2011, Recipes 78 & 79: Moose Burger with Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Burger recipe courtesy of The Hungry Cyclist

• 1kg freshly minced moose meat
• 1 onion, finely chopped 
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 egg 
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce 
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil (dried will not do!) 
• 1 pinch fresh thyme 
• 1 pinch fresh rosemary leaves, chopped 
• 1 tsp finely chopped fresh chilli 
• 1 teaspoon salt 
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper to cook: 
• a rasher of bacon for each burger
• to serve: buns, Canadian cheddar, lettuce, tomato and sweet relish

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl using your hands. Take a good handful of the mixture and shape into a thick patty, then flatten to about an inch thick and set aside while you make the rest of the burgers. 

2. Cook some rashers of bacon in a heavy frying pan until they have released their fat. Remove the bacon and set aside.

3. Place the burgers in the same hot pan and cook on each side for 3–4 minutes. The bacon fat will add a wonderful flavour. 

4. Serve each burger in a bun with a chunky slab of Canadian Cheddar, some sweet relish, tomato and lettuce.

Results: YUMMMMMMMY!!!  OMG these were so good!!!  I got the moose from a friend who knows a hunter.  It was grrrreat!  I will definitely eat moose again if given the opportunity!  I saw someone describe the flavor as similar to bison.  It wasn't super gamy.  It was just tasty.  I think you could take this method and apply it to ground beef or turkey and be quite happy with the results!

Fry recipe courtesy of Paula Deen

House Seasoning:

• 1 cup salt
• 1/4 cup black pepper
• 1/4 cup garlic powder 

• Olive Oil, for tossing
• 5 sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch long slices, then 1/4-wide inch strips, using a crinkle cut knife
• Oil
• 1 tablespoon House Seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Line a sheet tray with parchment. In a large bowl toss sweet potatoes with just enough oil to coat. Sprinkle with House Seasoning and paprika. Spread sweet potatoes in single layer on prepared baking sheet, being sure not to overcrowd. Bake until sweet potatoes are tender and golden brown, turning occasionally, about 20 minutes. Let cool 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Results: I put way too many fries on one sheet pan so not enough of them got crispy.  They could've used more seasoning, too.  But it was a good basic recipe.

2011, Recipe 74: Tomato Basil & Feta Pasta

From the UK Allrecipes.com (So I put the conversions for you!)

• 1/2 lb. uncooked fusilli or penne pasta
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves crushed garlic
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 12-oz can chopped tomatoes, (about 3 fresh Roma)
• 6 fresh basil leaves, torn
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
Combine olive oil, garlic, onion, tomatoes and basil; let sit at room temperature.
Toss warm pasta with Parmesan and feta. Stir in tomato mixture and sprinkle on salt and pepper. You can add more Parmesan if desired. Serve immediately.

Results: Super easy and super delicious.  I'm frightened of raw garlic and raw onion.  Left out the onion, decided to give the raw garlic a shot.  It was awesome in this recipe!  I think the sitting to the side made it happy.  I used crushed red pepper because we like things spicy! ;-) I will say room temp cooled everything way down so this wasn't exactly a hot dish.  That was a bit odd but not undelicious.