Tag Archives: picnic

Elk burgers — new food for July

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As July’s food item I’ve never tried, Elk nominated itself by being present at a farmer’s market I attended during 4th of July weekend. It sounded delicious and was only $10 a package from a local rancher, so I couldn’t resist. It was ground elk, so I’m sure I could have tried elk meatloaf or elk chili, but I had a hankerin for a good, juicy burger, so there you go. If you can’t or don’t want anything so fancy as elk, ground anything works for this plain ol classic burger recipe.
 
Ingredients:
1 pound ground elk (any meat)
4 tbsp seasoning of choice: I used Weber’s burger seasonings that include onion, black pepper, garlic, etc.
Buns
Burger toppings
 

Step 1: Divide ground elk into 4 even patties of about 1/4 pound each. Mix 1 tbsp seasoning into each and mix well. Shape into patties with your hands, or a press if you’re fancy enough to have one.

Step 2: If you’re lucky enough to have a grill, light that bad boy up and cook em that way. If you do not, a regular frying pan works. Cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes, then flip. They’ll be nicely browned and sizzling. Cook the other side another 5-7 minutes. We like some pink inside so it took about 15 min total.

Step 3: Add your toppings. I love avocado but none was available. But we had the classics, so my elk burger included: sliced American cheese, lettuce, tomato, & ketchup.

My boyfriend the carnivore (“meat man”) had a double, and declared it one of the best burgers he’s ever had. Since I’d say that number is probably in the hundreds, I consider it a great compliment. Elk is salty and tender and delicious. It’s like beef, but different. Just try it sometime, and if you like beef I bet you’ll like this even better.

 What’s your favorite burger?

Kohl-slaw!

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I work on a CSA farm (http://www.facebook.com/schoonerfarms) and this week we harvested a TON of radishes, red, pink, and French breakfast, plus I got a spare kohlrabi. I’ve never had kohlrabi before, so I googled recipes, and found this gem on the goodbowl.com which makes a coleslaw from kohlrabi, turnips, and radishes. I still had some turnips left from 2 weeks ago too. I decided while making it to make it a little more colorful, so I threw in some carrot and cucumber too!
Slaw:
1 cup shredded kohlrabi
1/2 cup shredded radish
1/2 cup shredded turnip
1/3 cucumber, shredded
1/2 large carrot, shredded
Dressing:
1/4 cup miracle whip
1 1/2 tbsp honey
1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp mustard
pinch black pepper

Shredding the kohlrabi was a bit difficult, I did not know how stringy the interior was. Maybe mine was too young or too old, or I should have cooked it first?

Step 1: Put all shredded vegetables in a large bowl.

Step 2: Mix all ingredients of the dressing, and pour over veggies. Mix well. That’s it!

This makes about 4 small servings. Refrigerate before serving. The dressing is deliciously tangy, and it’s a good mix of textures. It only gets better as you let it sit. It would be a great side dish to take to a picnic or party, with fresh spring flavors. Very healthy, and vegetarian.

Bonus: My tomato plants that I’ve been growing in pots outside for months have produced their first tiny ripe tomatoes! They were amazing, and tasted like my childhood. =)

Picnic potato salad

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I have a picnic coming up this weekend, and I also am in the middle of a 2-week spending fast (meaning I can’t spend anything) so I had to come up with something that I already had all the ingredients to in my house. After asking friends for ideas and some searching on Allrecipes.com, I decided on potato salad.
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I personally don’t even like it much, but I’ve never made it and it seemed easy. Plus I had all the ingredients already. Once made, I tried it, and it was actually pretty darn good. Maybe it will change my mind about potato salads.

Ingredients:
about 5 cups peeled, diced potatoes
3 hard boiled eggs
1/3 c lemon juice
1/4 c oil
1 1/2 tsp Worchestershire sauce
1 tbsp ground mustard
1/2 c Miracle Whip
1/4 c Ranch
2 ribs celery, diced
1/2 med onion, diced
1/2 c shredded carrot
1 tbsp salad seasoning

Step 2: Peel and dice the potatoes. Then boil them in a large pot while you dice up the rest of the vegetables. Once the potatoes are soft, drain. Mix all the liquids and spices in a large pot.

Step 2: Put the potatoes in with the Miracle Whip, Ranch, spices, etc and mix well to coat. Add the other diced vegetables and the diced hard boiled eggs. Mix well.

Step 3: Put in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving. Hopefully everyone at the picnic will like it!

Finished product.