A Different Kind of Recipe

His sign says "will work for food".  I don't have a job I can offer him; so I really can't help him...You never know if they're going to use the money for drugs or alcohol...I've read where homeless people make a decent living begging, and some aren't even homeless...It can be dangerous to help them...

These were the excuses that rolled one after the other through my mind when I thought of Bill.  Bill is the one-armed man that lives under the bridge about a mile from my office.  I've seen him plenty of times, but for a reason I cannot fathom, I've never done anything for him.  I even dreaded catching the red light and having to sit in my car just feet away from the scruffy man that uses his one good arm to hold a sign.  

Something shifted in my thoughts yesterday.  These excuses aren't helping me sleep at night anymore, and they sure aren't doing anything for Bill.

As with most things, I have Holt to thank for my new perspective.  We've talked about the one-armed man under the bridge before, but we've very rarely done anything about it.  A couple of days ago, Holt realized he had some spare cash when he was driving by and gave it to the homeless man.  He introduced himself as Bill, shook Holt's hand, thanked him, and sent him off with a "God bless you".  Later, Holt took me to lunch and we stopped at the red light beside Bill and gave him a homeless package.  A homeless package contains a tooth brush and paste, deodorant, energy bars, wet wipes and other helpful items.  My mother assembled the package and keeps one in her car, as well.  As we drove away from Bill, he was getting his tooth paste out to brush his teeth.    

Now I can't stop thinking about Bill.  I thought about how cold he must be last night as I laid in my bed.  I thought about what I could bring him for lunch today.  I thought about how Holt wants to drive the hour and a half to Memphis this weekend just so he can take Bill to church with us.  The truth of the matter is Bill is a son of the Most High, created in the image of God, a brother of Christ, and Jesus in disguise.  

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

(Matthew 25:35-40 ESV)

I don't have a traditional recipe for you because I'm still eating leftovers from Thanksgiving, but I have a different kind of recipe.

What to put in a care package for a homeless person:

Socks, long underwear

Hygiene products: combs, deodorant, toothbrushes and toothpaste, soap, tissues, wet wipes, hand sanitizer First aid supplies: antibacterial ointment, band aids

Lightweight snacks: energy bars, a gift card to a restaurant nearby like Subway or McDonalds

Put any combination of these items and anything else you think would be helpful and light-weight in a bag and keep in your car for when you see Jesus under the bridge.

Bill wears shoes size 10.5-11 and size large shirts.  He has a prosthetic arm that he can wear to do work, and he will work for food.

Feathers on the water means casserole in the oven

The alarm sounded and I jumped out of bed with all the enthusiasm of a kid on Christmas morning, not because I was all that excited about the morning's adventure, but mostly out of anxiousness to get ready on time and get to our destination before the sun.  After donning two pair of insulated underwear, thick socks, toe warmers, boots, overalls, two jackets, a neck gator, and a fleece hat, I was dressed for the occasion.  My sleepy companions rummaged around in the darkness making coffee, checking field bags, grabbing decoys, and loading the ATVs.  The caravan pulled out at 4:42 AM, just 12 minutes after schedule.  A twenty minute drive, a bumpy ride on the back of an ATV, and a short walk through the delta mud and we were there.  The flooded timber of the Arkansas delta is a prime duck hunting destination.

I spent the morning hours watching the world around me wake up.  My companions called down dozens of ducks from the pink sky.  We watched them circle, sometimes calling back, and eventually gliding in to rest in the old abandon fishing hole.

Two hunts on opening weekend yielded 39 ducks that were cleaned and distributed to all hunters.  You know the rule, if you kill it, you eat it.  Last year was my first duck season, and I was assured that wild duck was delicious to eat.  I had eaten farm-raised duck in restaurants; when prepared well, it is phenomenal.  Wild duck is drastically different, but not necessarily in a bad way.  Until recently, the only wild duck I had tasted was wrapped in bacon, smothered in cream cheese, and stuffed with jalapenos.  Anything tastes good if you do that to it!  This year, I'm prepared.  I've scouted and tried new recipes and found ways to incorporate duck into my old favorites.  This recipe for Duck and Noodle Casserole is one that I modified from a Duck and Wild Rice Casserole, originally featured in an old Southern Living cookbook.  While the original recipe is delicious, I was out of rice and mushrooms, so I had to be a bit creative.

