Tenderloin of Venison With Prunes and Armagnac Sauce

Ingredients:

• 50 g almonds
• 1 lb prunes, pits removed
• 1/2 cup Armagnac
• 4 lb venison tenderloin
• Salt
• Pepper
• 4 thyme sprigs
• 1/2 lb smoked bacon, sliced
• 2 small young onions, roughly chopped
• 1/2 lb chopped bones
• 2 cups red wine
• 1 cup water
• 3/4 lb pearl onions

Preparation:

1. Blanch almonds in boiling water, let cool in cold water. Peel and cut in half length-wise. Roast in a pan without oil, set aside.
2. Boil prunes briefly in water. Drain and mix in a bowl with the Armagnac. Let soak.
3. Preheat oven to 350-400 deg F. Wash the meat under running water and dry. Place the chopped young onions into a Dutch oven or a deep roasting pan. Rub the meat with salt and pepper and place on top of the onions. Wash the thyme sprigs and dry carefully. Tear the leaves off and rub them onto the tenderloin. Put the chopped bones and smoked bacon slices around the meat. Place in the oven and roast uncovered until medium rare, 35-50 minutes.
4. Mix red wine with water. Spoon 2-3 tbsp periodically around the meat to keep the onions and bacon from burning. Continue roasting until medium rare.
5. Peel and quarter the pearl onions. When meat is done, remove, wrap in aluminum foil and keep warm. Place the roasting pan over 2 burners on the stove. Discard the bones. Cut the bacon into small pieces and fry along with the quartered pearl onions. Add any remaining wine. Bring to a boil and shortly simmer. Filter through a sieve, pour into a saucepan and mix with the prunes and Armagnac. Season with salt and pepper and, if needed, thicken with a 1-2 tsp of flour mixed in a small amount of warm water.
6. Slice the meat into steaks, arrange on a serving platter and serve. Serve sauce separately.

Side dish ideas: