach, garbanzo beans, cumin, and salt. Stir mixture and allow to cook until thoroughly heated.
Roasted Romenesco with Garlic & Olive oil
We chose to cook romenesco because of its healthy, flavorful, nicely textured, and exciting fractal appearance. Don’t be afraid of these wicked mathematical vegetables when you see them in the grocery aisle, they are just as easy to cook as cauliflower.
Pre-heat oven to 350°. Toss rough chopped romenesco, olive oil, chopped garlic, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Lay foil on top of a sheet pan and spread romenesco mixture on top. Bake for an hour or minutes or until romenesco is until lightly browned and soft.
Ingredients: Romenesco, olive oil, chopped garlic, salt, and pepper
Prep time: 5 minutes
Bake Time: 1 hour +
Pork Tenderloin with a Roasted Blueberry Chipotle Sauce
In a gallon sized mixing bag marinade the pork tenderloin with olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, rosemary, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper for a couple hours in the fridge for a couple hours. “The marinade will flavor and tenderize the meat broski” to quote the chef Colin. “Experiment with the ingredients to your own tastes, this isn’t a science, it’s just cooking yo”.
Pre-heat oven to 325°. Pan sear the pork tenderloin on both sides to seal in the juices. Once slightly browned on both sides place the pork tenderloin directly on a sheet pan for approximately 45 minutes. With 5 minutes left brush the blueberry chipotle sauce liberally on the tenderloin and sauce that baby up! We bought the roasted blueberry chipotle sauce from the store but feel free to find a recipe and cook your own. Chef Colin likes his pork tenderloin cooked to a medium well. This will leave just a tiny bit of pink in the middle so the pork stays tender and juicy. Slice into serving sized pieces and serve with some heated up sauce on the side!