Ingredients
Venison meatballs
- 2 oz fresh crusty french or Italian bread, diced into tiny pieces
- ½ cup warm water
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 shallot, minced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ⅛ tsp cayenne pepper
- 28 ounces ground venison
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh sage
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- ½ cup honey-fermented cranberries or cranberry sauce or jam
- ½ cup sauerkraut, drained and finely chopped
- ½ tsp kosher salt
Apple Sage Orzo
- 2 tbsp butter
- 8 sage leaves
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 cup orzo
- 1 cup dry hard apple cider
- 1 rosemary sprig
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- 1 cup fresh kale chopped
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
- freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- For the meatballs, preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a large baking pan with a piece of parchment paper.
- Place the diced bread in a large mixing bowl and pour the warm water over top. Let soak for about 10 minutes.
- Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the butter. Once melted, add the minced shallot and garlic. Cook for a minute or so until softened. Stir in the cayenne. Turn off the heat.
- Add the ground venison, sage, parsley, salt, cranberry, sauerkraut and butter-shallot mixture to the bowl of bread. Mix until incorporated.
- Using your hands, shape the meat mix into approximately 18 (2 oz) meatballs.
- Place them onto the parchment paper lined pan. Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake on the top rack of the oven for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned and cooked through.
- For the orzo, place a medium shallow pot over medium heat. Add the butter and let it melt and start to simmer.
- Add the sage leaves. Let them crisp as the butter begins to brown. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the sage to a paper towel lined plate.
- Add the shallots to the butter and season with a pinch of salt. Cook for about 2 minutes
- Stir in the dry orzo pasta, coating it in the shallot butter.
- Pour in the hard apple cider and add the sprig of rosemary.
- Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Stir in the chicken stock. Bring to a simmer again, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook for about 6-8 more minutes, stirring often.
- Add in the heavy cream, kale, and parmesan. Let the cream simmer while the kale wilts and parmesan melts, stirring continuously. Season with salt to taste. Remove the rosemary sprig.
- Serve the venison meatballs over the orzo. Garnish with the butter fried sage, freshly cracked black pepper, and more parmesan.
