Up next is another roast, but this time it's lavender and rosemary-laden pork tenderloin. This recipe comes from a famous Ottawa foodie, Chris Knight, President of Knight Enterprises, and the brainchild behind some hit food television shows, including my all-time favorite: Cook Like a Chef. He's also produced The Great Canadian Food Show, Licensed to Grill, and Junk Brothers.

I asked my Whisk Wednesdays group if they get Cook Like a Chef in the US on the Food Network, and they don't. The Food Network is missing out on the best cooking show ever, hands down. It's a half-hour show featuring one of six Canadian chefs and three to four recipes or techniques per episode. And the set is unique too, showing every move the chef makes with close-ups from the cameras that are in plain view and giving a 360˚ view of what's happening.

You can order the first season of Cook Like a Chef on DVD (available in April 2009) here: Cook Like a Chef: Season 1. (Mine is on order.) You can also buy the cookbook, Cook Like a Chef: Techniques, Tips and Secrets from the Professional Kitchen to Yours, which I own. (I also have the music CD from the show. What can I say? I'm a fan!}

I'm making 5 meals in 5 hours to avoid the "What's for dinner" question. I'll post one meal each day, in the order I made them. Here's the plan:

1. Savory Pot Roast
2. Shrimp Curry (or you could substitute chicken)
3. Chicken Stir-Fry (or you could substitute tofu)
4. Lavender and Rosemary Pork Tenderloin
5. Sun-dried Tomato Cream Sauce on Chicken or Pasta

After making the Chicken Stir-Fry, you can start chopping the ingredients for the Lavender and Rosemary Pork Tenderloin.

Recipe

from Cook Like a Chef: Techniques, Tips and Secrets from the Professional Kitchen to Yours

Serves 8-10 (based on 1 pound of pork serving 4)

2½ pound pork tenderloin
2 sprigs fresh lavender, finely chopped
½ cup fresh rosemary, finely chopped
½ cup white wine
2 teaspoons yellow onion, finely chopped
2 teaspoons roasted or fresh garlic, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Touch of honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
To Prepare and Eat Now:
Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl, mix the lavender, rosemary, onions, garlic and bay leaf.

In a small saucepan, reduce the white wine by half and add it to the lavender mixture.

Put all the ingredients back into the pan and reduce it to the consistency of molasses.

Dry the pork tenderloin with paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Coat the pork tenderloin with the lavender mixture.

Put the tenderloin in a roasting pan and roast in the oven for 25 minutes, or until still slightly pink in the middle about 155°F-160°F.

To Freeze:
Roast to a temperature just a bit less than done so that when you reheat it, the meat will be perfect. Slice the pork and wrap between layers of wax paper. Recommended freezing time: 2-3 months.

To Prepare After Freezing:
Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Heat and serve.

Tips:
To save time, use bottled minced garlic. To save money, mince your own garlic.

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Cost: $20.75 ($2.59 per serving)

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Other Pork Tenderloin Recipes
• Crabby Cook: Dukkah Crusted Pork Tenderloin
• Serious Eats - Tom Valenti's One-Pot Meals: Pork Tenderloin Medallions
• The Perfect Pantry: Pork Tenderloin with Grilled Lavender Peaches