The Deerslayer's Wife
Embracing the Hunting Lifestyle
Venison/Wild Pork Picadillo
Picadillo (peek-u-dee-yo) is a traditional savory Mexican dish that is easy to make and loved by all. It is what people think of as the usual filling for tacos, flavorful ground meat with tomatoes, onions, garlic, comino (cumin), beef stock, and sometimes potatoes. I really love this recipe because it uses stuff that I always have around the kitchen. It’s a relatively forgiving recipe in that it lends itself to substitutions nicely. In essence, it’s nicely seasoned ground meat to be used primarily in tacos. There are purists, I’m sure, who reel at the thought of leaving out any of the traditional ingredients. Let’s be realistic, though. We must use good judgement and adjust all recipes with our loved ones in mind. Well-seasoned ground venison and/or wild pork with some fresh corn tortillas or tostada shells, avocado, tomatoes, cilandro, and a nice cheese will bring love and admiration from any deerslayer family. That said, let’s begin:
Picadillo
1 lb. ground venison/wild pork mix (or just plain venison)
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 or 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
a glug of olive oil
1 tsp. comino (cumin)
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt
approx. 32 oz. beef stock
1 red potato, cubed
1 cup (or thereabouts) petite diced tomatoes
In a large cast iron skillet, saute onion in olive oil for a couple of minutes. Add garlic and stir until fragrant. Add ground meat. Season with comino, salt, and pepper. Cook on medium high heat until well browned.
Add potato and canned tomatoes.
Add enough beef stock to cover and simmer until potato is cooked through and liquid is reduced.
Use your imagination. Add picadillo to tacos, use as a filling for enchiladas, sprinkle it over taco salad. Eat it out of a bowl! Just know that it will be good and good for you, too.
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Venison and Barley Soup
Okay, it isn’t officially autumn yet. It sure as hell doesn’t feel like it here in the Rio Grande Valley, But Fall is my favorite time of year, dammit, and I will be attaching a wreath to the door that signifies my love of the season. I will be purchasing pumpkins in all shapes, sizes and colors to adorn my home and I will be drawing from my collection of pumpkin recipes that will fill my home with the heady aromas that ARE autumn.
I’ve already begun my regular autumn soup regimen. I began by scouring the freezers for “Cook-all-Day” venison and pork. These are the scraps of neck meat and sinewy forequarter bits that we didn’t grind. When cooked all day, these “cuts” of meat are perfect for soups, stews, enchiladas, etc. I always cook up about 10+ pounds at a time. This cooked meat becomes so tender, it will shred easily and can be packaged up in one-pound amounts and frozen to be used in countless recipes. The broth and meat juices are a delicious addition to any soup.
I recently experimented with an old favorite, venison soup. I wanted to make it just a little heartier. I’d never cooked with barley before and was eager to try it. It was a huge success. Deerslayer loved it and asked for seconds and thirds. Junior Deerslayer loved it, too. So, here it is! Prepare to be loved and appreciated!
Venison and Barley Soup
1 chopped onion
olive oil
2 carrots, chopped
2 stalks of celery
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. dried thyme
64 oz. beef stock
1 cup dried barley
1 pound cook-all-day venison and/or pork*
plenty of the gelatinous goodness (at least a cup taken from the roasting pan)
1 cup frozen peas
corn cut from one ear (or about 2/3 cup canned)
In a large soup pot, saute’ chopped onion in olive oil. When onion is transparent, add carrots, celery, bay leaves, and thyme. Stir for about 5 minutes over medium heat. Add stock. Bring to a boil. Add barley and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add meat, peas, and corn. Simmer for another 20 to 30 minutes. Serve with herbed mozzarella toast.
* See “Come and Take It”
Herbed Mozzarella Toast
one baguette
several small mozzarella balls in herbed olive oil
Cut baguette into several ovals. Drain mozzarella balls and cut in half. Arrange several on each baguette slice, about 3 depending on the size of the baguette. Place baguette slices with cheese on a cookie sheet and place under the broiler until toasted and bubbly. Serve with Venison Barley Soup.
Rock Doves: Good and Plentiful Eatin’
I made an interesting and tasty discovery after my Doveslayer’s very successful dove hunt last week. Limits were had all ’round. For the first time, rock doves were harvested. They are also called feral pigeon and are hugely plentiful.Sadly, when they’re called pigeon rather than rock dove, however, many people turn up their noses. I have to admit, I kinda felt the same way. Sky possums? What the hell? Doveslayer brought them home, plenty of them, enough for a couple of meals so I figured I may as well find out for myself if they were any good. What if there’s a zombie apocalypse and there’s nothing else to eat? Rock doves are everywhere! I prepared them using the Special Occasion Whitewing recipe. First of all, the birds are about 1½ the size of a whitewing, That’s definitely in their favor. The rock dove has the same mild, dark-meat flavor as whitewing but with more meat.
