Venison Chili

It is snowing for the second time this winter so it seemed like a good time to talk about one of the great cold weather meals

Chili & Cornbread

Not just any chili, venison chili.  Pretty similar to beef chili, but a little bit more flavor.  There is a gaminess to the deer meat, but is more mild than the gaminess of lamb.

A glass of wine always helps the spices get measured perfectly.  Since I used all venison, there was no fat to worry about draining off, so I basically cooked the meat with the spices allowing slightly more flavor saturation of the meat.  Spicy, lightly gamy meat.  A nice compliment to the acidic tomatoes.

I had to pick some green tomatoes at the end of the summer and did not fry them all before they ripened in the bowl in the kitchen.  They made a perfect addition to the chili as diced tomatoes.

Since I was using fresh rather than canned I cooked them down a bit with some salt, garlic. and chili powder.  Yep, chili is yummy.  I like to make chili pretty warm, but not over the top.  It's nice to be able to add a bit of extra spice to the bowl to make it "just right."

Yes, you so see cinnamon in the line up.  There is also curry.  oops, I just gave away my secret seasonings!  Oh well, it's better to share anyway.  Plus, I cannot remember, but I may have gotten the idea of one of them from a co-worker.  I got the idea of the other when I accidentally used it, good thing it tasted good.  Add some onion and beans with a side of cornbread, for good measure, and we are left with good food.

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JiMele's Chili
*I rarely measure when I make chili.  I make it more to be a certain texture.

About 1 lb ground venison
6-7 medium tomatoes diced, or 1 28oz can
1 can crushed tomatoes (small can tor thinner chili, larger can for thicker)
1 large onion
2-4 cloves garlic crushed then chopped
2-3 cans beans (red/kidney, pinto, black, a combination, your choice)
Lots of chili powder
ancho chili powder
Cayenne pepper
Paprika
Red chili flakes
a dash of cinnamon and curry
a few dashes of what ever hot pepper sauce you like

Gingerbread

 Because it is Christmas time, and it occurred to me that I might have the necessary ingredients on hand, I decided to put on some Christmas music and bake some Gingerbread. 

I started with this recipe from All Recipies: Favorite Old Fashioned Gingerbread. Most people probably say you should follow the recipe at least once before you start making changes, those wise people. But they miss out on the excitement of plunging head first into the unknown. Although I had never made this, or any other gingerbread before, I made a lot of changes:

I used Whole Wheat Flour + a tiny bit of white Cake Flour instead of All Purpose Flour. I wondered if there was something i should do to compensate for the heavier flour. ore liquid? Less Liquid? Cornstarch?

I tripped the Ginger, doubled the Cinnamon and Cloves and added 1/2 teaspoon of Vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon of Nutmeg. 

Instead of 1 Cup Molasses I used 1/2 Cup Molasses (Black Strap) and 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar.

I added a diced Apple. I would have also liked to add, had I had any, Candied Ginger and Lemon Zest.

I used 4 mini loaf pans instead of the called for nine inch square pan and so I set my oven time for 45 min instead of an hour. But I ended up baking for over a full hour. Maybe because of the Whole Wheat? Or maybe the mini loaf pans made thicker loaves so they needed more cooking time instead of less as I had anticipated?

By the time the bread had been on the oven for twenty minutes, I was thinking, even if it doesn't taste good, I should make this bread every Christmas just to make my house smell like this again. Delicious!

Forty-Five minutes in I was torn between the fear of under baking the bread and the fear that is was secretly burning ( It is hard to tell when baking dark brown loaves). I opted to keep baking and worrying  for a while longer. Every time I inserted a knife into the center it did not come out clean. I finally resorted to removing one loaf from it's pan so I could thump on it, the way my mom used to check her bread,  to see if it sounded done.

It turned out great, not too sweet and with the emphasis on the ginger without the ginger flavor being overpowering. A perfect partner for vanilla ice cream.  It was really fun and easy (other than the worrying about when to bring it out of the oven).  I will add more apples as they all but disappeared  into the batter and I will probably add more ginger. I like things spicy!

- Ash

Red Cabbage Salad

This is a super simple, crunchy, clear (no mayo) and bright coleslaw that I made for dinner a couple of nights ago. Especially in the winter, but really all the time, I think it is important to keep my meals colorful. Side dishes like this really do the trick.

You can just throw it together, without measuring and with any additions or substitutions you like.

Red Cabbage - Grated with a box grater

Carrot - grated with a box grater

Green Onions - chopped

Salt and Sugar - a pinch of each or to taste

Oil and Vinegar - I used Olive Oil and Apple Cider Vinegar, starting with a spoonful of each, mixing and tasting the salad and then adding a bit more of each until I got the flavor balance I wanted (In the end I had about twice as much vinegar as oil).

~ Ash

Crystallized Honey

I love honey.  I eat it by the spoonful.  I do like to put it in tea, but right off spoon is better.  If you keep your house cool in the winter you will notice your honey getting thicker and eventually a little gritty.  Gee, doesn't that sound appetizing?  I promise, it is.  Crystallized honey is so good.

Once it is time to turn on the heat I usually  keep it in the upper 60's.  Putting on a sweatshirt is cheaper than turning up the heat, and more environmentally friendly.  Yes, I am a bit of a tree-huger.  Back to golden delicious honey.  The cool winter temperature in my house means that my honey crystallizes quickly.  It does not mess with usability, it just gives it a new attitude, and goes great as a topping on something like this:

Greek yogurt (or regular) with strawberries, honey and a sprinkle of chopped nuts.  The honey can be normal or crystallized and it is still good.  Basically, yogurt and fruit are good, throw in honey and chopped nuts and it becomes amazingly good.  

Don't like crystals in your honey?  Just place your honey container in a bowl of hot water.  It will soften the crystals and go back to normal.

My belly needed something a bit less starchy and carbohydrate-y, also known as Thanksgiving leftovers.  Yogurt, strawberries, and honey is just right.  If you think this sounds good but you want something a little more substantial, try adding some granola or gramcrackers.
Oh-so-yummy

Cranberry Sauce - A Love Story

I love cranberry sauce!

However, it was not until I met my husband that I ever made my own. The first time the subject of cranberry sauce arose, we found ourselves on opposite sides. I explained to him that starting from my earliest Thanksgivings and Christmases, I  recall fighting with my brother over which one of us, the the children in the family, would exercise the privilege of opening the can  of cranberry sauce and plopping the quivering cylindrical mass out on to the special silver plate my family reserved for it and it alone. Further arguing would take place over who which one of us would get to eat the end piece, the one imprinted with the pattern from the lid of the can.

In retrospect, this was an odd tradition considering that my family were otherwise the make it yourself types, at times making all our own bread and even making yogurt and cheese from our own goats milk. But we were quite simply devoted to canned cranberry sauce, and it always had to be jelly style, no berries, or chunks as we called them. I laugh at myself now that I never imagined that I would like to taste homemade sauce, let alone make it myself for my own holiday meal.

Luckily for me, my husband (boyfriend at the time) insisted that he could not imagine a holiday meal without homemade sauce and so I agreed to give it a try (though I insisted on purchasing a can of my old favorite jelly style to have on standby). It only took making and eating it once, for me to be converted for life.

When I got started making my own sauce I used Allrecipes' Cranberry Sauce I recipe. Over the years I have modified it to a point I am quite happy with. It is thick,  tangy, sour and sweet.

 

Cranberry Sauce My Way:

Sugar - 1 Cup

Orange Juice - 3/4 Cup

Cranberries - 12 Ounces

Instant Tapioca - 2 Tablespoons

Heat the sugar and juice in a saucepan until the sugar is dissolved.

Add most of the cranberries along with the instant tapioca. 

 Cook on medium heat, stirring frequently. When the berries have popped and you can mash them up a bit, add the rest of the berries and continue cooking until the most recently added cranberries are popping and soft. ( adding the berried in two stages allows some to cook down into a jam like consistency while others stay nice and solid). At this point transfer the sauce to a bowl and allow it to cool down before covering and refrigerating it.

I find it best made the night before, giving it ample time to thicken and chill in the fridge.

 - Ash

All photographs used in this post are my own.