More Infusions, canning roasted peppers and Red Scorpion pepper jelly!!

Merry Christmas everyone!!!  With a cold front keeping me indoors during Christmas I decided to try my hand at some new things, and go back to some of the same stuff.

While in San Diego for my 40th birthday I had a margarita that had an infused jalapeno tequila that was very good.  Having just recently made a cranberry and rosemary vodka for a holiday party; infusions have been on the brain. So I decided to make a jalapeno vodka for some (most likely needed) Bloody Marys during this holiday season.  I simply used one large jalapeño, washed and split, to fit in the bottle for a 750ml. I will taste it after a few days and every day after to ensure it doesn't get too spicy.

Loving roasted peppers and having canned everything else I seem to get my hands on, it occurred to me that I have never even thought of canning them.  I often have a roasted pepper in my fridge but having several jars of them ensures I will have them for my next recipe.

Roasted peppers (canned) recipe:

·         4 pound of red, yellow and/or orange peppers

·         1 cup of bottled lemon juice (bottled lemon juice ensures pH level for canning)

·         2 cups white vinegar

·         1 cup olive oil

·         2 cloves garlic

·         1 1/2 teaspoon salt

Wash and dry peppers leaving them whole and either grill or broil them until most of the skin is black.  I use a kitchen torch to get any spots that did not blacken.

As soon as you're done roasting the peppers, place them in an air-tight container to create steam that will help the skin come off.  I remove the stem, seeds and skin in the sink under running water.  Cut the peppers to your desired length/shape and pack into a jar.  Fill the jars with the canning liquid leaving 1/2 inch of head space.  Process the jars according to Ball's instructions.

A few weeks ago I was in a professional kitchen and the chef handed me five dried red Scorpion peppers (2nd hottest pepper in the world!).  I was cleaning out my fridge (throwing out old food and empty jars; one of which was a pepper jelly) when I figured out what to do with these hotter than hot peppers.  

Red Scorpion pepper jelly recipe: 

·         5 red Scorpion peppers

·         2 cups of water

·         1 cup of sugar

·         1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice

·         3 cups of pomegranate juice

·         2-3 tablespoons of Pomona's pectin

·         4 teaspoons of calcium water 

Boil water and peppers together for 20 minutes or until peppers are soft; strain liquid discarding peppers.  Some recipes I looked over directed that you puree the peppers but I prefer a smoother consistency and just the liquid alone is plenty hot.  Return liquid to medium heat and add 3/4 of the sugar along with the lemon juice; stir to dissolve the sugar.  Follow pectin instructions and canning procedures.  Enjoy!!

Looking forward to my many new adventures in 2015 and sharing my experiences!  January's new hobby will be Parkour/American Ninja Warrior training so stay tuned!!

New Job, Infusions and Homemade Christmas gifts

After working at DRY Soda for 2.5 years I now work for Impact Beverage.  It is a Colorado company and we just launched our first product; Head On.  Head On was developed by a team of clinical experts and scientists with support from doctors with ties to all the major sports.  Millions of dollars and years of research was tested by the Department of Defense. Head On restores with antioxidants, replenishes with electrolytes, and repairs with micro-nutrients. Supplying your body with the ingredients you need before, during, and after strenuous athletic activity.

For the second year Holly and I are invited to an infusion party.  We decided to go with the same one we did last year; cranberry and rosemary vodka with blood orange soda.  Last year I used a whipped cream dispenser because I only had a day.  I put all but the soda into the dispenser and charged it with N2O which put everything under a pressure.  I had plenty of time this year so I planned on doing it for 4-5 days.  I made a simple syrup and cooked the cranberries with the rosemary and loaded it all into a bottle of vodka.  After an a few hours it was already turning red from the cranberries.  

Home-made gifts has been Holly and I's theme for the last few years.  Sun-dried tomato spread, butterscotch, hot fudge and a hand scrub have all been gifted before.  This year we made hot fudge and salsa; warm hearts warm bellies. 

Hot Fudge

2/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 oz quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1.     In a medium, heavy saucepan over medium heat, combine cream, corn syrup, brown sugar, cocoa, salt and half of the chocolate, bring the mixture to a boil.  Stirring until the chocolate pieces are completely melted.

