I decided to cook something a little different for tonight. I haven’t cooked this in quite a while. My sister-in-law cooked this many (many) years ago while I was staying with them during deer hunting season. It is called Venison Tenderloin Antrim from a cookbook by Jim Hayes. The cookbook is called “How to Cook a Deer… and Other Critters”.
The recipe comes from the owner of the Antrim Lodge in the Catskill Mountain town of Roscoe, NY. I have cooked this with both venison and elk. I am using elk this time. (That is what was in the freezer.)
The recipe is as follows.
1 or 2 tenderloins (vension or elk)
¼ lb of butter
3 or 4 garlic cloves, minced (I used more—I like garlic)
1 or 2 ounces of bourbon (I used Maker’s Mark)
1 or 2 ounces of red wine (I used some 14 Hands Cabernet Sauvignon)
2 tablespoons of currant jelly (I used grape jelly)
Garlic salt
Ground black pepper
Toast points
Here are my players.
I decided to take this recipe to a different level. I smoked the elk tenderloin using BD Hickory pellets. The tenderloin was rubbed with some Annie’s Roasted Garlic EVOO and seasoned with garlic salt and black pepper. Onto the MAK it goes.
While this is getting happy with a little hickory smoke, I sliced a zucchini, sliced some baby portabellas, and sliced a red onion for the veggie part of the meal. A little Annie’s ( I love this stuff) with some Desert Gold Rub, and onto the grill.
I pulled the tenderloin after an hour of smoke and then turned the grill up to 350 to finish the veggies. The rest of the meal is back in the kitchen. I fired up the black iron frying pan to get it really hot. The butter goes into the hot pan followed by the minced garlic. The elk tenderloin medallions go next. They are only in the pan about ½ minute per side, max. These need to be on the rare side.
In the meantime I have toasted some bread and cut into toast points. They go on a well-and-tree platter and stay warm in a 250 degree oven. The elk tenderloin gets added to the platter and back into the oven while I make the pan sauce. Now comes the best part. This sauce really makes this an outstanding meal. Reduce the heat, add the wine, bourbon, and grape jelly mixing well with the burnt butter and any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Pour over the elk and serve.
Here is my plate. The veggies were very good, too.
I must say that the meal is as I remembered it. That pan sauce really made the meal.
You can’t have a meal without dessert. Again I wanted something a bit different. I have made ice cream out of coffee creamers before, but now they have come out with one that is out of the park – Almond Joy flavored creamer. In addition to the creamer, they now make little Almond Joy Pieces. I had to use them, too.
Into my ice cream maker with some crushed Almond Joy Pieces. These pieces actually changed the color to a bluish tint. The taste was right on!
Here is a bowl of ice cream with a few extra Pieces. What’s not to like!
I haven’t done a pan sauce in a while. There are lots of variations on pan sauces that would complement this meal. I may have to try them.
Art
