Appetizer Archives - Wife Of A Hunter

Buffalo Pheasant Dip

Sophie May — Sat, 11 Feb 2023 16:28:57 +0000

This Buffalo Pheasant Dip is the PERFECT appetizer for your super bowl parties!

Who doesn’t love buffalo dip?? I’ve had this buffalo pheasant dip recipe in my recipe book for a while and I thought I had already posted it…but I was wrong!

There is not a lot of white meat in the wild game spectrum. And the few species there are, I love preparing it like normal chicken. Obviously pheasant is a lot leaner than chicken, but when you boil the pheasant until tender and then continue it in the crockpot for hours with cheese-y goodness, its going to be amazing! Pheasant is just a great meat to work with.

This recipe is super easy! Like I said you just boil the meat until tender and then add all of the ingredients to a crockpot and cook for ~3 hours. It’s SOOOO GOOD! I have some in the freezer to reheat for the Super Bowl tomorrow and I can’t wait. As usual sound off in the comments if you have any requests, comments, or concerns about anything and ENJOY this meal!

Buffalo Pheasant Dip

Delicious wild game appetizer for the big game! Or whenever else its delicious.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Keyword American, Appetizer, Buffalo, Pheasant, Upland Game

Prep Time 1 15

Cook Time 3

Total Time 4 15

Servings

Author Sophie May

Ingredients

Pre-cooking Pheasant

2 quartered out pheasant ~2 lbs
water
chicken bouillon
cayenne pepper

Dip Ingredients

3 T pheasant broth
16 oz cream cheese softened
2 T heavy cream
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dip
1 C Frank's Red Hot
1/2 C light sour cream
8 oz mozzarella
4 whole green onions

Instructions

Pre-cook Pheasant Instructions

To package instructions cover the pheasant in a stock pot with a chicken bouillon/water mixture. Add 1 to 2 more teaspoons of bouillon to give it extra flavor. If you want your pheasant a little spicier add a couple dashes of cayenne pepper.
Bring to a boil and then simmer until the meat is shreddable. ~50 minutes to an hour.

Dip Instructions

Add your meat and all of the other ingredients to a crockpot.
Stir and then cook on low for ~3 hours.
Grab your favorite chips or crackers and enjoy!!

The post Buffalo Pheasant Dip appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

Chicago Pull-Apart Venison Pigs in a Blanket

Sophie May — Thu, 02 Feb 2023 02:54:17 +0000

These Chicago Pull-Apart Venison Pigs in a Blanket are perfect for any party you are hosting or attending!

If you are like my family, you might be attending a Superbowl party or hosting one next weekend. This got me thinking and planning some appetizer recipes to help y’all out! I love to bring dips or finger food to parties. They are easy to snack or grab and you can continue socializing.

With this criteria, and also wanting something unique, but was also easy, my husband came up with this idea. It is an appetizer take on a Chicago dog. We keep venison hotdogs in our freezer because they are easy meals, so it made this recipe 10x easier to make because all we had to do was thaw the hotdogs.

This is a super fun appetizer that everyone will enjoy! You can even make this in a regular style and set up a topping bar for anyone to dress these weenies like they prefer!

I hope y’all enjoy this as much as we did!

Chicago Pull-Apart Venison Pigs in a Blanket

The perfect appetizer for any party.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Keyword American, Appetizer, Chicago, Hot Dog, Venison

Prep Time 8

Cook Time 35

Total Time 43

Servings people

Author Sophie May

Equipment

8" Springform Cake Pan if you don't have this like me, I used a regular 8" cake pan
Pizza Cutter optional but makes life easier
Rolling Pin

Ingredients

cooking spray to lightly coat your pan
all purpose flour enough to coat your surface
1 13.8oz pizza dough refridgerated
poppy seeds
onion powder
garlic powder
cane syrup optional
1.5 T salted butter melted
8 venison hotdogs cut in 1/3 to make 24 total

