I felt so jipped when I learned the history behind Valentine's Day!
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What's with the candy and lame cards, when we could be enjoying this time of year the way people used to back in the day???
Valentine's Day actually claims to celebrate several individuals (considered saints) who were murdered for their kind actions, because the ways in which they helped people violated Roman law at the time.
Several of these saints were named "Valentine" including a Christian Priest who was performing miracles, and an Italian Bishop who was marrying couples in secret.
The irony of this holiday is, that it is now celebrated around the same time of year that the ancient Romans would celebrate with the feast of Lupercalia- a tribute to the goddess of fertility. It was custom to bring a friend of the opposite sex to this feast. What better way to impress someone than to share some awesome food?
. . .
I realized that, regardless of WHO or WHAT this holiday makes you want to celebrate, we have the HOW all wrong.
It's not candy and cards we should be indulging in this time of year-
it's a FEAST!!!
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In years past I have been opting out of Valentine's Day, when I should have been cooking new dishes and inviting my loved-ones over for a feast instead.
At least we know now!
Chris and I are headed to a Feast with our good friends Blake and Helen (who raise awesome Longhorn Beef for Taste of the Wind) this week.
I can't wait!
What is your Valentine's Day Tradition?
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We had a weekend full of beautiful weather here,
but that doesn't mean we were out of the mood for stew!
We had what I call "gizzy-stew" this week and it was delicious!
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Chris and I are in the process of gradually cleaning out our freezer for Spring.
So we are down to the odds and ends of whatever I stuck in there over the past year.
Our freezer right now is home to stuff like...
An old laying hen I processed because she was pecking eggs, random organ meats, freezer burnt packages or packages of various meats and cuts that busted so I couldn't sell them.
Interesting stuff like that!
If you have been getting my emails for any amount of time you have probably realized I love a good culinary challenge- especially one involving turning Mediocre Meats into delectable, nutrient-rich deliciousness.
You probably also know by now, that I have a dang-picky husband when it comes to food...
So when it comes to eating the wonders at bottom-of-the-freezer, I have my work cut out for me.
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A package of chicken gizzards ended up in this mix and I didn't quite feel like frying them, so I decided what the heck-
When in doubt, cook it down!
I tossed them into my slow-cooker with a bunch of other amazing veggies, spices, and bone broth.
Chris ate the gizzy-stew multiple times. He didn't even ask what the melt-in-your-mouth meat morsels were and he said he liked the stew!
I gave myself a pat on the back with my ladle.
Heck-yessss, another home-stewed-success!
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Want to try your hand at stewing but don't have a freezer bottom full of "wonders" to try it out with?
We still have stew bundles available on our online store.
They do not include chicken gizzards, but they do come with:
-Soup Bones
-Beef Stew Meat
-Diced Pork
-Slow-Cooker Beef Roast
-Ground Beef
-Lamb Shanks or Beef Short Ribs
-My 5 Favorite Go-To-Stew Recipes
-FREE Shipping for the Month of February!
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Stew is a great way to use up meat that may be a little bit freezer burnt from sitting at the bottom of your freezer for too long.
Here are some videos I created for you about preventing freezer burn and converting a freezer-burnt roast into a fantastic meal. In case you find some freezer burn in those wonders at the bottom of your freezer this winter.
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I hope your week is warm and stewy, because it is supposed to get back into the negatives again this week in Laramie.
Stay warm and cozy!
-BJ and the Taste of the Wind Crew
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