This is the fillet mignon of venison; it is small in size but the most tender piece of meat you will ever experience. Try this extraordinary recipe made with Grand Marnier.

Make the Grand Marnier sauce: Cook Grand Marnier, Cognac, honey and red wine vinegar in a 2 quart saucepan on medium heat, until the reduction caramelizes. When caramel is golden brown, deglaze with white wine and add thyme, bay leaf, whole shallots, and reconstituted dried ceps or porcinis. Strain in the mushroom water; boil until sauce is reduced. Add the veal stock; turn heat to medium low and simmer till sauce is reduced.

Preparation of the venison tenderloin: Preheat the grill and trim off the silver skin from each tenderloin. Cut them in half. Season with salt, pepper and vegetable oil. Grill the meat 2 to 3 minutes on each side, for medium rare, and keep them warm in a 250 degrees F oven while you are preparing the sauce and vegetables.

Finish the sauce: Now that the sauce has been reduced by half, turn off the heat and remove bay leaf and thyme sprig. Stir in the cold butter and blend.

Serving: Put the turned vegetables in boiling water for a minute. Drain vegetables, season with salt, pepper and a dash of olive oil. In the center of a 14 inch hot plate, overlap each half tenderloin top with the sauce. Arrange the vegetables and shallots, and decorate with fresh thyme. Serve immediately.

Porcini is also known as cep or boletus. "Cèpe" is the French name for it.