Cooking Wild in Kate's Kitchen

Well-cooked game is healthy. It feeds the body and the soul. I do not myself hunt for deer and venison, since my preferences favor the bird on the wing in flight from a pointing dog. But I join my friends at the venison table when invited, and we'll get some venison at Savernor's in honor of Julia Child once in a while. It is the right thing to do. My best hunting friends are gourmet cooks. It is the right and best natural solution. I am not ready at my age to give into the common neurosis of the day about meats, etc. Although I do agree that we eat way too much corporate food that is poorly fed and poorly cultivated. It deprives us not only of our nutrition but also of our sense of what it is to be alive ourselves. I am increasingly supportive of the whole/fresh foods movement, and I think there is no substitute for good game that has lived in the relative wild and has been cared for not only for the food value but also for their spirit and beauty. This book is full of nice ideas, and can provide many hours of joy and pleasure in preparing that special meal at a special time. My copy came from a good friend who is a gourmet cook. In fact, as I reflect on it, all my shooting friends are gourmets. If you cannot eat what you kill, then you are not right for the world of guns, dogs, a glass of wine and a day in the field. If you cannot see the humanity and care in all, you are also losing your connections with the touchstones of life. My family has lived on a nice farm in Ohio for about the last 200 years. They raised, loved, cared for and lived side by side with -- and then off of -- the things they could raise or slaughter with their hands. All of them are great cooks and all of them are sane and upright human beings. When I sit down to a gourmet dinner with the game or catch of the day, I celebrate my ancestors and often wish we could all return to the simpler days, free of the maddening crowds and the neurotic tendencies of our current age.

My husband and I both hunt so needless to say we have a lot of venison in our freezer. This book is great for needing new receipes. The cost is well worth what you get. It's fun to make some of these for friends and share your receipes with them. It will definately make the weary love venison!