MDC offers new “Cooking Wild in Missouri” cookbook

New colorful cookbook shows off the Show-Me State’s game, fish, nuts, fruits and mushrooms.

                 

Courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) has published a colorful new cookbook that emphasizes local and seasonal ingredients in a tempting collection of appetizers, fresh salads, savory stews, elegant entrées and delectable desserts.

“Cooking Wild in Missouri,” created by author Bernadette Dryden, presents more than 100 kitchen-tested recipes that will inspire beginner and advanced cooks to savor Missouri’s game, fish, nuts, fruits and mushrooms. The 200-page book also features color photographs on nearly every page and tips to make time in the kitchen easy, efficient and fun.

“I adapted existing recipes and created original ones by using—for example—venison, trout, hickory nuts, pawpaws and chanterelles where typically the cook might have used beef, crab, almonds, mangoes and button mushrooms. It was just a matter of experimenting and adapting local foods to the knowledge I already had,” Dryden said. She also included several recipes from friends and Conservation Department staff.

Dryden, a former publications editor for MDC, is a lifelong cook and food enthusiast. She has traveled extensively and experimented with various cuisines, many of which influenced recipes in her book. For example, Dryden adapted Missouri’s fruits and nuts to Italian gelato, paddlefish to the classic French Niçoise salad, and venison to Greek moussaka and Korean bulgogi. Included also are twists on many classic American dishes.

“My aim is to give Missourians a collection of recipes for cooking native foods in a variety of ways,” Dryden said. “Missouri’s game, fish, nuts, fruits and mushrooms adapt beautifully to recipes from around the world.”

Dryden is a firm believer in the benefits of eating seasonal and locally grown foods for several reasons.

“Fresher always tastes better, so the closer you can eat something to its source the better it will be,” she said. “Just as important, is that when you hunt, fish or forage, you know the source of what you’re eating.”

Dryden also noted the importance of the state’s culinary heritage in creating the cookbook.

“I intend for this book to reflect proudly upon our state’s native culinary traditions by giving voice to people involved in the producing and procuring of local foods,” Dryden said.

While writing the book, she interviewed nut growers, mushroom and fruit foragers, hunters and anglers—many of whom she features in chapter introductions and sidebars. These include a hickory-nut grower from Osage County, a waterfowl hunter from Boone County and a few tips from hunters and anglers on bringing in the best meal and passing on traditions.

Dryden shares various pointers throughout the book on stocking a kitchen, selecting the best ingredients, finding foods at farmers markets in Missouri, developing a personal herb garden, using freshly ground spices, adapting recipes, possible pairings, re-using leftovers, general cooking advice and how to bring out the best in each dish.

According to Dryden, appreciating the foods Missouri has to offer is a way of connecting with nature.

“We have to eat to live, so why not enjoy food to its fullest, including learning where it comes from and how to prepare it?” she said. “If you pursue fresh, local and seasonal foods, you’ll inevitably find yourself out in nature.”

“Cooking Wild in Missouri” can be purchased for $15 at MDC Nature Shops or ordered online atwww.mdcnatureshop.com.

For a sneak peek at “Cooking Wild in Missouri,” try these tasty temptations:

Bernadette’s Catch-all Muffins

Ingredients:

            1 1/2 cups sugar

2 1/3 cups flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda, sifted

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

2 cups buttermilk

1 cup boiling water

3 cups wheat bran

1 cup golden raisins (or part dried cranberries, dates or figs)

1 cup pecans or hickory nuts (toasted lightly, preferably)

Instructions:

Blend together first four ingredients (sugar through salt) in one bowl and next three ingredients (oil through buttermilk) in another. Then, gently mix all seven together.

Meanwhile, pour water over bran and fruit in a separate bowl; let stand a few minutes, then stir and gently combine with the batter. Stir in nuts. Pour into medium-sized muffin tins lined with paper cups. (Batter also will keep in refrigerator for at least a week.)

Bake in a 400°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in muffin’s center comes out clean. Turn muffins onto a rack to cool.

Trout and Sprout Salad

Ingredients:

            Leftover grilled or baked trout, broken into bite-sized pieces

            Fresh spinach

            Mixed lettuces

            Bean sprouts

            Cilantro

            Green onion

Garlic tops (the green tops of fresh garlic) or freshly minced garlic

Soy sauce

Sesame oil

Rice wine vinegar

Instructions:

I tossed the trout together with all the vegetables, a little soy, toasted sesame oil and rice wine vinegar. It was perfect! You also could add such things as peanuts, mung-bean threads and avocado. Fresh orange sections, carrots, red peppers or cucumbers come to mind, as well.

Chanterelle and Polenta Foil Packs

Ingredients:

            2 cups fresh chanterelles

2 tablespoons butter

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 polenta log

4 sprigs fresh rosemary

Instructions:

Clean chanterelles and tear into bite-sized pieces, leaving the very small ones whole. Sauté in butter with salt and pepper to taste for 4 to 5 minutes, or until liquid has evaporated.

Cut 4 12- by-12-inch squares of aluminum foil. Spread olive oil lightly on each piece. Place a slice or two of polenta on foil. Top with chanterelles and a rosemary sprig. Fold up foil and bake over hot coals for about 10 minutes, or a bit longer if you prefer the polenta edges crunchy.

Pecan-Orange Granola

Ingredients:

8 cups rolled oats

2 cups coarsely chopped pecans

2 cups raw sunflower seeds

1 cup sesame seeds

1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup honey

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon almond extract

Juice and zest (chopped) of 4 oranges

2 cups chopped dried fruit

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large mixing bowl, toss together the oats, nuts, seeds, coconut and salt. Over low heat, warm the honey and oil in a medium saucepan, stirring until well combined. Remove from heat and stir in almond extract and orange juice. Pour over the dry ingredients and stir well with a wooden spoon. Work the mixture with your hands, if needed, until everything is damp.

Spread mixture no deeper than 1/2 inch on large, rimmed baking sheets. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring several times, until crispy and golden. When the granola has cooled, stir in the zest and dried fruit. Store granola in jars.