For the skeptics, push past your prejudice. I give rock doves two-thumbs-up. I think the larger size and mild flavor are really what sold me. No limits! Way plentiful! Zombie apocalypse-proof! What’s not to love? Find out more about rock doves at: http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_lf_w7000_0047.pdf
After the big hunt, it was rewarding for the hunters to sit down to a huge whitewing feast. Plucking and gutting went well into the night. It was hard, hot work, but rewarding. (Do not get the mistaken impression that I was part of grueling task of cleaning the birds. It’s times like this that it really comes in handy knowing how to rustle up God’s bounty
.) I was glad that I was able to reward the hunters with a feast of Special Occasion Whitewing which I’d cooked in batches earlier in the week. Since I prefer to cook in a large,covered cast iron dutch oven, I prepared approx.18 doves at a time over three days. The doves went into rectangular Rubbermaid containers and into the fridge. On the day of the feast, the doves were separated from the gravy and placed, breast-side-down in a big restaurant-sized pan. I collected all the congealed gravy goodness into a large cast iron skillet, added a little chicken stock and reheated it until a good gravy consistency was achieved. I poured the gravy over the birds, added extra stock until birds were almost covered, I covered the whole thing with foil, sealed around the edges and placed in 350º oven for about 45 minutes to an hour. Done.
It’s really good to know that birds can be prepared ahead of time. They can even be cooked, frozen, thawed, and then reheated. My doveslayer’s uncle LOVES whitewing and takes some Special Occasion Whitewing back to Colorado with him every time he visits. It’s good to be loved!
Favorite Whiskey BBQ Sauce Update
I mentioned in a previous post that my favorite BBQ sauce is made by a Texas boy in New Braunfels. I love to showcase local products and this is a truly outstanding one. Skipkenny Whiskey BBQ Sauce has a wonderful flavor that compliments any wild game. It’s great with pulled wild pork, ribs, cook-all-day venison, and chopped bbq sandwiches. The whiskey flavor is bold enough to count! I really think you’ll love.it.
I first came upon Skipkenny Whiskey BBQ sauce at a farmers’ market in San Antonio. I fell in love with it and ordered a case (since it’s not currently available in the Rio Grande Valley). I’m thrilled to say that Skipkenny is now available on Amazon.com and at www.skipkennybbq.com. I’ve heard that two new varieties will be available soon. Yay!
It’s Here! Whitewing Season!
This weekend, my Deerslayer becomes a Whitewing slayer. It’s the beginning of Whitewing season in South Texas. Members of the Deerslayer Clan have converged on our neck-o’-the-woods from states near and far for this illustrious occasion. Our junior deerslayer and her cousins will be the master pluckers and gutters. Somebody’s gotta do it! It is truly an exciting time around here. Everyone in South Texas dons their camo. My fellow blogger, Andy at Tremendous Whatnot, is a fellow Texan and another avid bird slayer. His enthusiasm rivals my own Doveslayer. Check out his great bird stories!
Every year for as long as I can remember, it’s been unGodly hot and/or rainy and/or mosquitoey and/or humid around Labor Day. I can really see what the Deerslayers love about this season! But I love to see the family and, in preparation for their visit, I’ve thawed out the remnants of our frozen whitewing and cooked ’em up for the Clan after a hard day at the hunt.
I’d like to re-post Deerslayer’s favorite recipe (with better photos of the process) as well as the obligitory protocol for partaking of the feast.
Today, I need to share some crucial information about the preparation, cooking, and eating of game birds. Since game birds are shot, and since by their very nature they have very thin, brittle, hollow bones, one must be very careful to remove as many bone fragments and bits of shot (small b-b shaped things) from the meat as possible before cooking. Hunters generally are aware of the hazards associated with eating these birds and chew gingerly, daintily spitting out fragments as they go…. to which end I usually set out bowls around the table for this purpose.
Always inform your guests and/or family that they have been selected to share in the earth’s bounty provided by your game-bird slayer and that they need to chew carefully!
There are two main schools of thought regarding the preparation of doves. My experience has been that most bird hunters “breast out” the birds and bring home only the breast meat; small walnut-sized morsels to wrap in bacon with a sliver of jalapeno and toss on the grill. My dove-slayer, however, prefers ALL of the meat; breast, legs, hearts, gizzards. So does his uncle and so did his dad. I learned how to prepare doves from my hunter’s mother. Preparing them this way is somewhat labor intensive but I always have the undying gratitude of my dove-slayer.
Special Occasion Whitewing Doves with gravy
12 (or so) doves, plucked, washed
salt, pepper, garlic powder mix*
all purpose flour for dredging
1 stick salted butter
32 oz. chicken stock.
Preheat oven to 350 degree. Rinse birds and giblets. Spread out, breast side up on a cookie sheet lined with foil.
Sprinkle liberally with salt & pepper mix. Dredge each bird in flour.
In a cast iron skillet, melt butter. Add enough cooking oil to cover bottom of skillet.
Brown half of the birds, turning from one side of the breast to the other. Brown remaining birds and giblets reserving the skillet with browned bits.
Set aside all browned birds and giblets. To the browned bits in the skillet, over medium heat, melt enough butter and about 1/4 cup of leftover flour to make a roux.
Slowly whisk in about half of the chicken stock, stirring constantly.
Season with salt, pepper, and garlic mix. Add birds and giblets back into cast iron, breast side down and turned with the meaty side toward the outside. You can make several rows toward the center. This ensures uniform cooking.
Because birds vary in size, add more or less stock until birds are covered.
Cover with lid and bake in a 350° oven for about 4 hours. YES! 4 hours!!!!!!!! Every hour, add chicken stock if needed to keep gravy level up. You’ll know the birds are ready to eat when breast meat pulls easily away from the breastbone with a fork or tongs.
Serve with white rice and LeSeuer peas. In the tradition of the Deerslayer, it must be white rice! And it must be LeSeuer peas. Always has been! Always will be! Enjoy!
Never Enough Cookies*
Oatmeal Cookies With Dark Chocolate, Pecans
and Dried Cranberries
Since the school year is beginning for my younger deerslayer, I find myself thinking of packed lunches, things to pack into an awesome lunch box (which is important), and of course, cookies. Nothing says love like the smell of warm cookies after a hard day of school (or work) They’re just what the doctor ordered for a school lunch. Or an after-school snack. Or an after-work snack. Or a hunting snack. They’re pretty much just what the doctor ordered for any time of day or night. As a matter of fact, I don’t think I’ve ever happened upon anyone who doesn’t love cookies. There are people who can never get enough! Although I question the logic, there are those who think that they could live on cookies. All things in moderation, I say, as I find myself looking for new recipes
While I love to be inventive with wild game recipes, I prefer to stick to the tried-and-true favorites for my deerslayers. Of course, even the best tired-and-true recipes need to reflect the preferences of those for which they are prepared. My deerslayers love dried cranberries, but raisins, not so much. We prefer pecans to walnuts in just about everything. Must be a Southern Thang! And of course any cookie recipe is made better by adding DARK chocolate chips. Just a personal preference. That’s the great thing about cookies; They become your own family recipe with just a few additions. Enjoy the love that you will share and the gratitude you will receive!
*This post is dedicated to the Deerslayer’s brother who loves cookies more than anyone I’ve ever known! He has been able to elevate his love of cookies to an art form, absolutely poetic. I have to say that I have been inspired.
Oatmeal Cookies
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup salted butter
11/2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 3/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup dark chocolate morsels
Preheat oven to 400°. Cream shortening, softened butter, brown sugar, and eggs together till light and fluffy. Stir in milk. Sift together dry ingredients; stir into creamed mixture. Stir in oats, dried cranberries, nuts, and dark chocolate morsels. Chill dough for about 30 minutes.
Drop from tablespoon or scoop 2 inches apart on lightly greased or Silpat lined cookie sheet.
Bake in hot oven (400°) for 8-10 minutes. Cool slightly, remove from pan.
Makes about 4 dozen cookies.
Mexican Rice
There are recipes that just call for a great side dish like never-fail Mexican rice. As a matter of fact, the next couple of recipes that I’m planning to post will most definitely be served with this rice. I’ve used this recipe all of my married life. I got it from a good friend of the Deerslayer who is originally from Mexico. I’ve continued to use the recipe because it tastes great and it’s easy enough to prepare with just a few simple ingredients. Recently, I’ve been using parboiled rice. I’ve been pleased with how it doesn’t clump up, ever! The Junior Deerslayers still prefer the original long grain, however. It’s just a matter of preference. The recipe will not be altered either way.