2.      Reduce heat and cook at a low boil, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat and add in butter, vanilla, and remaining chocolate and stirring until smooth.  Allow the sauce to cool down before serving.

Habanero /Jalapeno Salsa,

1-32 oz jar whole peeled tomatoes

3/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 whole seeded jalapeno

1 whole roasted and seeded habanero 

2 cloves minced garlic

3/4 cup chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika 

1 whole lime juiced

1. Combine half of the tomatoes, quarter of the onions, both peppers, garlic, half of the cilantro, all the spice and lime juice in a blender and puree.  Strain mixture and reserve liquid.  Pulse rest of tomatoes in blender to desired consistency and combine with remaining onions, cilantro and the puree.  Add enough reserved liquid to get desired consistency.  Refrigerate for several to infuse the flavors.

Here are instructions from Ball for canning.

Its my 40th birthday tomorrow so Holly and I are flying to San Diego for some celebration. My next blog will be in January with a still undecided hobby so stay tuned.  

Successful deer hunt!!

I shot my deer at 7am on November 22nd up by Fort Collins.  It was about 75 yards away and he dropped from one shot without any additional shots.  He was a 4x4 - or 8 point - buck with a broken tine, likely from a fight with another buck.

First step was to gut the deer.  I started just below its sternum by cutting just into the skin being careful not to cut the stomach or intestines.  I cut down to the anus opening the deers cavity so I could remove its organs.  I reached up to the heart and lungs and cut above them to release them.  I removed the rest of deer's organs making sure not to rupture anything.

I hung the deer by it's hind legs to skin.  I started with the legs and continued being careful not to cut the meat down to its head.  If I was going to do a shoulder mount I would stop at the neck leaving more skin.  I removed the antler with a saws-all just at the forehead.  I will let the deer hang for 2-4 weeks before taking it to a processor.  I will have a lot of deer sticks and jerky made and keep a few of the nicer cuts.  I plan on continuing to hunt deer/elk and will start duck and geese soon.  Next month's hobbies will be infusions and homemade gifts so stay tuned!

The elk hunt

There are many different ways to hunt; from sitting and waiting for it to come to you, to looking for tracks and tracking it down.  On this trip we did both; we drove a UTV (Utility task vehicle) to look for tracks and hiked to positions and waited for visuals.  My elk hunt happened in sections 7 and 8 near Walden, CO.  I experienced some pretty cold weather along with some heavy snow.  This hurt my chances for getting and even seeing an elk; however the amount of information I learned during this 2-day hunt was immense.

I learned that there are differences between the sections.  For instance, section 17 which was roughly 10 miles away happens to be located next to the elk reserve.  I did talk to a pair of guys at the bar that had a cow (female elk) and bull (male elk) in the back of their truck.  They had bought “over-the-counter” tags and chosen sections 17 where they were able to drive up to a herd of elk.  They proceeded to shoot and chase the now wounded elk in their vehicle; this was very different than my hunt and, frankly, I want to work harder to get my elk.  

One of the most important things I learned was to select the right section based on research and have a detailed map or GPS.  If I would have known that I could pick a section that was located next to a reserve, I would have.  One of the ways to do this is by buying an over the counter tag right before you go hunting so you can choose based on where people are seeing/killing elk.

Another thing to consider and think about is when to go hunting.  My tag was for the last rifle season which resulted in more snow and colder temperatures.  In addition, the rut (males competing for females and acting goofy/dumb) was over during my hunt.  So by hunting an earlier season I can avoid colder temperatures/snow and hunt during the rut.

I am deer hunting this Friday and Saturday in Fort Collins so I will update again about how that goes.  Next year Mr. Bull Elk!!

Buying a gun to hunt.

My hunting experience began when I was 12, with a BB-gun and then moved to a borrowed .22 caliber rifle, then a 4-10 shotgun in high school.  The game I have hunted until now includes rabbit, squirrel, pheasant and quail.  Should I be nervous about shooting bigger game?  I think that it will be different but I don't think deer and elk are more difficult than other animals, other than shooting longer distances I should be OK! 

