Venison Steaks With Mushroom Game Sauce

But do you say, “This is so strange a thing?” What, my brethren! Is it not more strange that a family professing to be Christian, professing to have a firm hope for eternity, should advance toward that eternity without giving any sign of that hope, without any preparation, without any conversation, perhaps, alas! without any thought concerning it? Ah! this is very strange! Do you say, “This is a thing of very little repute or glory, and to which a certain degree of shame is attached?” And who, then, is the greatest: that father who, in former and happier days, was the high priest of God in his own house, and who increased his paternal authority and gave it a divine unction by kneeling down with his children before his Father and the Father of them all; or that worldly man in our days, whose mind is engaged only in vain pursuits, who forgets his eternal destiny and that of his children, and in whose house God is not? O what a shame is this!

Merle D’Aubigne

CATEGORY	CUISINE	TAG	YIELD
Meats	French	French, German, Mushrooms, Steak, Venison	4	Servings

INGREDIENTS

		steaks-
4		Venison steaks cut from loin
		Juniper berries, ground
2	t	Salt
1/3	c	Butter, melted
2	c	Wild mushroom game sauce
		sauce-
1	oz	Dried boletus edulis, cepe
2	c	Water
2	oz	Fresh onions, chopped
3	T	Butter, melted
3	T	Flour
1	c	Rich meat stock, * see note
1/2	c	Dry red wine
		Salt and pepper, to taste
6		Juniper berries
		crushed fine
2		Allspice berries
		crushed fine
1	t	Dijon mustard
1/4	t	Paprika
2	oz	Dill pickles, diced

INSTRUCTIONS

preferably from the game being used, commercial ok    SAUCE  This sauce
is excellent for furred game, especially if the meat has  not been
marinated.  It is very much in the traditional European  Hunter's
Style, which uses juniper berries and pickles. It was  developed
through the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries by cooks  working on
the great landed-gentry estates of France, Poland and  Germany.  Clean
mushrooms thoroughly under brisk running water. Combine the  mushrooms
and about 2 cups of water in a saucepan, and bring to a  boil. Then
reduce the heat, and let simmer for 30 minutes. Remove  reconstituted
mushrooms from broth, and set aside for later addition  to sauce.
Prepare a roux: Saute the onions in the butter until they  are almost
transparent; add the flour, and stir for 1 minute. Add the  simmered
mushroom extract, strained meat stock, and red wine to the  roux
mixture, and stir till blended and slightly thickened. Season  with
salt and pepper. Add juniper berries, allspice, mustard,  paprika,
reconstituted mushrooms, and dill pickles. Simmer for 5  minutes. Add
salt and pepper. The sauce is now ready to use.    STEAKS  Do not
overcook the venison here.  It should be done no more than  medium rare
in the center.  This preparation does not require  marinading, because
the tenderness of the loin meat. Serve with  quick-sauteed potatoes
with dill sauce, and Stag's Leap Cabernet.  Pound the steaks to
1/2-inch thickness.  Sprinkle lightly with the  juniper berries and
salt. Saute the steaks with the butter for about  3 minutes on each
side. The meat should be done no more than medium  rare. Heat the wild
mushroom game sauce, adjust for salt, pour over  the steaks, and serve.
Recipe by: plgold@ix.netcom.com (Pat Gold)  Posted to MM-Recipes Digest
by "Rfm" <Robert-Miles@usa.net> on Aug  30, 98

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Nutrition (calculated from recipe ingredients) ---------------------------------------------- Calories: 248 Calories From Fat: 212 Total Fat: 24.1g Cholesterol: 63.6mg Sodium: 1312.4mg Potassium: 65.1mg Carbohydrates: 6.4g Fiber: <1g Sugar: <1g Protein: 1.2g