Elk Stroganoff Stuffed Mushrooms: A Dinner Party Hit!

Published on June 3, 2016 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“Recipes don’t work unless you use your heart!” ~ Dylan Jones

I love a good dinner party: the friends, the music, the drinks, the food! And nothing makes for a better dinner party than introducing your friends to a new recipe. I also like to use my dinner parties as a forum for letting my friends experience new foods, such as a new fish or seafood, or unique vegetables like dandelion greens, fiddle heads, or jicama, but mostly I especially like to showcase wild game!

As I’m sure every wild game meat fan has found, not everyone is fond of it. Not only does wild game meat have a lot of stigmas around it, such as it is too “gamey” or it tastes like sage brush or its texture is too tough, but also few people have even ever eaten it, and it is a brand new dining experience. For these reasons, one of my favorite approaches for sharing my game meat is through an appetizer.

Appetizers provide a giant pack of flavor, texture, and culinary experience in a single bite. They are the perfect option for introducing friends, family, and especially newcomers, to wild game meat. Appetizers allow the diner a taste of wild game without their own fears of having to finish an entire plate of something they may not like getting in the way. Someone may feel overwhelmed at the idea of an entire elk filet filling their plate, but may be excited by the idea of trying a bite-size piece of elk tenderloin wrapped with a thin slice of bacon.

Appetizers can also allow one to test out a new recipe idea without having to create an entire entrée. When creating appetizers for my dinner parties, I like to think about a meal I really enjoy and then deconstructing that meal into a single bite. This may require omitting certain ingredients, expanding on or adding other ingredients, or changing the texture or actual form of the ingredients in order to fit the overall concept of the appetizer.

For my latest dinner party, I wanted to serve stuffed mushrooms. I like stuffed mushrooms because they truly fit the mold of giant flavor packed into a single bite. Many stuffed mushrooms are filled with garlic and onions, a variety of herbs and seasoned breadcrumbs, different grated cheese, and delicious meat bites like sausage. The mushrooms themselves create perfect bite size containers for the appetizers, but they also add flavor and texture to every bite.

As I said earlier, I like my appetizers to be reminiscent of an entrée meal. I think it is fun when an entire meal fits into a convenient, single bite. For a stuffed mushroom appetizer, I started thinking about meals where mushrooms are a component of the whole entrée. I had a pretty hefty list to choose from, but I couldn’t pull my interest away from making a single bite of stroganoff. Elk stroganoff served over a bed of egg noodles is one of my favorite ways to prepare elk or deer, and I think one of the reasons is I love the way the mushrooms add to the dish. So, I thought a single bite of elk stroganoff served in a little mushroom cap would be perfect. Stroganoff is a very savory and rich meal, and I have to admit that I get full on it very quickly, but this intense, over-the-top flavor is the kind of meal that makes for a great appetizer.

Begin with preheating the oven to 350 degrees and spraying a large baking sheet with cooking oil. To prepare the mushrooms, wipe them off with a damp cloth. You don’t want to wash the mushrooms because they are like little sponges and will absorb all the moisture, causing them to become waterlogged and sometimes even slimy. For stuffed mushrooms, I like to use either baby portabellas or cremini. I like the flavor of both these mushrooms and they also are shaped really well for stuffing. To clean out the mushroom cavity, use the end of a spoon and scrape out the gills. I also hollow the cap out a bit to create more room for lots of stuffing. The mushrooms are now ready for stuffing, set them aside while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

For the stroganoff sauce, heat a large sauce pan over medium heat and add the sour cream, heavy cream, Dijon mustard, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, salt and pepper, and beef base. Combine until a smooth sauce is created and allow the sauce to simmer, not boil, for twenty minutes. During this time the sauce will become thick and glossy. I just have to also comment about how pretty I think this sauce base is. The color is so great! Once the sauce has reduced slightly, pull it from the heat and seat aside.

For the elk, run the chunk through a meat grinder one time. I used a more coarse size grind so the meat still had some of its basic structure. I thought this would help the elk to remain more like the strips of steak found in a stroganoff and less like overworked hamburger meat.

In a large skillet, sauté a large diced onion for about ten minutes in a pat of butter. I thought that I might share a little trick I learned from watching hundreds of hours of cooking shows (they are my soap opera!) on how to easily dice up an onion into small, even sized pieces. Begin with cutting the onion in half and removing the skin. It is easier to peel an onion once you have cut it open. Then cut each half in half again. You want to leave what I would call the ends of the onion attached.

Place the palm of your hand firmly down on top of the onion slice and cut horizontally into the onion center.

Next, cut thin slices vertically into the onion, ending your slice just before reaching the knobby part of the onion so the pieces all still hold together.

Finally, starting above the onion, cut thin slices horizontally down the onion. You will notice your perfectly diced, even-sized onion pieces start to fall on your cutting board.

Don’t forget to use a nice sharp knife! And watch your fingers; however, what I like about this method for dicing onions is I think it creates a solid base for cutting against and my fingers feel just a bit safer in the face of knife’s blade.

Once the onion is soft, add the elk. Cook until the meat just starts to brown, about five minutes. It is okay if some of the meat is not quite cooked through, as it will continue to cook while the mushroom caps are in the oven. Add the meat and onion mixture to the stroganoff sauce and combine thoroughly.

It is time to start stuffing the ‘shrooms! Add a heaping spoonful of the stroganoff mixture to each mushroom cap. Don’t be afraid to stack them nice and high so each bite is filled with meat, onions, and sauce. Place the sheet in the preheated oven for twenty minutes, and your appetizers are ready to party!

Happy Hunting!

Elk Stroganoff Stuffed Mushrooms: A Dinner Party Hit!

Category: Elk Recipes, Wild Game Recipes

Elk Stroganoff Stuffed Mushrooms: A Dinner Party Hit!

Ingredients

For Sauce

1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons tomato paste
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons paprika, sweet
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoons beef demiglace

For Stuffed Mushroom

24 baby portabellas or creminis, stems removed and cleaned
1 pound ground elk or deer
1 large onion, diced
2 tablespoons butter
Fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

For Sauce

Place heavy cream, sour cream, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, mustard, salt and pepper, and demiglace in medium sauce pan. Bring the ingredients to a boil and then reduce to a heat to a simmer. Simmer the sauce, stirring occasionally, for twenty minutes until sauce is thick and glossy. Remove from heat and set aside.

For Mushrooms

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and preheat oven 400 degrees.
Place butter in a large, high sided skillet and melt. Add diced onions to melted butter and cook until soft, about five minutes.
Add ground elk and cook until just brown, about five to seven minutes. Don't worry about completely cooking the elk, as it will finish in the oven.
Add elk and onion mixture to sauce and combine.
Scoop stroganoff mixture into cleaned mushrooms and place on baking sheet.
Bake for twenty to twenty minutes. Garnish with chopped parsley.

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Elk Steak and Eggs: A Four Ingredient Breakfast!

Published on May 10, 2016 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook.”
~ Julia Child

Family traditions come in many forms. Some traditions are large and noisy, like everyone in the family gathers at a certain aunt’s house every year for Thanksgiving. And the table is always filled with ten different varieties of pie, and everyone eats until they can’t breathe. And then uncle so-and-so turns on the football game, but no one watches it because they are too full to stay awake. So the entire family sleeps through Thanksgiving Day football while grandma washes the dishes in her very special, no one can help, way. And then everyone awakes from their post-turkey slumber to eat the rest of the ten pies.

Then there are the small, more simple family traditions. One of my family traditions was tenderloin steak and eggs the morning after a successful deer or elk hunt. My dad would remove the hide, quarter up his animal to hang, and then put the tenderloin and backstrap in the fridge. In the morning, he would fry thinly butterflied steaks of tenderloin with medium eggs. I always loved that tradition, and shared it with my extended family once I married.

Now, at our house, we keep around about ten bags of those thinly sliced butterflied tenderloin steaks for a quick Saturday morning breakfast, or a quick Monday night dinner. I always think of it as my go-to meal when I don’t feel like cooking, but every time I eat it I wonder why I would consider it a go-to when, even in its simplicity, it is one amazing meal.

There really isn’t much to say about this meal other than it is delicious, simple, and always a crowd pleaser. I often prepare deer or elk in a way that enhances the flavors of the meat, but while enhancing those same tactics can somewhat simultaneously camouflage the flavors of the meat. When I make meals covered in sauce or cheese or some other delicious topping or wrap bacon around the entire thing, I pick cuts of meat that sometimes can’t handle being served solo. They might be a little too tough and need some tenderizing or breaking down. They might really have that “gamey” flavor going on for one reason or another. But tenderloin is tender and exquisite enough to stand on its own, and I truly appreciate a beautifully cooked slice of elk or deer tenderloin. It is ripe with the natural juices of the meat, melt in your mouth tender, and very lean. It is a true treat, and one you should feel incredibly lucky if someone will share with you.

For this simple, four ingredient breakfast, you simply need a couple of thinly sliced, butterflied tenderloin steaks. I should add that backstrap is great this way too, so don’t go throwing that away! Anyway, you will also need a couple of eggs for frying up, some steak seasoning, I personally LOVE Montreal Steak Seasoning and put a dash of it on everything, and some butter.

To thinly butterfly the tenderloin, I use a very sharp filet knife and cut slices about a half to three quarter inches thick. I then butterfly those pieces, meaning I cut the thin slices in half almost all the way through. Leave a small section of the meat slice still attached and “butterfly” the steak open. I freeze three or four steaks in a vacuum sealed bag, which is a perfect meal size for two people. Having a couple of bags of the thin sliced steaks is great for several reasons, with two of them being they stack and store great in the freezer, and they also thaw extremely quick. You can pull a bag out and throw it under running water in the sink and have dinner meat ready to use in about five minutes.

Liberally season the tenderloin steaks. There is no need to add salt when using steak seasoning, because the seasoning is a blend of coarse salt, black and red pepper, garlic, coriander, and dill seeds. Preheat a non-stick pan to medium-high heat, and once the pan is hot, drop the steaks in. As with cooking most steaks, you should let the meat come to room temperature before starting, this will ensure even cooking of the steak, and also remember to not disturb the meat once you set it in the pan.

