A game day

Out of reverence for the natural resources we enjoy in the Upper Midwest, I've always considered the careful preparation and joyful consumption of game to be an integral part of the hunt. A kind of final tribute to the hunted.

This springs from a long-ago admonition from my father that "we eat what we kill."

This has suited me just fine through the years with the possible exception of my first (and last) farm yard pigeon hunt.

If your freezer looks like mine, it's time to dig out that prized venison loin, those October ducks, the last of the roosters and that Canada goose that's hogging all the cold space. Turkey season is just ahead, and the walleye opener soon follows. It's time to free up some refrigerated room. It's time for a game feast!

The menu

We're going to warm up our guests with an apple-wood-smoked salmon hors d'oeuvre.

The main entrees will include buttermilk breast of Canada goose, brandied fillets of duck, pheasant cacciatore, and wine-braised venison loin steak. Side dishes include mulled orange segments and a wild rice/venison sausage casserole. For the true trenchermen we'll follow all this with a lime sorbet.

Start with smoked salmon

Dig out a salmon fillet left over from your trip to Lake Michigan. Or, lacking that, visit the seafood counter at your local supermarket. We need a slab about 14 inches long for this crowd-pleasing hors d'oeuvre.

A couple of hours before our guests are due we're going to melt about a quarter-stick of butter in a sauté-sized pan. Press a larger clove of garlic and chop some fresh basil into the melted butter and sauté. Don't burn the basil; we want it still green as we paint this glaze onto the flesh side of the fillet.

If you don't own a water smoker appliance, you should invest about $120 for one. They allow us to do magical things with fish and fowl alike. I've owned a Meco smoker for about 20 years. I favor the electric vs. charcoal version because I can easily adjust the temperature to suit the need.

The feast

Canada goose

Waterfowl hunters complain to me that, no matter what they do, they can't make goose taste good. To these complaints I ask -- ever heard of marinating?

We marinate entrees to moisturize, flavorize or tenderize. Because goose breasts, especially from older birds, tend to be tough and, like most game, dry, we're going to marinate them first in buttermilk: 48 hours for a yearling and three full days for older birds.

After thawing the breast fillets, soak them in salt water for two hours to draw the blood out. Then cover them in a non-reactive container (Tupperware or zip-lock bag) with buttermilk and refrigerate. This is going to tenderize the meat to achieve what I call flying filet mignon.

On the day of the dinner, take the breasts from the buttermilk, rinse well in cold water and, 21/2 hours before dinner time, immerse them in a flavorizing marinade. Save some marinade for sauce.

Thirty minutes before dinner, pull the breasts from the marinade and wrap in thick bacon, pinning with tooth picks. Now cook over a hot charcoal fire (direct method) for fifteen minutes a side (total 30 minutes), turning once. Slice thin like London broil, drizzle with remaining, warmed marinade and serve.

Pheasant, venison, wild rice

Cooking pheasant pieces cacciatore-style is good for this meal because it introduces lots of veggies, especially tomato, into what is obviously a meat-heavy menu. I also have included a less laborious stir-fried pheasant alternate recipe on the website.

The key to success with the venison is the choice of the loin steak, the 24-hour marinade (see accompanying recipe) and cooking to no more than 145 degrees. Use a meat thermometer. The cardinal sin in preparing all game and fish is overcooking.

Game feast

If all this seems like a lot of food, remember this is a celebration -- of hunts past and future, of kindred spirits around the same table, and especially of the wonderful graces of nature's bounty the Upper Midwest affords.