I made all five of the dishes from Word Walkers: Stolen Secret this week. Check out the full recipes!
Rabbit Stew
INGREDIENTS
1 head of garlic
1 1/2 lbs mixed mushrooms
4 tbsp butter
1 rabbit (I used 5 chicken thighs as a substitute)
3 large shallots, chopped
1 cup sherry or white wine
3 cups chicken stock
1 tbsp fresh thyme, or 2 teaspoons dried
1 large parsnip, peeled and chopped into large pieces
Salt
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Step 1 Heat a thick-bottomed pot on high heat for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms. Stirring continuously, dry sauté the mushrooms until they release their water. Turn the heat down to medium-high. Scrape up any mushroom bits off the bottom of the pan. Salt the mushrooms lightly. When the mushroom liquid is mostly gone, remove them to a bowl.
Step 2 Add the butter to the pot. When the butter melts, turn the heat down to medium. Pat the rabbit pieces dry and place in the pan. Work in batches if you need to, do not crowd the pan. Brown the pieces well on all sides. Remove the rabbit pieces from the pot and set aside.
Step 3 Increase the the heat to medium-high and add the shallots to the pot. Sauté until the shallots are nicely wilted, about 3 minutes. Stir from time to time. Sprinkle salt over everything. Add garlic.
Step 4 Add the sherry or white wine to the shallots in the pot. Scrape off any browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Let the sherry boil down by half. Add the mushroom-roasted garlic mixture and the stock and stir to combine.
Step 5 Add the thyme, mushrooms, rabbit, and the parsnips and bring everything to a bare simmer.
Simmer gently for 90 minutes. Stir in the parsley.
Creamy Potato Soup
INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 leek, chopped
1 3/4 cups Chicken Broth or Vegetable Broth
3 medium potato, peeled and cubed
2 cups heavy cream
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Step 1 Heat the butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and leek and cook until tender.
Step 2 Stir the broth and potatoes in the saucepan and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
Step 3 Place half of the broth mixture and half of the milk in a blender or food processor. Cover and blend until smooth. Repeat with the remaining broth mixture and remaining milk. Return to the saucepan and heat through. Season to taste. Sprinkle with the parsley before serving.
Roasted Boar
INGREDIENTS
PORK:
2 to 3 lbs boneless pork loin or pork sirloin roast, trimmed of large fat pockets (I replaced this with beef chuck)
1 tsp ground sage or poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 clove garlic, finely minced or crushed
1/2 cup water or chicken broth
GLAZE:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp soy sauce
Step 1 In a small bowl, combine the sage, salt, pepper and garlic. Rub the spices all over the roast.
Step 2 For the slow cooker: Place the pork roast in the slow cooker and add the 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
For the Instant Pot/Pressure cooker: Place the pork roast in the insert of the Instant Pot or other pressure cooker. Increase the water or broth to 1 cup and add to the Instant Pot. Secure the lid and cook on high pressure for 60 minutes. Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes before quickly releasing the rest of the pressure.
Step 3 Whisk together all the ingredients for the glaze in a small saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the glaze thickens, 2-3 minutes. Season to taste with a pinch of salt and pepper, if needed/desired. Keep warm until ready to use.
Step 4 Remove the pork from the slow cooker or Instant Pot. Shred the meat into pieces and place on a platter or plate. Drizzle the glaze over the pork and serve immediately.
Venison Custard
INGREDIENTS
1 lb ground venison (or ground beef, but it needs to have nearly no fat content)
2 strips bacon
1 cup water
1/2 cup wine
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
Pinch saffron (I mixed equal parts paprika and turmeric for the same effect)
1/4 tsp salt
6 dates, pitted and chopped
6 prunes, chopped
1/4 tsp ground ginger
Dash of lemon juice
4 eggs
Step 1 Cut bacon into small pieces and place in saucepan with venison, water, and wine. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
Step 2 Mix the dates, prunes, ginger, cinnamon, saffron, and lemon juice together and allow to marinate.
Step 3 Remove the meat from the broth, place into an unbaked pie crust along with the fruit. Beat eggs together with cooking liquid and pour into pie.
Step 4 Cover with top crust and bake at 350°F until done - about an hour. Vent upper pie crust with holes near center.
Fruit & Cheese
This recipe isn’t much of a recipe. In my video I used grapes, apples, smoked Gouda, and dubliner, but most any combo of fruit and cheese is going to taste really good.