Pork Loin on Beetroot Cream Cheese

Pork is something that I have started eating a lot more, ever since I moved to the US for my higher studies. It can be prepared in many ways like barbecue, slow cooking, pan frying and baking. Over the last few years, I have learnt how to cook pork chops, carnitas, pork butt (shoulder), ribs and the pork loin. In the US, especially in Texas, pork is a widely used and popular protein. In this recipe I have used the whole pork loin and coupled it with a beetroot and cream cheese sauce. Recently, I have grown a fondness for Beetroot. As a kid, I wasn’t a big fan of this root vegetable but because of it’s health benefits and that ‘everything on your plate must be eaten’ teaching I grew up with, I had to eat it. The pork loin (boneless) is rubbed with salt, pepper, sumac, minced garlic and rolled over crushed sunflower seeds for the exterior crunch. The pork and the beetroot  work well together to give you this delicious meal.

{Recipe}
Boneless Pork Loin served on beetroot cream cheese

INGREDIENTS:
Whole Pork Loin (Boneless)- 1 pound or around 450 grams
Beetroot slices- 1 cup
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder-1tbsp
Minced garlic- 2tbsps
Sumac-1 tbsp
Sunflower seeds-1 cup
Cream Cheese- 3tbsps
Parsley leaves
Butter
Coconut Oil

PREPARATION:
1)Season the whole pork loin with salt,pepper, minced garlic and sumac. Crush the sunflower seeds in a pestle and mortar into smaller pieces but not into a powdered form.
2)Roll the seasoned pork loin on the crushed sunflower seeds and let it marinate by keeping it in a sealed container for at least an hour.
3)Meanwhile, add the beetroot slices in to boiling water in a saucepan along with some salt. Boil till the beetroot is soft (about 30 to 40 minutes).
4)Drain the water out and let the beetroot cool on the side. Now, heat up a pan with some coconut oil. Add the pork loin to the pan at medium heat and let it cook for about an hour..
5)Flip the pork loin at the halfway mark. Add some butter in between to ensure the pork is not completely dry and to enhance the flavors. Baste the butter and the minced garlic oil on to the pork loin in regular intervals.
6)Finally, preheat the oven at 350 degrees F and then place the pork loin in the oven for about 10 minutes just to crisp up the outside and to ensure it’s cooked all the way through.
7)Mash the cooled down beetroot slices into a fine smooth paste, adding some garlic powder as well. Then, add the cream cheese and mix well. Slice the pork loin as shown and top it off with the fried minced garlic and sunflower seeds bits along with some chopped up parsley . Enjoy!:)