Instructions:
Ingredients for Pheasant
- 1 c (225 ml) grappa;
- 1–2 oz (30–60 g) fresh thyme;
- 3 bay leaves;
- Salt;
- Black pepper;
- 3 whole pheasants;
- 1⁄2 bottle Lemberger or other red wine;
- 3 c (675 ml) veal stock;
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) Dijon mustard;
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) molasses;
- Salt;
- Coarsely ground black pepper;
- Cornstarch.
- Ingredients for German dumplings
- 6 oz (170 g) bacon, small dice;
- 3 oz (85 g) onions, finely diced;
- 4–5 kaiser rolls, thinly sliced;
- 3⁄4 c (170 ml) milk;
- 3 eggs;
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) finely chopped parsley;
- Salt;
- Pepper;
- Breadcrumbs as needed;
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) butter.
- To make the dumplings, cook the bacon until crisp and drain well. Sauté the onions in the bacon fat until tender. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Combine the bacon, onions, and rolls. Soak them in the lukewarm milk for 30 minutes. Add the eggs, parsley, and salt and pepper to taste and mix well. If the mixture is a little too wet, add some breadcrumbs to give it the same consistency as a bread dressing for Thanksgiving. Divide the mixture into two equal portions. Roll each portion into tube shapes in clean cloth napkins. Tie the napkin ends so that the bread dumpling tubes are evenly distributed and firm.
- Carefully put the napkin tubes into salted, barely simmering water. Cook for about 25 minutes. Remove from the cooking liquid and allow to cool completely. Once cold, unwrap the napkins and place the cooked dumpling tubes on a cutting board. Slice them into 1⁄2-inch-thick medallions. Melt the butter and sauté the sliced bread dumplings until golden brown just prior to serving.
- For the pheasant, combine the grappa, thyme, bay leaves, and salt and pepper to taste. Marinate the pheasant in this mixture for several hours or overnight. Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C). Remove the pheasant from the marinade and season the cavity with additional salt and pepper. Place in a roasting pan and roast for 1 to 11⁄2 hours until the meat is tender, the internal juices run clear, and the internal temperature reaches 165 F (75 C). Remove the roasted pheasant from the pan and keep warm. Deglaze the roasting pan with the red wine. Add the stock and reduce by half. Season the liquid with the mustard, the molasses, and salt and pepper to taste. Thicken the sauce to a jus lie consistency with a little cornstarch mixed in water. Split the pheasants in half and remove all of the interior bones, leaving only the outer bones of the leg and wing. Serve one-half of a pheasant as a main course portion; cut the birds into quarters for a smaller portion. Serve each pheasant portion atop one or more sautéed slices of dumpling. Drizzle each portion with sauce.
6 servings (12 in a multicourse menu)