After some research and advice from many different sources I decided to go with a 30-06 rifle.  The reason was cost of gun, ammo and versatility of game I can shoot with it.  I looked online (Gunbroker.com) and at stores like Bass Pro and Cabelas but ended up buying it at our local Tanner Gun show.  I decided on a Mossberg 30-06 with a scope for around $500 and added a bi-pod, sling and cleaning kit from Amazon.  At the gun show I had to pay for a background check ($10) that took only 20 minutes, and which I think is very important!

The next step was to “sight-in” the scope by shooting the gun.  I did this at my friend’s house (Terry) on several acres near Fort Collins.  Terry has a shooting area set up behind his house that is 100 yards.  We stapled six targets; three on top and three on bottom.  We also marked any bullet holes with a marker so even if I didn't hit any targets we would be able to see it on the boards.  It took 11 shots with adjustments to the scope in between shots to “sight it” in.  I am going to try and shoot it one more time before I hunt. Both of my tags are for November.

All done with Crossfit!

One month of Cross Fit in the books!

My takeaway is that Cross Fit is an interesting and hard workout.  The team aspect that I mentioned in my previous post is good/motivating and I can imagine that is gets better with more time.  The exercises in the workouts tend to be bigger type of movements like dead-lifts, power-cleans and box-jumps and, while I plan on adding a few to my workout, they don't focus on individual muscles like gym machines tend to do.  Also the big movements combined with running,jump roping and other cardio present a good possibility that someone can injure themselves.  While this can happen when doing many exercises and increasing the weight, competing against other people and being cheered on can make for a dangerous environment.

The price of Cross Fit ranges from place to place. However, it does run on the high side for a month of workouts but the price includes instruction.  At Cross Fit Lodo (Denver, CO), where I went, it cost $20 for a drop-in and $169 for unlimited classes each month.  To compare it to my $30 gym membership at 24-Hour Fitness, it is hard for me to justify continuing with Cross Fit since I don't really need instruction.  The classes are also at times that don't always work out for me.  I have been noticing more people at my 24-Hour Fitness doing Cross Fit-type exercises lately and others will be seeing me do some as well.  Feel free to reach out and ask any questions you may have about Cross Fit that I did not cover.

November's hobby is going to be hunting.  This will range from buying a gun, (hopefully) shooting a deer and/or an elk, cleaning and butchering, and cooking with it.

Cross Fit=Ouch!

Three visits last week and boy was I sore.  With every workout, legs are involved with exercises from squats to box jumps and many more.  I may be hurting a bit more because I normally don't (in my own workouts) lift my legs.  I leave the workout of my legs to running and biking but I am learning a painful lesson that I should have been involving my legs more in my workouts.

Several months ago I went to my wife's gym and attended for a trial week.  Her gym is called Orange Theory Fitness or OTF. OTF is a blend of cardio, weights and upbeat instructors that move you between different exercises for 60 minutes.  I enjoyed my workouts there and was able to take away some things that made my workouts better.  For instance, when I did cardio at OTF the instructors instructed us to increase the speed/incline to different levels.  I realized that in my workouts I would often just set the cardio equipment to one speed/incline and leave for the duration of my workout.  Now I work to keep my body guessing by changing the speed/incline.  My takeaway was something that makes me happier in my every day workouts!

I can already tell that I will be taking away some positive/good stuff from Cross Fit.  The different exercises are important because it keeps your body guessing (changing up your workouts)In addition to getting results, it has made me happy.  The encouragement from fellow classmates I do not get in my every day workouts and I really enjoy that.  On the other hand, I have experienced failure during my Cross Fit classes and in some cases (hand/wall stands/ pushing weight over my head) I feared I could hurt myself if I kept going.  There are some things that I won’t take to my own workouts.  But, with that said, I do enjoy my workouts at Cross Fit and will be incorporating some of the new exercises into my own workout.

A good investment is a roller for massaging out the sore legs; it hurts but helps.  I forgot to mention that I wear a Fit Bit.  Depending on how competitive you are and the people in your group, Fit Bit can help in increasing your activity; at least it does for me.  I have just under two weeks left of Cross Fit and five days of my cleanse; I have a ton more energy and feel great!