Best Jerky Ever!

The original title of this blog was "Lets Have a Jerk-Off!" but thought maybe it would be misinterpreted!

Anyway.

Food when you are camping often takes on two themes.  There are the old faves, like smokies over the fire, the night everyone has steak, and eating those darned "Spits" til your lips and tongue hurt.  Then there's always the new stuff that people want to try and share with everyone.  This year, my brother-in-law made the mother-load in beef jerky, and shared it with all of us (much to our delight!).   Not only did he make beef jerky, but he made SIX different kinds!

Six kinds of Jerky!  Original, Hickory, Mesquite, Cajun,
Pepper, and my personal favourite...INFERNO!

I asked my brother in law for some of the specifics about his food dehydrator, the spices he used, and other pertinent info.....here's what he wrote...

It is a Nesco FD80 that can be expanded up to eight trays.  The main thing about picking out a dehydrator is that the motor is on top, then it doesn’t get messy at the bottom.  And I like the square one as well, you can add a lot more onto them.

For the jerky mix, I had made my own, but it’s much easier and more tasty if you buy the packs.  I have bought from Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shop and they are both good.  I tend to use the Cabela’s a little more, just because you prepare it without water, therefor it takes less time to dehydrate, but they are both good. 

Here are some of the links he sent for the spice mixes:

http://www.cabelas.ca/index.cfm?pageID=71&&section=1189&section2=1305&ID=3300

http://www.basspro.com/Backwoods-Jerky-Variety-Seasoning-Pack/product/36725/116559


And for the dehydrator itself...

http://www.londondrugs.com/Cultures/en-US/Product+Detail/Homeware.htm?BreadCrumbs=Homeware;Homeware;Appliances;Food%20Savers%20and%20Dehydrators&ProductID=3256484&ProductTab=3


Thanks for sharing the jerky, bro!!!!  I know what my next appliance is gonna be!!

An Unexpected (and awesome!) Surprise

Calaway Park -- The Log Ride!

Some of the kids before the Free Fall Ride!

My week that started out with me feeling a bit down about things, ended with our family having the best August long-weekend ever!   It began with my mom and sister visiting all of my family in Toronto...my gramma, and all the aunts, uncles, cousins, babies, etc...   Its always a great time, and I try my best to bring the kids and visit there every summer, but it often works out to every other summer, whether its due to finances, or other vacation plans.

The thing was that I REALLY wanted to be in Toronto with everyone.  I was obsessed with checking flights on Expedia, Westjet, Travel Buddy, Flight Finder....you name it, I checked it. All flights round trip were at least 800 plus dollars!  It took some time, (and the shedding of many tears) for me to realize that I just couldn't do it this time.   My husband was very supportive, and God lov 'im for putting up with my moods this week!  I had to figure out on my own that it was okay that I couldn't go, but it was okay to miss my family, without the mood swings.

Then, out of the blue, we got a phone call from my hubby's bro and his family.  They were driving back from a camping trip and had tried to get into one more camp ground on their way home, and couldn't get a site.  They called us to see if "there was room at the inn" and it ended up being three nights of full-on-family-fun-time!  And I can honestly say, it was what I needed.  I was no longer sad that I couldn't go to Toronto, but happy that I could "wine and dine" some of our family here (and you know how I thrive and flourish with feeding lotsa people!!!).   And wine and dine we did!   I think it was a non-stop eating and drinking fest!  We sat out on our deck, talked, had some fun drinks and delicious food, went to Calaway Park, played poker, played some other old-time family favourite card games and we even had time for a bit of "Fifty Shades"!  We had a handful of the cousins together (love that cousin bonding time!), and the adults (that would be the 4 of us, plus a few of the cousins have now "graduated" into adulthood) had a great time catching up and just visiting for no other reason than to visit.

The best saying of the weekend was near the end...right after I asked if anyone they wanted more food.   The response was a firm NO, followed by,   "I'll just wither away to my ideal weight!"  Classic, right?  Wish I could take cred for it!  That really needs to go on a Weight Watchers T-shirt or something!!

What a wild weekend, that started with a change of plans, and ended with  full tummies, our livers on overload to detox the system, but most of all ended with us reconnecting with family before the fall hits us hard with school and all the extra activities.

Thanks for a GREAT weekend!!!

Happy Birthday To Me!

Happy Birthday Sherene!

Last week was my 43 birthday, and for those who know me, you know I LOVE MY BIRTHDAY!  I think that most July people would agree that they too love love LOVE their birthdays, especially if have been blessed with being both July AND Leo!  Thank you to my family (who live quite far from me) for all the birthday wishes that were emailed, phoned, facebooked, texted, etc...  LOVE IT!   My aunt sent me my birthday horoscope, which I also loved:  Your birthday resolutions will have more power than usual this year, so think hard about what it is you most wish to accomplish then promise yourself that you will make it happen. Do something special every single day.