Duck and Noodle Casserole

Ingredients
4 wild duck breasts, tenderized
1 bay leaf
1 yellow onion
1 bunch green onions
2 cloves garlic, peeled
A sprinkle of herbs/seasoning of choice (I used Herbs de Provence)
Half of a box of pasta
1 can green beans
1/2 cup butter/margarine
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 tbs chopped parsley (fresh or freeze dried)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Place duck, half of the onion, a bay leaf, two cloves peeled garlic, and herbs/seasoning in a large pot.
2. Add enough water to cover ingredients, and bring to a boil
3. Lower heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour or until ducks are tender
4. While the duck cooks, prepare pasta according to package directions
5. Remove ducks from stock, strain stock, and reserve
6. When duck is cool enough to handle, chop into bite size pieces, looking for and removing pellets
7. Drain green beans, reserving liquid
8. Add enough duck broth to green bean liquid to make 1 1/2 cups
9. Chop the other half of the onion and green onions and saute in a skillet with melted butter until tender
10. Add flour, stirring until smooth
11. Add green beans and gradually stir in green bean liquid/broth mixture
12. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly
13. Stir in duck, pasta, milk, and parsley
14. Spoon into a greased shallow casserole dish 
15. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top
16. Cover and bake at 350 for 15 minutes
17. Uncover and bake 5 more minutes 

You can see the recipe for Duck and Wild Rice Casserole here.

A full duck hunter is a happy one!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, ya'll!

A Waterfowler's Breakfast

Tomorrow is the day.  Tomorrow marks the end of lazy weekends spent watching college football with Holt, date nights in Midtown, and exercising in the park.  Tomorrow is the end of sleeping late on Saturdays and dragging ourselves to church on Sunday mornings.  There will be no more grocery shopping at our favorite grocer in Memphis or afternoons in the kitchen cooking meals from scratch, not for awhile, at least, because tomorrow is opening day of waterfowl hunting in Arkansas...duck season is in!  

During duck season, I lose Holt to his job, yes, but mostly his passion.  Sure he bundles me up and brings me along, but I can see his unconditional love for for the sport as he successfully calls ducks from the skies to the water.  While unconditional is a strong adjective, I am not exaggerating.  True waterfowlers will be in the blind before daylight when it's snowing outside with a smile on their face; in fact, I've heard snow is the best weather to hunt ducks in!  So while tomorrow may be the end of spending time together in my warm home in Memphis, for awhile, it's the beginning of an age-old tradition of man pursuing beast.  It's the beginning of early mornings, afternoon naps, and relaxing by the fire as the morning's spoils cook on the grill.  It's mud, waders, sunsets, a cocktail, and skies full of ducks.  It's a celebration of nature, our livelihood, and the great migration.    

After spending a morning in the frigid blind, calling, shooting, and retrieving (if you don't have a pup), duck hunters come home hungry.  Here's a quick and easy recipe to warm their rumbling bellies.  It's great for a big group because you can make as many as your muffin tins will hold.

Looks cold, right?

Crispy Ham Cups

Sound familiar?  Yes, we made this recipe at the cooking class a few weeks back.  I was a little doubtful that it would be as easy when I had to do it by myself without all the prepared ingredients in front of me, but it was.  So I'm sharing it with you!
Spray your muffin tin with non-stick spray.  Place your ham slices in the cups.  If you have thin ham, use two pieces.  If you have thick, like mine, use one.  Spoon in creamed spinach.  I bought a box of frozen and warmed it on the stove.  If you're ambitious, or have all the time in the world, you could make your own.

Crack the eggs and pour one into each cup.  Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  We sprinkled some shredded cheddar on a few of ours, just to use it up.

Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes.  After 15 minutes, watch them closely and take them out when they've reached the desired done-ness, depending on how you like your eggs.  The cheese melted nicely and helped hold the cups together.  Use a butter knife to separate the ham cups from the muffin tin and serve.

Easy, filling, and delicious!
I didn't write a printable version of this recipe because it's so easy (ham, creamed spinach, egg, salt/pepper, oven at 350 till done).  For the next couple of months, most of my recipes will be featuring wild game and waterfowl so grab a gun and a meat tenderizer and meet me back here for some country delicacies! 

