From Denny: Louisiana is known as the Sportsman's Paradise. No wonder the food here is so good! Both hunters and fishermen are known as wonderful cooks here; just the average guy cooks well.
This week was a cause for food celebration and those who love to dine well. There was a cooking competition at the American Culinary Federation of Greater Baton Rouge’s 25th annual Culinary Classic and these folks pulled out all the stops on the fancy tasty food.
Today's recipe took the Best in Show top honors for the happy cash prize of $3,000. Scott McCue was the winner; he is the executive sous chef at Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton, Louisiana. He is a native of Arizona and has been working at the casino for thirteen years now. McCue says he "researches trends, tries different sauces and thinks about ingredient combinations in creating new dishes year-round. Competition focuses the effort, and it’s fun as well as challenging.”
Whether you have a hunter in your family or just want to try your hand at cooking low-fat high mineral dense venison this fall this is a gorgeous recipe to try. All of these layer recipes are simple and quick to make. This would make a beautiful Sunday dinner for guests or family.
You could also try this with a good cut of pork chop too. And, if you and your family is like mine and don't care for liver dishes, skip the liver (foie gras) as it would be awesome without it too, reducing the expense of the meal. After all, this was created for a showy competition. Enjoy!
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Bacon Larded Venison Tenderloin Layered With:
* Seared Foie Gras
* Granny Smith Apple Fries in a Cognac Cream Sauce
* Balsamic Pomegranate Reduction
From: Scott McCue, Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton
Serves: 10
Venison
Ingredients:
10 (6-oz.) venison filets
5 each strips of bacon, frozen and cut into ΓΈ–inch strips, 2 inches long
Kosher salt
Black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
Directions:
1. Use a thin wire to make incisions into the venison large enough to push the frozen bacon strips through, push 6 to 8 pieces of bacon into each filet.
2. Season thee filets with the salt and pepper. Heat oil and sear venison on all sides. Cook in a 350-degree oven until desired doneness.
Foie Gras
Ingredients:
10 (1-1/2–oz.) slices cleaned foie gras
Kosher salt
Black pepper
Directions:
Heat a skillet over high heat; season both sides of the foie gras with salt and pepper and flash sear on both sides.
Granny Smith Apple Fries
Ingredients:
2 whole eggs
2 tbls. cold water
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch strips
1 cup all-purpose flour
Fine-ground Japanese bread crumbs
Directions:
Blend eggs and water, set aside. Coat apples with flour then toss in egg wash and coat with bread crumbs. Fry in 350-degree fryer until golden.
Balsamic Pomegranate Reduction
Ingredients:
1/2 cup pomegranate syrup
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar, reduced by half
Directions:
Simply combine both ingredients and mix well.
Cognac Cream Sauce
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups cognac
3 cups demi-glace
3 cups heavy cream
2 tbls. cracked peppercorns
Salt, to taste
Directions:
Heat the cognac in a medium saucepot and burn off the alcohol, add the demi-glace and heavy cream, let reduce by half, add the peppercorns and season with salt. Reserve warm.
