TASTE
This is a dinner you can let your children prepare
| • | Kokua Market means fresh |
By Bonnie S. Benwick
Washington Post
Kids, you can take over dinner duties tonight and make this meal. Ask whoever does the shopping at your house to pick up the first three ingredients listed below.
The recipe is from Rozanne Gold, a chef who lives in Brooklyn, N.Y., and has written nine "1-2-3" cookbooks full of dishes that are easy to prepare. For "Kids Can Cook 1-2-3" (Bloomsbury, 2007), she got together a group of testers ages 8 to 16.
"I started cooking when I was 5," Gold told us recently. "It's fun to experiment in the kitchen. Everyone likes this dish because it's salty and sweet. I tried it with Parmesan, but the Asiago cheese gives it a little nuttiness."
Gold suggests serving the pork with carrot "fries" or creamed spinach, which are two side dishes her testers really liked.
Remember to wash your hands before you start cooking.
JUICY PORK WITH PRUNES
Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Cut eight 6-inch pieces of kitchen twine and lay them out on a work surface, spaced about 1 1/2 inches apart.
Use a small knife to cut a 1-inch-deep slit down the length of the tenderloin to create a pocket for the filling, leaving 1 inch on each end uncut. Fill the pocket with the prunes, placed closely side by side. Add all but 1 tablespoon of the cheese, pushing it in among the prunes with your fingers.
Place the stuffed tenderloin on top of the lined-up pieces of twine and tie the strings around the meat, pulling them tight to close the pocket.
Season the outside of the meat with a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Place on the baking sheet, slit side down, and sprinkle the top of the pork with the remaining tablespoon of cheese.
Bake for 20 minutes, then transfer to a cutting board to rest for 5 minutes. Discard the string and cut the meat into 1/2-inch-thick slices; serve immediately.
Makes 4 servings.