Toppings

yellow mustard
chopped dill pickles I used dill pickle relish
Chicago style relish my store did not have this, but if you can find it, use it!!
sport peppers I used chopped pepperoncini peppers
1 small tomato chopped
poppy seeds
small onion chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Lightly grease your pan.
Lightly flour your surface and unroll your pizza dough. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and roll out your dough. Cut 24 equal slices. I made mine into triangles, but rectangles work just fine.
If using cane syrup, drizzle the surface. I lightly did this but this is totally up to you. Sprinkle with poppy seeds, onion powder, and garlic powder. Again, this is up to you. Season with your heart.
Take a slice and wrap a hot dog slice with the non seasoned side touching the hot dog...i.e. seasoned side facing out. Put the pigs in a blanket standing upright in the pan (like you see in the photo). Repeat until the pan is filled.
Before I put it in the oven, I like to drizzle the top with more cane syrup and more poppy seeds.
Bake for 15 minutes. Brush the melted butter over the pigs in a blanket.
Continue baking for another 15-20 minutes or until the bread is golden brown.
Drizzle with mustard and top with your favorite toppings. ENJOY!

The post Chicago Pull-Apart Venison Pigs in a Blanket appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

Venison Meat Pies

Sophie May — Wed, 19 Oct 2022 02:43:04 +0000

These Venison Meat Pies will have your whole family getting along at the dinner table!

This recipe was a happy little accident. I went to the kitchen with the thought of a South African pepper steak pie in mind, but made these little pockets of deliciousness. They are very flavorful, the meat is tender, and the flaky crust is phenomenal. It makes about 16 pies and we had no leftovers.

The filling is a thick, savory, stewy meat that melts in your mouth. I have never had a pie like this. It is one of a kind and so very delicious. The small size ensures you get the perfect amount of pastry crust in each bite. The little crunch from the pastry compliments the meat perfectly for the most amazing marriage in your mouth.

The simmering process allows for the meat to cook with all the flavors and become so tender.

This truly is a recipe you are gonna want to try and it will absolutely be a family favorite.

Venison Meat Pies

Delicious pies that are perfect for Fall!

Course Appetizer, Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine American, European

Keyword Appetizer, Dinner, European, Meatball, Pie, vension

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 3

Total Time 3 20

Servings mini pies

Author Sophie May

Equipment

stock pot

Ingredients

2 lb venison roast cut into bite size pieces
2 T oil
1 yellow onion finely chopped
2 T garlic pepper crushed
2 T Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 T garlic minced
1/2 tsp thyme dried
6 oz tomato paste 1 can
1 T sugar
1 T red wine vinegar
32 oz beef broth
6 T flour

Pastries

16 mini pastry shells
4 sheets Puff Pastry Sheets 2 boxes
1 egg whisked

Instructions

If you haven't already, cut your meat into bite sized pieces.
Heat oil over medium-high heat.
Add meat to pan and cook until done and browned.
Remove meat and add onions, garlic, thyme, Worcestershire, and tomato paste. Combine. Let cook until tomato paste has browned to a dark red.
Add sugar and red wine vinegar. Combine.
Add broth. Stir to combine and add the meat back in. Stir.
Simmer on low for 1hr to 2 hrs or until meat is tender.
Combine flour in a bowl with liquid from the stockpot. Stir to create a thick paste. Add paste into stockpot and stir. This will thicken it.
Fill pastry shells just to the top with meat mixture.
Using a round glass or something in similar size to pastry diameter, cut the pastry sheets into circles. This will be the pie tops.
Place circles on top of pies and crimp edges using a fork or fingers.
Brush tops with whisked egg.
Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until golden brown. ENJOY!

The post Venison Meat Pies appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

Asian Duck Sliders

Sophie May — Wed, 09 Feb 2022 02:06:49 +0000

With duck season all finished up, and the Super Bowl coming in less than a week, these Asian Duck Sliders are the perfect appetizer/meal!

I know a lot of people don’t like duck, which is crazy to me, but if you’re going to hunt ducks you need to eat them! Eating ducks doesn’t need to be scary and grinding it into a burger takes away the worry about cooking them medium or less.

Also, I’m a fan of using duck with Asian styles of cooking because of how common of a meat it is in their cuisine. Wild duck is different than the normal Peking duck you might find at your local Asian market.

Like any wild animal, compared to a farm raised animal, there is a lot of variety in the wild version. Removing the skin from the wild ducks should help to equalize the flavor for every duck.

With everything in the slider, the duck ended up tasting very reminiscent of the inside of a dumpling. Topping it with the daikon radishes and carrots, (it’s important give this enough time to pickle) slaw, and sriracha mayo was the perfect combination, but you can add whatever your heart desires!

