A Little Black Dress Worthy Dinner: Easy Baked Pork Tenderloin with a Dressy Salad Wedge Side

When entertaining, you want to serve a classic meal that fits perfectly with your little black dress hanging in your closet. Am I right?  You seek sophistication and elegance. You want your food to be as appealing as your elegant LBD. But, unless you are Martha Stewart or have all the time in the world to slave away in the kitchen, you need some serious shortcuts. I know I do. 

Enter stage right is the Little Black Dressing Company, #GotToBeNC made-product out of High Point, North Carolina. This company's homemade dressings will have you looking like a culinary superstar with little effort. I love them. 


Little Black Dressing Company has delicious NC Made Salad Dressings that are great for salads and recipes


North Carolina Bloggers throughout North Carolina were paired tin 2017 with North Carolina food products to help promote the annual Got to Be NC Festival, held in May. I was paired with Little Black Dressing Company to learn more about them. 

Founder Kissie Stroup said that her grandmother, now 94 and who is affectionally called, "Nana" made all of her own dressings from vegetables and herbs in her garden. Kissie said that their family would have some type of salad nightly with a fresh dressing on it. One of her grandmother's specialty dressing was a creamy vinegarette. 


Kissie Stroup, CEO and Founder of Little Black Dressing Company
Little Black Dressing Co CEO and Founder, Kissie Stroup


"Every time I made Nana's salad dressings, my friends would always want to know how to make it, " stated Stoup. "It got to the point that I was making it in my basement and people would come with their own jars to take some home." 

Her husband encouraged her to start a business making these dressings. She asked a friend to help her come up with a name for her dressing. They both agreed that her product was classic and elegant just like the little black dress, and in 2010, the classic Creamy Dreamy Vinegarette was bottled. 

It is excellent served with a salad, as a veggie dip or drizzled over cucumbers and tomatoes. Honestly, this is my favorite dressing, and in the privacy of my home, I'm not too proud to admit that I slurped the bowl after my salad was gone. It's that good, folks. 


Creamy Dreamy Vinagarette is delicious over tomatoes and cucumbers


Little Black Dressing Co later expanded its flavor wardrobe to include It Takes Three to Tango, a mixture of Blue Cheese crumbles, 1000 Island, and Ranch Dressing, Honey, It's Dijon Dill, and Far East Flair, a combination of orange juice, peanut butter, and zesty ginger. 

Each dressing is fresh with no preservatives, additives, or gluten. It can be found in the refrigerated section in Lowes Foods and Fresh Market. These dressings are so versatile and can be used for lots of recipes. 

As you know, I'm a storyteller and not a food stylist, but I made two recipes with the dressings and then used the dressings for salads until they were all gone. 

You cannot get any easier than with these two menu items. I found that pork is great to use with a honey dijon base so for this recipe, I paired it with Kissie's Honey, It's Dijon Dill dressing, but you could use another type of honey dijon dressing, but I encourage you to seek out this homemade dijon salad dressing. It can be bought in the U.S now in several states


Easy Baked Pork Tenderloin and a Dressy Salad Wedge Recipe for Pinterest Graphic




Easy Baked Pork Tenderloin served with a Dressy Salad Wedge



Easy Baked Pork Tenderloin 
2 Pound Pork Tenderloin
Garlic 
Salt and Pepper
One bottle of Honey, It's Dijon Dill Dressing or any Honey Dijon Dressing of your choice

Season tenderloin with salt, pepper, and garlic. Pour half a bottle of the salad dressing over the pork. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour. The temperature needs to reach 160 degrees. 

Easy Baked Tenderloin Recipe



I used Honey, it's Dijon Dill Dressing and served it with rice and spicy collards.


Dressy Salad Wedge

Iceberg lettuce
Salt and Pepper
Bacon
Extra blue cheese crumbles, optional 
It Takes Three to Tango Salad Dressing

Cut lettuce into a wedge, top with bacon pieces, salt, pepper and drizzle with the salad dressing.  Simple and delicious.


It Take Three to Tango Dressing is Perfect for a Lettuce Wedge with Bacon


I served the pork tenderloin with rice and farm-fresh spiced collards. 

I made these dishes on a busy weeknight for my family, but these salad dressings make every meal at your home little black dress worthy. 

 Other Recipes: Got to be NC Blogger Recipes for #HomeGrownFare17

Updated: September 2019
2017 FTC Disclosure: Sponsored by NCDA &CA. Opinions about whether or not to slurp your salad dressing bowl to get the last taste are not up for debate. When you taste the dressing, I promise you, all table manners are forgotten. You will want every last drop of that Creamy Dreamy Vinegarette. I believe it when Kissy said people showed up with gallon jugs. The dressing is $4.99 a bottle. 

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