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!