To celebrate my birthday week, we went camping last week with the kids, and 2 other families as well (both from my hubby's side of the fam).  We camped at Kikomun Creek Provincial Park, which is absolutely one of the most beautiful and clean and well kept campgrounds I have ever been to.  It's just outside of Fernie, BC, and the weather could not have been more spectacular.  It really was a great birthday week!  We had great food, happy hour drinks and happy hour appies, time to relax and visit, spent time reading (for me that was the second instalment of Fifty Shades), swam, visited friends of ours who have a place on Lake Kookanusa, spent a day on their boat (thanks!!), hiked around Surveyors Lake and ate the BEST home-made beef jerky ever, thanks to my fave brother in-law :-)

A beautiful, healthy and delicious
breakfast featuring my new fave
Oikos Yogurt!  Tres Yummy!

For my actual birthday (July 24th), I had an amazing continental breakfast presented to me (thanks to my "cousin-in-law"...who was also intertwined in Fifty Shades!) and got to relax in my gravity chair drinking my coffee and eating my delicious breakie (while my daughter gave me a foot massage!).

Breakfast AND a foot massage!

Cheers sis!! (wish my eyes were open!!)

My fave sister-in-law (also furiously reading Fifty Shades) gave me a beautiful scarf from Switzerland, which I LOVE, and Swiss chocolate!  Yum!!!







My son gave me a Pandora charm (my fave animal....a giraffe) and my daughter gave me some beautiful earrings along with some home-made gifts that included some Spa-coupons (her room for a massage), a home-made jewellery box, and other treasures that she created for me.  Hubby's gift....of course....it was Neil Diamond himself, singing in concert (awesome!).

Happy Birthday To Me!  What a great day
and a terrific family pic!

6 different kinds of jerky,
all meticulously labelled
and incredibly delicious!

My brother-in-law gave me the assortment of beef jerky that he made and it was really the best beef jerky ever (worthy of its own posting once I get all his ingredients and the brand of his food deyhydrator!).  Dinner that night was of course appies:  ribs, wings, and dessert was a delicious chocolate cake (made by my husband) but it was the black-bean cake recipe, which I know does not sound that good but truly, it was DELICIOUS!  It had a full can of black beans, no flour, and was so moist and fantastic and by the way...freezes beautifully!!!    The recipe and link for that is posted below!





I will be posting some of the foodie pics, and other camping pics, but for now, really just wanted to say thank you to everyone who made my day so special and memorable, and also need to say thank you to E. L. James (author of...you guessed it the "Fifty Shades" series), who provided some great entertainment during the camping trip!

Black Bean Brownies

Ingredients

• 1 (15.5 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 3 eggs
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee (optional)
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease an 8x8 square baking dish.
2. Combine the black beans, eggs, oil, cocoa powder, salt, vanilla extract, sugar, and instant coffee in a blender; blend until smooth; pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top of the mixture.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until the top is dry and the edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 30 minutes.

Nutritional Information per serving:  Calories:  126   Total Fat:  5.3 grams  

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/black-bean-brownies/

Who Are You Running For?

My mother-in-law is a breast cancer survivor, and every year, my sister-in-law not only participates in the Run for the Cure, but she is very creative at fundraising, making delicious cookies and selling them with all the profits going towards the Cure.  I asked her to share her story in her words so I could post it for my faithful readers......here is her story, which is inspirational.  Thanks Tammy!

Hey Sherene, as promised, here is some info on my annual run. I started doing this run in 2001, the same year my mother was diagnosed. At a time where I felt lost and helpless against such a big and scary disease, I was introduced to a way to stand up to it. I was invited to join the Canadian Breast Cancer’s Run for the Cure. In October 2001, I joined thousands of others, including my brother Kelly and his wife Sherene, in the fight against Breast Cancer.  I didn’t raise a lot that first year but I did find confidence and courage in the face of some very scary circumstances. Within the year, my mother finished her treatment and the cancer was defeated. She may have been out of the woods but I realized that so many weren’t. I decided to keep up the fight. I have proudly participated in the Run every year since.

I have done what I can to help fund research; some of it right here in Calgary, and have witnessed many success stories. Every year that I go, every story that I hear, it emboldens me to show Cancer that I am not afraid, that I will see it’s end in my lifetime. That one day my nieces will ask me “What's breast Cancer?”.

My totals in the past decade help show my commitment. For the first few years I didn’t keep as accurate records as I do now but I think they are still impressive.

2001-2005: $1,215.00

2006: $1,725.00

2007: $950.00

2008: $1,177.00

2009: $3,585.00

2010: $4,388.00

2011: $1,275.00

So far this year I have raised $185.00 in spite of my late start which brings my overall total to $14,500.00. This is an impressive total but I can do better, WE can do better.  I urge anyone reading this to join in the fight and to spread the word. We can win and we WILL WIN against Breast Cancer.  Help me help others by donating today. You can donate directly to the Canadian Breast Cancer website at  http://www.runforthecure.com/goto/Tammyspage

Thank you for reading and thank you for standing up for the 22,900 Women and Men that will diagnosed this year. Thank you for your support and perhaps I’ll even see you out there on September 30, 2012 fighting alongside me.