The only “specialty” item that is required that may not be readily available worldwide is Knorr’s Caldo de Tomate Con Sabor de Pollo (Tomato Soup with flavor of Chicken). It’s basically chicken bouillon granules with tomato flavoring. It really adds a depth of flavor to the dish. I should try to substitute plain chicken bouillon with a bit of instant tomato soup to see if it works. But the Knorr’s is really good and I’d recommend getting some if you can get ahold of some. I think it would be available in the soup aisle, or the ethnic section of most grocers.
Ingredients
a splash of corn or canola oil
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 poblano pepper, chopped (red bell pepper can be substituted)
1 cup rice (I used parboiled)
2 cups stock or water
2 tsp. Knorr’s Caldo de Tomate y Pollo
In a cast iron skillet (with a lid) pour a splash of oil. In hot skillet, saute chopped onion and pepper until soft. Add rice and stir until rice is lightly browned. Add water or stock and Knorr’s. Stir one more time. When liquid comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, Cover skillet and simmer for 20-25 minutes.
Are You Ready for Hunting Season?
During this time of year when the temperatures have been hovering over the 100 degree mark in South Texas for as many days as I can remember, we do whatever we can to stay cool. Sometimes, it means that we just stay inside. It’s difficult to imagine that we will ever have an opportunity to wear the fall clothes that are now on the racks at all the stores. Buying school clothes is difficult to say the least. How can we justify buying sweaters and jackets. Sadly, if we wait until the two or three days that we’ll need these items in South Texas, they’ll be sold out.
I love to have “Cook All Day” venison and pork in the freezer so that I have on hand just what I need for family favorites like carne guisada, venison and Guinness stew, pot pies and the like. However, the thought of having the oven on all day during the summer months is hellish.
Mental Note: Prepare large quantities of “Cook All Day” venison and pork during the cooler days of winter, spring, and autumn. Package it up in one-pound packages and freeze for future use (during the hellishly hot days of July and August).
However, as hot as it is, I relish the opportunity to start gearing up for Hunting Season and the cooler temperatures that accompany it.
The signs are everywhere! Hunting season is just around the corner. It’s time to get ready. It’s time to service the ATVs. Buy ammo (Good luck!). Fill feeders. Start planning! I love to plan!
It was on a recent visit to San Antonio that we got our first indication that hunting season is right around the corner. My mom lives on a couple of acres in a wooded neighborhood.There have been deer in the area since the family moved there 40 years ago. The deer of many generations are like members of the family. They sleep in the yard and no longer run away when we cross paths.
It’s understood that these are not “eating” deer, not for harvesting. These are decorative deer. They are here for us to enjoy in their majesty, beauty, and sometimes playfulness. The bucks are in velvet now. The speckled fawns are running and jumping. My junior deerslayers understood early on the difference between Gran and Grandpa’s deer and those with which we fill the freezers.
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This time last year, for the first time since my married life to the Deerslayer, I had a bare freezer! I actually purchased meat from a grocer a couple of times. I was lost; completely out of my element. This year, the freezers are comfortably stocked. Not full, but not empty, either. Each year, I set aside several large muscle cuts of venison or elk until the end of the season. If our provisions get too low, I can use them for meals, usually Venison or Elk Parmesan or Marsala, Pecan-Crusted Steaks, or, of course Chicken Fried Steaks.
If the meat holds out until the first harvest of the season, I use the large muscles for a Deerslayer favorite; jerky! The large muscles lend themselves nicely to long, flavorful strips of jerky. I haven’t found anyone yet who doesn’t think that the venison or elk jerky is some of the best they’ve ever eaten. The instructions and recipe will be available in about a month if the meat lasts!
So, for those of you who are part of the Deerslayer brotherhood, enjoy the planning and the anticipation! The journey is part of the fun. I’ll be back soon to share some great jerky instructions.
Don’t forget, whitewing season is also coming up!
What It’s All About (Camping for Non-Campers)
There are so many reasons that campers camp. My first camping experiences were not the greatest. Nature was not my friend. Nobody said there would be bugs or that I would have to sweat. Veteran campers never brought up the whole “powder room” issue. It REALLY should have come up at some point, although I’m not sure when would be an appropriate time. In retrospect, I should’ve researched, bought a book, or read a blog. Oh yeah! There weren’t blogs when I started camping.
