Venison Wild Rice Soup

We are not hunters in general. This year my son decided he wanted to learn how to hunt. Luckily, we have a few good friends that are avid 'hunters'. He is learning many lessons about conservation and land management in the process. Well, he also got his first deer this fall. That means, we have a bit of venison to eat. I have never cooked with venison before, so this year will be a year of learning and experimenting in the kitchen.

So, tonight I made venison wild rice soup. I think it turned out relatively good. My hubby liked it too. As for kid friendly, my middle child that is most adventurous of the 3 ate it well. My son ate just the meat - with the sauce wiped off. My youngest wouldn't touch any of it (yes, she is going to be hungry tonight). In general, my kids are rather picky, so you will have to judge kid friendliness of this recipe.

Family rating: 3.25 of 5

WARNING: you may want to half this recipe - we had a ton left over. I will be cutting it in half next go round. But, if you have a big crowd, go for it!

2 lbs venison stew meat
4 cups chicken (or beef) stock
4 cups water
1 package long grain wild rice
1 cup wild rice
3 TBSP onion flakes
2.5 cups dry milk
2 TBSP corn starch
3oz cream cheese
4 oz light sour cream
salt/pepper to taste (~1 tsp each)
garlic salt to taste (~2 tsp)

In the beginning...

I just threw everything (expect the last 4 ingredients) into a large pot, mix. Bring contents to a boil, reduce heat to a low simmer for 1-1.5 hours. You can add some more water or stock if you want to thin it some. Cook a little longer if you want it thicker. At the end, I put in the last 4 ingredients. The meat was wonderfully tender. I only cooked for about an hour. If I let it cook a bit longer, the wild rice would have curled nicely and had been more tender. You may need to adjust the liquid. Next time...

The end result...

Parmesan Knots

This recipe is from the Frank family. If you are interested in a recipe that is not all sugar, you are in luck! These little babies are always requested by my husband. They really could be used any time of year - but for no specific reason, we only make them at Christmas time. Most of the Frank family wonders why, but no one ever breaks from tradition. Well, this year, I broke from tradition! I just made some this past weekend - and they were devoured.  


Recipe:

3 cans Pillsbury buttermilk biscuits

1 1/2 cups oil

1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon oregano ( I sometimes use less if I'm using the powdered)

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon parsley flakes

Cut each biscuit into thirds.

Roll and stretch each piece into long round strip and tie into a knot.

Bake as package directs...until golden brown.  As soon as the knots are out of the oven put them into the oil mixture to soak up the flavors.

Drain then on a cookie cooling rack set on a paper bag lined jelly roll pan.

These can be made ahead and frozen.

To serve:  Warm in the microwave or they can be reheated in the oven at 350* for 10-15 minutes.