The steaks cook extremely quick! I am talking, like 45 second here if you like a medium-rare cooked steak. Many people say to not overcook your wild game steaks, and I am a big promoter of that as well. I remember ordering buffalo in a restaurant, and at that point in time I was definitely a beef girl and not super adventurous on the culinary front. The waiter suggested I order my meat medium rare, at the most! I was incredibly weirded out, and slightly uncomfortable. I always ordered my meat well-done. The waiter explained that with meats like buffalo, venison, or elk being so lean that they were especially dried out when cooked above medium-rare, and therefore lost most of their flavor and juiciness. I reluctantly followed his suggestion, and haven’t gone back since. So, my suggestion on this steak to you is a cooking time of 45 seconds per side.

Once the steaks are cooked, let them rest for a few minutes while the eggs fry. Drop a pat of butter in the pan, this will help keep the eggs from sticking, and drop the eggs in the pan. I use the same pan I cooked my steaks in for the eggs, because I like the flavor the steak juices add, but you can get a new clean pan too. Sprinkle a dash of the Montreal steak seasoning on the eggs (see, I told you I put it on everything!), and allow the eggs to cook. Everyone likes their eggs cooked differently, it is probably the number one question you get at a diner, “How would you like your eggs done?” So, for sunny-side up eggs, cook the egg for a minute, reduce the heat, then cover with a lid and cook an additional four minutes. The steam will finish the egg tops. Four minutes will result in a runny yolk, five minutes will give a medium finished yolk, and six minutes yields a hard yolk. For over easy eggs, start the same as the sunny side, but after the minute of cooking you flip the egg instead of covering with the lid. Cook for a minute more, resulting in a very runny yolk, and then, as before, the longer you cook the egg the more solid the yolk will become. I like a runny yolk for dipping steak slices in, but that is just how I “like my eggs done.”

And…well, that is it. Steak and eggs breakfast in just four ingredients. Enjoy

Happy Hunting!

Elk Tacos in Cheddar Cheese Shells!

Published on May 6, 2016 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“I didn’t get this physique by not eating tacos.” ~ Jon Tester

I love tacos, but you know what the biggest problem with the taco is? Each time I take a bite into my crunchy shell overflowing with juicy, greasy meat, and diced up lettuce, tomatoes, onions and shredded cheddar cheese with a dollop of salsa and sour cream on top, my entire taco falls apart. The shell crumbles into about four different pieces, the insides spill all over the table top, and I get just a bit angry. Actually, while eating tacos, I can feel myself pass through the five stages of grief. Once my taco shell has fallen into an irreparable state, I immediately enter the state of denial. “My taco shell is not broken!” I reason. ” I can fix this, I just have to hold all the pieces together and it will still seem like a taco.” As I attempt to wrap my hands around the shattered taco shell, quickly crumbling into smaller pieces, and hold all my taco fixings in place, I become angry, the second state of grief. “Stupid taco!” I yell. “I didn’t want to eat tacos anyway.” Then I quickly enter the third stage, bargaining, and think, “Maybe I can make a taco salad instead. It won’t be the same, but it could be close.” The fourth stage, depression, hits next. “I never can eat tacos correctly. I don’t even know why I try.” And finally, I accept that my taco is indeed broken and no more. See, five stages of grief in a single taco shell.

The grief associated with eating tacos is hard to avoid; however, I have discovered a cure for the taco predicament. Instead of using a corn or flour tortilla shell, I have started making cheddar cheese shells. Haven’t had one yet? They are fantastic, super easy and quick to put together, and definitely solve the dilemma of the crumbling taco shell.

Start with preheating the oven to 400 degrees. Pull out a cookie sheet and liberally spray it with cooking spray. You could also put down a sheet of parchment paper. To save you time, I tried aluminum foil and that was a disaster. So, either coat the sheet with cooking spray or a sheet of parchment paper, and no aluminum foil. For this recipe, I would suggest using pre-shredded cheese. You could shred your own, but the shells hold together a bit better with the pre-shredded bagged cheese. I am sure the reason has to do with whatever they add to the cheese to keep it from clumping together in the bags makes the shells melt together just right, but I don’t know that for sure. Also, I used cheddar cheese for this recipe, mainly because a mild cheddar sounded like a great pairing with the elk burger, but you could use pretty much any type of cheese: parmesan, Monterey jack, or provolone. It really is your choice.

On the baking sheet, spread a half cup of cheese into an evenly filled circle. I made my tacos about six inches across, so with an eight ounce bag of cheese you can make four shells. Place the sheet in the preheated oven and set the timer for six minutes. The shells take between six and eight minutes to cook. I set the timer at six, and then that way I can decide if they need a little longer. They cook pretty quick, so you have to keep an eye on them. You will know they are finished when the edges of the shells are turning brown and crunchy and the center is bubbling. Pull the shells out of the oven and allow them to sit for a few seconds, maybe twenty to thirty, just so they are set enough to handle. Once they have quit bubbling, use a spatula to carefully remove them from the sheet.

To form the shells, set a long handled wooden spoon between to cans. Drape the shells over the handle and allow gravity to work its magic. The shells should start to form around the spoon, making a nice taco shell. Sometimes I am too hungry to wait, and I will just form the shells with my hand and kind of balance them on my plate. They don’t look as pretty, but it works too.

Okay, so the shells are done. Now onto the meat! I used elk for my tacos, but you could easily make this recipe with deer or pronghorn. It would also work with upland game birds like pheasant or turkey. For my elk meat, I ran about 3/4 of a pound of elk steak through the meat grinder with a 1/4 pound of bacon ends, which you can find at most grocery stores or butchers. You could also use plain old bacon, but bacon ends tend to be cheaper. I use bacon ends because it adds a really nice amount of fat to the meat and you also get a hint of bacon flavor, which is great when you are making burgers, meatloaf, and even these tacos. It isn’t an overpowering bacon flavor, just the hint.

Start a pan over medium-high heat, add a drizzle of oil and soften some diced onions for a few minutes. Once the onions are soft, I add the meat. When the meat is about half way through cooking, I add my taco seasonings. My absolute favorite taco seasoning is Bolner’s Fiesta Brand Extra Fancy Taco Seasoning. Bolner’s Fiesta Products, located in San Antonio, are some of my favorite seasonings to cook with. I also really like their fajita seasoning, which I flavor burgers with all the time, and their jalapeno pepper powder is great on fries. You can use any type of taco seasoning though, and you could even make your own and add that. I start out with about two tablespoons of the taco seasoning, let the meat finish cooking, taste it, and then add more if needed. I also add salt and pepper to taste at this point.

With the meat cooked and the cheese shells ready to go, all that is left to do is fill your tacos! Everyone styles their taco a little differently, but some suggestions for toppings include: lettuce, tomatoes, pico de gallo, salsa, avocadoes, guacamole, sour cream, radish slices, cilantro, jalapenos, onions, and lime wedges.

If you haven’t tried a taco with elk, I suggest you get started making some tacos! And if you haven’t tried one with a cheese shell, you should get started on that too! The cheese shells hold together beautiful, but also still provide the crunch of a corn shell. They also ensure that every bite has the perfect amount of cheese! Super delicious!

Happy Hunting!

Elk Tacos in Cheddar Cheese Shells!

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Category: Elk Recipes, Wild Game Recipes

Elk Tacos in Cheddar Cheese Shells!

Ingredients

8oz bag shredded cheddar cheese
1 pound elk burger
1 medium onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 to 4 tablespoons Taco Seasoning - or one packet
Salt and Pepper to Taste

Instructions

For the Cheddar Shells

Preheat the oven to 400. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray or cover with parchment paper.
Evenly spread half a cup into a six inch circle. An 8oz bag should result in four cheese shells.
Place in oven for six to eight minutes, pulling when the edges are brown and crunchy and the center is bubbling.
Allow the cheese to settle for a few second, ten to twenty, and then drape the shells over a wooden spoon placed between to cans. Gravity will pull the cheese into nicely shaped taco shells.

For the Taco Meat

Preheat a pan to medium-high heat and add the olive oil.
Once heated, drop in a medium diced onion. Soften the onions for two or three minutes.
Add the pound of elk burger.
About half way through cooking, add two tablespoons of taco seasoning.
Once the meat is finished cooking, taste to see if more seasoning is needed and for salt and pepper.
Garnish the tacos with lettuce, tomatoes, pico de gallo, salsa, avocado, guacamole, sour cream, jalapenos, onions, cilantro, radishes, lime wedges, or whatever else your heart desires. Enjoy!

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Sticky Tomato Sauce and Pesto Elk Tenderloin!

Published on April 30, 2016 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“All the sounds of this valley run together into one great echo, a song that is sung by all the spirits of this valley. Only a hunter hears it.” ~ Chaim Potok

I can’t express how much I love basil. The scent alone invokes visions of summer evenings sitting on a porch enjoying the colors, sounds, and of course smells of the season. I find that basil makes something as simple as a bowl of plain pasta noodles transform into an elegant, expensive tasting meal. It adds such a different depth to the flavors and aromas of food that I try and think up how to cram it into every meal possible.

Traditionally, I have always served basil pesto in three different versions. First, and most obviously, as a sauce for noodles. I like to use cavatapi noodles with my basil pesto and then add chicken or shrimp. Second, my absolute favorite dutch oven meal is chicken pesto with mozzarella cheese. That meal is so amazing when you are “roughing” it in the outdoors. I always feel like I am at a fancy Italian restaurant instead of sitting in a folding chair in the dirt when I eat that meal. Finally, I am a big fan of basil pesto served as a pizza topping.

As you can see from my basil pesto favorites list, I really like to pair pesto with chicken. I think that pesto is an easy flavor to balance with the light taste of meats like chicken or turkey. There is no fight between the two. They just marry together in a perfectly balanced flavor union.

Well, that all changed last Monday night. I had previously made a stuffed meatloaf from elk burger and topped the loaf with a sauce of sticky, sweet cherry tomatoes. I was preparing these beautiful elk tenderloin fillets and decided that sauce would be amazing on top of the steaks. But the idea of only tomatoes sounded almost too sweet and acidic. What to do? What to do?

Caprese salad is one of all-time favorite salads. I love the mixture of beautiful, red juicy tomatoes paired with the bite and spice of a basil leaf and the oh-so creamy goodness of fresh mozzarella cheese. I figured the flavor profile would pair wonderfully with the sticky tomato sauce from the meatloaf, but would it taste good on top of elk?

