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6 / OutdoorIllinois December 2010

Who better to cook up the bounty of nature than the staffof the Illinois Department of Natural Resources?

DNRChefsGoWildStory By Kathy AndrewsPhotos By Adele Hodde

Like most office environments,put a few employees togetherand the conversation eventu-ally turns to food. DNRemployees are no different,

except, perhaps, that many carry theirwork-day passion into their private lives,

and avidly support harvesting Illinois’natural resources. Whether finned, furry,feather or springing forth from theground, somewhere within the state’sboundaries a DNR person undoubtedlyhas made an annual ritual to reap thebounties of nature. Here are a fewrecipes we’d like to share.

Dove or turkey breastsand noodlesServes 10-12

Provided by Gray Pierson, supervi-sor, Division of Licenses and Permits,Springfield

6 cups dove or wild turkey breastmeat

1 49.5-ounce can chicken broth6 cups uncooked extra-wide Amish

noodles3 10.5-ounce cans of cream-of-

chicken soup1 package dry turkey gravy mixwater

Cook cubed meat in chicken broth.Remove breast cubes and add noodlesto broth. Cook until al dente and addcream-of-chicken soup and the gravymix, including the water per packagedirections. Return meat to noodle mix-ture, warm through and serve.

Dove or turkey breastsand noodles

December 2010 OutdoorIllinois / 7

Homemade ravioli withgrilled deer loin fillingServes 10 or more and freezes well

Provided by Dean, Quinn andDarlene Corgiat. Dean is the districtheritage biologist for Adams, Han-cock, Jersey, Pike and Scott counties

Ravioli filling:

2 pounds deer loin, cut into thinsteaks

½ large onion, chopped2 cloves garlic, choppedleaves from one celery heart½ can spinach, liquid removed1½ tbsp. parsley¼ cup Parmesan cheese¼ to½ tsp. nutmeg2 tbsp. butter1 small package cream cheese, soft-

ened½ cup Italian seasoned bread

crumbs2 eggs1 pinch rosemarysalt and pepper, to taste

Grill deer loin steaks on grill untilrare to medium rare. Allow to cool inrefrigerator overnight.

Melt butter in pan and sauté onion,garlic and celery leaves until tender. Putin food processor (or meat grinder)along with deer loin and spinach, run-ning until the meat and onion is finelyground. Remove mixture and place in alarge mixing bowl. Add the remainingingredients and mix well with a fork.

Refrigerate until ready to use.

Ravioli dough

3 cups flour3 eggs¼ cup tepid water2 tbsp. white vinegar½ cup vegetable oil

Put all ingredients in a large mixingbowl, mix well and then knead thedough for about 10 minutes.

Roll the dough into thin sheets usinga rolling pin or pasta rolling machine,moving through the progression of“clicks” to the second from the last set-

ting. Place desired amount of filling atapproximately 1-inch intervals in rowsspaced approximately 1 inch apart. Rolla second sheet of dough equal in size tothe first and lay over the top of the firstsheet and filling. Press dough aroundeach filling, being sure to remove all airfrom between the dough sheets. Usinga ravioli cutter or pizza cutter, cut up,down and across all rows to form indi-vidual raviolis. (If using a pizza cutter,seal each ravioli by pressing the tines ofa fork into the dough around the entireedge of the ravioli.)

Homemade ravioli with grilleddeer loin filling

8 / OutdoorIllinois December 2010

Line cookie sheets with waxedpaper and place individual raviolis oncookie sheets, being sure raviolis donot touch. When the cookie sheet isfull, place in freezer until raviolis arefrozen, then remove and place in freez-er bags for use as needed.

When ready to use, place raviolis inboiling water and cook until desiredtenderness is reached. Place on plateand cover with sauce.

Deer spaghetti sauce

1 lb. ground deer burger1 medium onion, chopped4-6 garlic cloves, crushed1 29-ounce can tomato puree1 6-ounce can tomato paste1 1-lb., 12-ounce can diced tomatoes1 tsp. oregano6-10 leaves fresh basil, torn2 tbsp. sugar

¼ cup water¼ cup Chianti wine (optional)salt and pepper, to taste

Brown meat in skillet with onionsand add two cloves of crushed garlic.Place in crock pot and add the remain-der of the ingredients except salt andpepper. Stir, set crock pot on low andcook for 6-8 hours. During the last 1-2hours, remove the lid and let cook. Addsalt and pepper to your taste preferenceand serve over your choice of pasta.

Blackberry jam

Provided by Deb Singer, an officeadministrator in the Director’s office

Moving to the country, I taughtmyself to make jams because of all thewild berries on our property.

5 cups crushed blackberries1 package (1.75 ounces) powdered

pectin7 cups sugar

Bring berries and pectin to a rollingboil. Add sugar. Return to a boil andboil for 1 minute. Skim off foam. Ladleinto prepared jars and process in awater bath for 15 minutes.

Blackberry jam

December 2010 OutdoorIllinois / 9

Squirrel “baby backs”Serves 4

Tim Krumwiede is the district wildlifebiologist for Adams, Brown, Hancock,Pike, Schuyler and Scott counties.

16 squirrel “loins”1 cup red cooking wine1 cup sweet pickle juice1 cup flour1 cup ground corn tortilla chipssalt and coarse ground black pep-

per, to taste¼ cup soy sauce½ cup vegetable oil

Marinate squirrel pieces in refrigera-tor for 12 hours, or longer, in a 50/50mix of wine and pickle juice, usingenough to cover the squirrel pieces.Combine equal amounts of ground tor-tilla chips with flour, seasoning to tastewith salt and pepper. Drain the squirrelpieces, pat dry, and roll in flour/chipmixture. Lightly brown the squirrel inoil on the stove or in an electric skillet.Place pieces in crock pot on an elevat-ed rack, adding a small amount of waterbeneath the rack. Generously apply soysauce and cook on low for 4-6 hours,depending on crock pot temperatureand size of squirrel backs.

Squirrel “baby backs”