Anyone who knows me knows that I love my kitchen. And right now, I’m trying to find a way to justify posting a recipe on the company blog. Let’s see… instead of six degrees of separation, I’ll find six degrees of connection between Hot Tomali and the recipe I need everyone to see.

The dish is categorized as “Central American”. I was married in the small Central American country of Belize. The dish is also categorized as “Caribbean”. Our Account Director, David, was raised in the small Caribbean nation of Dominica. This is a nicey-spicy meatball. Part of Hot Tomali’s name comes from the owners’ (Tom & Ali) love for spicy food. It’s a pork tenderloin recipe. I’m willing to bet that 92% of Hot Tomali’s staff will giggle at the mention of the word “tenderloin”. I’m also fairly certain that 92% of Hot Tomali’s staff would not be able to walk into a vegetable store and knowingly purchase a napa cabbage. Look at the photo and ingredients list. Playful, creative, a little bit edgy and curious, delivered with perfect execution. Sounds familiar.

I’ve long trolled Epicurious.com, among other sites, for new recipes and inspirations. Only once have I ever produced a meal that required a phone call for pizza delivery (sad but true). But about two weeks ago, I stumbled across this recipe for an Island Pork Tenderloin Salad that was out-of-this-world amazing. Even my little sister, who has just begun culinary school yet never cooked with a jalapeno pepper, was blown away.

I recommend that you make the pork and the vinaigrette as written first, and then adjust as you see fit when (because you will!) make it again. Tonight I cut back on the cinnamon because I found it a bit overpowering the first time I made this. The salad itself is pretty versatile and you can mix and match to your heart’s content. I used an herbed spring mix instead of spinach and cabbage because I had a huge bag of it. I skipped avocados because neither my husband nor I really like them, and I tossed in slivered almonds because they’re nutritious and delicious. The vinaigrette is amazing and I’m planning to keep a batch in my fridge always because it’s just that good.

Bottom line: Try this dish. Try it now.