The answer is an exuberant yes! So, if you are hoping for a quick, easy meal on a weeknight then this is the recipe for you. And if you are looking to impress and provide an ambiance of elegance then this is also the recipe for you. It is a quick and simple meal that is dressed to impress, and what better way is there to serve up elk tenderloin?

One of the things I like best about this meal is you can pre-make the basil pesto and the sticky tomato sauce. Then, when it is dinner time all you have to do is cook the steaks and heat up the tomato sauce. It also is a recipe that utilizes a lot of items already in the pantry. Pesto is essentially basil, olive oil, nuts, and parmesan cheese. And the sticky tomato sauce is tomatoes, canned tomatoes, honey, and Worcestershire.

To start, make the pesto. Pesto tastes like it is difficult to make, but in all actuality it is one of the most simple of recipes to execute. Pesto requires four steps. Step one: pull out the food processor. Step two: drop in the basil, your nut of choice, the parmesan cheese, and two to three garlic cloves. Step three: push start and grind everything up for about thirty seconds. Step four: with the food processor still running, drizzle in the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Viola! Pesto!

So, a few little notes about the pesto. This is a basil pesto, and it is traditionally prepared with pine nuts. At our house, pine nuts don’t agree with everyone so I substitute in walnuts. Pesto is amazingly flexible, and you can use virtually any nut you like. Some of the ones I like to use are almonds if I am looking for a bit more crunch in the sauce, pecans if I want a more hearty flavor, and cashews, well, just because cashews are insanely good. But like I said, this a super flexible sauce you could throw in things like sunflower or pumpkin seeds if you wanted. Get crazy!

Also, you can change the consistency of the pesto to your liking by how much olive oil you add. With this recipe, the pesto is going to sit on top of the steak. So, I pulsed the ingredients for a very short amount of time, in order to leave things more coarse, and added only a half cup of olive oil. When I make pesto as a sauce for pasta, I pulse the ingredients to a much smoother consistency and add in more olive oil. It is all about your personal preference.

Okay, so now that the pesto is complete, it is time to make the sticky tomato sauce. For the meatloaf, I used cherry tomatoes. For this recipe, I decided to go with grape tomatoes. Grape tomatoes are typically a little larger than cherry and a bit less sweet tasting. Either would be fine with this recipe. I went with the grape because I wanted the bigger tomato in each bite.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a medium sized bowl, put the entire pint of tomatoes and pour in a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and coat the tomatoes entirely in the oil. I just use my hands to accomplish this task. Pour the tomatoes on a baking sheet, and put them in the oven for 20 minutes. This creates a great roasted flavor for the sauce.

Once the tomatoes are done, add them to a medium sized sauce pan. Pour in a 12 oz can of diced tomatoes. If you can find the roasted kind they will help develop that rich, savory flavor you are going for, but if your supermarket only carries regular that is fine too. If you can’t find diced, you could also used crushed. I like the texture the diced adds to the sauce better though. Add in the two tablespoons of honey, the one tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, and the one tablespoon of Dijon mustard. Stir everything together, turn the heat to medium-low, and let the pot simmer for 15 minutes. As the sauce reduces, it will start to thicken. Sometimes if the tomatoes are overly juicy, I will let the sauce simmer longer. Just get it to the consistency you want for piling on top of your steak.

Okay, now for the steaks! I used tenderloin for this recipe, but you could use other steak cuts as well. I let my meat sit on the counter for 10 to 15 minutes so it can come to room temperature. Removing the chill off the meat will help to guarantee more even cooking of the steak. Season both sides with a good amount of salt and pepper. Preheat your skillet to medium-high and settle in the steak. Once you have touched the steak to the pan, do not mess with it. My steaks were about one inch thick, so I let them go for a minute to a minute and a half per side. This resulted in medium-rare steaks. I have said this before, so please excuse me if you have heard it like a billion times, but I like my steaks to be on the rare side. Wild game is better when it is not overcooked.

So, after the steaks have cooked for a minute on each side. place a thin slice of mozzarella on top of each steak. Turn the broiler on to high, and slide the entire pan into the oven. Cook until the mozzarella has melted, which takes about a minute or two. Two quick things here! One, make sure your pan is one that can go from stove-top to oven. If it can’t, you will need to place your steaks on a baking sheet to melt the cheese or you could cover the pan with a lid on the stovetop. Two, if you do use the broiler, DON’T WALK AWAY! You can go from nicely melted mozzarella to blackened mozzarella very quick! Just keep close so you can watch the melting process!

To finish the steak, place a spoonful of the basil pesto on top of the melted mozzarella and then a heaping helping of the sticky tomato sauce. What you will find on the end of your fork is a bite filled with the aromatic, spicy basil and sticky, sweet tomato covering juicy bites of steak. Man oh man is this a good one!

Happy Hunting!

Sticky Tomato Sauce and Pesto Elk Tenderloin!

Category: Elk Recipes, Wild Game Recipes

Sticky Tomato Sauce and Pesto Elk Tenderloin!

Ingredients

Four elk tenderloin steaks, cut to an inch and half thick
4 thin slices mozzarella cheese

For Basil Pesto

One cup basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup walnuts
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

For Sticky Tomato Sauce

1 pint grape tomatoes
12 ounce can diced roasted tomatoes
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Instructions

For Pesto

In a food processor, place cup of basil leaves, two whole garlic cloves, and walnuts. Pulse until desired consistency. I prefer to leave this a bit more chunky for this recipe.
Add parmesan cheese, pulse a few times to mix in.
With food processor running, drizzle in the half cup of olive oil. If you would like the sauce to be a bit more thin, add more olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

For Sticky Tomato Sauce

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour a little olive oil over the grape tomatoes, place on cookie sheet, and roast tomatoes for 20 minutes.
Once tomatoes are roasted, add to a medium size sauce pan with diced tomatoes, honey, Worcestershire sauce, and Dijon mustard. Stir until combined and simmer for 15 minutes. Reduce sauce until desired consistency.

To Assemble

Set steaks out and allow to come to room temperature, about ten to fifteen minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
In preheated pan over medium high heat, place steaks. Cook for 2 to 2 and half minutes, depending on how well done you would like your steak. Flip and cook second side for additional 2 minutes.
Place mozzarella on top and slide pan in oven under the broiler, which should be set on high.
Allow to broil for a minute. Remove once mozzarella has melted.
Place spoonful of basil pesto and sticky tomato sauce over the steak.
Enjoy!

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Elk Steak Smothered in Blueberry Balsamic Reduction and Gorgonzola Cream Sauce!!! Rich and Delicious!

Published on April 12, 2016January 9, 2018 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“I love berries. Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, black berries, anything with an ‘errie’ in it!” ~ Jordin Sparks

Have you ever eaten something that was so good you couldn’t stop thinking about it? And then when you returned home to try and re-create the experience, all you could do was cry at the pathetic attempts you made that resulted in utter culinary failure? And then you spend the rest of your life telling people about how amazing this particular food was, but you can’t, for the life of you, figure out the secret ingredient? And everyone around you becomes annoyed with the “greatest meal ever” story? And you spend a lot of time crying about it?

About six years ago, my sister, brother-in-law, husband, and I headed out to a Valentine’s Day dinner at a local up-scale restaurant. The menu was prix fixe (See, I told you it was a fancy place. I didn’t even know what prix fixe was until that dining experience. And I had to look it up to make sure I understood what it meant.) and we were treated to an impressive spread of lobster tails and filet mignon drenched in the most amazing sauce I have ever tasted. The meal itself was great, but that sauce! Oh that sauce! The chef called it a beurre rouge, and true to the beurre rouge (French for red butter) it was definitely a wine reduction with a smooth buttery finish, but instead of having a creamy, light color it was a deep, dark color. It was rich, and tangy, and savory all at the same time. I had never had such a delectable moment in a single bite. My sister and brother-in-law loved it so much they actually ordered two meals just so they could eat an entire second filet with that sauce. It was a sauce designed for creating a “greatest meal ever” story. And that is exactly what happened.

Upon returning home, we tracked down the chef through a friend, but when we attempted to contact him, he had up and quit never to be seen again. My brother-in-law and I both made failed attempt after failed attempt to re-create the sauce. After each defeat, we would call each other and trouble-shoot what went wrong. We tried different wines for the reduction. That failed. We reduced every type of vinegar we could find at the store. That failed. We added herbs. We removed herbs. We tried raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, no berries. Nothing worked. Soon, everyone around us became annoyed with the “greatest meal ever” story. And we cried. It was sad.

Fast-forward six years, and I was still reminiscing about that sauce. I had given up on the idea of ever tasting it again, and instead accepted that I could only think about the “greatest meal ever” and hope that was enough. In an unrelated cooking experiment, I decided that blueberries sounded like a fantastic pairing with elk meat. I set out to create a blueberry reduction to top my steak. I started with a simple beurre blanc base, which is butter and shallots. I dropped in my pint of blueberries and watched as the berries popped and a sauce started to form. I added in my balsamic vinegar and some dry red wine and reduced the entire mixture. Then I thought an herb would add a nice flavor. I ventured to the garden and cut some thyme. When the spoon met my lips, I almost gasped. I was back in that fancy, up-scale restaurant drenching my bite of filet in the best sauce ever. I couldn’t believe it! I called my other frustrated diners who had also resigned from the search for that perfect sauce from the “greatest meal ever.” We were moved to tears. Okay, that is an exaggeration, but we were really excited! Our search had ended and it was delicious!

So, after all the hype this sauce has from that story, I hope that you are excited by it as much as my family. This recipe is quick and simple. It is a great meal for a quick weeknight dinner or a ritzy, weekend dinner party with friends.

Ingredients for making the blueberry balsamic reduction sauce include a pint of blueberries, a shallot, red wine of your choice, balsamic vinegar, and fresh thyme.

To start, I get the sauces going. So, pull out a small sauce pan and heat it over medium heat. Drop in two tablespoons of cold butter and allow it to melt. Once fully melted, drop one minced shallot, and cook until the shallot is softened, which takes about three minutes. Just a little comment here, watch your shallot because you don’t want it to burn and it is easy to get the butter too hot. I am one of those people who turns the stovetop too hot in the beginning and doesn’t notice until I burn my garlic or onions. So, just keep on eye on it.

Simmer the blueberries until they pop. This will create a vibrant, colorful sauce.

