Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Creamy Horseradish and Garlic Sauce

I was sure that I was going to despise this sauce when I was making it. Horseradish and garlic? Really? Still, I had heard that this was a great sauce and pressed on.

     Oh. My. God. So good!

     There's not a lot I have to say about this dish other than it is insanely good, tender and flavorful. The combination of the searing, rub and sauce really makes for a complex blend of flavors.

Roasted Beef Tenderloin with Creamy Horseradish and Garlic Sauce

Ingredients
For the Sauce
1 head garlic
Olive oil
Kosher salt
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup drained, bottled horseradish
1/8 teaspoon white pepper

For the Tenderloin
1 3-4 pound beef tenderloin roast, tied if necessary
Freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons granulated beef bouillon
Kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon sweet paprika
Extra virgin olive oil

Directions 
For the Sauce
1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Cut off and discard top fourth of garlic head.

3. Drizzle exposed garlic with oil and sprinkle with just a pinch of salt, then wrap head in foil but not so tight that you will not be able to easily open and check it as it cooks.

4.Roast garlic until tender and lightly golden, about 1 hour.

5. While garlic roasts, simmer cream in a saucepan over low heat. Stir occasionally but do not scrape the bottom of the saucepan. Simmer until reduced to about 1 cup, then transfer to a bowl.

6. Squeeze cooked garlic into a small bowl, discarding skins, and mash together with horseradish, pepper, and a pinch of salt using a fork. Stir garlic mixture into cream.

7. Place cream and horseradish mixture back into a saucepan and simmer on low for a few minutes to marry the flavors.

For the Tenderloin
1. Increase oven temperature to 425°F.

2. Trim excess fat and silver skin from tenderloin.

3. While oven is warming, pat tenderloin dry, sprinkle with salt and pepper and sear in saute pan with 1 tablespoon of oil until you have a good crust.

4. Stir together bouillon, cornstarch, oregano, garlic powder, and paprika in a small bowl. You can also add a bit of salt and pepper.

5. Rub mixture into the meat when it is cool enough to handle.

6. Put tenderloin in oven on baking sheet lined with foil. Roast until a thermometer placed in the center of the tenderloin reads 150-155 degrees.

7. Remove meat from baking sheet and let rest on a cutting board, lightly tented with foil for 5 minutes.

8. Thinly slice the tenderloin, then drizzle with sauce.

Notes
This dish will take about two hours to prepare, but most of that is waiting for the garlic to roast. because it's rather fussy, I'd prepare any accompaniments the day before or get some help. Devote all your attention to the tenderloin.