Guest Author - Jill Valente

As most of you know I am expecting a little girl this November but it wasn’t so long ago that I was enjoying my honeymoon on the island of St. John. While my husband and I were there we purchased all sorts of Caribbean spice medleys, one of which I used in this dish. The mixture is called Island Barbeque and it is made up of red chilies, paprika, pepper, hickory flavors, nutmeg and cumin. Obviously you don’t have to book the next flight to the US Virgin Islands in order to make this dish, just improvise and create a similar seasoning using ground red pepper, black pepper, salt, paprika, nutmeg and cumin. You could also experiment with your own flavorings by testing out different spice combinations which is a great way to add flavor to your dishes without additional fat.

Honey Molasses Pork Tenderloin with Spiced Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

• 1½ lb pork tenderloin
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 2 tsp olive oil, divided
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp molasses
• 4 small sweet potatoes
• 1 tbsp Island Barbeque seasoning
• 1 container Brussels sprouts
• 1 lb cremini mushrooms

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and coat roasting pan with cooking spray. Season pork tenderloin with salt, black pepper and dried rosemary. Whisk together olive oil, honey, balsamic vinegar and molasses. Pour onto pork tenderloin and marinate for about 15-20 minutes. Chop sweet potatoes into 2 inch cubes and place in roasting pan. Toss with Island Barbeque seasonings and olive oil and roast for 15 minutes. While the potatoes are roasting half the Brussels sprouts and mushrooms. Place in roasting pan with sweet potatoes and place pork tenderloin on roasting rack above vegetables. Roast for 20-25 minutes more flipping the pork tenderloin and stirring the vegetables halfway through. Cook until potatoes are tender and pork’s internal temperature registers at 155 degrees. Let the meat rest for 10 minutes before slicing (the internal temperature will reach 160 degrees). Slice and serve on a bed of the vegetables. Makes 4 servings. 8 points per serving.