Smuttynose Smistletoe + Roasted Pork Tenderloin w/ Acorn Squash Macaroni

This lovely recipe came along during Snowmaggedon 2016 a couple of weeks ago. Luckily, I had hit the grocery and grabbed a few odds and ends in anticipation of being snowed in the house!

You know that feeling when you wake up, peek out of the blinds, just hoping the forecast was true, and you get the call that you don't have to go into work because of the weather?
YIPPEE! SNOW DAY!

Snow days to me mean snow ball fights and COMFORT FOOD. 

So here we go!

Oh, hi. :)

I have to be honest with you all: I did not cook this mouth watering meal.

I work different hours during the week, so (lucky for me) Ben has been cooking a lot more for the two of us!

I'll let him give you the recipe for this tenderloin:
​

I made a dry rub that consisted of : cumin, paprika, garlic powder, chili powder, salt, pepper, and adobo seasoning. I follow the Rachel Ray mantra of "eyeballing" all the ingredients, so go heavier or lighter on the seasonings you like or don't like. Taste it before dressing your pork, then if you are happy with it, coat the meat with olive oil and pack your dry rub on it. We made 2-1.5 lb tenderloins, so we baked it for 45 min at 400 degrees. Pull it out of the oven and let it rest for 10 min then slice!

I was in charge of the sides. I wanted a lightened up version of macaroni and cheese... *GASP*! I know. Why ruin a favorite? Well, I followed this recipe and it actually turned out really good and guilt free! The sauce is creamy, buttery and thick with a slight tang from Greek yogurt. I added a couple of different cheeses including parmesan and sharp cheddar. The recipe calls for kale in the pasta which I like but Mr. Ben does not, so I made a side of my favorite go-to side of balsamic kale with red pepper flakes. Yummy!

Hello, Smuttynose Smistletoe! 
Here is a description from Smuttynose:

The beer itself is a festive take on Bière de Garde, a more robust variant of the farmhouse ale family tree; brewed with sweet cherries, black currants and plums then aged on lightly toasted American oak.

As you can see from the photo, it pours a beautiful color of cherry-red with a pretty consistent off-pink head. The nose is funky and fruity with the same flavors echoed on the palate. It is off-dry with just a touch of tartness and oaky tannins. All the fruit just pops out of the glass followed by an earthy sweetness. At 8.5% abv, this beer is just absolutely stunning! 

​ I hope they do this one again next year, because I will be buying 2 or 3 bottles!

Did  The  Pairing  Work?

The pork came out so juicy with that smokey, spicy, slightly sweet rub. The sweetness of the beer met the sweetness of the meat and rub while balancing that sweetness out because of the dryness of the beer. If you're wine lover, imagine the way a Pinot Noir would work with this meal. 

The cherries, currants, and plums from the beer added another beautiful dimension of flavor to the pork. The pork itself was already juicy and flavorful, but imagine a dark berry compote being added on top of that! That's what the beer did essentially. 

This was one of those meals I did not want to end!

But alas, there are more delicious pairings in my future! :D

Side note:
The night after I made this meal,
we ventured thru the snow and ice to go see Tool play down at Bridgestone Arena in Downtown Nashville.

...and it was AWESOME! :)

But I digress....

As always, tag me in your beer & food pairings:

#LanaDelBeer

Thanks for reading! Cheers! - Lana