Roasted apples, fennel and red onion are the perfect foil to roasted pork tenderloin. Make it a meal: Stir sauteed broccoli rabe into quick-cooking barley to serve alongside.

Makes 4 servings

ACTIVE TIME: 45 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 45 minutes

EASE OF PREPARATION: Easy

2 large sweet-tart apples, such as Fuji or Braeburn, sliced
1 large bulb fennel, trimmed, cored and thinly sliced, plus 1 tablespoon chopped fronds for garnish
1 large red onion, sliced
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons canola oil, divided
1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons cider vinegar

1. Position racks in upper and lower thirds of oven; preheat to 475°F.
2. Toss apples, sliced fennel and onion with 1 tablespoon oil in a large bowl. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast on the lower oven rack, stirring twice, until tender and golden, 30 to 35 minutes.
3. About 10 minutes after the apple mixture goes into the oven, sprinkle pork with salt and pepper. Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the pork on one side, about 2 minutes. Turn the pork over and transfer the pan to the top oven rack. Roast until just barely pink in the center and an instant-read thermometer registers 145°F, 12 to 14 minutes.
4. Transfer the pork to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Immediately stir vinegar into the pan (be careful, the handle will be hot), scraping up any browned bits, then add to the apple mixture. Thinly slice the pork; serve with the apple mixture and sprinkle with fennel fronds.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 279 calories; 10 g fat (2 g sat, 5 g mono); 74 mg cholesterol; 23 g carbohydrate; 25 g protein; 5 g fiber; 371 mg sodium; 837 mg potassium.
Nutrition bonus: Selenium (47% daily value), Vitamin C (25% dv), Potassium (24% dv), Zinc (20% dv).
1 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 1 fruit, 1 vegetable, 3 lean meat

This was delicious and fairly easy to make. We served it with couscous cooked in chicken broth. Trying to squeeze in a new veggie, we added chopped broccoli rabe in the last 15 minutes of baking the apple, fennel, and onion. It was delicious with the addition and was absolutely great with a glass of wine. Although it was a successful experiment (the boyfriend ate it and loved it), I wouldn't advise doing it to picky veggie eaters. Broccoli rabe can be bitter if it's undercooked. I will make this again, next time without the broccoli rabe.

Anonymous, San Diego, CA

This was excellent! I even received a compliment from my picky eater 17 year old.

Anonymous, Brighton, MI

I just finished eating this meal and it was excellent! I have never cooked fennel because I thought I did not like it but cooked this way it was delicious.

j, New Preston, CT

Liked this a lot. It was simple and you could easily cook 2 things in the oven at the same time. My 9 yr old had been asking for fennel and she got it. I will make it again.

Anonymous, Plymouth, MN

I would have enjoyed this more if it weren't for the undercooked pork and burned apples. I suspect either the cooking times or the positions on the rack needed to be rotated in the recipes. Cook the pork below for longer and the apples above for less time.

Anonymous, Westchester, NY

I agree with the other commenter about the cooking times and rotating the positions of the pork and veggie/fruit mixture. The apples/fennel/onion burns very easily in the bottom part of the oven. Still quite delicious though, and simple. I didn't have any cider vinegar, so I substituted a little balsamic.

Ragazza

Both my husband and I enjoyed this last nite. I made it with thick loin chops (which cooked faster than the recipe times for the whole tenderloin). The mix of onion, fennel and apples was attractive and very tasty. I cut everything into equal sized wedges, rather than slices. Just my aesthetic preference - I think roasting turns slices of veggies into limp strings. I prefer the veggies to retain their shape and not turn to complete mush. This would be a very easy dish to serve to company.

Elizabeth, Raleigh, NC