Once the shallot has softened, add the pint of blueberries and allow them to slow cook for five minutes. They should start to pop and a vibrant purple sauce should start to form in pan. The heat should be on medium. Once the berries look broken down, add half a cup of balsamic vinegar and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the sauce to half, which takes around five minutes. Then add in a half cup of red wine and the fresh thyme. I used a pinot noir this time, but I have used cabernet or merlot in the past. If you aren’t a person who cooks with wine, you could also just add a half cup of water. Allow the sauce to reduce again by half, which should take another five minutes or so. Season with salt and pepper to your liking. Sauce number one is now ready to go!

Ingredients for the gorgonzola cream sauce are simple. They include butter, a shallot, heavy cream, and gorgonzola cheese.

For the second sauce, in a small sauce pan heat two tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Once melted, add the minced shallot. I know, I know, it starts exactly the same as the first sauce, but here is where the similarities end. Once the shallot has softened, add a cup of heavy cream. Bring the cream to a very light boil, almost more of a simmer, and allow the liquid to reduce by half. The cream should become thick and, when tested, coat the back of a spoon. This reduction takes about five minutes. Once the sauce is to a consistency you like, add a half cup of crumbled gorgonzola cheese. Stir and season to taste with salt and pepper. Sauce number two is now ready to go!

Alright, so it is time to cook the steak. I used elk for this recipe, but these sauces would also pair great with deer, pronghorn, or buffalo. For the cut of meat, I used the infraspinatus muscle, which is found in the shoulder of the animal. When purchasing beef from the super market, this cut of meat is commonly called a flat iron steak. The flat iron is a good steak for grilling, so I use it quite often. Of course, you could also use backstrap or tenderloin for this recipe.

I cut the steak about two inches thick across the grain and let the meat sit at room temperature for about fifteen minutes before I cook it. Letting the meat sit before cooking takes the chill off it, and this allows for more even cooking of the steak. Salt and pepper the steaks before placing them on a large, preheated pan. I heat the pan to medium-high before setting the meat on it so it will develop a nice brown crust. Once you have set the meat on the hot pan, don’t mess with it. At first touch, the meat will stick to the pan and if you move it around you end up with ripped meat. Nobody wants ripped meat.

Allow the first side to cook for four minutes. Flip and cook the second side for an additional four minutes. While the meat is cooking, preheat the broiler to high. After the second side has finished cooking, I place the entire pan under the broiler for an additional minute. If you don’t have a pan that can go from stove-top to oven, you can also remove the meat from the pan and tent it with aluminum foil to allow it to finish cooking. The times I have listed for the meat allow for a two-inch cut steak to come out at about medium-rare. If you like your meat less or more done, adjust the times by a minute. For example, if I wanted a rare steak I would only allow the steak to cook for three minutes per side and then finish with the minute in the broiler. In my experience, most wild game is better when cooked on the rare side. I find the “gamey” flavor people tend to dislike about wild game comes out when the meat is overcooked. Placing the meat under the broiler or tenting it creates a super juicy steak.

Alright, so, time to plate this steak up! Take your steak of choice and drench that bad boy in the blueberry balsamic reduction. Make sure to get a good spoonful of the whole berries as well as the sauce. Second, drizzle just a bit of the gorgonzola cream sauce over the top of everything. If you are looking for a bite of heaven, cut off a bite-size piece of steak that is drenched in the blueberry sauce and has a dollop of the cream sauce on top. Oh man! The blueberries, thyme, and gorgonzola cheese are a winning combination!

For sides, I recommend sautéing up some asparagus. I put my asparagus in the oven on 375 for about 15 minutes with a little olive oil and salt and pepper. I suggest asparagus because the gorgonzola cream sauce is superb on top of it! I also made roasted red potatoes for the same reason. That cheese sauce is probably good on any vegetable, but it was great on the asparagus and potatoes.

Well, I am now officially hungry! And drooling just a tad!

Happy Hunting!

Elk Steak with Blueberry Balsamic Reduction and Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

Ingredients

For Blueberry Sauce

2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Shallot, Minced
1 Pint Blueberries
1/2 Cup Balsamic Vinegar
1/2 Cup Red Wine
1 Tablespoon Fresh Thyme, Minced
Salt and Pepper to Taste

For Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Shallot, Minced
1 Cup Heavy Cream
1/2 Cup Gorgonzola Cheese
Salt and Pepper to Taste
4 Elk Steaks, Cut to 2 inches Thick

Instructions

For Blueberry Sauce

Heat a sauce pan over medium-low heat and melt butter. Once melted, add shallots and cook until softened, about three minutes.
Pour in pint of blueberries and simmer over medium heat until berries have popped and sauce begins to form, about five minutes.
Add balsamic vinegar and bring to boil. Reduce sauce by half, about five minutes.
Add red wine and fresh thyme. Continue to reduce sauce, again by half, about five minutes.
Salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm until ready to serve over steak.

For Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

Heat butter in saucepan over medium-low heat. Add shallots once butter has melted. Cook until shallots are soft, about three minutes.
Add heavy cream and bring to a very light boil. Reduce cream by half or until it has reached your desired consistency.
Add cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm until ready to serve.

For Steaks

Allow steaks to rest until coming to room temperature, about fifteen minutes. Salt and pepper generously and place in pan over medium-high heat. Cook each side for four minutes to reach medium rare doneness.
Preheat broiler. Allow steaks to finish in the oven for one minute.
If you do not have a pan that can move from stove top to oven, tent the steaks under aluminum foil and allow to rest.
Top each steak generously with blueberry balsamic reduction and drizzle with gorgonzola cream sauce. Enjoy!

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Guinness Elk Stew: The Luck of the Irish

Published on March 21, 2016 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“There is a charm in making a stew, to the unaccustomed cook, from the excitement of wondering what the result will be, and whether any flavour save that of onions will survive the competition in the mixture.” ~ Annie Besant

Many take the term “luck of the Irish” to mean a wish of good fortune, and while the term alludes to this, the origin of the term is often mistaken. I find myself, and I am sure I am not the only one, thinking of the term to originate from the Irish culture. It however, in fact, does not. Instead, the term is an American born phrase. According to author Edward T. O’Donnell, a professor with Holy Cross College, the term actually has an American origin. “During the gold and silver rush years in the second half of the 19th century, a number of the most famous and successful miners were of Irish and Irish American birth. Over time this association of the Irish with mining fortunes led to the expression ‘luck of the Irish.’ Of course, it carried with it a certain tone of derision, as if to say, only by sheer luck, as opposed to brains, could these fools succeed,” O’Donnell explains.

A cultural and religious based celebration, Saint Patrick’s Day, March 17th, is observed around the world and is associated with the shamrock, leprechauns, adorning oneself in green, corned beef, cabbage, festivals and parades, and drinking green beer. For a day, the Irish are celebrated. Like the term “luck of the Irish” itself, some of these celebrations and customs are historically accurate and some are constructed from a vast collection of myths and facts mingled together over time. Untangling the web of myths and legends to truly define what is Irish and what is not, or what is truly a Saint Patrick’s Day tradition and what is not would be a difficult and most likely impossible task. One thing is for certain though, embracing the magic and excitement of the day can result in a great meal, like this Guinness Elk Stew!

Traditional Irish stew is created in a slow steaming pot filled with onions and root vegetables, such as carrots, potatoes, parsnips, and turnips. Barley is also sometimes added. The meat is mutton. American twists on the dish trade out the mutton for beef, and in this stew I have traded out the beef for elk. Guinness beef stew utilizes Guinness beer, an Irish stout that has been brewed in Dublin since 1795, for the broth base. The Guinness adds a malty, roasted flavor to the stew and also aides in tenderizing the elk.

I have never made Guinness Stew before, and the stew needs to cook for a couple of hours in order to really develop the flavor. I actually found this recipe on another blog: SeriousEats.com and made some adjustments. This recipe starts with an odd twist I have never tried before and that is adding congealed chicken stock. In a small bowl, add a cup of chicken stock. Sprinkle a packet of unflavored gelatin over the top of the stock and allow it to sit. The stock will start to absorb the stock. I waited a few minutes before sprinkling the remaining three packets over the stock. At the end, I whisked the entire mixture and it formed into little gooey lumps. Set aside this bowl of weird chicken-lumps and also preheat the oven to 275.

In a large dutch oven, heat two tablespoons of oil. Leave the elk in steak size and season generously with salt and pepper. I used a tougher cut of meat for this stew because the slow cooking will allow time for the meat to become tender, and I save my more tender cuts for meals where slow cooking isn’t involved. Lay the steaks into the hot oil and allow to brown on each side for three or so minutes. I did mine in several batches because you are trying to seal the flavor of the meat and you want the heat of the oil to remain high throughout the cooking process. Set the meat aside to rest before you cut it into stew size chunks.

Lower the heat just a bit, and using the fat from browning your meat, quickly sear four onions, five carrots, and four cloves of garlic. I just rough chopped these vegetables, as they are not for eating and instead for adding flavor to the stew base. Take about four or five minutes to lightly brown the vegetables. Add the chicken stock gelatin to the dutch oven along with a quarter cup of brewed coffee, fish sauce, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom of the pan and pull up all that flavor from browning the meat. Also, add the two cans of Guinness beer and the bundle of fresh parsley, thyme, and bay leaves. Now, you could use whatever beer you have on hand for this stew, but then you must announce that you are making Beer Elk Stew and not Guinness Elk Stew, that’s a rule! Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.

Once the meat has cooled enough to handle, cut the steaks into bite sized pieces and toss them with a tablespoon or two of flour. Take the time to make sure you have evenly coated the meat pieces and don’t have big chunks of flour hanging out in the bowl. Pour the elk meat and any juices in the bowl into the dutch oven, place the lid just partially on the top of the pot, and transfer to the oven. Allow to cook for one hour. Give everything a stir every twenty minutes or so.

After an hour of cooking, it is time to add the potatoes. You can use whatever potato you would like: russett, red, yellow, white, or petite. I like to use the fingerling potatoes when I make stews. They add to the rustic vibe of stew and you also don’t have to cut them up. They are already bite-size! Add the potatoes and allow the stew to continue cooking an additional thirty minutes.

While the potatoes are softening, dice up some more carrots and onions. You could also do parsnips or turnips too. Once the thirty minutes are up from when the potatoes were added, pull the pot from the oven and remove the large chunks of onions, carrots, and the bundle of parsley. Skim off any accumulated fat from the top of the stew, although elk meat is so lean that you might not have any. I did not.