Lastly, throw a little soy sauce, gyoza, and extra sriracha mayo on the side for your dipping pleasure. Let me know how this goes in the comments and enjoy!

Asian Duck Sliders

Delicious way to use some duck breasts!

Course Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine American, Asian

Keyword Appetizer, Burger, Slider, Super Bowl

Servings sliders

Author Sophie May

Equipment

LEM Big Bite Grinder #8

Ingredients

Burger Ingredients

2.5 lbs duck breasts skinless
1 lb pork fat
24 Hawaiian Slider Buns
6 garlic cloves minced
1/2 shallot minced
1 tsp ginger minced
2 T hoisin sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
3 T less sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 1/2 C panko add after marinating overnight

Daikon

Vietnamese Pickled Carrots and Daikon Radish

Cabbage Slaw

4 oz shredded cabbage
2 whole green onion stalks white and green
A few T fresh chopped cilantro enough to be fragrant
Dash of rice vinegar
Dash of sesame oil

Serve With

Gyoza
Soy Sauce
Extra Sriracha Mayo

Instructions

Daikon Instructions

Make your daikon and let it pickle for multiple days (click on link in ingredients for recipe).

Burger Instructions

Cut duck and pork fat into small cubes that will fit in your meat grinder and place into a freezer for ~10-30 minutes (depending how cold it already is).
Grind the duck and pork fat through a fine plate in your LEM Big Bite Grinder.
Mix your fat and duck together.
Mix in all of your ingredients with the burger (except the panko).
Cover your burger with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge overnight.
Take your burger out and mix in the panko.
Preheat your grill to medium heat and put a cast iron tray down.
Form your burgers to the size of your slider buns.
Grill ~5 minutes a side or until cooked all the way through (size of burger will affect time).

Cabbage Slaw Instructions

Mix all cabbage slaw ingredients together.

Toppings

Dress your burger with the daikon, slaw, and sriracha mayo and than serve with gyoza sauce, soy sauce, and/or extra sriracha mayo and ENJOY!!

The post Asian Duck Sliders appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

Pico de Gallo

Sophie May — Sun, 19 Sep 2021 15:47:20 +0000

This Pico de Gallo is simple and gets the job done, because boy is it good!

My family loves everything Mexican, so it was about time I got some staple foods under my belt. This recipe can be enjoyed with any dish or by itself. It is very tasty.

Make sure to add zest from one of your limes! It adds the extra “oomph” to take this recipe to the next level. Also, don’t forget to deseed your tomatoes or your pico will air on the watery side. This also helps it to last longer if you do not finish it in one sitting.

I hope you enjoy it!

Pico de Gallo

Great addition to any meal.

Course Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword Appetizer, Mexican, Pico, Tomatoes

Prep Time 10

Chill Time 30

Total Time 40

Servings people

Author Sophie May

Ingredients

3 Roma tomatoes
1/3 C yellow onion finely chopped
1/4 C cilantro chopped
2 limes 2 juiced, 1 zested
1 jalapeño deseeded, finely chopped
1 tsp salt
2 cloves garlic minced

Instructions

In a medium bowl combine all ingredients.
Chill for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

The post Pico de Gallo appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

Guacamole

Sophie May — Sun, 19 Sep 2021 15:41:19 +0000

I don’t think any Mexican recipe is really complete without a delicious side of guacamole. On tacos, with chips, or just on your plate to dip any tasty Mexican delicacy into.

This is an easy recipe to make and is full of flavor. Throw this together before you make your meal or, if you are making an elaborate dish that has some down time, you can give yourself something to do and make it and just put it in the fridge! I am sure your family will love it.

A tip I have for this guac is a little sweet trick I learned that elevates any dish requiring diced tomatoes. If you scoop out your tomato seeds before dicing the tomatoes, you will remove excess moisture. This will leave the tomatoes crisp and keep the consistency of your dish.

This guacamole is sure to be a crowd pleaser so get to making it and ENJOY!

Guacamole

Great addition to any meal.

Course Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword Appetizer, Avocado, Guacamole, Mexican, Side

Prep Time 10

Chill Time 30

Total Time 40

Servings people

Author Sophie May

Ingredients

2 avocados
1/3 C red onion finely diced
1 Roma tomato deseeded, diced, and sprinkled with salt
2 T cilantro chopped
1/2 jalapeño finely diced
1 tsp garlic salt
1 lime juiced

Instructions

In a medium sized bowl, mash the avocados to desired consistency.
Add garlic salt, and lime juice.
Mix until well combined.
Add onion, tomato, cilantro, and jalapeño.
Mix until combined.
Chill for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

The post Guacamole appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

BBQ and Buffalo Gator Bites

Sophie May — Sun, 04 Jul 2021 04:00:09 +0000

Happy Fourth of July! I hope all of you are celebrating this great country, we were blessed to live in, with family and friends today. As with most holidays in the great US of A, you have to have delicious food! Most of the time Independence Day brings memories of fired up grills with burgers and hotdogs. I’ve made a couple burger recipes recently and I’m still working on the hot dog recipe, so I decided on something a little different for this 4^th. I made BBQ and Buffalo Gator Bites!

Nothing screams patriotic and ‘Merica more than deep frying some gator your husband shot off the Gulf of Texas. While I have made gator nuggets before, those were Asian and not at all the style I was looking for. I really wanted a tasty BBQ sauce and honestly anything even reminiscent of chicken bites requires Buffalo sauce too. I paired them with a nice homemade ranch dip, and they did not disappoint. Keep the nuggets small to give yourself the best meat to sauce ratio and don’t skrimp on the BBQ sauce because it is delicious! Bring these to your next social gathering and be the life of the party. Also remember to run away after you light those fireworks, blowing off your arm will really hurt you in the kitchen lol!

BBQ and Buffalo Gator Bites

A great appetizer, snack, or main dish your whole family will enjoy.

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword American, Appetizer, Gator

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 35

Total Time 55

Servings

Author Sophie May

Equipment

Deep Frying Pan or Deep Fryer

Ingredients

Gator Nugget Ingredients

2 lbs ground gator 80:20 gator:pork
vegetable oil enough for frying
2 eggs beaten
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 C corn starch
1/4 C flour
1 tsp garlic powder

Buffalo Gator Nugget Sauce

1 C Frank's Red Hot
2 T honey
1/4 C salted butter melted

BBQ Gator Nugget Sauce

1/2 C favorite BBQ sauce I use Kansas City
2 T honey
1 T ketchup I used sugar-free

Ranch Dipping Sauce

1 C Duke's mayo
1/2 C sour cream
2 tsp fresh chives chopped
3/4 tsp dill weed dried
1/2 tsp parsley dried
1 garlic clove minced
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Instructions

Ranch Dipping Sauce

Combine all the ingredients, mixing well.
Chill in the refrigerator while you complete the recipe.

Nuggets

In a fryer or frying pan, heat an inch of oil to 360° F.
Combine egg, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish.
In a separate shallow dish, combine flour, corn starch, and garlic powder.
Form small bite sized nuggets with the gator meat.
Cover 4-6 (however many will fit in your frying pan) gator bites in egg wash mixture and then dredge in flour mixture.
When oil is the right temperature, fry nuggets for approximately 3 minutes, turning them, and frying for another 2 minutes or until fully cooked and light brown.
Set fried nuggets on a paper towel lined plate and repeat the egg wash, flour, and frying process for the remaining nuggets.

Sauces

Mix together Buffalo Sauce ingredients. Set aside.
Mix together BBQ sauce ingredients. Set aside.

Prepare Nuggets

Preheat oven to 400° F.
Line a cookie sheet with foil. I take and extra sheet of foil and crumple it into a line to divide the sheet in half to keep BBQ and buffalo nuggets separate.
Dunk the nuggets (or brush) in either the BBQ sauce or Buffalo sauce and set them on the cookie sheet. Repeat until all nuggets are well coated.
Cook the nuggets for 5 minutes.
Remove and brush the nuggets again with their respective sauce.
Cook again for 3 minutes. This gets the sauce nice and caramelized on the nuggets.
Serve with the chilled ranch dipping sauce, carrots, and celery. Enjoy!

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Queso

Sophie May — Sun, 16 May 2021 04:01:57 +0000

Next to salsa, queso is a staple in any good Mexican restaurant. Queso isn’t just “cheese sauce” as my Alabama friends call it. It is melted cheese with peppers, cilantro, onion, etc. Add this on top of your Moose Burrito or any other Mexican dish and ENJOY!

