BACON-WRAPPED PORK TENDERLOIN

Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin image

Provided by Ree Drummond : Food Network

Time 1h5m

Yield 6 servings

Number Of Ingredients 8

1 pork tenderloin
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup pesto
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup drained and sliced sundried tomatoes in oil
1/2 cup baby spinach leaves, rinsed and spun dry
10 slices of bacon

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Place a sheet pan in the oven to preheat.
Slice the pork tenderloin lengthwise, so it will open like a book, being careful to not cut all the way through. Open the loin and gently pound with a meat mallet until it is an even thickness and rectangular in shape.
Sprinkle the meat with salt and pepper. Spread the cream cheese in an even layer on the meat, leaving a 1/2 inch of pork uncovered around the edges. Spread the pesto on top of the cream cheese, then sprinkle on the pine nuts and sundried tomatoes. Top with an even layer of spinach. Starting on one of the longer sides of your rectangle, roll the meat closed into a long tube and set aside.
Place a piece of plastic wrap on a flat surface and lay out the bacon so the slices overlap slightly. Lay the rolled pork tenderloin at one end of the bacon strip arrangement, seam-side down. Using the plastic wrap, roll the bacon up and around the meat.
Using butcher's twine, tie around the bacon at 2-inch intervals along the length of the roll, so that the bacon cannot come loose during cooking. Tuck the meat closed on both ends and secure with toothpicks.
Place the pork, seam-side down, on the heated sheet pan and roast until the bacon is browned and the pork is cooked, about 45 minutes. Let the pork rest for a few minutes before slicing.