by Phoebe Howell

Created on: February 28, 2008

Growing up on a rather unique farm afforded me the opportunity to acquaint myself with a variety of animals, from the raising of them to their preparation. At any given time, you could find turkey, quail, New Zealand White Rabbit, pheasant and venison in our deep freezer. I learned to skin, clean and prepare each animal alongside my Uncle and My Father. My mother prepared each countless times and I would listen with a vague ear as she ticked off the steps to the individual dishes, but did not participate in creating them. From the experience, I garnered a taste for wild game and the ability to converse knowledgeably about a wide variety of subjects relating to it, which is unusual for a girl my age.

Also an avid cook, I gained a reputation in my small southern town for being creative and clever when it came to food. So when the Captain of our local Police Department, a good friend of mine, offered me a hind quarter of raw venison and asked me to cook it, my pride refused to say no. I found myself compelled to bluff my way through, in order to keep my standing and save face amongst the 'big boys'. Thus, I found myself confronted with the problem most people face when trying wild game for the first time: what on earth do I do with this big chunk of weird meat?

Granted, I had more experience than most when it came to such things. But, the fact remained that I was at a loss with how to actually create something edible. I managed to pull the entire endeavor off without a hitch and learned several valuable lessons for the experience, the most important being that it is much less complicated than it appears. Since then, I have experimented with a variety of creatures and developed a healthy selection of recipes that have pleased even my most discriminating critic: my five year old son.

Venison
It is important to clean your meat thoroughly. Venison has a unique white membrane surrounding the meat that needs to be removed prior to cooking. Something to keep in mind when cooking venison is that the meat is generally drier, due to the fact that they do not carry the amount of fat that domesticated cattle do. You must compensate for that, or your creation will turn out tough and stringy. This recipe will work for any selection of venison you choose.

The Infamous Venison Roast
1. Preheat your oven to 275* degrees. Place your roast in a shallow baking pan.
2. With a sharp knife, carefully cut a series of inch deep slits from the front to the back, all around the roast.
3. Fill the

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