A Scavenged Squash

I have accidentally developed a new hobby and acquired a nickname: the scavenger.  It started out innocent enough.  Leftovers from a catered meeting at the office were abandoned in the break room, and I made a lunch out of it.  I went back later and there were still plenty of leftovers.  Hmm, I have a Tupperware in my desk; I could fill it up and have lunch tomorrow too.  Not so crazy, right?  That's two lunches I'm getting for free!  I got a little rush from the money I was saving.

Then, it escalated...no food left unattended is safe.  When people leave food in the break room, I take it without shame.  Once there was a sandwich platter and a "fixings" platter with lettuce and tomato.  All the sandwiches were gone, but I took the lettuce and tomato home and made a salad for dinner.  I've gone a full week without paying for a single lunch through catered meetings and leftovers in the break room.  I wouldn't necessarily call it an obsession but my friends and family have definitely noticed and have dubbed me "The Scavenger".

While I'm grateful that it's not necessary for me to scavenge to stay full, I'm admittedly frugal and it's fun to see how much I can scavenge.  One would think this translates to a lower grocery bill, so I was so excited to compare my grocery bills at the end of the month.  After saving a whopping $12.22 in a month, I was a bit disenchanted with my scavenging hobby.  However, I'm still at it, so guard your food well.

This brings me to a scavenged meal I made for Holt.  This is one of our favorite dishes.  I found the original recipe on Sparkrecipes.com, but I usually mix it up based on what I've got.
A roommate of mine was planning to go out of town for the weekend.  She asked if I wanted her butternut squash.  Umm, duh!  Butternut squash is one of our favorite veggies, and I immediately thought of this recipe.

Spicy Chicken with Dates and Butternut Squash

The "spicy" refers to seasonings, not heat.  We prefer to add a little heat to it, so this time I threw in a chipotle pepper while it was stewing and took it out before serving.  We've also simmered the broth with red pepper flakes then strained the broth to remove the flakes.  You could always just toss in a dash of cayenne or your favorite heat.
If you don't cook often, this recipe may require a bit of a spice investment.  Once you have the spices, they'll last a long time, and then this meal is pretty cheap to make.

You'll need a butternut squash, olive oil, chicken (breast or thigh, I prefer thigh for this meal), an onion, dried pitted dates (also scavenged, from my aunt's house), a bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cumin, coriander, flour, chicken stock, and cilantro.  My coriander disappeared so I used cardamom.  I know that's not a lateral substitution, but it goes with the flavor well.

Peel the squash, cut in half, scrape out the seeds, and chop into chunks.  Drizzle these with EVOO and season with salt and pepper.  Pop them into the oven at 400 for about 30-45 minutes, stirring them half way.  This is a wonderful side dish by itself.  The edges get a little crusty and the inside is sweet, fleshy deliciousness.

While the squash is roasting, cook chicken in 4 tbs EVOO with salt and pepper.  Add onion, 12 chopped dates, spices, bay leaf, and cinnamon stick.  When onion is tender, add 3 tbs flour, and cook another minute.
Add stock (we used a coconut Thai stock this time, but I think I prefer chicken), and bring to a bubble.  Simmer until curry thickens and dates plump (5-6 min).

Remove bay leaf and cinnamon stick.  Stir in roasted squash, sprinkle with cilantro, and serve over rice or couscous.  

Not the prettiest dish, but definitely tasty!

Since I scavenged the squash and dates and already had the spices, this meal cost me an onion and a bag of chicken thighs, which comes out to about a dollar per serving. Here's the printable version of the original recipe:

Spicy Chicken with Dates & Butternut Squash

1 Butternut squash
4 TBS EVOO
2 1/2 lbs Chicken (breast or thigh)
1 lg onion
12 dry pitted dates, coarsely chopped
1 Tbs Cumin
1 Tbs Coriander (powder)
1 bay leaf
1 Cinnamon Stick
3 Tbs Flour
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup cilantro roughly chopped

Preheat Oven to 400 F
Cut squash into cubes, place in baking dish, and drizzle EVOO over it. Season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.  Place in oven for about 30-45 mins, or until tender.
Cook chicken in EVOO with salt & pepper.
Add onions, dates, spices, bay leaf, & cinnamon stick into pan. When onion is tender add flour, cook about 1 min.
Add stock, bring to a bubble. Simmer until curry thickens and dates plump. (5-6 mins)
Remove bay leaf and Cinnamon stick
Stir in roasted squash

Makes 6 servings.