49: Open-Faced Venison Burger / Roasted Bell Pepper & Horseradish Cream Sauce / Mushroom Grean Beans

Oh man, I’m stuffed. This is definitely a hearty meal, but I think the flavors and the balance work really well together. We skipped lunch today after a big breakfast of pancakes with fresh strawberries, mascarpone cheese, and maple syrup as well as scrambled eggs and bacon. Two large meals is not normally our style, but it’s the way the cards played out today. We’ll probably have some cheese later tonight.

Anyways, the succulent and rich flavor of venison is paired with the exquisite sweetness of a roasted red bell pepper, mild and tangy fresh spinach leaves, toasted artisan bread, and a little spicy horseradish cream sauce (needs four hours to chill in fridge). I’ve had a ton of green beans on hand lately for some reason, so I added green beans with minced mushrooms caps to complement the meal. The flavors are wonderful together, but there are a few things I would do differently on this dinner. I would probably make the slices of bread thinner and the venison patties a little thinner as well – makes for a better picture. No, really, thinner patties and bread would increase the flavor profile in your mouth. I bought whole wheat bread from the local bakery, but I ended up using fresh bread that my roommate made earlier in the day.

We drank a French blend of grenache and cinsault with dinner. Grenache adds dark berry jammy-ness while the cinsault adds smoky, earthy undertones. The label is Canet Valette from Saint-Chinian. Don’t sleep on this wine.

Ingredients and Directions:

1 lb ground venison (can substitute beef)

2 tablespoons each of fresh rosemary and sage

4 pieces of thick bread (can use baguette)

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large red bell pepper

Handful of spinach leaves

1/2 pound of green beans

4 large white mushroom caps, diced

1/2 cup sour cream

1/8 cup grated fresh horseradish

Splash of white wine vinegar

Dallop of tablespoon Dijon mustard

Cooking spray

Salt and pepper

For horseradish cream sauce, combine sour cream, horseradish, salt, pepper, mustard, and vinegar in a bowl. Whisk for a few minutes, cover, and refrigerate for at least four hours.

Preheat broiler. Roast a whole bell pepper over high heat on a stove burner, turning as needed to get the entire skin roasted. You want the skin to get black and blistering. Once roasted, place pepper in an airtight container for 30 minutes to build up steam, which allow the skin to slide off easily. While bell pepper is steaming, form your patties with the herbs and a generous amount of salt and pepper.  You should have time left for the bell pepper to steam, so toast bread slices with a squirt of cooking spray on each side for 2 minutes per side in broiler, set aside when done. Slide skin off bell pepper and cut into four pieces, removing the core and seeds, set aside.

Heat a cast iron plate over high heat and an additional pan over medium heat – warm both for five minutes. Add patties to cast iron plate, reduce heat to medium high and cook for four minutes. After two minutes, add green beans to the other pan. Flip patties to cook for an additional four minutes while occasionally stirring green beans. Add mushrooms to green beans two minutes prior to completion of patties. Build your open-faced burger and serve your veggies.

Enjoy!