Constance
Master Chef
We had our annual autumn get-together with family and friends yesterday, and did we ever have some wonderful food!
We started Saturday, with HB brining the turkey, pork loins and venison loins, while I made up a turkey roaster of my "Killer Baked Beans", North Carolina Slaw (sweet-sour) and homemade BBQ sauce.
Then he and my son-in-law were up at 4:30 yesterday morning, getting the smoker going and putting the pork butts on. (All he does with them is give them a good rub of Cajun seasoning and smear mustard all over the outside.) Later, they rinsed the brine off the turkey, rubbed it with olive oil, S&P and sage, and put it on. Next came the pork loin, which also got a good rinse and a rub-down of Cajun seasoning. Finally, he did the same with 8 venison loins and a couple of packages of Johnsonville brats. By then, he had 40 lbs of meat in the smoker, with the baked beans cooking on top.
It was a beautiful day, and we all sat outside in the autumn sunshine, nibbling on tidbits of brats, venison loin, venison salami, and cheese dip, along with our beverages of choice, and watching the younger ones playing washers and passing the football.
When the meat was all done, all I had to do was pull the slaw out of the fridge, and everyone dug in. We had plenty of bread and buns for sandwiches, and my daughter made a beautiful red velvet cake for dessert, with the traditional white-sauce based frosting that is so tricky to make, but makes the cake so delicious.
We all ate until we couldn't move. It never fails to amaze me how much these young men can eat. We sent home some care packages, have leftovers for a couple of meals, and packages of smoked meat in the freezer to enjoy this winter. There wasn't even one crumb of the cake left, though.
I wish y'all could have been here!
We started Saturday, with HB brining the turkey, pork loins and venison loins, while I made up a turkey roaster of my "Killer Baked Beans", North Carolina Slaw (sweet-sour) and homemade BBQ sauce.
Then he and my son-in-law were up at 4:30 yesterday morning, getting the smoker going and putting the pork butts on. (All he does with them is give them a good rub of Cajun seasoning and smear mustard all over the outside.) Later, they rinsed the brine off the turkey, rubbed it with olive oil, S&P and sage, and put it on. Next came the pork loin, which also got a good rinse and a rub-down of Cajun seasoning. Finally, he did the same with 8 venison loins and a couple of packages of Johnsonville brats. By then, he had 40 lbs of meat in the smoker, with the baked beans cooking on top.
It was a beautiful day, and we all sat outside in the autumn sunshine, nibbling on tidbits of brats, venison loin, venison salami, and cheese dip, along with our beverages of choice, and watching the younger ones playing washers and passing the football.
When the meat was all done, all I had to do was pull the slaw out of the fridge, and everyone dug in. We had plenty of bread and buns for sandwiches, and my daughter made a beautiful red velvet cake for dessert, with the traditional white-sauce based frosting that is so tricky to make, but makes the cake so delicious.
We all ate until we couldn't move. It never fails to amaze me how much these young men can eat. We sent home some care packages, have leftovers for a couple of meals, and packages of smoked meat in the freezer to enjoy this winter. There wasn't even one crumb of the cake left, though.
I wish y'all could have been here!
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