Spit-Jack Pumpkin

SAVORY

Apr 3

Wild Mushrooms, Blackberry Preserves, Venison Jus, Sweet Herbs, Pumpkin Seeds

Chef Jason Bond of Bondir | Cambridge, MA
Yield: 4 small servings

This dish was selected as a winner in the Breaking New Ground recipe contest in partnership with Wines from Argentina. Chef Jason Bond was inspired by Petit Verdot, Finca, Decero, Remolinos Vineyard, Agrelo, Mendoza, Argentina, 2013 as a pairing.

This Decero 2013 Petit Verdot has aromas and flavors that remind me of the mountains in Wyoming where I grew up. There were aromas of forest and minerals, flavors of garrigue and sage brush, grilled game fat or jerky, black pepper, and the bright zip of dark berries or even schisandra. I wanted to cook a dish that would reinforce the character of this wine, but still allow the wine to speak for itself. The dish gets its savoriness not from excessive fat or meat, but from the slow concentration of flavors and caramelization. And textural interest comes from the dry edges closer to the fire, the "burnt-ends" of vegetable cooking. — Chef Jason Bond

INGREDIENTS

1 small pumpkin (Futsu or Kuri squash), washed
2 cups wild mushrooms, cleaned
Salt
2 sprigs sweet herbs (calamint or bronze fennel leaf)
2 cups rich venison jus, fat skimmed and reserved
1 cup wild blackberry preserves
Crisp pumpkin seeds

METHOD

Build a hardwood fire. Truss pumpkin with butcher’s twine and hang about 12 inches in front of the fire. Place a pan underneath the pumpkin with the mushrooms, seasoned with salt. Baste the pumpkin with the fat reserved from your jus. The fat will help the pumpkin roast more evenly. As the pumpkin cooks in front of the fire, the mushrooms will collect the fat and roast at the same time. Roast pumpkin for 1 hour or until tender. Rotate the mushrooms to roast evenly. In the last five minutes add the herb sprigs. Allow to infuse and remove before serving. When the pumpkin is tender, cut into quarters and remove the seeds and reserve. To a large skillet, add roasted pumpkin and season with salt and fat. Toss until crisp and brown, about 10 minutes. To a small saucepan, add rich venison jus and keep warm. Onto a serving plate, place one pumpkin quarter seasoned with salt and top with a quarter of the mushrooms. Drizzle with the warm venison jus. Add a small dollop of the berry preserves to each plate. Sprinkle over some crisp roasted pumpkin seeds and serve warm.

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