Flourless Chocolate Cake

6.5 oz bittersweet chocolate
6 oz butter
1 cup sugar
4 eggs and two egg yolks
2 tbs brandy
2 tsp vanilla
zest of one large orange
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 cup cocoa powder

 Line a 10-inch springform pan with a round of parchment paper. Grease the paper and the sides of the pan liberally with butter.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler (or a metal bowl over a pot of simmering water). Whisk in the sugar. Beat the eggs a little and whisk the brandy-vanilla-orange zest mixture into it. Whisk the egg mixture into the chocolate mixture. Add the pepper to the cocoa powder and stir well. Sift the cocoa powder over the surface of the batter and then whisk it in thoroughly. Batter should be smooth. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 375 F for 35 minutes.

Ganache:
4 oz milk chocolate 4 oz heavy whipping cream
heat the the cream until almost boiling but not yet boiling. Pour over chocolate (I used baker's chocolate disks but if you have a big chunk of chocolate chop it up). Stir until smooth and shiny.

Pour the ganache over the cake and let it cool. I let it set for about 5 minutes, then added the raspberries, then let it set until the ganache was firm. 

Deer Pâté! Trigger warning for blood...

My recipe:
1 venison liver
1 pint buttermilk
1 shallot, diced
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2-1 tbs rosemary (depends on taste)
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 tbs kosher salt
1/2 tsp five spice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/3 cup brandy
1/4 cup cream
2 tbs butter for the pan, plus 6 tbs melted butter for the puree
Prepare the liver and soak it in the buttermilk for a while--I did it for 5 hours, you can do it overnight if you care to (you might have to change out the buttermilk if it gets too bloody). Cut into smaller pieces, rinse, and pat dry. Season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tbs butter in a cast iron skillet and sweat the shallots. Add the garlic and the liver. Cook for a few minutes on medium and then add the rest of the spices. Cook for a few minutes more and then add the brandy. Cook for about 16 minutes total (my internal temp read as 158, which is safe). Take off the heat and let sit for about 20 minutes. Process in a cuisinart, slowly pouring in the cream and the rest of the butter (melted). Process until fairly smooth. Work through a sieve to achieve an even smoother texture.

Smoked Pork Tenderloin!

RUB: 

2 pork tenderloins, trimmed.
8-10 strips bacon

1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp espresso powder
2 tbs kosher salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp granulated onion/onion powser
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme

Rub it all on the pork, let sit for two hours in the fridge. Wrap the tenderloins in the bacon and place in a smoker at 220 degrees F. I used apple and hickory woods. Cook for 2 hours--30 minutes prior to finishing, glaze with a mixture of 1/3 cup honey, 2 tbs vinegar, and 1 tbs maple syrup. Brush this on the wrapped loins 30 minutes before they are timed to come out. When they are done, the internal temp should be around 150.

Stewed pork with cucumber and tomato salad

Made some pork shoulder in my pressure cooker! We are so grateful for this wedding gift, and I've been using it!

Recipe:
3-4 lb pork shoulder
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 serrano chile, diced
2 tbs. achiote (annato) seeds
1 carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 tsp cumin
4 allspice berries
1 can crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 beef or pork stock
1 tbs. kosher salt
Cut the pork into large cubes (mine were about 1.5 inches). Salt the pork and brown in pressure cooker in batches, then remove. Add the onions, peppers, carrots and celery and sweat. Add the spices Return the pork to the cooker and pour over the liquid. Seal the lid and cook for 35 minutes on medium pressure (this was according to my pressure cooker's guide--yours might vary, so double check).

Yellow Split Pea Soup in the Pressure Cooker

We are very grateful for our new pressure cooker, and for our new dishes! Thanks to those who bought us new gifts...they are definitely being used! 

