What's in a Name?

The name of my blog comes from my mother. She along with my aunts and some of her friends have planned nearly every wedding on her side of the family, catering included. When I was younger she hatched a scheme to get her own catering business up and running. They were going to call it The Golden Plates. My mom Joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints when I was 5 (for more info see mormon.org). We believe that another record of Jesus Christ and His followers were translated from an ancient set of plates made from gold (not the kind you eat off of!). My mother and her clever friend thought that this name would be a cute little private joke, seeing as how only members of our church would know what the real golden plates were. Due to lack of funding, or the fact that my mom had 5 kids at home and her friend had 8, The Golden Plates never took off. There has been talk over the years of re-hatching this scheme of a wedding planning and catering business, but nothing's happened. So I've borrowed the name. I promise to give it back should her business ever take off, but until then.........it's mine!!! (insert evil laughter!!!!)

This week's recipe is 3-in-1! You lucky readers you! It's a new creation inspired by a freezer full of venison (Thanks Daddy!) My father has been a hunting plantation manager most of my life. Growing up, we almost never had beef. And most certainly never hamburger. Why would we when there was an abundance of wild free meat to be had? Now I have eaten some pretty interesting animals, but for the most part it was deer turkey and quail. Those were the staples in our household then and in the Yummers household now. Lucky for us, this is not only free, but also free-range! I know how it was killed, how it was processed, and where exactly it has been since Bambi left the forest. For those of you who are vegetarian and vegan: I'm sorry, but this is probably not the site for you. I have no problem killing animals (due to a life of literally living off the land). Meat is a necessity for me and my family, and if we eat it responsibly, I feel no reason to not eat it. Now on a lighter note....Today's menu is:

3 Cheese & Venison Ravioli

Although I use deer meat, any lean-ground meat that is available to you will work.  And yes this will be 3 recipes in one. You have the noodles, the filling and the sauce. So break out your Italian side and lets go!

Recipe the 1st: Filling
2 cups browned ground venison
1/3 cup each of Parmesan, Asiago, and Romano cheeses
1 tbs Italian Seasonings (wanna make your own? it's basically oregano,basil, rosemary and thyme)

While venison is still warm mix everything together so that the cheese melts.

Recipe the 2nd: Noodles
3 cups flour (your choice, can use gluten free too! just adjust water amount as needed)
2 eggs
water (I'd start with 1/4 cup and go from there. Adjust for your type of flour)
1tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

Mix everything together until it just comes together, mixing as little as possible. Over-mixing will cause your noodles to be tough and chewy, and practically inedible. If you have a pasta machine, or maker, use it.
now roll out the dough into very thin sheets. 1/8 inch is not impossible to reach if you're more stubborn than the dough! Cut into squares of desired size. I make mine 1 1/2 inch.

Brush the edges of a base square with an egg wash, put about 1/2 tsp of filling in center and top off with 2nd square, pressing edges together and pressing out air simultaneously. Do this until all squares are used up.

Drop into boiling salted water and cook until noodles are done. About 5-6 minutes. Drain and top with your favorite or the following sauce.


Recipe the 3rd: Basic Tomato Sauce
1/4 cup finely diced onions
1or 2 cloves of garlic-smashed and chopped
1/4 cup each chopped fresh basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary**
Salt & pepper
2 cups canned tomatoes (home canned or organic canned)*
2 tbs olive oil
water (to thin out sauce if it becomes too thick)

In a saucepan, brown onion and garlic in olive oil until onions become transparent.
Add herbs and cook until just wilted.
Puree tomatoes in blender or food processor and add to saucepan.
Add salt and pepper to taste and cook together for 30 minutes, adding water as needed.

*if fresh are used, peel and boil separately for 2 hours. Drain and puree as you would for canned.
** if using dried herbs, only use 1/4-1/2 tsp each herb, as dried have a more potent flavor.

One plate at a time.......

I wanted to lose weight, and I figured the best way was to change how and what I eat. That, for me, meant to cut out refined or processed everything. Hard to fathom? Yeah....my hubby doesn't get it either. Then again he's Mr. Eat-all-the-junk-in-the-world-and-not-gain-an-ounce. Me, I'm one of those people that look at a candy bar and gain 10 pounds. I also developed a sudden fear of preservatives and anything I can't pronounce on an ingredient list. My only option: get really friendly with the staff at 14 Carrot whole foods (the only store like it in my county), and PROCESS MY OWN FOOD. Crazy I know, right? But get this: When you buy a Rice pilaf mix you spend $1-2, right? In there are spices and rice and usually noodles and all you have to do is add water and heat it up. Easy right? What you also get is a mound of salt and preservatives, not to mention any chemicals that may be left over from pesticides or fertilizer. And it's a waste of money! You're spending $1-2 on something that cost the company maybe 15cents to throw together. And you have no control over what's in this product. Where as if you make it yourself, you not only save the money, but you also have COMPLETE CONTROL over what goes into your food. Decision made, problem solved. Now to figure out how to make everything I can buy in a box.........

The internet is full of recipes for anything you can type into a search engine. But I like to create my own recipes. Just ask anyone who was living at my house when I perfected my chocolate chip cookie recipe back in 2000 (it took over a month of tweaking). I still have requests for those cookies, though. And anyone who's had them say they're VERY good! My latest inventions have created quite a stir on Facebook, and at the prompting of my cousin (You know who you are!!!) I've created "The Golden Plates". This is where I'll post my latest creations, my trials and errors, and maybe even some complete flops. Wanna know where the name came from? Well that's for another post.

To get us started, how about I begin with the recipe that initiated my "Hey! I can make that!" craze:

Salmon Fish Sticks

These tender and delicious sticks came from the concern I had for what not only what I eat, but what my kids eat. This is a variation of a family recipe, that I watched my mom make a million times while I was growing up. It's made with salmon, which of course is very good for you. I get mine canned. Yes I know what you're thinking! It is technically processed. However..... If you have seen a homemade canning process, and have a reputable company providing this canning, then you can use your best judgement to decide if you want to use fresh (which is an option) or can your own (also another option), or just buy it from the store. Everything else in this recipe I either made myself, or bought organic, free-range, whatever.

1-14.75 oz canned salmon in water
3 slices of bread
1/2 cup plain cereal O's (cascadian farms makes some, i think)
1/4 cup milk
2 eggs
lemon juice
seasonings (as desired, I just use salt and pepper)
*you will need a food processor for this!*
*in processor, blend bread until soft fine crumbs
*remove crumbs and blend cereal until a fine powder
*drain juice from salmon, but save juice in separate container
*blend crumbs, fish, milk, eggs and seasonings gently (do not overmix!)
*add cereal powder, then add just enough lemon juice and saved fish juice until everything comes together.
*cereal powder is VERY absorbent, so I generally give it a minute or two and then add more liquid as needed.
*shape dough into sticks (get your hands dirty!) I usually give mine flat sides
*fry on lightly oiled griddle or pan until just slightly dry in the middle.

These can be made in a big batch and once cooked can be frozen to be reheated later. I
 always make a double batch and keep a gallon sized freezer bag full of these for a quick lunch for the kiddos!

Enjoy!