It's all about the birds

I have not really posted too much about the hunting that Ike does - and that is a shame. For those of you that have not had the privilege to see a pointing dog in action it is a real joy to see and the beauty and grace of an animal doing what comes natural to them. I haven't gotten any recent photos or videos - as it is hard to do either safely when hunting and I will try to get some in the next couple weeks but until then a narrative will have to do.





A couple of weeks ago my brother in law Mike and I took Ike over to Hickory Grove Hunting in Wyanette, IL to give him some additional work. The owner and his wife are both great people and have a few hundred acres of very good cover that incorporates good habitat for birds and great cover to hunt. While the birds are pen raised and released, they are strong flyers and while not quite up to wild bird standards of South Dakota or Kansas, in Illinois they are about the best we have. Ike pointed 5 out of the 6 - which is why they still call it hunting. He pointed well and while his retrieving may need a little work, he loves to chase down the ones that don't fall like a stone. This place does the absolute BEST lunch after a morning hunt you would ever believe. It will be a subject to one of my posts in 2011





Last week I took him down to another Hunting preserve in Woodford County called Panola Prairie. I never realized it is only about 12-14 miles from my family's farm and while not as big - it really has some nice cover for small groups of hunters. Ike and I were by ourselves and had only a couple of hours before we had to move on so on a cold but clear (8* at 7AM) we took off for our excellent adventure. Ike did great again - and we only hunted scratch birds - birds that were placed for other groups but not harvested - so we were not sure if or how many we would see.





Well Ike's nose found 5 birds but Steve's eye only got shots off at two of them. But no fault of Ike's. We're going again next the week of Christmas and will try it again.. Weather willing.. I will try to get some pics or video's this time... Tough to do everything and do it safely.

Until then, "Ike, find that bird!"

Pork Chops

Hi everyone;

I know I promised pheasant chili for the next post and Yes I made it but took no pictures so I will have to see if I can take one when I defrost one of the batches and share it then.. But until then here are some killer pork chops - anyone can make...

I start with some 3/4 to 1" boneless center cut chops - believe it or not the school supporting organization called "Market Day" have some of the best vacuum sealed boneless chops I have found - and reasonably priced too. So you get good quality products and help support your local elementary school too - everybody wins. So this recipe is super easy-- but has a couple of twists. Here are your ingredients:

2 center cut boneless pork chops 3/4- 1" thick

4 Tbsp Corn Starch

3 eggs

1 Cup Panko bread crumbs

1 Cup Regular bread crumbs

Salt & Pepper (to taste)

Onion Powder (to taste)

Granulated Garlic (to taste)

1/4 cup Olive Oil

2 Tbsp Butter

Oven at 350*

OK, here goes - I use zip lock bags for wet and dry breading but you can use pans, bowls or what ever you usually use.

salt and pepper chops to taste

Dredge chops in Corn Starch - let stand in rack or even paper towel for at least 5 minutes (this is the secret to getting the breading to stick - let the carbohydrates and starches bind the the proteins of the pork chops) - you will be able to tell when ready as the starch will start to look a little damp and that is the sign the bonding has started.

While that is going on, whisk together the 3 eggs with a tablespoon of water to make the wet portion of the breading. Season with onion powder, granulated garlic, and what ever spices you like (thyme and rosemary work well with pork too)

Also place both types of bread crumbs in a vessel and mix together, again season with any spices you like- I find the Panko and the traditional bread crumbs make a very nice texture on the final product.

Place one chop at a time in the egg mixture and ensure the chop is covered completely. Then place in the breadcrumb mixture.

Take the breaded chop out - and then place BACK in the egg mixture - then place again in the Bread crumbs (here is the second key - Place the double breaded chop on a plate to rest for at least 5 minutes before starting the cooking process). Repeat with second chop.

While chops are resting, prepare skillet with Olive Oil and butter - I like using the butter as I let it get a little brown and foamy- thus giving some additional nutty flavor to the crust.

Fry on medium high heat until brown and then flip to brown second side (about 4-6 minutes per side).

Place skillet with chops in preheated 350* oven for 15-20 minutes - or until minimum of 146* internal temp (remember there will be a little extra cooking during the rest period).

I serve this with steamed green beans, and cous cous, polenta or some other starch.

For you Ike-o-philes, next post will talk about our latest hunting adventure...

Talk to you soon!

"Now We're Talkin'"

Hi everyone;

As promised we really did go to South Dakota to do some Pheasant hunting and thanks to the graces of God and good weather we had a successful hunt. While there won't be any recipes on this installment, we will talk about Ike and what he loves to do. Ike did good job on Public ground the first day. For those of you that don't know South Dakota has about 4 MILLION acres in varoius public access areas for hunting. Hunting in general and non-resident hunters generate an estimate 12% of the gross income for the state-so it is big business. Public gound is more difficult and usually need BIG groups of people to hunt them as many times you are walking in 300+acre plots. There were just us 3, Bryan, Ken and myself and Ike. While we saw a couple roosters (you can only shoot roosters) right out of the box, they were too wiley and flushed too far out for a shot - I considered that a good omen... But after that we saw only Hens.. Ike did really well finding them - one field he found 4 but again we couldn't shoot them.. (Man did I get a dirty look from him after the 3rd one -like, "Hey I did my job -now do yours!"

But we did have a pretty good day at the Private Ground on Friday. On the left you see part of are group as well as Ike with our harvest of our "limit". Pictured front and center is Ike, although I think he was still looking for one more bird- but flanking Ike and I are our two guides Larry and Lowell, (and Mocha) great guys and wonderful dog (Larry's 2 labs are in the background in his truck)

Here is a pic of Ike with his first retrieve in South Dakota - He extracted the tail feathers in the process but he brought it back to me - so that is a good thing.

He was a tired puppy every night but he was rearing to go the next morning. What he lacks in size he makes up for in determination!!

Next Blog - Pheasant Chilli.... Mmmm..

Until then, "Ike, Find that bird!"