‘Twas the night before Christmas a long time ago, when I was a child and to church I would go. After church was complete, we’d perform the great feat. A holiday meal which would take hours to complete. I, a young girl, with my eyes in pure …
I’ve been in the mood for festive desserts that are heavy on flavor but still leave me feeling light on my feet. Fruits are the perfect dessert in this case as you get a bit of sweet decadence but won’t get overly full like you …
Over the river and through the woods, a lovely deer made it’s way into my kitchen, complements of my hunter husband. Every fall my man goes on multi-day excursion to hunt with a group of five other fellas, all of which are my immediate family or my sister’s in-laws who are like family to us as well. We all love the rewards of a successful hunting trip and look forward to meals of marinated venison chops or steaks throughout the season.
Venison is quite lean which can make it tough so a nice overnight marinade makes these venison chops super flavorful and tender. This marinade is Asian inspired and is very similar to the marinade I use for Korean Flank Steak. A true Minnesotan pairs their venison with a wild rice side dish so in true homage to my roots, these marinated venison chops are paired with a wild rice and mushroom dish. I’ve kept with the woodsy theme by using a mix of northwoods mushrooms but updated it with some added kale and a light kick of Asian flavor to blend with the flavors in the venison marinade. For added tastiness, reserve some of the marinade sauce (before the meat goes in it) to use as a dipping sauce or drizzle at the table!
Love venison? Try a hearty venison chili , Venison Steaks with Sweet Smoky Aioli, venison stroganoff , and venison tenderloin with creamy mustard sauce too!
The first snow of the season (happening now!) always makes me a bit giddy. This can only mean one thing…that the holidays are approaching and spending lots of meaningful time with family is just around the corner. The hubby and I have been hosting his family for Thanksgiving …
Election day, election day… yes, I did indeed go out and vote my conscience. I’m grateful to live in a nation that has a democracy where we can be free to express and embrace all of our opinions and individuality. I’d love a few more morally …
If I had to survive on only one cuisine for the rest of ever, it would be Mexican. Or maybe Thai. It’s a tossup. They both have one thing in common. Mexican and Thai flavors are both very cohesive and flavorful through the entire dish and have a lot of heat. I don’t mean just the little bit of kick, kind of spicy. I’m talking about the hit ya in the backside kind of spice but not so much that it knocks you over. THAT is what I like. I don’t even know HOW I’m a Minnesota girl, honestly. My roots are all Scandinavian and German (you know the type: those who think ketchup is spicy… and we dance a mean polka). Yet, somehow, I can’t GET enough hot spicy goodness in my life. I’ll blame it on my travels to Mexico and Asia. I remember a trip to Seoul, Korea where the vendors I was working with were astonished that I was eating whole charred garlic cloves straight off the grill (in multitude). I then proceeded to douse my rice with their chili paste (not for the faint of heart). I had been forewarned that “this is SPICY!!” and that maybe, as an American, I wouldn’t like it. It was fantastic!! I then proceeded to dare my coworker into a “you taste the spicy chili and I’ll taste the sushi” dare (I don’t do sushi… it’s the texture). I won. These amazing enchiladas are a testament to my love affair with spice though they are less spicy than I would make for myself, given the choice 😉 These chicken white bean enchiladas are still kid and Midwestern husband friendly!
Chicken white bean enchiladas start with a slow cooked chicken. Hello, drool-worthy shreddable tenderness! To that, we add a touch of garlic and onion and a tish of that tomatillo salsa which also goes on top. You can use any other enchilada sauce too if you prefer red or green. My go-to sauces when I don’t make it from scratch are the Frontera brand that you can get in a pouch since it doesn’t have preservatives. If you like a nice red (rojo) enchilada sauce from scratch, you can use the red sauce I created for this venison enchiladas recipe both in the sauce and as a “smother” for baking. Add to that a bit of white navy beans, more garlic, and a little lime and spinach , topped with pickled jalepeno and we have ourselves a respectable chicken white bean enchilada. You can make this as spicy as you want simply by altering the type of peppers you use when making the sauce. Less spicy peppers equal less spicy sauce. Or use less of them just be sure to use a variety for a well-rounded flavor. Simple simon… and SUPER delicious!
Last weekend, we had a photographer come out to our acreage to do a little family photo shoot. I also had her take some updated pics of me so I can finally update my photos here on the blog (soon!). I was re-living the senior picture experience all …
I walked into the kitchen last night expecting to start dinner late since I had been outside enjoying the early evening with my neighbor. What I found was a delightful surprise. My husband was deep in the trenches of chopping vegetables and spiralizing a zucchini …
I have the worst luck this week. My fridge freezer decided to stop freezing food over the weekend resulting in soft “frozen” veggies that I fed to my chickens. The peeps were overjoyed with the demise of the veggies, however, since they got a super special treat. I had to toss a few meat items that had un-frozen as well. Sigh. It should be fixed in time for this weekend which is a necessity since we’re picking up meat in bulk from the farm and need a place for it. As if that wasn’t enough of a problem to deal with, my dishwasher has decided to play hooky too and is now apparently on strike. My girls got the privilege of learning how to do about three loads of dishes the “old-fashioned” way in the sink this morning. In the interest of doing less dishes, I’ve made this awesome spiced potato salad in one pot and I’ll be serving it hillbilly style straight from the pot on the table tonight too!
This spiced potato salad is a German style potato salad meaning that it’s not creamy and isn’t made with any mayo or eggs. It’s sweet and savory spice combo comes from mustard, ginger and harissa sauce. Add some diced crunchy cooked bacon (because bacon makes EVERYTHING better!) and a touch of cilantro and it’s ready to rock your next picnic. Since this salad doesn’t contain mayo or eggs, it can be served warm or cold and is able to sit out without refrigeration longer than the creamy style salads. You still need to refrigerate it but it’s a bit safer for pot luck picnics outdoors since the bacon is cured and cooked. Take this marvelous spiced potato salad to your Labor Day picnic and it’ll be the hit of the party!
Ahhhhh. That’s the sound of a happy mom who’s getting a little bit of a break! My two daughters are away for the week spending time with their grandparents on the farm. They will be showing goats and exhibiting their culinary and artistic creations at the …