Recipe:
1.5 cups yellow split peas
6 cups chicken stock. I also added some of the rib stock I made a few days ago
1 sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 small yellow onion, roughly diced
3 large garlic cloves smashed
1 to 2 strips of bacon, cut into sections (I used a cherry wood smoked bacon that is fabulous)
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp kosher salt (and you will need to add more to taste when it's done)
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
Toss your ingredients into the pressure cooker, seal, and cook for 35 minutes. The vegetables and bacon will essentially dissolve, giving it a wonderful flavor. I gave it a pass with my immersion blender just to make sure the consistency was smooth, but this soup turns out pretty smooth without much fuss. If you want to do a vegetarian version, I recommend using a high quality vegetable stock and a dash of curry powder instead of the chicken stock and bacon.

Grilled Lamb Loin Chops

 So last night I wanted to make something a little special for us, but I didn't have a huge amount of time. I opted for lamb because I found some beautiful loin chops at the store and I almost never make it at home. If you're short on time as I was, make the marinade first thing and get the lamb into it, then work on the sides in the interim.

Recipe:
for the lamb:
4 boneless lamb loin chops (you can also use bone in, I just went boneless because that's what the butcher had). Trim the excess fat (or ask the butcher to do it before you buy). Also, make sure they're at least 1 inch thick.
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 tbs sea salt or kosher salt
2 tbs rosemary leaves
1 tbs thyme leaves
the juice of one lemon
Combine the garlic, herbs, salt and lemon juice in a food processor and pulse while slowly drizzling in the oil. It should make a yummy green paste. Rub that on the lamb loin chops and marinate it in the fridge (1-4 hours, preferably closer to 4 but I was in a hurry so I only marinated them for 90 minutes). Heat your grill to high (I got mine up to about 500 degrees).  Take them out of the fridge 30 minutes before grilling, and wipe off the excess marinade. I like to give a quick dusting of salt and pepper before they hit the grill. Grill them for 5 minutes on one side, then carefully flip them and grill for another 5 minutes or until the lamb has an internal temperature of 140 degrees F. This should give you medium-rare, but grills vary so keep an eye on them. Allow them to rest for 6-8 minutes, wrapped in foil to keep them warm.

for the potatoes:
4 medium russet potatoes
kosher salt to taste
pepper to taste
2 tbs olive oil
Scrub the potatoes, cut them in half lengthwise, then cut each half into wedges. Toss in the oil and spread on a baking sheet. Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and pepper (I also used a little garlic salt at the finish). Cook at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, turning once halfway through. If your wedges are on the larger side, you may need 35 minutes.

The spinach is pretty self explanatory. I sauteed it in a little butter until it wilted down, gave it a squeeze of lemon juice and some salt. Next time I'll try to do something fancier with it!

A note regarding portions:

We had lots of leftover potatoes, and we only at 3 of the loin chops between the two of us. If you're making this recipe for two, prepare for some delicious leftovers!

Venison Burgers!

 So last night my beloved came home hungry, and I didn't have time to go shopping. Fortunately, thanks to his hunting acumen, we have venison in the freezer! It's always best to use meat before you freeze it, but when you have that much meat, well, you pretty much have to freeze it unless you want to host a dinner for 30 people. I put it to thaw in the fridge before I left for work and it was ready to go when I got home.

Recipe:

1 lb. ground venison (we had ours done at a processing place)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup minced white onion
1 egg yolk

Mix the above ingredients very gently with your hands. Try not to compress the meat very much. Form into two equal patties and put in the fridge.


For the caramelized onions and mushrooms:

Take one tbs. butter and melt it in a skillet until it starts to bubble slightly. Add 1/2 a white onion (thinly sliced) and saute on low-medium heat for about ten minutes. Sprinkle with salt to taste and lower the heat a little more, cooking about 20-30 minutes or until onions take on a nice brown color and an almost jammy consistency. Saute 1 cup mushrooms in 1/2 tbs. of olive oil (make sure you salt the mushrooms to your taste) until cooked down and no longer releasing liquid. Combine with the onions.

Grill patties for 6 minutes per side on medium-high heat (I use a gas grill, temp set at 500 degrees). Do not press down on the burgers or flip them more than once. Let rest for three minutes. Serve on your bread of choice (I used toasted sourdough but a ciabatta roll, toasted brioche or potato bread would be awesome, too).