Pour in the diced carrots and onions, and return the pot to the oven for 45 more minutes. Leave the lid partially cracked.

Serve yourself a steaming bowl of Guinness Elk Stew with a fresh poured green beer and a slice of Irish soda bread, the perfect meal for Saint Patrick’s Day or any other night of the week!

Happy Hunting!

Guinness Elk Stew

Cook Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes

Guinness Elk Stew

Ingredients

4 packets unflavored gelatin
1 cup chicken stock
3 pounds elk meat, left in steak slabs
2 tablespoons high heat oil, such as vegetable
Four onions, halved
5 carrots, roughly cut in large chunks
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1/4 cup brewed coffee
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 table spoon soy sauce
2 16 ounce Guinness beers
Bundle of parsley, thyme, and bay leaves
1 to 2 tablespoons flour
1 to 2 pounds fingerling potatoes
3 carrots, small diced
1 onion, small diced

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 275 and place the cup of chicken stock in a bowl. Pour one packet of gelatin over the stock. Allow the gelatin to dissolve in the stock before adding the remaining three packets. At the end of four packets, stir the gelatin. It should form into small congealed balls. Set aside.
In a heavy bottom pot or dutch oven, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the steak slabs in small batches, so the temperature of the oil remains high. Brown each side for three to four minutes and then flip. Set meat aside to rest.
Leaving the drippings in the pot, add the onions, carrots, and garlic. Brown for four minutes. If needed, reduced the heat to medium so the garlic does not burn.
Add the coffee, fish sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and soy sauce to the pot. Scrape the bottom to remove any drippings from the pot bottom. Add the Guinness beer and bring to a boil. Place bundle of parsley, thyme, and bay leaves into pot. Reduce the pot to a simmer.
Cut the meat into bite size piece. Place in bowl and coat with flour, ensuring even covering. Add meat to pot, place lid partially over, and place in oven. Allow to cook for one hour, stirring every twenty minutes or so.
Add potatoes, cook an additional 30 minutes.
Add diced carrots and onions, could also add parsnips or turnips too. Cook additional 45 minutes.

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Vietnamese Elk Pho!!!

Published on September 29, 2015 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

BowlElkPho “Only the pure in heart can make a good soup.” ~ Ludwig van Beethoven

Vietnamese Pho. I can’t figure out if it is pronounced fuh, foe, foo. I swear, I say it one way and get corrected to another. I say it the other way, and get corrected back. My mind starts boggling into fee-fi-fo-fum. So, I am not even going to go there. Instead, I am going to share a delicious Vietnamese pho soup recipe with elk meat as the star of the show.

Whenever I visit a city, my main focus is eating. I search out new food genres and indulge in a vacation of taste bud treats. This past winter, I toured the streets of Denver, Colorado, visiting art galleries, book stores, food trucks, coffee shops, and even the United States Mint. The most distinct experience was definitely Vietnamese food. On the west side of Denver, there is a business district known as Little Saigon. The area is filled with Vietnamese restaurants and shopping, and also Vietnamese people. Not only was the food very unique and foreign to me, but the culture is so strong in the area you do not feel like you are moments away from downtown Denver. Here is where I experienced pho.

Pho is a broth based Vietnamese soup, which is traditionally made from beef bones but chicken can also be found. The hot, steaming bowl of broth and rice noodles is actually used to cook the thinly sliced pieces of meat, and then the entire bowl is personally flavored by the diner using a huge variety of garnishments. Traditional Vietnamese garnishments include green onions, sliced chili peppers, culantro, bean sprouts, spicy Thai basil, and limes. Other condiments can also include hoisin, soy sauce, sriracha, and fish sauce.

My first experience with pho was a little, mmmm, I guess you could say stressful. The menu is actually quite large and somehow everything looked the same but different at the same time. The waiters spoke excellent English, but their accents were so thick. I felt silly, but I could barely understand anyone for some reason, probably from my anxieties of dealing with a new experience that were causing my mind to almost race. I ordered a bowl of Tai Sach, which was a rice noodle soup with rare steak and tripe. I thought trying to say the name was going to be the difficult part; however, when the waiter emerged carrying a huge plate overflowing with bean sprouts, basil, and limes, I was very confused. I couldn’t figure out if the plate was some giant salad I was supposed to eat before the soup, if he had brought the wrong thing out, or if this was indeed some weird version of noodle soup. My face blushing red, I simply thanked the waiter and stared, my hands folded in my lap, at the mound of greenery before me. I tried to glance at other diners in hopes of finding direction with my meal, but the restaurant was mostly empty. So instead I sat and waited. I didn’t know what I was waiting for or for how long I would wait, but I just quietly sat and waited.

After a few minutes, the waiter returned with a giant bowl in his hands. Aw, this must be the soup, I thought. He presented the steaming bowl of broth, meat, and noodles and then quickly retreated. The bowl was so big. I remembered ordering a medium, but this bowl looked large enough to be a pot of soup for several people. Even more confused, I tasted the soup. Meh. It was alright. The broth was good, but very simple and solely a beef flavor. Well, that was that.

The waiter, obviously sensing my confusion with the entire experience, appeared by my side and pointed to the “salad.” He gestured towards the soup, and told me to mix the items on the plate with my noodle soup. Suddenly everything clicked. I dropped a handful of green onions and sliced peppers in to the bowl. I ripped basil and sprinkled it over the top. I squeezed the limes and watched as the juice swirled with the oils in the broth. I drizzled hoisin and dashed in a bit of fish sauce. It was amazing! The meat was so tender and flavorful from the broth, and the herbs and citrus played with flavors in a way I had never experienced before. It was fun too.

When I got home, I looked at the elk meat in my freezer, and decided I wanted to try my own version of pho. It definitely is different from the soup I had in Denver for several reasons. Elk has a very distinct flavor of its own, and is not really the same as beef. Also, it is hard in the desert to find things like culantro and Thai basil. But I made do, and it was delicious.

The key to a good pho is in the broth. You could go to the store and buy a couple cans of broth for your soup, but the whole fun of this soup is making the broth yourself. This time, I made my broth using beef bones, but next time I am going to try it with the actual bones from the elk. I will let you know how that goes when I do it. But for now, the beef broth.

First, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. On a large baking sheet, place the beef bones and a large yellow onion cut in half. Roast the bones for about an hour, allowing the flavors to really develop on your bone. The onion needs to pulled out after about 45 minutes after it becomes soft and charred. You can also slice the ginger into one inch thick pieces and lay it on the pan, but it only needs about ten minutes or so before it becomes golden brown, so watch it closely.

Get out the large crock pot, and I mean large because the bones are going to go in so you need the space! Drop in the roasted bones, charred onion, ginger slices, salt, coriander, fish sauce, and star anise in the pot. In case you haven’t worked with star anise before, which up until now I had never used it but had seen it on the shelves at the store, it is pretty easy to find. It is located with all the other spices, but it is a bit more expensive than some of your other basic spices. You just add the entire star to the pot and then remove it after you’re finished cooking. Pretty simple.

Fill the pot with water, which depending on your crock pot size, should be about four quarts. Set the pot to low and allow to simmer for six to ten hours. The longer it can simmer the better the flavors will develop in the broth. This is a great meal to start before you head to work and then dinner is ready when you get home.

Rice noodles, which are like pasta noodles but instead of being constructed from flour and eggs, like traditional Italian style pasta noodles, they are made from rice. You can find them in the Asian foods section of most grocery stores. The town I live in has very limited ethnic cuisine choices, but even they carry rice noodles so I think they are usually easy to find. The noodles are available in a fresh version and a dried version. Either one is fine, but the local store here only carries a dried version. They also are available in a variety of sizes. For this recipe, I used a medium sized noodle.

Place the noodles in a large bowl of cold water and allow them soak for an hour. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and drop the soaked noodles in. This is a very quick boil! Only leave the noodles in the water for about a minute and then pull them out.

Finally, it is time to slice your meat. For this to work, the slices need to be very, very thin. It helps to throw the meat slice in the freezer for about fifteen to twenty minutes. This way you can get a better grip on the meat while you work with it, and it won’t slide around under your knife. I used the infraspinatus, often referred to as a flank steak, which I find to be a very under-utilized cut of meat. I think a lot of people think of the flat iron as a throw away steak, but it is actually the second most tender cut off the animal after the tenderloin. I think it worked perfect for this recipe because it is tender, which is always great, but has just a little bit of toughness that helps hold it together.

After the broth is finished simmering, pour it through a fine sieve and remove the bones, onion slices, ginger, and star anise. You also might want to soup off some of the excess fat from the top of the broth. I then moved the broth to a stock pot on the stove and added a little heat to it. You want the broth to be hot when you first add it to your bowl so it will lightly cook your meat slices.

All that is left now is to assemble your bowl! As in the Vietnamese restaurant I visited, I used a huge bowl! I filled the bowl with a huge ladle of the hot broth, dropped in a handful of rice noodles, and several slices of elk. At the table, I assembled a large cutting board filled with the garnishments and condiments people might want to add to their elk pho. Some possible garnishments include Thai basil, culantro, hot pepper slices, bean sprouts, dandelion greens, green onions, lime slices, cilantro, and mint. I had to use Italian basil because Thai was not available in our store, but it was still great! For condiments, I had hoisin, sriracha, chili paste, soy sauce, and fish sauce.

Pho is so delicious and is great for a dinner party. Everyone can make their soup unique by adding the garnishments and developing the flavors they enjoy most. Some bowls will end up spicy, and some can be super sweet. It all depends on the person. I highly recommend trying this recipe with your next elk, because the meat blends so well with the flavor possibilities.

Happy Hunting!

Vietnamese Elk Pho!!!

Category: Elk Recipes

Vietnamese Elk Pho!!!

