2.25lbsvenison, lamb or goat hearts trimmed of fat and any aorta fragments to yield 2 lbs
2dried bay leaves
9grams2 scant teaspoons kosher salt
½teaspooncracked black pepperor to taste
1large clove of garlic
2teaspoonsfinely chopped rosemary
¼teaspooncrushed red pepper flakes
½cupdry white wine
2cupslamb fatcooking oil can be used but is a poor substitute
For serving
Small to medium-sized soft buns or Kaiser rolls
1cupricotta cheese
4ozfresh chevre
Generous fresh cracked black pepperto taste (about ½ teaspoon)
Zest of a small lemongrated (optional)
12shaved lemon slicespicked over for seeds
Instructions
Trim the hearts
If you're handy with a knife, trim the thin outer layer of fat and tissue from the hearts, otherwise just remove some of the extra fat from the top, along with the large central vein.
Marinating and cooking
Slice the venison hearts as thin as possible. Grate the garlic or mash to a paste, then toss with the venison hearts, along with the salt, chili, bay and rosemary, then marinate overnight. The next day, preheat the oven to 250.
Cover the venison hearts with the fat to cover, add the wine, then bake, covered, for 2 hours, then cool. From here, the cooked heart can be refrigerated for a month or more, as long as the fat completely covers the heart, and the seal of fat remains unbroken and air-tight.
Storing
When you take the container out to remove heart to cook, you’ll need to re-melt all the fat and pour it back over the heart you don’t use to replace the air-tight seal. That being said, the heart tastes so good it’s unlikely it will last longer than a few days.
Assembly and Serving
Mix the cheeses and season to taste lightly with salt and pepper. Cut ¼ inch off of one slice of the lemon, then shave it thin using a mandoline, or a very sharp knife. Remove any pieces of seed from the lemon.
To assemble the sandwiches, heat the hearts up in their fat. Meanwhile, lightly toast the buns to ensure they taste fresh. You can also butter and griddle them if you prefer griddled buns, which I often do.
Cut each bun in half, fill with a generous amount of the heart confit, letting some of the fat and juices seep into the buns.
Spread the top of the bun with a tablespoon or two of the ricotta mixture, top with 2 lemon slices each, depending on size, and serve, with a napkin.
Notes
To be traditional, you can use a mix of offal like kidneys and heart here. Testicles or Rocky Mountain oysters would also be a good addition.