Bright Idea Outdoors Weblog

A Nutritional Note

Last night, I bumped into a friend who sells pharmaceuticals for a living.  I asked him how business is.

"I just got a new heart disease medication," he said.  "As long as there are MacDonald's, I can always sell that one."

This fellow spends a lot of time talking to medical professionals and takes good care of himself.  What he said will really give me something to think about the next time I'm tempted to pull into a drive-through.

So put down that quarter-pounder and throw those deep fried chicken nuggets you bought your kids in the trash.  Get some venison out of the freezer and go hit the produce aisle while it thaws.

Try This For a Great Steak

Over Memorial Day weekend, I took an honorable mention ribbon in Bob's 3rd Annual Steak Cookoff in Sterling, Virginia.  The contest rules called for each contestant to enter two rib-eye steaks and to prepare his or her own marinade.  No bottled marinades or packaged mixes were allowed.

Everyone knows I love to grill, but I'd never even attempted to come up with my own marinade recipe.  So the night before the contest, I poured myself a Beam and Coke in the kitchen and set to work.  After the great reaction I got to the steak, I considered keeping the recipe a secret.  But today's your lucky day!  I don't have anything else to write about. 

Here it is:

• (1) cup extra virgin olive oil
• (1) cup balsamic vinegar
• (10) oz. Rotelle tomatoes
• (2) tablespoons granulated sugar
• (3) tablespoons chipotle seasoning
• (12) oz. tomato paste
• (4) oz. water
• a little salt and pepper

It probably sounds weird, maybe even gross, but I promise you everyone loved it.  Later in the weekend, I tried it with venison and got equally delicious results.

The Rambler took a look at my recipe at the steak cookoff.

"I never could have come up with that," he said.

"I couldn't have either if it hadn't been for the Jim Beam," I replied.

The next time I make it, I'll probably go a little easier on the vinegar, try using tomato sauce instead of paste and eliminate the extra water.  Either way, you should give it a try.

Enjoy!

Getting the Garden Ready

Despite spending most of my adult life in the landscaping business, I've never tried very hard to grow edible plants before.  All that is going to change this year with the new garden at Camp Cowboy.

Preparing the garden took up most of the weekend.

Luckily, everyone pitched in to help.

Even Rocky!

So far, I've removed the grass and tilled in several yards of compost.  But I'm not sure what to do next or when to do it.  Any tips would be appreciated!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

There was a time when I'd have already been on a bar stool by this hour on this day.  But times have changed.

Instead of spending the afternoon whooping it up in what passes for an Irish pub here in the Virginia suburbs, I'm sitting in my basement office, working and pretending the Coke in my big mug is Guinness.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Chili Cookoff Photos

Here's the group photo from Sassy's Seventh Annual Chili Cookoff.  It was pretty late by the time it was taken, so a handful of people had already gone home.

Here's me with the mug I received as a trophy for first place in the competition.  You can't see the inscription, due to the fact that Sassy insisted I fill it with my favorite beverage.

Thanks to Sassy and family for putting together and hosting this great event.  I set the bar pretty high with the chili now known as "Flavor Trails," so next year should be even better!

Victory at Chili Cookoff

I made my first pot of chili ever yesterday afternoon and took it to the Seventh Annual Chili Cookoff at Aunt Sassy's house.  There were 14 chilies in the competition, all very good, so imagine my surprise when I took first place!

The trophy was a really nice mug with an inscription, and I got a blue ribbon to go with it.  It's always fun when you win something, and I'm glad everybody liked my chili.  But of course, my greatest satisfaction came from beating the Captain in yet another test of skill.  Perhaps I'll serve the chili again the next time I take him to school in horseshoes!

I'm still waiting on the contest organizers to email my victory photos and will post a couple of them when they come.

Wow Your Guests With Beer Can Chicken

Planning a summer cookout?  Tired of the same old hamburgers and hot dogs?

Beer can chicken is a surprisingly easy way to add some variety to your summertime supper table and your grilling routine.  I'd been hearing about it for years but always thought it sounded hard to do.  But I finally gave it a shot on July 4th and found out otherwise.

Just take a whole chicken, remove the innards and wash it.  Spray it with some olive oil or Pam and season it with whatever you like.

Then pour out (or drink) about a third of your favorite beer that comes in a can.  No need to get fancy here; anything from Milwaukee's Best to Bud Light is fine.  Insert the can into the hole in the backside of the bird and put it on the counter or a table to make sure it stands up.  This is the part that I always thought would be difficult.  It's not.

Heat your grill to about 400 degrees and move the chicken to the grilling surface, standing it up just like you did on the counter.  Close the lid and start cooking.

It's a good idea to check the grill for flare-ups periodically to avoid burning part of the bird.  I checked mine every twenty minutes or so and stuck a thermometer in the chicken after 90 minutes.  It was done and delicious!

You've got to try this if you haven't already.  Beer can chicken is so good that I plan to make it a Sunday afternoon staple at my house. 

Here's a couple tips: 1) The can will still have liquid in it when you take it off the grill, so be careful about spilling it. 2) Anyone who has tried McCormick's Grill Mates Montreal Steak seasoning knows how good it is.  Montreal Chicken does the same thing for yard birds that Montreal Steak does for beef.