Island Spiced Pork Tenderloin

I've seen this recipe pop up on a couple of blogs recently, but it wasn't until I saw it on Annie's Eats that I realized that these island spices aren't what I originally thought they were. I hear "Island Spiced" and I think more along the lines of Hawaii - perhaps a macademia, pineapple or coconut concoction. These spices are more Caribbean in nature, and the recipe is a combination of items that you are likely to have on hand most of the time. This is a delicious combination of smoky, spicy and sweet, which are all flavors I love with pork. A few things to note: The "glaze" starts out quite dry, not like a traditional glaze at all, more like the texture of moist sand. Annie halved her glaze amount, but I left it at her measurements for only one tenderloin, so I guess it was back to the original amount. Also, I cooked the pork to an internal temp of 170 degrees, as that is our doneness preference for pork (no pink, but still very moist all the way through). This came together quickly and was a nice variation from our usual pork tenderloin recipe. I'll definitely be making this again.



Island Spiced Pork Tenderloin (from Annie's Eats, originally from Gourmet)
For the spice rub (I halved these amounts for one tenderloin):
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cayenne (I added this)

1 pork tenderloin (about 2-2½ lbs. total)
1 tbsp. olive oil

For the glaze:
½ cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tbsp. (2-3 cloves) finely minced garlic
1½ tsp. Tabasco sauce
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Combine the salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder and cinnamon in a small bowl. Stir together to blend. Pat the mixture over the pork tenderloins. Heat the olive oil in an ovenproof 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Place the tenderloins in the skillet and brown on all sides, turning occasionally, about 4 minutes total. Remove from the heat, leaving the pork in the skillet.

Stir together the brown sugar, garlic and Tabasco in a small bowl until blended. Spread the mixture evenly over the tops of the tenderloins. Place the skillet in the preheated oven and roast about 20 minutes, until an instant-read themometer inserted in the center of each tenderloin registers 140-170˚ F. Loosely tent the skillet with foil and let stand 10 minutes before slicing and serving.