VENISON SAUSAGE CASSEROLE  (serves 4)

Ingredients :

600g venison sausages

2 medium onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 large carrots, roughly chopped

1 large potato, cubed

1 stick celery, chopped

1 tsp dried thyme

2 or 3 bay leaves

150g chestnut mushrooms sliced thickly

1 rounded tsp wholegrain mustard

100ml red wine

750ml veal or ham stock

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Optional :

1 tbsp mushroom ketchup

10g dried porcini mushrooms.

Method :

1.  Make up 750ml of stock and add the dried porcini mushrooms to it.  Set them aside.

2.  Cook the sausages in a large frying pan until the skins are well coloured.  You may need to cook them in two batches.  Once well coloured, remove from the frying pan and set aside to keep warm.

3.  Add the onions, garlic and celery to the pan and cook on a medium heat until softened.

4.  Now turn the heat up to high to get the frying pan quite hot before adding the red wine. Stir vigorously to deglaze the frying pan before emptying the contents into a large saucepan.

5.  Add the thyme, bay leaves and mushrooms to the contents of the saucepan.  Mix well before adding the remaining vegetables and the stock (complete with the mushrooms, if you're using them.  You will want to leave the dregs of the stock in the container, so as not to include any grit that may have come from the mushrooms).

6.  Slice the sausages to your own taste and add them to the pan.  Finally, add the mustard and Worcestershire sauce, stir well and then set the heat to provide a gentle simmer to the pan.  Cook uncovered for at least 45 minutes or until the vegetables have softened.

7.  Prior to serving, if the sauce is a little thin, simply add a teaspoon or two of cornflour or arrowroot which has been slaked with cold water and stir like crazy until the sauce has thickened.

Serve with mashed potato and a selection of green vegetables.

From http://jennyeatwellsrhubarbginger.blogspot.co.uk