Venison Tenderloin with Herb-Nut Crust

Ingredients

• 2 egg yolks
• 8 thyme sprigs
• 2 parsley stems
• 50 g hazelnuts
• 50 g butter
• Salt
• 40 g whole‑grain breadcrumbs (4 tbsp)
• black pepper
• 500 g pumpkin (1 medium; e.g., yellow field pumpkin)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 640 g venison tenderloin fillets (4 fillets)
• 1 Carrot
• 100 g Celery Root
• 100 g small onions
• 1 tbsp Tomato Paste
• 175 ml red wine (or game stock)
• 300 ml game stock (glass)
• 30 g amarettini
• 75 g Italian mustard seeds (glass)
• 125 ml milk (1.5 % fat)
• 1 tsp Cornstarch

Instructions

1. 1.

   Separate the eggs, using the whites elsewhere. Wash and dry thyme and parsley; remove leaves from 4 thyme sprigs and parsley, finely chop. Chop hazelnuts.

2. 2.

   Beat butter with a pinch of salt in a bowl using a hand mixer until fluffy.

3. 3.

   Stir egg yolks into the butter. Add herbs, nuts, and breadcrumbs; season with pepper.

4. 4.

   Place mixture on a sheet of plastic wrap. Cover with another sheet and press flat. Roll out to about 3 mm thickness with a rolling pin and chill for ~30 minutes until firm.

5. 5.

   Peel, deseed, and cut pumpkin into 1 cm cubes. Toss with a little salt and 1 tbsp oil on a baking tray. Bake in preheated oven at 200 °C (180 °C fan) on the middle rack for 35–40 minutes.

6. 6.

   Meanwhile, trim fat, skin, and sinews from venison fillets; set aside the trimmed sections for later use. Rinse fillets and pat dry. Peel carrot, celery root, and onions; dice into 5 mm cubes.

7. 7.

   Heat remaining oil in a pan. Season meat lightly with salt and pepper and sear briefly on each side before placing on a baking tray.

8. 8.

   Add trimmed meat pieces with carrots, onions, and celery to the pan; roast while stirring for 5–6 minutes. Add tomato paste and deglaze with red wine. Transfer everything to a pot and reduce wine by two‑thirds.

9. 9.

   Add game stock and reduce again by two‑thirds. Strain sauce through a fine sieve, season with salt and pepper, set aside.

10. 10.

    Crush amarettini. Drain mustard seeds, catching 1 tbsp of mustard syrup. Chop the seeds. Place roasted pumpkin in a pot, cover with foil if desired, keep warm.

11. 11.

    Bake venison in preheated oven at 180 °C (160 °C fan) on the middle rack for 15 minutes. Remove and rest for 10 minutes, adding any released juices to sauce if desired.

12. 12.

    Cut chilled crust mixture into four pieces about the size of the fillets. Cover each fillet with a crust piece and broil in oven on the middle rack for 4–5 minutes until golden.

13. 13.

    Meanwhile, bring sauce to a boil. Whisk cornstarch into cold water until smooth; stir into sauce. Warm milk just before it boils.

14. 14.

    Add hot milk, crushed amarettini, and mustard seeds to pumpkin. Blend with an immersion blender until smooth; season with salt and pepper. Plate pumpkin puree with venison and sauce, garnish with remaining thyme, and serve.