Courage in the Kitchen

“Now, I have to get up at 4 tomorrow morning, get dressed, have breakfast at 4:30, pick Pete and Harold up at 5 and be at Leroy’s by 5:30,” explained my father. “We have to be on our stands by 6.”

My mother was a new bride determined to be the best wife in Hayward. She sliced the breakfast bacon, got the percolator ready to go on the stove and made my Dad’s lunch before setting the alarm clock and going to bed. This was many years before at least one wife decided to sleep in on the opening day of deer hunting season while her husband cooked his own breakfast.

The alarm went off, Mom woke Dad and started breakfast while Dad clothed himself in long underwear, a wool jack shirt, three pairs of socks, wool breeches that laced above the ankles and tall leather boots that laced nearly to his knees.

After a strengthening breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast and coffee, he got out his pocket watch to see if he had time for another cup before picking up his fellow hunters.

“What!!” says he as he holds his watch up to his ear to see if it has stopped. “It’s midnight!”

So it’s off with the clothes and back in bed to snuggle with Mom after checking to make sure that the alarm is set for 4.

“I was just so nervous,” Mom would explain as Dad told the story. “I wanted to be sure to do everything right.”

Dad would laugh and say that at least she got him up in plenty of time.

I don’t remember whether he got his buck that morning, but he shot a lot of deer over the years. We ate a lot of venison when I was a kid. Mom fried it, roasted it, canned it and made chili and stew with it.

The one thing she did not do was serve it rare or even medium rare. Meat was well done in our house until I started cooking, and then most family members refused to eat my attempts at gourmet cuisine. Maybe if I had had a good marinade like this one….

I found this recipe on the web and have used it many times since, both for venison and beef. This marinade seasons and tenderizes lean meat exquisitely. Once you try it, you will be using it often.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cloves garlic
1/2 small onion
1/3 cup red wine
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp. sugar
Dash of allspice
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
4 venison steaks or chops

PROCEDURE:

Mince two large cloves of garlic and finely chop half a small onion. You should have about one-third cup of chopped onion. Combine the onion and garlic with the other marinade ingredients in a small bowl and whisk them together.

Put the steaks or chops in a plastic bag and pour the marinade over the meat. Seal the bag, making sure that the meat is well coated with the marinade. Marinate the meat for three to five hours in your refrigerator, turning it every hour or so. Take it out of the refrigerator a half hour before cooking to let it warm a bit.

You can grill or sauté the meat. Grill the meat over a hot charcoal or gas grill for two or three minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of the meat and your preference. If you choose to sauté the meat, have your skillet very hot. Add a small amount of shortening and sear the meat in the pan on each side, again for two or three minutes. Venison should be served rare to medium rare.

NOTES: This marinade goes well with beef grill steaks or even round steak if you do not overcook it. If you don’t have any Dijon mustard, substitute a half teaspoon of dry mustard.

In 1949 my parents bought 76 acres about 4 miles north of Hayward. The land was a quarter mile west of the Namekagon River. They could have bought 80 acres on the river for the same price, but my mother was afraid that her children would drown playing in the river and my father liked the idea that there were two small fields on the 76 acre parcel.

Their decision meant that my mother fretted more about her offspring disappearing in the swimming hole below the rapids than she would have if we had built a home on the river. The fact that our home was a quarter mile from the river meant only that we had farther to walk before getting wet. She or Dad walked with us the first couple of years until they decided that we could be trusted to be careful in the water.

On hot days in summer we spent most of the day at the swimming hole. Gus, our farmer neighbor, had fenced a watering spot for his cows there, and they kept the grass nicely trimmed. As cows will, they fertilized the area too, but it was a small neat herd, and we were careful where we stepped.

When cousins or friends came to visit, we enjoyed showing off the mysteries of the river. Caddis fly houses of many different kinds, mayfly nymphs crawling on rocks lifted out of the water, crayfish darting backwards when you scared them and fish finning on the bottom of the pool that you could almost touch if you could hold your breath long enough and your face mask didn’t leak too much. Most were suckers but once in a while a northern pike would glide in front of you or a trout would flash away.

Though the days were hot, Mom still baked desserts. Strawberry shortcake in early summer and berry cobblers and pies later. We picked raspberries in late June and over the Fourth of July, blueberries in late July and blackberries for most of August. Mom had a rule: No swimming until the berries are picked and delivered. We picked and swam and ate well.

Mom’s berry cobblers were simple affairs. Berries covered by a batter baked golden brown. If we were lucky, there would be a scoop of ice cream on top.

This recipe is from a cookbook put together by the ladies of the United Methodist Church in Rosalia, Kansas where Jerri grew up. It is a simple cookbook made with a spirit duplicator, but like most church cookbooks it includes some really good recipes. Etta’s Easy Cobbler is one.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup sugar
2 T shortening
1/2 cup milk
1 cup flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 T baking powder
2 to 2 1/2 cups berries sweetened with 3 to 5 T sugar

PROCEDURE:

First pick 2 to 2 1/2 cups of fresh raspberries, blueberries or blackberries. Wash them in cold water and remove any leaves, stems or other contaminants. Stir the sugar into the berries and crush a few to release the juice. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Cream the sugar and shortening. Sift one third of the flour, baking powder and salt into the sugar, stir in about 1/3 of the milk and mix well. Add the rest of the flour mixture and milk by thirds and mix well.

Pour the batter into a 2 quart baking dish and pour the berries over the top. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the batter has risen to the top and is well browned. Serves four to six.

NOTES: As was the case when I was a boy, this cobbler is especially good topped with a scoop of ice cream. Etta’s recipe calls for a can of sweetened berries, which works fine too.