Meatloaf lasagna using ground venison and beef

Meatloaf lasagna using ground venison and beef

The Eighth Night of Yule

The Eighth Night of Yule

Venison stew

On St. Lucy’s Day I made a ritual meal with venison that my brother-in-law had given me earlier in the month. The meal was to honor and thank Rozhanitsa/Deer Mother. I based it on a Czech recipe, but served it with a horseradish cream, German style.

Offerings left for Rozhanitsa/Deer Mother

Sausage Soup – Czech Frankfurtská polévka - Cook Like Czechs

So tired. Last night was monthly music show so I only got about 4 hours of sleep. Waaaaay too much work today to try to get away with sleeping in. Whole week is gonna be like that. Trying to take it in stride.

I did manage to get a strong run in though. And I had taken out the last hoarded venison backstrap from the freezer so I followed through on making that for dinner. Really good! I was worried about it being old and although Steve and I could kind of tell, I was pleased with how great it tasted regardless. Been way too long since we had one of these. Good stuff.

Meat for me and bones for my dog.

Beer braised venison roast with carrots and mashed potatoes

One Pot Venison Chili

Venison Chili

Still enjoying the venison my brother-in-law brought me. I combined several recipes to use ingredients I already had in the house.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 onions chopped

4 tablespoons chili powder

2 tablespoons ground cumin

1 tablespoon dried oregano

2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder (see note 2)

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon ground coriander

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

8 cloves garlic minced

2 pounds ground venison

2lbs cooked pinto beans

1 (10-ounce) can Rotel

6 dried guajillo peppers

6 dried ancho peppers

1 bay leaf

Directions:

Deseed the guajillo and ancho peppers and cover with water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and then simmer while you prepare the rest of the chili. Right before adding them to the chili pot blend the chilis and water together to make a thin paste.

In a Dutch oven or stock pot, heat oil over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions, chili powder, cumin, oregano, chipotle chili powder, thyme, coriander, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cook until onions have softened, 7 to 10 minutes.

Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add venison and cook, breaking up the clumps with a spoon, until the venison is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

Stir in pinto beans, rotel, chili paste and bay leaf. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Remove lid and continue to simmer for 30 minutes longer. Remove bay leaf and season to taste with salt and pepper.

More Venison

I tried the ground venison that my brother-in-law brought me last night and made a pasta sauce. I was out of the beef broth that it called for so substituted a mix of red wine and soy sauce. It might sound weird, but it added the perfect mixture of acidity and umami and turned out really well. I doubled the recipe so I could freeze some of the sauce for quick meals with all the current chaos at Casa Dvoeverie!

How to Make an Easy Venison Spaghetti Sauce

autumn leaves leave a trace

of the tree i used to be.

see-saws & stray dogs

that look like me

The long game

Nearly a month into the archery deer season, I have yet to spot a buck (let alone the 8-pointer I’m looking for) while in a hunting stand.

I’ve seen a fair number of does - a handful, including the one you see here, well within bow range - but with one doe already in the freezer, I’m practicing restraint.

An average adult deer yields about 35-40 pounds of meat. With what I give away and what Sharon and I eat, two deer per year is about right. We rarely buy beef.

As the rut (the mating season) gets underway, the bucks become less elusive. So, an encounter with a mature buck may come in the near future.

For Halloween, I picked up some Venison wet food at Grocery Outlet for my dogs. It occurred to me that I can make them a Spooky Wendigo-themed meal for them to enjoy. The Wendigo is my favorite cryptid, and I like the one depicting it often with Deer Features.

My Daughter scored

From field to table in 36 hours

Finally, a week into Michigan’s archery season, the August-like heat broke and the deer, already wearing their winter coats, started moving.

On Wednesday morning, at first light, I killed an adult doe. I skinned and quartered it and made use of the cottage refrigerator, which, by the way, continues to loiter in our pole barn.

For supper Thursday, I trimmed about half of one of the two backstraps - the best cut of venison, in my opinion - and broiled it in an iron skillet. Then Sharon and I feasted on tender, juicy, zero-carbon, unadulterated, free-range venison medallions.

Venison Shoulder Roast

Inktober Day 5 - Deer

I hate deer so much, so have a picture of venison.