I’ve always said I loved pork, so here goes with yet another recipe for pork tenderloin.

To my mind, pork tenderloin is the gourmet meat of the masses. For the two of us in our golden years (whatever that means), one pork tenderloin is the perfect amount for 2 meals. So when I can buy a 4 pack of tenderloins at Costco for just under $20, that’s enough meat for at least 8 meals. That is really, really good, both cost wise and not coincidentally, nutrition wise.

What I like best about pork tenderloin, aside from the fact that it’s a delicious and tender cut of meat, is that it is extremely versatile. You can prepare it almost any old way. Plus nutritionally, it’s a good source of riboflavin (essential for metabolic energy production), phosphorus (a major component of bone), zinc (constituent of insulin and involved with the sense of smell), thiamin (necessary for normal neural activity and carbohydrate metabolism), niacin (helps lower cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood), vitamin B6 (essential for metabolism of amino acids and starch), selenium (vital to immune system function), choline (helps in the synthesis and transport of lipids), magnesium (needed for nerve signaling, the building of healthy bones, and normal muscle contraction), potassium (regulate blood pressure and normal water balance), and of course, a great source of protein (energy source and essential component of muscle, skin, and bone).

Now I know the above mini treatise is probably more information than you ever wanted to know about a simple piece of meat. But sometimes I get so darned excited about an ingredient that I just can’t help educating you as I educate myself.

But truthfully, I feel every good cook should be excited about pork tenderloin. (Caveat: If pork is prohibited in your diet for religious reasons, then you shouldn’t be reading this post anyway, so I don’t expect to get any disagreement from you!) As for the rest of you, if you haven’t previously prepared pork tenderloin, I firmly believe now is the time to give it a try. Just don’t over-cook it. The days of contracting trichinosis from eating under cooked pork went away at about the same time the Dodgers left Brooklyn! So don’t hesitate to cook your pork with a little pink still showing. (Proves you know what you’re doing in the kitchen.) And since pork is a very lean meat, if you over cook it, it tends to get tough.

And BTW, if you don’t believe me about it being OK to eat “under cooked” pork, please go onto the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention site for their OK. And if you don’t believe them, well then there’s nothing I or anyone else can do to lead you out of the dark ages. Wilmaaaaaaaa!!!

• 1 room temperature pork tenderloin, trimmed of all fat and silver skin, and patted dry with paper towels
• 3 T. extra virgin olive oil, divided
• kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 2 T. whole grain Dijon mustard
• 1 T. coarse ground Dijon mustard (Grey Poupon calls it “Country Dijon”)
• 1 T. butter
• 1 med. shallot, finely chopped
• 1 T. drained whole capers
• 2 T. cognac
• 2/3 c. whipping cream
• 1 T. chopped fresh parsley, divided

On a shallow sided small baking pan, slather the pork tenderloin with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cover the entire surface with a mixture of the whole grain and coarse ground mustards.

Heat the butter and remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a frying pan until little bubbles start to appear. Add the coated tenderloin (don’t wash the small baking pan) and fry until the mustard grains are dark brown and the meat looks white. Remove from the frying pan and place back on the small baking pan. (Don’t clean the fry pan.)

Bake the tenderloin in a pre-heated 375 degree oven until the internal temp is 135-140 degrees, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to a platter; tent with aluminum foil. Let the tenderloin sit at least 15 minutes before thinly slicing on the diagonal. (There should be a little pink when you cut the meat. That’s good!) Also, pour any juices that gathered while the tenderloin was resting into the sauce.

Meanwhile add the shallots to the fry pan over medium heat and cook for about 2 minutes. Stir in the capers and cognac. When all the liquid has evaporated, stir in the heavy cream. Simmer until the sauce is thickened. Adjust seasoning. Just before serving, stir in most of the fresh parsley.

(Save a tad bit to sprinkle on top of the plated meat.) Plate the tenderloin, garnish with a small amount of the sauce, and top with the remaining fresh parsley. Serve immediately. Pass the remaining sauce.