Linda Weiss
Ingredients
3 tablespoon butter or olive oil
4 cups thinly sliced onions
¼ teaspoon dried thyme, or do as I do and add 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme (just remove stems after cooking)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
¼ cup apple butter
¼ cup country Dijon mustard
Thick slices of pork tenderloin (see recipe below, cook and set aside)
8 slices Muenster cheese Cheddar horseradish cheese (I use this)
1 (16-ounce) loaf French bread, long baguette or 4 bakery Hoagie rolls cut in half
Pork Tenderloin for Sandwiches:
For the tenderloin sandwiches I used one of the two in the package. If you are making extra sandwiches, then use both, just double the ingredients below.
1/2 (2 lb) package pork tenderloin (1 package usually includes 2 tenderloins of about 1 pound each)
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie or apple pie spice
1 dash cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 tablespoons red wine and olive oil vinaigrette
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 clove chopped garlic
Salt and pepper
Instructions
Heat the butter or oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. Add the onions and thyme and cook, stirring frequently until onions are golden brown or caramelized, and cooked through. Add the balsamic vinegar. Let simmer for several minutes, stirring often. This sweetens the vinegar. Set aside.
Mix the apple butter and country mustard. Set aside.
Cut the bread or rolls in half lengthwise. Spread very lightly with butter and put under the broiler only until warm. Spread each side of the bread or rolls with the apple butter, mustard mixture. Arrange the pork tenderloin slices on top of one side of the bread or roll. Cover with onion mixture, and then a slice of cheese. Close the sandwiches, and serve right away. Or, wrap in foil and refrigerate until ready to use. Warm through. This will make one French bread loaf or 4 bakery hoagie rolls. Serves 4-6.
PORK TENDERLOIN SANDWICHES:
Add all ingredients to a plastic bag suitable for marinating. Add the pork tenderloin. Place in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Remove and leave at room temperature while oven is preheating to 400 degrees. Place the tenderloin on a foil lined baking sheet and cook until the internal temperature of the tenderloin is 155-165 degrees. After removing from the oven, let rest for 10 minutes and then slice.
Serves 4-6.