Ingredients

For Broth

Four pounds beef soup bones
One large yellow onion
Six inch piece fresh ginger
One tablespoon salt
Two teaspoons coriander
Four star anise pods
Three tablespoons fish sauce
Four quarts water
Eight ounce package dried rice noodles, medium size
One and half to two pounds flat iron elk steak

Garnishment Suggestions

Thai or Italian Basil
Cilantro or Culantro, if you can find it
Lime wedges
Dandelion greens
Green onions
Bean sprouts
Jalapeno slices
Fresh mint leaves

Condiment Suggestions

Hoisin sauce
Fish sauce
Chili paste
Sriracha
Soy sauce

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Place soup bones, onion sliced in half, and ginger slices on large baking sheet. Bake the bones for one hour, onion for 45 minutes, and ginger slices for 15 to 20 minutes.
In a large crockpot, place roasted beef bones, onion, ginger slices, fish sauce, star anise, salt, and coriander. Cover with four quarts water and set to low simmer. Allow to simmer for six to ten hours.
Once broth is finished simmering, run through a fine mesh sieve to remove bones, onion, ginger, and star anise. Spoon off any excess floating fat from the broth.
Place rice noodles in bowl of water and allow to soak for one hour.
Add noodles to pot of boiling water and boil for one minute.
Thinly slice elk steak.
Heat beef broth in large stock pot until thoroughly warmed.
Fill bowls with hot beef broth, rice noodles, and elk steak slices.
Flavor the bowls with garnishment and condiments, as desired.

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Elk Meatloaf – Stuffed Italian Style!!!!

Published on September 25, 2015September 28, 2015 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

~Enjoy this guest blog from avid sportsman Brandon Bartosh.~

“My dinner is still in the woods.” ~Author Unknown

Last night we ate the most amazing meatloaf, and it was elk. While this may not seem a big deal, having an epiphany for dessert was.
Let me explain. I am from South Texas, and in South Texas the catfish fry is the stuff of legend. I loved the annual catfish fry. I anticipated the annual fry held at my uncle’s ranch with fish freshly caught on a trotline the night before using live bluegill or goldfish, homemade tartar sauce, hush puppies, and my uncle’s pet whitetail eating out of everyone’s hand. I still dream of those days and it makes my heart smile.

I caught a rather large catfish about ten years ago and had the same epiphany I had last night, but for a different set of reasons and a different species of flavor. The catfish epiphany was much more distinct, and kind of greasy. I filleted the fish, removed all of the fat, soaked it in egg and milk, dipped it in the family’s famous top-secret cornmeal batter, and dropped it in the lard fryer for seven and a half minutes while my mother whipped up the tartar sauce. I literally drooled on my shirt before I bit in….but all I could taste was my heart breaking, or more specifically my stomach’s heart breaking. In that distinct moment, I realized catfish is not very good.

It turns out, between the intervening years in college and starting my first job, I had neglected catfish. In that period of neglect, I had experienced salmon lightly coated in worcestershire, salted and peppered, then grilled to a flaky perfection. Worse yet, I had indulged in seared ahi, freshly caught off the Kona coast of the Big Island of Hawaii under a perfect sunset, and I was sipping wine with my new bride while the Pacific waves crested and fell below our feet, inviting the deafening solitude of a crowded restaurant to our newly found love. I had fallen out of love with the gluttonous pleasure days of my youth and into love with the refined perfection of the sound of a breaking wave, holding my lover’s hand in a moment without fault. As with the maturation of experience, so go the taste buds.

Catfish really isn’t a good fish. The texture is right, but the flavor is all wrong, hence the batter, oil, and tartar sauce. On the other hand, the light umami flavor of seared ahi only requires a light coating of salt and pepper. The evidence is pure and unmistakable. Catfish is not good and is far worse for your health.

So the epiphany was this: beef is the catfish, or possibly carp, in the realm of red meat. The fat, the texture, the smell. They all lack the perfection of wild game. While the constant barrage of seasonings had me thoroughly convinced I liked, and actually preferred beef, the evidence of recent years’ meals suggest the aforementioned statement is undeniable. Elk is best served rare with a light coating of salt and pepper. Beef is best served soaked in marinade and grilled until all fat has been rendered to a liquid. And don’t forget to use the steak sauce.

So here I sit after one too many beers with a sense of foreboding about my future in the grocery store, the butcher’s shop, or my now ex-favorite restaurants. My stomach turns and I can feel his heart break. There just isn’t enough opportunity in the world to keep him happy. And beside, my knees simple won’t be able to keep up if I make it to my golden years. So, all I can do is savor the meal served in this time and in this moment. I hope you can too. Here is the recipe.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Tear up six slices, or almost half a loaf, of Italian bread into bite size pieces. Place the bread in a medium size bowl and cover with three-quarters of a cup of whole milk. If you are out of whole milk, any other percentage, or even skim, will work. Let the bread soak up all the milk.

While the bread is working on the milk, pull out a large bowl. Drop in two pounds of ground elk meat. When we grind our elk meat, we do a ratio of 10 percent bacon ends and pieces to 90 percent elk meat. This eliminates the need to add beef fat to the lean meat of elk, and also adds light pork flavor to the elk, which is nice in burgers and this meatloaf. If your elk meat is entirely lean, you could also just add a pound and a half of ground elk and a half pound of ground pork. One of the beautiful things about meatloaf is its flexibility, and even just the ratios you create with the meat can modify your loaf in wonderful ways.

To the ground elk, add two tablespoons of fennel seeds. The seeds will soften up while baking, but I still used a carving knife to crush them up a bit. Next, drop in 1 diced medium yellow onion, six cloves of minced garlic, a cup of minced fresh parsley, a teaspoon of oregano, a half cup of tomato juice, and salt and pepper. Drop in three whole eggs, and with your hands give everything a rough mix. Drop in the milk soaked bread crumbs, and thoroughly mix all the ingredients. The milk from the breadcrumbs will add a lot of liquid to your mixture. I use store-bought Italian breadcrumbs to bring everything to the consistency I desire. I added a half a cup at a time, until the loaf held together nicely. You don’t want it too dry, but at first the entire thing resembles meat soup, which is not what you want. Just add the breadcrumbs slowly, and keep mixing, until it holds together.

Once everything is mixed together, spread out a large piece of parchment paper on the counter top. Drop the entire bowl onto the center of the paper, and start pressing the mixture out. Work the meat into a large, flat rectangle that is about an inch and half to two inches thick. Start layering the pressed meat with slices of fresh mozzarella cheese, trust me you want the fresh stuff that comes stored in water. It will change your life! So good. Anyway, also add whole fresh basil leaves and sun-dried tomatoes. Think of this as if you are covering pizza dough, and leave about the same amount of border as you would crust space on the pizza.

When the meat is completely covered, it is time to start rolling. This can seem intimidating because the meat isn’t very sturdy, and things feel like they are completely falling part as you start to roll. Just keep rolling. It will all fall together. Use the parchment paper to help you roll the meat into a large log. Once you have rolled the entire log, drop it on a large baking sheet, and use your hands for a final press. Tent the loaf with a piece of aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.

While your meatloaf is baking, it is time to start on your topping. One of the best parts of meatloaf is the sticky ketchup most people bake onto the outside of the loaf. Since this is an Italian style meatloaf, ketchup just didn’t sound right. But the loaf needed a sweet, sticky topping or it just wouldn’t be meatloaf. So, this sauce was born, and it is AMAZING! And simple. On their own tray, pop a pint of cherry tomatoes in with the meatloaf. Allow to roast for about twenty minutes. Once the skin starts popping on the tomatoes, remove them from the oven and drop them into a small saucepan on the stove. Add a 12 ounce can of crushed tomatoes, two tablespoons of honey, a tablespoon of Worcestershire, and a tablespoon of Dijon mustard. Turn the burner to a low heat and allow the sauce to simmer until it thickens.

At the 40 minute mark, pull the aluminum foil off the meatloaf and add a layer of shaved parmesan cheese and the tomato sauce you just made to the top of the meatloaf. Stick that baby back in the oven for 30 more minutes. You will know the meatloaf is ready when the cheese is melted and gooey on top and the edges of the meatloaf are just barely starting to turn golden brown. You can also measure the internal temperature with meat thermometer and it should read 160 degrees.

Serve up a thick slice of the loaf with roasted baby red potatoes simply dressed in olive oil, salt and pepper and crisp, steamed green beans. So delicious, your stomach’s heart will melt.

Happy Hunting!

Elk Meatloaf – Stuffed Italian Style!!!!

Cook Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 20 minutes

Category: Elk Recipes

10 Servings

Elk Meatloaf – Stuffed Italian Style!!!!

Ingredients

Elk Meatloaf

Two pounds ground elk and bacon ends
Loaf or six slices Italian bread
3/4 cup whole milk
Two tablespoons crushed fennel seeds
One medium yellow onion diced
Six cloves garlic, minced
One cup minced fresh parsley
Teaspoon dried oregano
Half cup tomato juice
Salt and Pepper to taste
Three cups dried Italian breadcrumbs, added as needed
Three whole eggs
One pound fresh mozzarella, sliced
Bunch fresh basil
Six ounces sun-dried tomatoes
Cup parmesan cheese

Sweet Tomato Topping

Pint cherry tomatoes
12 ounce can crushed tomatoes, preferably roasted
Two tablespoons honey
One tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
One tablespoon Dijon mustard

Instructions

For Meatloaf

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In medium bowl, soak torn up pieces of Italian bread in the whole milk.
While bread is soaking, add ground elk, fennel seeds, onion, garlic, parsley, oregano, tomato juice and salt and pepper to large bowl.
Add milk soaked bread crumbs and give everything a rough combine.
Add three eggs and thoroughly mix the meatloaf. The mixture will be quite wet from the liquid in the milk soaked bread, so add by dried Italian breadcrumbs by the half cup until the mixture is at a consistency where it holds together but is still moist.
Spread a piece of parchment paper on the counter and drop the mixture in the center. Press the meat in a large rectangle to an inch and a half to two inches thick.
Top the pressed meat mixture with slices of fresh mozzarella, fresh basil leaves, and sun-dried tomatoes. Leave an inch border around the entire rectangle.
Use the parchment paper to assist rolling the rectangle into a large log. Drop the log on a baking sheet and tent with aluminum foil.
Place in preheated oven for 40 minutes.
Remove foil tent and top with parmesan cheese and sweet tomato topping. Return to oven and bake additional 30 to 40 minutes, until the cheese is melted, the edges start to brown, and the center reads 160 degrees.

For Sweet Tomato Topping

Roast the pint of cherry tomatoes in oven with meatloaf for 20 minutes.
Place roasted cherry tomatoes, can of crushed tomatoes, honey, Worcestershire sauce, and Dijon mustard in small sauce pan. Simmer over low heat until reduced, about 15 minutes.

