Fettucini with Venison Sauce

I'm laughing as I type this, because yet again, this meal wasn't planned for this week. Actually, I had planned to make it one night last week and we decided t o go out instead. I had forgotten all about it until Hubby asked me when I was making this and that he had been excited to try it and was disappointed I had not made it before. Well, that's all it took.  So, I made it last night.

I found this recipe through Broken Arrow Ranch, a Texas ranch that specializes in free range venison, antelope and wild boar.  Not only do they sell various cuts of each of these animals, they offer quite a few recipes and information on preperation and cooking of each.

This sauce is somewhere between a bolognese and a spaghetti sauce.  It's super healthy (thanks to the use of venison) at only 164 calories per cup of sauce. To amp up the health factor I served it over whole wheat linguine instead of regular fettucini.

Hubby & I both really enjoyed this comfort food. The sauce definitely tasted like it had been simmering for longer than 2 hours.

If you don't have venison, you could easily use ground beef or ground turkey.

Fettucini with Venison Sauce

1 lb ground venison
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon vegetable-flavored bouillon powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 8-oz can tomato paste
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon each Tabasco, basil, rosemary, marjoram, fresh ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons each oregano, chili powder, paprika, sugar
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 cup chopped green pepper
4 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced 1/4" thick
1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced

Spray a pan with non-stick spray and brown the venison and garlic over medium heat. Set aside. Mix the bouillon powder with 3/4 cup water and add onion. Heat on stove until onion is soft. Combine remaining ingredients in large, heavy pot. Add meat, onions, garlic, and bouillon. Simmer slowly over low heat for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Serve over fettucini. Sauce freezes well.

Serves 6.