COOK: Borș de burechiușe (Moldovan dumplings in soup)

Working our way through the wine advent calendar and daily surprise food pairings (last night was this cabernet from Moldova) as well as the two venison hams from the freezer I just broke down: Two sirloins, two bottom rounds, a top round, and grind bagged and back in the freezer, a pot of roasted game stock simmering on the back burner, and in the fridge, the other top round cut into these thick steaks, marinating in red wine, garlic, olive oil and a few grinds of black pepper, and some smaller off-cuts for stir fry or stroganoff later this week.

All of that made a great foundation for a simple, hearty meal- rare top round steak, flash pan-seared and a simple pan sauce reduction (brown stock, half and half, Dijon, dried mushroom powder, and butter) with roasted root veggies (baby gold potatoes, carrots, and radishes), fresh potato bread, and my interpretation of Borș de burechiușe- Moldovan dumplings filled with wild mushrooms and cooked in a tangy savory broth.

Traditionally stuffed with wild boletes and served for the holidays, these are filled with a mixture of both frozen and pickled foraged chicken of the woods, some dried bolete, and cabbage, with a broth made from the venison stock and liquid from the filling, made tangy with a bit of mushroom pickle brine (since I didn’t have the traditional fermented bran water lying about). If not authentic, they were pretty tasty nonetheless!