Tracy Schmidt’s New "Venison Wisdom" Cookbook

by Steve Sorensen
(Originally published in the Warren Times Observer, October 16, 2010.)

This cookbook will renew
your appreciation for venison.

Venison fans, grab your forks! Just in time for deer season, a new cookbook is ready to make this year’s deer the best you ever ate. WHAT? You don’t much care for venison? Get ready to change your mind.

Tracy Schmidt has been cooking venison for decades. Despite being married to Dan Schmidt, editor of Deer and Deer Hunting magazine, she has a choice. She brings home her share of the venison, fries it up in a pan (or otherwise produces culinary treats), and never ever lets you forget that venison is as tasty, as healthy, and as nutritious as any meat you can get.

Venison Wisdom is organized into two sections – Tracy’s personal top 100 recipes, plus another 100 she calls “the best of the rest” including over 30 from family, friends and others – a list that reads like the “Who’s Who of Deer Hunters”: Charlie Alsheimer, Mark Drury, Ted Nugent, Bob Robb and many more. Each recipe is keyed to roasts, steaks, chops – whatever type of cut you’re cooking.

The two main sections each contains five chapters so you can focus on what you like best: Herbed, Seasoned & Spiced; Mushroom-Enhanced; Soups & Stews; Sweet & Savory; and Tomato-Based. Tracy offers something for every taste. If you’ve wondered how to use venison in pizza, quesadillas, stir-fry, wraps and more, you’ll find great ideas. And, every recipe uses ordinary ingredients, so you can make a meal on short notice.

One of the interesting features of the book is what I call “venison factoids” at the bottom of nearly every page. They’re fun to read, and describe everything from secrets to the best venison flavor to the important place of venison in man’s history. Plus Dan Schmidt offers a chapter on “Bloodtrailing and Equipment Tips,” essential to recovering the groceries after the shot. And, this book has what every good book needs for easy reference – an index.

The plastic comb binding means the book will rest flat on your counter for easy referencing during use. If you don’t have a good venison cookbook, here’s the one to buy. And if you do, give this one a try – it will renew your appreciation for venison. Order online from Tracy's own website at VenisonWisdom.com, or get it at your local bookstore.

While you’re waiting for it to arrive, you have Tracy’s permission to sample a couple of recipes: