Honey, What's For Dinner?
For many folks, an area's food can tell you a lot about the history of the people who live there. In this region, you can't go anywhere without running into someone who has pasties (pronounced past-ees, not paste - ees.) Pasties are our regions go to meals and there are as many ways to make them as there are to eat them. Gravy, ketchup, plain, with rutabagas, without, cheeseburger, chicken, beef, lamb. And there is a pasty shop in almost every town. If there isn't one, you can bet that one of the churches will have a pasty sale once a month or around the holidays.
Pasties are a meat pie that originated with Cornish miners who immigrated to Michigan's Upper Peninsula in the 1800s. The miners needed something hearty and easy to eat, and these meat pies were the ticket. The pasty became the traditional miners' food and is now a staple of the region's culture.
So, exactly, what is a pasty? The essential ingredients of a pasty are chopped meat and potatoes that are baked inside of a pie crust that is folded over and crimped to keep all the goodness inside. People began to add rutabaga (one of the big debates between locals), carrots and onions. The ingredients are mixed together and scooped into a round piece of pie dough. The dough is then folded over and baked to a golden brown color. One of the best “features” of pasties is that you can bake them either all the way through or halfway, then freeze them and re-heat them and they hold up perfectly. The men working in the mines would set their pasties onto their shovels and warm them over a fire. Myself, I actually like them straight out of the fridge for a fast snack or lunch!
But there are a lot of great foods here in the U.P. and northern parts of Michigan and Wisconsin. I'll bet you didn't know that Gordon Ramsey was up this way learning about the food here too! Yep. Even the great chefs find that the food in the area has potential.
Anyhow, these are a few of our favorite recipes, but you can purchase our Just Shut Up and Eat It Cookbook to get ALL of our favorites from the area. Some of these recipes are generations old and very little, if anything has changed. So, enjoy trying some new flavors from UP north and, if you like these, get the book! It makes a great gift too!
It's HUNTING SEASON and that means VENISON!
Here are a few great recipies to try for November!
The Very Popular VENISON STEW
(Grandma always made this in November!)
Ingredients
-
2 pounds venison (from the ham) cut into 2-inch chunks
-
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour seasoned with a pinch each: black pepper, salt, garlic salt
-
3 tablespoons bacon grease
-
1 large onion, quartered
-
1 clove garlic, chopped
-
1 teaspoon dried basil
-
4 cups chopped potatoes
-
2 cups sliced carrot
-
1/2 cup red wine
Directions
Place seasoned flour in a plastic bag. Add meat cubes and shake until meat is coated. In a large cast iron pot brown half of the meat in 1 tablespoon of the hot oil, turning to brown evenly. Brown remaining meat in remaining oil. Add onion, garlic, and basil and cook until lightly browned. Add potatoes and carrots. Add red wine and enough water to bring the liquid level nearly to the top of the stew mixture. Simmer, covered, for 2 to 3 hours. Serves 8.
Venison Steaks with Caramelized Onions and Sauteed Mushrooms
(Dad's favorite! He didn't measure a whole lot of anything. Measurements here are more common from others we've seen and tried.)
Ingredients
-
1/4 cup butter, divided
-
3 onions, peeled and sliced
-
Salt
-
Pepper
-
Garlic
-
Olive Oil
-
1 teaspoon dried rosemary or a fresh sprig or 2 (or thyme or oregano...whatever you like!)
-
1 pound venison meat of your choice (room temperature) - steaks cut to about 3/4 inch or so
-
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms (Dad always used the white button mushrooms from the store, but use your favorite!)
Start by seasoning your venison. Use olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic to taste. He went lighter on the salt as Dad had high blood pressure. We all love garlic, so he'd go heavier on that. Rub it all over the meat. Add your rosemary. We liked fresh sprigs, but dried will work too. Let it sit in a plastic bag for an hour or so in the fridge, or even overnight, but remember to take it out and let it come to room temperature before cooking. If you forget, cooking it from a cold state will be fine. If you forgot to marinate it overnight, don't worry. It'll still taste good if you season it before you start cooking it. Marinating it over night helps to lower the wild game flavor, though, for those of you who can't seem to stomach that like me!
Caramelize the onions. Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. When it's hot, add the onions and toss to coat. Turn the heat to medium. You are looking for them to slowly soften and brown, not scorch on the edges. When they are nicely browned, remove the onions from the pan and place into a bowl for later.
Add the remaining butter to the pan. Once the pan is hot, (it's got to be a hot pan!!) place steaks in and cook for 3-4 minutes, uncovered, until a nice sear forms on the bottom. Flip the steaks and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Cooking time may vary based on the thickness of the steak and the cut of venison. This should result in the meat being barely well done. Still juicy and tender, yet fully cooked. When finished, set on a cutting board to rest.
While the venison is resting, put the mushrooms in the pan and turn the heat to med-high. Sear the mushrooms until they release their water. When the water has almost boiled away or when the mushrooms begin to brown, add some more butter and sauté hard until the mushrooms are nicely browned. Salting them will help to release the water, but you don't have to salt them. Once the mushrooms are ready, add back the caramelized onions, heat through and serve!
NOTE: According to North American Whitetail magazine, medium rare, or 130 to 135 degrees Fahrenheit, is the magic range to cook venison steak – or any steak for that matter. This temperature is warm enough to get the juices in the muscles flowing, to bring out the meat’s full flavors and to get any fat to soften. The resulting steak is perfectly balanced in juiciness, tenderness and flavor.