Pork Sliders with Raspberry Mustard Spread

By Simone Demers Collins, PHEc

Sometime during my second or maybe third diet, I realized that there were no calories in pepper.  And that doubling or tripling the amount of ground black pepper in a recipe might overpower the other herbs and spices, but it would render a guilt-free intense flavour that I relished. So without thinking, I tripled the rub mixture for this Pork Sliders with Raspberry Mustard Sauce.  With more than enough spices to provide a good cover for the meat, I now had to take extra care when searing the loin – burnt spices are not tasty!  But cooked, the spiced meat with the raspberry sauce was a taste bud tantalizer – sweet raspberries, with the acidity of the canola mayonnaise, the bitterness of the mustard, and the heat from the pepper and dried pepper flakes slid easily into becoming a fan favourite.

Recipe Source:  from Heart-Smart Diabetes Kitchen.

Pork Sliders with Raspberry Mustard Spread

2 mL       teaspoon garlic powder, ½ tsp

2 mL      dried thyme leaves, ½ tsp

2 mL      coarsely ground black pepper, ½ tsp

454 g     pork tenderloin, 1 lb.

15 mL    canola oil, 1 Tbsp

16           wheat or multigrain mini rolls, halved

Sauce:

50 mL    raspberry fruit spread or apricot fruit spread, ¼ cup

30 mL    coarse grain Dijon mustard, 2 Tbsp

30 mL    mayonnaise with canola, 2 Tbsp

5 mL      pourable sugar substitute, 1 tsp

1 mL      ground allspice, ¼ tsp

0.5 mL     dried pepper flakes, 1/8 tsp, optional

Preheat oven to 190⁰C (425⁰ F). Combine the garlic powder, thyme, and black pepper in a small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of the tenderloin with garlic powder mixture. Heat the canola oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat until hot. Add the pork, cook 3 minutes, turn and cook 2 minutes or until richly browned. Remove from heat.

Coat a foil-lined baking sheet with canola cooking spray, place the pork on baking sheet and cook 18-20 minutes or until barely pink in center. Place on cutting board and let stand 5 minutes before thinly slicing. If desired, wrap the rolls in foil, place in oven 5 minutes or until heated.

Place the fruit spread in a microwave-safe small bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high setting 20 seconds or until slightly melted. Stir in the remaining sauce ingredients until well blended.

To serve, place the pork on a serving platter, place the sauce in a small decorative bowl. Serve rolls alongside.  Yield: 8 – 55 g (3 oz.) cooked pork, 15 mL (1 Tbsp) sauce and 2 rolls per serving

Recipe is ideal for heart-healthy Valentine’s meal.  Copies of cookbook will be sent to top 10 recipes with ‘pepper’ or with colour red sent to prior to Valentine’s Day.

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Simone Demers Collins is a professional home economist, living in Edmonton, Alberta. She has her own consulting business which focuses on media, marketing, public relations & project management. Follow her daily at @learncanola.