Cocoa Spaetzle with Rack of Venison
Ingredients
Spice Mix*
- 4 tbsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp allspice
- 2 tbsp caraway
- 1 tbsp clove
Cocoa Spaetzle Dough
- 2 cups milk
- 1 tbsp Spice Mix*
- 2 tbsp salt (kosher salt preferred)
- 6-7 tbsp cocoa powder (Valrhonna recommended)
- 12 eggs
- 6 cups flour
For the Venison
- 1 or 2 venison chops per person
- salt
- white pepper
- canola oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- rosemary sprig
How-to
Make Spice Mix*
- Toast the cinnamon, allspice, caraway seeds and cloves in the oven or a skillet until aromatic
- Grind with a spice grinder or mortar & pestle and set aside
Make Spaetzle
- Add milk, spice mix, salt & cocoa powder to a blender and blend
- Pour mixture in a bowl and whisk in 12 room-temperature eggs
- In a separate bowl add sifted flour and make a well in the bottom of the bowl
- Whisk dry ingredients into wet mixture for about 5 minutes until you can feel resistance (you can also use a food processor for this part of the process)
- Transfer dough to a smaller container, cover for about 20 minutes at room temperature to let the flour completely incorporate with the eggs
Sear Venison
- Preheat oven to 500º
- Heat an empty oven-safe pan on the stove at medium to high heat
- Cut 1 or 2 venison chops per serving, generously salt & pepper both sides
- Heat canola oil to a shimmer - shake pan back and forth to coat the pan
- Place venison in pan and gently press
- Pan sear venison on one side on high heat for a couple of minutes until you get a nice sear on one side (searing both sides will dry out the meat). Don't move the venison - let it be! Give it a gentle press to help it along
- Add 2 tbsp of butter to the pan
- Place sprig of rosemary on top of the venison
- Put in 500º oven for a few minutes
- Remove from oven and from hot skillet, pour juices from sauté pan over venison and let rest briefly in brown butter
Cook & Sauté Spaetzle
- After dough has rested, place perforated pan or colander on top of pot of boiling salted water
- In small batches, press dough gently through the holes into the pot
- Cook for one minute until the Spaetzle floats to the top of the pot
- Remove Spaetzle from boiling water, drain and put in ice water; drain again when cool
- Add canola oil to hot pan
- Pool oil to one side of pan and add Spaetzle to the other side of the pan to avoid getting splattered
- Immediately salt the Spaetzle
- Add about 1 tbsp of butter if Spaetzle looks dry
- Sauté Spaetzle until golden brown
- Add ¼ tsp of the remaining Spice Mix and ½ tsp of cocoa to re-introduce flavors
Plate the Dish
- Plate the Spaetzle and Venison with your sides of choice