Queso

Tasty queso to go with any Mexican food or just eat with chips by the bagful!

Course Appetizer, Side Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword Mexican, Queso, Side

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 10

Total Time 15

Servings people

Author Sophie May

Equipment

Cheese Grater

Ingredients

8 oz Monterrey jack not pre-shredded
12-16 oz white American cheese I found it at the deli section of my HEB
1 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 cup white onion diced
1 jalapeno deseeded and chopped
1 can diced tomatoes drained
1/3 cup cilantro rough chop
1/4 cup heavy cream

Instructions

Grate your cheese and mix together with corn starch in a bowl.
Heat oil on high in a non-stick pan.
Add onion and pepper until softened.
Add diced tomatoes and drain off any excess moisture.
Add shredded cheese and cream and stir until melted.
Add cilantro and stir to combine. If it is too thick you can add additional cream.
Eat with chips and enjoy!

The post Queso appeared first on Wife Of A Hunter.

Wild Pork Dumplings

Sophie May — Wed, 14 Apr 2021 15:35:59 +0000

Instead of leaving that big wild pig you shot in the field, you should definitely bring it in and make some wild pork dumplings!!

Dumplings are the best! Who doesn’t love a good side of dumplings at their favorite Asian restaurant? They’re not only my go to appetizer, but my favorite snack at the supermarket. The flavor profile of a dumpling, with the soft sticky exterior and the warm flavorful filling accompanied with a tangy equally flavorful sauce, is what makes them so great. With some wild pork still left in the freezer I had to make my own version.

We have been working through a wild boar we got a couple of months ago and decided to grind up some of the meat. It was a fat boar and the “smelliness” or “off-taste” that is normally associated with a big boar hasn’t been in any of the meat. Even if it had been a little smelly, I think this recipe has enough aromatics to cover any off scent and still taste great! I have a couple more wild pork recipes in mind and look forward to experimenting with it.

Wild Pork Dumplings

I fun way to use the much maligned meat that is wild pork!

Course Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Asian, Dumplings, Pork, Wild Pig

Prep Time 8

Cook Time 40

Total Time 8 40

Servings dumplings

Author Sophie May

Equipment

Frying Pan

Ingredients

1 lb fatty ground pork
40 dumpling or wonton wrappers
1.5 C green cabbage finely chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
2 stalks green onion finely chopped
1.5 T hoisin sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
1 ¼ tsp ginger minced
1 T plus 1 tsp soy sauce
1 oz dried mushrooms rehydrated and finely chopped
½ tsp white pepper
Water to dip fingers in and for steaming
Oil for frying I use a combination of sesame and vegetable

Dipping Sauce:

¼ C soy sauce
1.5 T rice vinegar
1 T rice wine
¼-1 tsp sriracha depends on how spicy you would like and consistency
1 stalk scallion whites
Dash of sesame seeds

Instructions

In a bowl, combine pork, green cabbage, garlic, green onions, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, ginger, soy sauce, mushrooms, and white pepper until fully combined.
Place mixture in a Ziplock and refrigerate overnight. This is not necessary if you are in a time crunch, but it will enhance the flavors.
Fill wonton/dumpling wrappers with a heaping tsp to fill.
Wet finger and trace outside edge of wrapper. This will make the wrapper sticky and allow you to close it.
Make your dumpling shape. I brought all the edges to the middle to create the shape I did. However, a simple YouTube will show you all the possibilities you can create. Just make sure your dumpling is good and sealed.
Place several T (enough to cover the bottom just barely) of oil in a frying pan and heat over medium.
When oil becomes hot, place dumplings, bottom down, on the pan and brown the bottoms (~2 minutes).
**CAUTION** Place 1/4C of water in the pan. Cover immediately.
Turn heat to medium-low and steam until pork is fully cooked (~6 minutes).
While dumplings are cooking, mix dipping sauce ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Enjoy!

Notes

**CAUTION** This step requires adding water to an oiled pan. This will send oil popping everywhere and can burn you if you are not careful. It sounds way scarier than it actually is, but please use caution when doing this. I use the frying pan lid (which you will need to steam the dumplings) as a barrier, plus it helps with clean up if you do it quickly.

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