It’s time to gear up for the annual Deerslayer Camping Trip. Every year the entire clan (three generations) converges upon southern Wyoming for two weeks. We’ve been doing it for years. In its heyday, there would be sixty-plus people coming and going during the two-week stretch. Now, all the kids are growing up. Many are going away to college. I have a feeling that the group will continue to gather, with the younger ones bringing their own families. My generation will become the one that all the kids roll their eyes at, the group that everybody brings drinks and food to. Sounds like fun! Can’t wait!
I have to admit that, for me, the preparation is part of the fun. I love the list-making, the planning, the menu-planning, and the cooking for the whole group. This year we’ve decided to prepare:
- Steak tacos with fresh flour tortillas, pico de gallo, beans with smoked wild pork shank, and Mexican rice
- A whole roasted pig, roasted corn, and coleslaw
- Venison and nilgai enchiladas with creamy poblano sauce, beans, and Mexican rice.
- Pulled pork on toasted buns, potato salad, coleslaw.
In addition, we decided to try our own version of jalapeno poppers that would include some of our ground wild pork. Sadly, due to my busy camping prep days, my post is coming out after my dear friends, Patrons of the Pit, who beat me to the punch with their own version of a stuffed jalapeno recipe. Theirs is absolute perfection with a glorious glaze of maple syrup. You go, guys!
I used about 18 jalapenos to make 36 delicious, bacon wrapped portions.
18 jalapenos
1 lb. ground wild pork
4 tsp. LEM sausage seasoning
1/8 cup water
36 strips of cheese (I used a strong cheddar)
18 strips of very thin, inexpensive bacon, cut in half
Mix 4 tsp. of seasoning mix with water and blend with ground pork.
Cut the ends off the jalapenos.
Call me a wimp, but I’ve learned over the years that wearing rubber gloves results in a lot less pain and discomfort.
Using a spoon, scrape out the seeds and white membrane.
Slice cheese into strips the length of the peppers.
Add a slice of cheese and some pork sausage to each pepper.
Wrap each pepper with a half slice of bacon. This is why the bacon should be the cheapest you can get. The thinner, the better.
Once the peppers are ready to go on the grill, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared for every possible scenario! I filled two 9 x 13 pans with the jalapenos. One batch went on the grill, the other went into the freezer for the camping trip. I wanted to make a test batch first, in addition to seeing how they would freeze for later use. The frozen ones will be transported in a Yeti cooler with dry ice. They will stay frozen for up to a week if we’re careful not to open the cooler too much and store it in the shade once we’ve arrived at our destination.
The peppers were cooked for about 45 minutes on a sheet of foil on the grill over indirect heat.
A nine, tasty morsel for a camping trip!
