So many flavours of deer sausage

As we were eating supper last night, the old question came up, what was your favourite part of the day. Since we were eating bratwurst sausage, how delicious the meat was is often the topic of the answer to that question.

Richard was laughing and said, yes, and tomorrow there would be another discussion for he was going to make Stampede breakfast sausages which are very salty. The first one is delicious, the second one is salty, the third one very salty, the fourth one requires a glass of water, and the fifth one becomes the topic of conversation. Either the sausage requires another glass of water or the question is asked, “By chance, did you salt this sausage as you were frying it?” Yes, the stampede sausage is delicious for the first and second one.

Octoberfest is the flavour that the Johnsons will be ordering next. The butcher told Richard’s family to try the Stampede breakfast sausages first. A very good idea.

To finish off the list, Richard’s butcher also makes mild Italian sausage and chorizo sausage.

Something to watch for is does this sausage of nitrates. And that is a question all of us can ask at the meat counter now. In general, people are starting to watch.

For me, at the top of the list is deer bratwurst and deer chorizo. Who would have know there would be such wild choices.

Arta

Six Herd of Deer

Wyona and I took the trip from Sicamous back to Calgary again.

Not everything is the same, but almost. I saw a few deer as we climbed into the pass, five around Golden, stately animals walking right through the Kicking Horse River oxbows at Field, maybe 12 all with their back-sides toward us in the Bow Valley Parkway, some in the sandbars of the Vermilion Lakes and finally, another herd of deer in the foothills as we were descending into Calgary.

There is so much construction along the road. Add to that the one-way traffic that comes from landslides and rockslides, and a couple of hours is easily added to the trip.

I say over and over again, “I love my country, and I love this part of the Trans-Canada Highway.”

Wyona just keeps her eyes on the road, a package of pistachio nuts by her side to munch on.

She is always organized so that she has an empty cup to her left for the shells.

Photo: Salmon Arm Observor
Sicamous Roundabout

There are 2 new crazy traffic circles: one at the junction of the trans-Canada and 97A at Sicamous; the other at Revelstoke.

The circle at Sicamous requires the attention of all drivers in the car unless you are willing to go around the loops a number of times. 

Although the circle at Revelstoke is easier to navigate, you have to go under the train bridge, around the circle and then back again to get to Tim Horton’s.  And that is where I saw a 3 wheeled motorcycle that looked easy enough for me to ride.  As I was circling it, two men came to ask me if it was my vehicle, so they must have been admiring its majesty as well.  I said I should be so lucky.

We used the “fill in this survey and get a free cookie” coupon at Subway in Golden. Bonnie Wyora returned it to me in Salmon Arm after I sent her up to the counter at the Dairy Queen to get a free dilly bar with a “fill in this survey and get a free cookie” coupon. I had the Dairy Queen and the Subway coupons mixed up. Bonnie said that the girl at the counter studied it a along time before she figured out it was not for their store.

An adventure every day!

Arta

What to do? What to do with all that deer meat?

Last year I bought a bunch of local and or organic meat from a shop in our neighbourhood that was going under. Sad for them that my neighbourhood didn't work out, but great for me that I got such a great deal. To be honest, I hadn't even noticed them until a friend told me they were going out of business.I bought a ton of buffalo sausage off them and found this great recipe.

I think it would work out equally well with deer sausage.

Bison Sausage Bread

(Excerpted from Damn Good Food: 157 Recipes from Hell's Kitchen, page 58)

Makes 1 (3-pound) loaf

10 ounces Maple-Glazed Bison Sausage (see recipe below)

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2/3 cup brewed dark coffee

2 cups all-purpose flour2/3 cup dried currants (or cranberries)

2/3 cup walnut pieces (or peacans)

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Place sausage, brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, and coffee into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle. Mix on low speed until ingredients are just incorporated, about 1 minute.

Turn speed to medium, and mix 1 minute more.

Add remaining ingredients, and again on low speed, mix until just incorporated. Turn mixer off. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Mix on medium speed another 2 minutes.

Brush an 8 x 4 x 2-inch bread pan with melted butter, and dust with flour. Scrape batter into the bread pan, and place on the center rack of the oven. Bake 1-1/2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Remove bread from the oven and let cool to room temperature in the pan. Remove loaf and wrap securely in plastic wrap. Will keep in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks and in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Maple-Glazed Bison Sausage

(Excerpted from Damn Good Food, page 73
Makes approximately 8 patties

1 pound ground bison chuck

2/3 cup dried onion

6 tablespoons pure maple syrup

3 medium cloves garlic, minced (1 tablespoon)

2 teaspoons fennel seed

2 teaspoons fresh thyme

2 teaspoons dried sage

2 teaspoons crushed red pepper

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 teaspoon curing salt (see note)

Place all ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, and mix on low speed until just mixed, about 3 minutes. Do not to overmix the ingredients as this will compact the sausage and make for a tougher, dryer product.

Moisten your hands and pat sausage mixture into 3-ounce portions, about the size of a golf ball.

Bison meat is so low in fat that it should be cooked no longer than 4 minutes per side. If broiling, cook patties on a rack set 4 inches from the heat. For stovetop cooking, use a lightly oiled skillet, preferably cast iron, and cook over high heat. Never press down with a spatula on sausages while they cook as this pushes the flavorful juices out of the patties.

Note: Curing salt is a combination of salt and sodium nitrite. It assists in the preserving and curing of meats and sausages, and helps preserve the natural color of the meats. If you don't have access to curing salts, just substitute sea salt.