After my first camping trip with my Deerslayer (and a very small junior deerslayer) I was ready to throw in the proverbial towel. I’d had my brush with nature and was ready to call it a day. My very handsome Deerslayer was very persuasive, however, and I headed out for a second, and then a third trip. Each time, I learned a couple of things, wrote down things that I’d forgotten to bring (enough warm clothes, gloves), things that I didn’t know I needed until I was without them (eye drops, allergy meds, tissues, anti-itch spray), and determined which extras it would take to get a non-nature type back into the wilderness (a plastic stemmed wine glass and bottle of Prosecco). Each time I headed out with my tiny junior deerslayer in tow and the ever-increasing admiration of the Love of my Life, I was a bit better prepared, less cranky, and open to all that camping has to offer.
Over the years our camping trips have allowed us to have family time in beautiful laid-back settings. The ability to sit outside watching the stars, telling stories of camping trips of years past is priceless. Some of our trips have evolved into precious family reunions. One of my favorite camping moments now is early in the mornings when those who rise early show up at our camper with (or without) a coffee mug. 
After a while, the camper is full of the early-morning-coffee-drinkers talking in hushed voices (My Deerslayer is usually trying to sleep!) We all head to the community campsite and carry on the coffee drinking and story-telling until mid-morning. The teens start to stir, so appreciative when they realize that breakfast is underway on one of the propane cookstoves.
It’s magical when three generations share stories, coffee, food, and enjoy just being together. The senior members of the group look forward to the annual camping get-together as much as the teens. It’s what camping is all about for me. It’s a part of my life that I almost missed out on. If I hadn’t made the effort (and lists) I would’ve missed out!
My advice to non-campers who might be thrust into a “nature experience” is to have a sense of humor (I did not!), write down what you need for “next time” (It will give you a subconscious mind set that I didn’t have!) Following my advise will allow non-campers to skip the cranky phase of of the process.
Trust me,”it’s what it’s all about”.
Now I’m Cookin’!
Some women love jewelry. Some can’t live without chocolates or perfume. There are those who live for furs. And don’t forget the flowers. My Deerslayer knows what tickles my fancy, blows my skirt up, sends me swooning.
For our camping trip to Wyoming this year, he presented me with a Camp Chef propane cookstove, a full-sized griddle, and carrying cases for both. I’m starting to get light-headed just sharing. Truly my hubby is the most romantic man on the planet. Of course, in the same way that some men benefit from the gifts they give their wives, like lingerie, my Deerslayer realized that he would also benefit from the gifts he bestowed upon me. The pancakes, tortillas, toasted hamburger buns, and don’t forget the bacon! With my new gifts, there was enough love to go around.
I’d been coveting the propane cookstove that I’d seen during last year’s trip. While I knew that the coveted cookstove would again be present, I knew that the group would benefit from an additional source of heat. (And I really wanted one of my own for the hunting camp.) I also realized, then, the need for a full-sized griddle as we struggled to make pancakes using a couple of cast iron skillets and a small stove-top cast iron griddle. Our feeble substitutions simply were not up to the task. The new full-sized griddle (ordered from Camp Chef) exceeded my expectations! Pancakes and tortillas, up to ten at a time kept pace with our hungry clan. The entire surface could be covered with bacon, precooked and just needing a quick crisp-up! Hurray!
I couldn’t wait to show off my new stuff, flaunt my wares, if you will. It was truly a red carpet event that called for something kinda special! There were those who thought the shoes were a bit over the top. To them I say, well, I won’t actually share what I said. It’s how we roll at the Deerslayer Clan camp. (Actually, the shoes filled with sand and spiked me firmly into the ground but I looked amazing and the milestone was given the pomp and circumstance that it deserved.)
The first night that I was scheduled to prepare a dinner for 40, a huge wind storm erupted, which kept blowing out the flames on my cookstove. My deerslayer and several other chivalrous gents set up a plywood windbreak around my cooking area. They really saved the day!
You may have noticed that my new new Camp Chef cookstove is emblazened with the the “Browning” logo. True enough. But made by Camp Chef all the same. The “Camp Chef” logo is embossed on the right-hand side. Mine was purchased from Bass Pro Shop. Camp Chef model: $169.00, Browning model (identical except for logo): $99.00. Mine works beautifully, does everything that I need done, and with the difference (and a little extra), my Deerslayer ordered the griddle! I’m loving my new toys. I’d really suggest ordering the special carrying cases for the cooktop and griddle, as well. Everything stays together and packs more easily.
The Deerslayer's Wife 