Tammy Sieben

The Big Stink!

Ok, so before you think I am going all "granola" on you, just know that I am not.

But, here's the scoop.  I have noticed that since I have "aged" a bit, certain deodorants do not work for me as well as I would like.  I don't stink, but if I can smell me, then I don't like it.  I have tried everything from no deodorant (ick) to combo deodorant / antiperspirant to just the antiperspirant.  I have switched brands, tried to see if lasering the hair under the pits would help....everything.   And again, I don't stink, I am not a "smelly" person, but I have noticed (on me) that with age, comes a more "ripe" odour that I don't like.   It's okay for cheese to age and ripen, but really, that's not what I want for me!!!

This is not a topic that people usually have with each other, but a girlfriend at work and I have discussed it because we both have had our own issues with this problem.   She recently sent me something she found on-line about making your own deodorant.  Again, I am not going all granola, but hey, at this point, I will try anything!   So, I tried it.  It was simple to make with pure ingredients.  This week, I was even able to put the home-made anti-stink concoction to the ultimate test as we were camping.  The result?  This stuff really WORKS and it is just amazing!

Some good quality coconut oil

Aluminium free baking soda (left)
and the arrowroot powder

Some essential oils

Here is the recipe and the ingredients I used.    All of these ingredients are available at your local organic market (Planet Organic for me!).

1/3 cup of coconut oil (solid state)
1/4 cup aluminium free baking soda
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
essential oils (optional, but a nice touch)

Mix the baking soda and arrowroot powder in a glass bowl.  Add coconut oil (solid state...do not melt) and mix with a pastry cutter or fork to thoroughly blend with the dry ingredients.  Add 5 - 10 drops of your favourite essential oil.  For my recipe, I added vanilla (thought I would just do something nice but not to overpowering).  It was also recommended to add 1 - 2 drops of tea tree oil for the anti-bacterial aspect of it.  I don't like the smell of tea tree oil, but with the vanilla, it was fine, and the tea tree oil smell has since disappeared.   Add more coconut oil or arrowroot powder / baking soda if needed until consistency is similar to a commercial solid stick style deodorant.  Note that I did not have to add any more.  Scoop mixture into a small jar or container and store at room temperature.  In summer months, you may have to store it in your fridge because coconut oil will melt at 76 degrees.

To apply, use your fingers to scoop out a small pea size amount and massage it into your armpits daily or as needed.  Allow a minute or two for the deodorant to set before getting dressed.

Remember..this is a deodorant, not an antiperspirant.  It won't stop you from sweating, but hey, you won't stink!


**another tip that I have not tried?  It was suggested to me to save your old deodorant and just scoop in your new home made one and just "roll" it on as you would usually do.  Have not tried this yet, but will do it next time for sure!

Week 4 Update....

So end of week 4, and today was my day....but it was not meant to be.

I was 162.6 lb this morning...but....am I surprised?  Not really.   Factor in Stampede foods, going out to dinner twice (lucky me!) and only exercising twice, it's not hard to figure out why!

Well, there's always week 5.

Chocolate Energy Balls

Yesterday I tried yet again an amazing (and healthy) chocolatey treat.   Of course I had to have the recipe from a series of cookbooks that I have not heard of (which surprised me!).  The cookbook series is called "Whitewater Cooks" written by Shelley Adams.

I found different variations of these energy balls on-line.  The recipe itself is so versatile and looks like it would accept different ingredient substitutions.  One thing is for sure...Shelley Adams has created something amazing, simple and delicious and nutritious.  I even had one for breakfast.

Whitewater Energy Balls

1 cup toasted sunflower seeds

1 cup toasted sesame seeds

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup dried cranberries (1 used 1/2 cran, 1/2 raisins)

1/2 cup cocoa

2 cups peanut butter (out of necessity, I used 1 cup organic peanut butter, 1 cup of "Wow" peanut-free peanut butter)

1/2 cup of honey

1 1/2 cups toasted coconut for the coating. (I didn't have coconut so used cocoa powder to coat mine)

Put everything in a bowl except the coconut.  Mix ingredients well.  More honey may be needed to hold everything together.  I had to put mine in the fridge overnight to firm it up a bit.  Roll into them into timbit sized balls, and then roll in toasted coconut (or in my case, more cocoa powder).  From what I read, you can store these in the refrigerator for a week, or in the freezer for up to one month.

Healthy, nutritious and sinfully delicious!   Thanks Whitewatercooks!   I will definitely be buying this series of cookbooks and trying some new recipes!

http://whitewatercooks.com/index.html