Reindeer, Venison or Beef With Mushrooms and Berry Sauce - beef

Method

• To make the sauce, combine the stock, shallot and 1 cup of the cranberry juice in a small saucepan.
• Simmer until reduced to about 1/3 cup.
• It will be very thick and syrupy.
• Set aside.
• In another small pan, combine the remaining 3/4 cup cranberry juice, lemon juice and sugar and bring to a boil.
• Add the whole shallots, season with salt and pepper, cover the pan and simmer until the shallots are tender, about 15 minutes.
• Set aside.
• Saute the celery in the butter until crisp-tender.
• Add the celery to the pan with the reduced stock, along with the whole shallots and the juice they cooked in.
• Set aside.
• To make the meat, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat and add half the mushrooms and half the shallots.
• Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until all the moisture from the mushrooms has evaporated, about 10 minutes.
• Transfer to a bowl.
• Wipe out the skillet, melt the remaining butter and season and cook the remaining mushrooms and shallots.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• (If using beef fillet, which is much larger and thicker than reindeer or venison, have your butcher tie it and cut it into at least 2 sections.)
• Using the handle of a heavy wooden spoon, make a tunnel as wide as possible through each piece of meat.
• Fill with the mushroom mixture.
• Season the meat well with salt and pepper.
• Heat the vegetable oil in a large ovenproof skillet or roasting pan over high heat.
• Sear the meat on all sides.
• Transfer to the oven and roast until medium rare (about 8 minutes for reindeer and venison; longer for the beef fillet).
• Remove and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
• To finish the sauce, dissolve the cornstarch in 1 tablespoon of water and add it and the cream to the saucepan.
• Simmer for a few minutes, stir in the berries and season with salt and pepper.
• Thin with more stock if necessary.
• Slice the meat and serve it with the sauce.