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Quick Fix BBQ: Elk Burgers!

Published on May 20, 2015 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“My favorite moments? Where it’s all going swimmingly, the sun’s out and I’ve got a fire going and a nice snake on the barbecue.” ~Bear Grylls

Some afternoons are made for barbecuing, especially warm spring afternoons. I woke up this morning, and it was beautiful outside. It had been raining for a couple of days and things had been almost gloomy. Gloomy is an odd term for the desert. Usually, the spring in southeastern Utah is warm and on the brink of hot. There are wildflowers blooming everywhere, so the desert is full of vibrant spots of yellow, orange, purple, and red. The sky is filled with white puffy clouds floating in a sea of blue. This time is short-lived in the desert. Our climate tends to shift from winter cold to summer heat in a very short time, so the short spring season is something to be savored. This spring has been different. It has rained and been dark and almost cold out. Rain in the desert is always welcome, and it is even a nice break. But it has gone on for a couple days now, which isn’t something that happens here very often. So, when I awoke this morning to a cloudless sky and a bright sun, I was in a very serene and comfortable mood. By the time the afternoon rolled around, my comfortable mood was needing to be accompanied by a barbecue. It was just one of those days!

So, my traditional barbecues are hamburgers and hotdogs. Sometimes I will get wild and crazy and throw a bratwurst in there, but it has to be a pretty crazy day! Well, since starting this blog, every meal has changed at our house. I am constantly thinking about how to substitute wild game in for beef. Hamburgers are a no-brainer! Elk or deer are the perfect substitute. For myself after testing out this recipe, I will now take an elk burger on my plate over a beef burger any day of the week. Trust me, this is one TASTY burger.

Extra equipment is needed for making burger. The best option is a meat grinder. Meat grinders come in a huge variety of prices and sizes. You can spend a ton without even really trying, but there are cheaper options out there. Selecting the right grinder depends on how much meat processing you want to do. At this point in time, I do a medium amount of processing. I am a huge fan of grinding my own burger meat, and I also have been experimenting with sausages. I probably pull out the grinder once every other week. So, it gets a fair amount of use. That being said, I did not spend a ton on my processor, and it meets all of my needs. I have the Cabela’s Pro Series Grinder and paid less than $200 for it. I have had the grinder for over a year, and it has been great.

If you don’t have a meat grinder, you can still make hamburger meat. I have used a food processor before when grinding up meat. The texture is a bit different with the food processor, as it doesn’t chop the meat as finely, but it will work. It is definitely a great option when doing meats that are less tough than elk, such as turkey or fish. While you can get the job done with the food processor, I would highly recommend investing in a meat grinder if you are thinking about processing your own hamburger for more than just this meal.

Okay, enough with the processing talk. On to the good stuff: the burger!

Since elk is a very lean meat, you have to add some fat into your meat mixture. You could just buy some pork fat and throw that in when you grind the elk up, and it will still taste good. However, if you are searching for a GREAT burger instead of just a good one, try using bacon ends and pieces. Bacon ends and pieces will add the fat needed for creating great burger, but it will also incorporate bacon flavor in to your meat. It is a two-for-one!

For making my burger, I do a two to one ratio of elk meat to bacon ends and pieces. Since burger isn’t known for being “tender,” you can pull out a tougher piece of meat that you have set aside, and save your tender pieces, like backstrap, for steak meals. I used a piece off the hind quarter for this barbecue. This piece was about a pound and a half, and I added a half pound of the bacon ends. Run the elk meat and the bacon ends through the meat grinder, and give everything a mix with your hands to thoroughly incorporate. I got about eight extra-generous sized patties out of this.

Before making your patties, season the meat. You can go simple with just salt and pepper, or you can add some Montreal Steak Seasoning. I always add steak or fajita seasoning to my burgers. With the Montreal, I use about a tablespoon per pound of burger. So, for this recipe I added two tablespoons. Get your hands down in there and really work the seasoning into the meat. When forming your patties, a little trick for even cooking is to make the center of the patty thinner than the edges. I usually form a ball of meat, about the size of a baseball, and then slowly work the ball into a disk. Once I have my disk roughly formed, I use my thumbs to thin out the center of the patty and move the meat to the edges. You don’t have to make it super thin, just a divot will allow for the center to cook and turn out similar to the edges.

Another fancy little burger trick is to add a slab of butter to the center of your burger. After the patties are formed, slice a thin slab of butter and tuck it into the center of the burger. I thought this sounded odd when I first heard it, but it really adds a lot of moisture to the burger. And there is nothing wrong with a juicy burger!

Alright, so the patties are ready for the grill.

So, you could use just plain old buns, if you are so inclined. However, if you are looking for a twist on your already adventurous elk burger, you might try a portabella bun. This was my first time trying the mushroom bun, and I thought it was really different and delicious. The portabella had a very similar texture to a bun, but it added mushroom flavor to the burger. I am not a huge mushroom fan, but I do like portabellas. The only down side to the mushroom bun is it did not help sop up my very juicy burger. My hands were a pretty big mess by the end of this meal.

For the portabella buns, buy the big portabellas. Before you cook the mushrooms, you want to clean them. I cut the stems off and then use a damp rag or paper towel to just wipe the mushrooms off. I coated mine in a little olive oil and sprinkled a bit of salt and pepper over the top. Once the grill is hot, throw the mushrooms on and let them cook for a few minutes on each side. I put mine on before the burgers so they would have time to cool down. I didn’t want to grab a hot mushroom for my bun.

Grilling elk burgers is the same as hamburgers. Drop the patties on the hot part of the grill, and then let them sit! Do not push them around or press them, that only will tear your meat and make you lose all that juicy flavor. The first side should take between five and six minutes. You can tell the burger is ready to flip when the top starts to gather a little pool of juice. The second side should take a minute or so less than the first, so entire cook time should end up somewhere between nine and eleven minutes.

I topped my burger with blue cheese, pickled jalapenos, lettuce and tomatoes. A touch of mustard and ketchup are always welcome as well. For a side, I cooked up sweet potato stackers! They are a very simple side and a nice change from potato chips or fries. For the stackers, thinly slice a sweet potato. I usually do one person. Coat the slices in olive oil, salt, pepper, and dried rosemary. Stack the potatoes in muffin tins. You will usually need at least five slices to fill the cup. Top with a little parmesan cheese and place in a 400 degree oven. I set my timer for 30 minutes and then check how things are going. They usually wind up taking about 40 minutes. Well, get out there and barbecue! And Happy Hunting!

Quick Fix BBQ: Elk Burgers!

Category: Elk Recipes

Quick Fix BBQ: Elk Burgers!

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 pounds elk meat (tougher cut)
1/2 pound bacon ends and pieces
2 Tablespoons Montreal Steak Seasoning
Portabella mushrooms
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper
Blue cheese
Sliced tomatoes
Lettuce
Pickled jalapenos
Mustard
Ketchup

Instructions

Run elk meat and bacon ends and pieces through meat grinder. Mix with hands to make sure everything is thoroughly incorporated. Add Montreal Steak Seasoning or salt and pepper to meat. Thoroughly incorporate.
Form meat into patties and add thin slab of butter inside center of each burger.
Preheat barbecue grill.
Remove stems and use a damp rag to wipe off portabella mushrooms. Coat in olive oil, salt and pepper.
Place mushroom tops on grill and cook each side for five minutes. Remove and let rest.
Place elk patties on grill. Cook first side for five to six minutes. Flip and continue cooking second side for four to five minutes. Remove and let rest.
Create your burger! Using the giant mushrooms as buns, top burger with blue cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pickled jalapenos, mustard, and ketchup.
Eat up!

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Mama Mia: Elk Steak Pizza!

Published on May 1, 2015August 14, 2016 by lynzmarshall@yahoo.com

“I think of dieting, then I eat pizza.” ~ Lara Stone

I have heard many times that people dislike the “gamey” taste of elk or deer. I will admit I found deer and elk to be “gamey” when I first started working with, but as I have eaten it more that taste is somehow gone. I actually no longer care much for beef because it just doesn’t taste “right” anymore. It is a hard idea to express in words, but I just know there is almost a fear of cooking with wild game because people think it tastes funny. I think this recipe can help change anyone’s mind about cooking with wild game.

When I first started really adding wild game into my diet, it was mostly in the form of steaks. I am a big fan of a simple meal of deer tenderloin steaks and eggs, which has been a favorite of mine since I was a little kid. I also really like the thicker cut back strap steaks, especially when they are prepared in a filet mignon fashion. When I made the horseradish crusted elk tenderloin, I started to really wonder what other flavors would enhance wild game. And then I really started thinking outside the box and trying to prepare meals that tested my use of wild game. I think this is easy to do when working with turkey or other birds, because birds seem less foreign and somehow less scary on the recipe experiment scale. You can go to a restaurant and find various preparations of birds, like quail or duck, but if you find elk or deer on the menu, it is typically just a steak.

When brainstorming about some alternative use ideas, I found there are lots of traditional meals one can think up and just substitute elk or deer for the beef. For example, a pot roast would be great with elk or deer, or a French dip sandwich (which now that I just typed that I have realized I better make a French dip with deer, because that sounds delicious!) would work wonderfully. I wanted something a little more daring this time around. I mean, it was a Friday night, I had a whole weekend of nothing planned, and so I figured something new on the dinner menu was a good start to a potentially lazy weekend. And then it hit, nothing speaks Friday night more than PIZZA! So, the real question became: “How do I use wild game on pizza?” That sounds awful, even saying it now.

So, how do you use wild game in pizza? This recipe is the answer to that question, and a very mouthwatering answer at that. This pizza is a grilled flatbread elk steak salad pizza. Or something close to that. I haven’t thought up a good name yet, but I think the general idea is it is a very fresh tasting pizza, with greens and tomatoes, that is topped with elk steak.

Step one to this recipe is making the pizza. You could go to the grocery store and buy premade dough. I have done that before, and it is a great substitution for making your own dough. I have heard you can also go to pizzeria’s and buy just the dough from many of them, but I live in a pretty small town and we don’t have many pizzerias. Since it was a Friday night, I decided I had the time to make my own dough. Plus, I just bought a new stand mixer and I find any excuse to use it. Pizza dough in the stand mixer is life changing, as far as making pizza dough goes. I have mixed and kneaded by hand many a pizza dough, and it never comes out quite right. It ALWAYS turns out right in the stand mixer!

So, to start you want to activate your yeast. In a medium sized bowl add one and a half teaspoons of the dry yeast, two teaspoons white sugar, and 3/4 cup of warm water. Give everything a quick whisk and then let your yeast go to work foaming up. You want to make sure the water is warm, I let my tap run for a few minutes on hot, and that you mix the sugar in until it dissolves. Yeast eats sugar, and this helps with the activation process. It should take about ten minutes for the yeast to foam.

I made pizza a few weeks ago, and the recipe I used did not call for allowing the yeast to sit in the warm water and sugar mixture for ten minutes before mixing it together with the flour. I think that either way works, but I decided to let the yeast foam this time because I wanted to insure my flatbread was somewhat fluffy and light.

Once the yeast has foamed up, it is time to add the flour. In the bowl of the stand mixer, or a medium sized bowl if you are doing things the old-fashioned way (by hand), add two cups of flour and a teaspoon of salt. You could also mix things up a bit by adding a cup of white flour and a cup of wheat flour. Incorporate your salt into the flour real quick and then create a small well for your yeast mixture. Drop in your yeast mixture and a tablespoon of olive oil, attach your dough hook (or prepare your hands for some mixing!), switch your stand mixer to medium, and watch the magic happen (or make the magic happen by hand). Keep the mixer working until the dough forms into a nice, solid ball. If it seems too sticky, add a tablespoon of flour at a time. If it seems to dry, you can add either a bit more olive oil or water. Pizza dough should feel pretty substantial and shouldn’t easily pull apart. It should have some elasticity to it, but it shouldn’t feel real heavy, crumbly, or tough.

After the dough has come together, which takes about five minutes, it will need some time to rise. Coat a bowl with a bit of olive oil, or as I did you can just coat the mixing bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise for about an hour in a warm spot. I put mine by the stove because it is usually preheating and therefore warm. The dough should about double in size during this time.

While the dough is rising, start caramelizing the onions. I love caramelized onions! They are so sweet and flavorful and really can change how one views the onion. For this recipe, I used one large onion, but you can make a couple of onions at one time and save them for salads or soups. I roughly cut the onion and then added it to a pan with two tablespoons of olive oil and a tablespoon of melted butter. The trick to caramelizing onions is LOW and SLOW! This is not a quick process, as it takes about 45 minutes, and if you have the heat too high you will just end up with dried-out, not so fabulous, possibly burnt onions. Keep an eye on things here! I put the heat to medium and spread the onions out in a thin layer in the pan. Every few minutes, give everybody a stir and make sure things aren’t getting too dried out. If the onions are just frying, turn the heat down and drop a little more oil in the pan. After about ten minutes, sprinkle the pan with salt. You could also a teaspoon of sugar. This will only help with the caramelizing process. So, that is really all there is to making caramelized onions. You just keep slowly stirring and watching that things are not burning for about 30 to 45 minutes. At the end, when the onions are soft and brown, you can drop in a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar or red wine to deglaze the flavor for the bottom of the pan, but you don’t have to do this step. Caramelized onions are great because they are very simple, and really all you need is some oil, a pan, and the onion. Everything else is just gravy after that!

Before finishing up the pizza dough, take a minute and prepare the elk meat. Let the meat rise to room temperature, this will help with the cooking process, and this should take about thirty minutes. I set mine out on the cutting board and season the one side with Montreal Steak Seasoning. I love that stuff because you can put it on virtually anything. I have had it on chicken, and it is great!

For the flatbread pizza, I wanted to use a steak that was tender and very lean. Chewing through fat and gristle on something like a pizza does not make for an appetizing meal. So, as you can imagine, this elk was harvested in early November, and we have gone through all the top choice cuts, such as the back strap and tenderloin. The cut I used for this is one that I consider one the best kept secrets on the elk. The cut has gained popularity in recent years at the grocery store as a flat iron steak, but I find they seem to be generous with their naming, as the steaks sold don’t always match the “Infraspinatus” muscle I have grown accustomed to butchering at home. Some research even puts this as the second most tender cut. It was a charm for this pizza (come back this fall when I document how to dry age your wild game).

So, at this point in the game, the dough is rising and the onions are caramelizing. The meat has been set out and seasoned. The next steps can really be done in any order, but I try to time myself so that everything comes out hot at roughly the same time. The next item needing prepared is the balsamic reduction. Balsamic vinegar, to me, is very tart and salty tasting straight out of the bottle. I remember the first time I reduced balsamic was for the dressing over a strawberry and spinach salad. I thought the idea sounded awful The sweet, fresh taste of strawberries and the almost bitter taste of vinegar seemed like a bad combination to me. However, once reduced, balsamic vinegar takes on a very rich, sweet flavor. It is an amazing transformation, and it pairs great with the savory taste of this flatbread pizza. So, in order to reduce the vinegar, simply pour about a cup of balsamic vinegar into a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring the vinegar to a boil, and then drop it to a nice simmer. Allow it to simmer, while stirring occasionally, until the vinegar is reduced by half and has a glossy look to it. The time varies, but it seems to me that it usually takes about ten minutes. A warning though: keep an eye on the vinegar because it can reduce quickly and then it will burn. Burnt vinegar bad! Reduced vinegar good!

Once your dough has doubled in size, it is time to grill it. When you remove the plastic wrap from the top of your bowl, your dough will be fluffy and light. Give it a punch! Sprinkle a handful of flour on your work station, and knead the dough for a few minutes. I broke my dough into two pieces, but you could also keep the pizza in one large piece. Roll the dough out to your desired thickness, mine was probably about a quarter of an inch. Now, you could top the pizza and then throw it in the oven, which should be preheated at this point to 400 degrees. Or you could try a new adventure like I did: grilling the flatbread! I was really scared to try grilling pizza dough. It sounded like a crazy idea, and I kind of figured the dough would just fall through the grill grates. I watched a Bobby Flay video on line about five times before I built up the nerves to try and grill the dough. It worked amazing! The flatbread came out light and a bit chewy on the inside but had a beautiful crust on the outside. All I did was brush the dough with a bit of olive oil and dump it onto a grill that was preheated to medium high heat. I let the first side cook until the dough started to bubble and then flipped it for about another minute on the second side. It was so easy and the flatbread even looked beautiful!

Once the dough was cooked, I covered it with a layer of Monterey cheese and tossed it in the oven (preheated to 400!) for about eight minutes, or until the cheese was melted. At this time, I preheated a pan and dropped my steak in. When overcooked, elk tends to get very chewy and a bit tough. It also develops a bit of a gamey taste. So, I cooked this steak until it was medium rare to medium. This cut was roughly two inches thick, so I gave the steak about four minutes per side. Afterwards, I loosely tented the meat with foil and let it rest on the cutting board for about five minutes. I then thinly sliced the steak.

Once the cheese has melted on the flatbread and the steak has rested, you are ready to start assembling the pizza. Start with about a cup to two cups of fresh arugula. Arugula is a Mediterranean green that has grown in popularity over the last few years. It has a somewhat peppery and spicy taste, and is a great alternative to lettuce or spinach. I also dropped on a cup of sliced cherry tomatoes. You could use any diced tomato, but I used the cherry ones because they tend to be a bit less juicy, and therefore don’t create a tomato juice lake on your pizza. Next, add your caramelized onions and steak slices. Finish the pizza off with a half a cup of crumbled feta goat cheese and drizzle with the reduced balsamic vinegar.

I paired this dinner with a chilled glass of pinot grigio. The salad is very fresh tasting, and definitely reminds me of summer afternoons and fresh garden ingredients, but it also has a hearty bite from the steak and goat cheese. It is topped of with the sweet hints from the cherry tomatoes, reduced vinegar, and the flatbread. The pinot grigio is a great wine to pair with this meal because it has a very crisp taste that accents the freshness of the dish. It also doesn’t fight with the hints of sweetness. This really is a great meal to try if you are looking for a different twist on using wild game. Enjoy and Happy Hunting!

Mama Mia: Elk Steak Pizza!

Category: Elk Recipes, Wild Game Recipes

Mama Mia: Elk Steak Pizza!

Ingredients

Flatbread Dough
3/4 cup warm water
1 and 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
Caramelized Onions
1 large onion
2 Tablespoons olive oil (more if desired)
2 teaspoons salt (more if desired)
Optional: teaspoon of sugar
Flatbread Pizza Toppings
1 to 1 and 1/2 pounds of elk steak (your choice of cut, I used a flat iron)
1 Tablespoon Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1 cup arugula
1 cup cherry tomatoes
3/4 cup Monterey Jack cheese
3/4 cup goat cheese feta

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
To activate your dry yeast, mix the yeast with the teaspoon of sugar. Pour the 3/4 cup of warm water over the mixture, and allow the yeast to foam. This will take about ten minutes. Add two cups of flour and the salt to the mixing stand bowl. Whisk together and create a well in the center of the flour. Once the yeast has foamed, add the yeast and olive oil to the flour and mix with a dough hook. Allow the dough to knead for about five minutes. If it is dry and crumbly, add more water or oil. If it too wet, add more flour a tablespoon at a time. Cover dough with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm area for one hour.
To caramelize the onions, thinly slice the onion. Coat the bottom of a pan with olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add the onions to the pan and allow to cook for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle the onions with salt and allow to continue to cook for up to thirty minutes more, stirring often. If desired, the process can be enhanced with the addition of sugar or vinegar. Take care to not let the onions dry out or they will burn.
To reduce the balsamic vinegar, add a cup of vinegar to a small saucepan. Bring the vinegar to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Stir often and let vinegar reduce by half, which can take up to ten minutes.
Grill pizza dough over medium high heat for one minute per side. Top with Monterey jack cheese and place in oven for eight minutes, or until cheese is melted.
Season steak with Montreal steak seasoning and cook in pan over medium high heat. Cook each side for about four minutes, depending on how you would like to meat done, and then cover with a tent foil and allow to rest for five minutes. Thinly slice.
Top flatbread pizza with arugula, sliced cherry tomatoes, caramelized onions, feta goat cheese, and steak. Drizzle with reduced balsamic vinegar.

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a 12 gauge girl

From Forest to Food

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Mama Mia: Elk Steak Pizza!

From Forest to Food

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