Girl Hunter weekend with Georgia Pellegrini
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I’m not a hunter, but I did play one in Texas for a weekend back in December! Maybe you saw my tweets and Instagram pics while I was swinging a Silver Pigeon V 28GA Beretta at Joshua Creek Ranch in in Boerne, Texas with 13 other food bloggers!
How did this all come about, you wonder? Not your typical “girls weekend” right? Although I do HIGHLY recommend it!! It was a lot of fun stepping outside of our usual realm and learning something new all while bonding!
You see, our friend Georgia, has led this really exciting life! She was a classically trained chef in New York City when she decided to leave the city and learn about where our food really comes from. Georgia traveled with veteran hunters who showed her the ropes and taught her to hunt things like quail, venison, squirrel, turkey, pheasant and elk!
She embarked on this journey to find her main course, but along the way she learned surprising lessons about food and life and she put it all in a book titled: Girl Hunter Revolutionizing the Way We Eat, One Hunt at a Time.
Photo via Marla Meridith
Georgia had the grand idea that it might be fun to let some of her friends step into her world, even if it was just for a few days.
We climbed out of cars and planes into another dimension. One filled with guns, taxidermy, fishing poles and bunk beads.
We didn’t have to worry about dressing up……
although where else could you wear a sequined camo dress? HA!
Joshua Creek Ranch was the setting
The staff was amazingly patient with all of us. Teaching us how to shoot clays and fly fishing
We learned to ignore cameras in our face, as the a couple of Food Network camera guys were there with us for the weekend (rough jobs right? hanging out all weekend with a bunch of women at a hunting ranch! I bet THEY could write a book! HA!)
We did spend a little girly time, leaning how to decorate cookies from Bridget, Shelley and Kristan and a few lessons on cake pops from Angie!
While the staff at Joshua Creek filled our bellies with amazing food from the ranch! We ate like hunters; quail, pheasant and venison!
We had a cooking demo with Georgia, where she shared how easy it can be to prepare a dish like Quail en Papillote (quail baked in parchment with vegetables)
We got to see Georgia in action (with the hunting dogs! – so cool to watch them too)
Group shot of the Girl Hunters:
Left to right: Kristan of Confessions of a Cookbook Queen, Bridget of Bake at 350, Shelly of Cookies and Cups, Wendy of Wenderly, Angie of Bakerella, Amy of She Wears Many Hats, me TidyMom , Erika of Ivory Hut , Dara of Cookin’ Canuk , Georgia of Georgia Pellegrini , Elana of Elana’s Pantry , Marla of Family Fresh Cooking, Carrie of Deliciously Organic and Lori of Recipe Girl. Front and center: Eric of Joshua Creek Ranch, the other kind of Girl Hunter lol
I loved all of our girl bonding over our new experiences. Sitting around the fire sipping wine, listening to Georgia’s stories about an outing that turned illegal and dangerous, making loon calls and eating s’mores.
I took a lot of video of us shooting our guns and even more pictures, here’s a little more from our weekend in 1:40
I admire Georgia for her passion and courage! Learning about the art of hunting, sipping brandy with the men and gaining their respect and cooking it all up in one inspiring book!
Meet Georgia for yourself! Video shot by the incredibly talented White of Rice Couple, Todd and Diane
Thanks to Joshua Creek Ranch for hosting all of us Girl Hunters, and to Georgia Pellegrini for bringing us all together for one modern day pioneer weekend we’ll never forget!
You can read some of the other great recaps from our weekend.
- “Girl Hunter” the Girl, the Book, the Hunt & a Giveaway by Family Fresh Cooking
- A Girl Hunter Weekend & Coming Full Circle by Cookin Canuck
- Girl Hunter by She Wears Many Hats
- Girl Hunter by Wenderly
- A Girl Hunter Weekend by Georgia Pellegrini
- A visit to Joshua Creek Hunting Ranch by Recipe Girl
You can watch me shooting clays with Georgia here.
photo credits: Girl Hunter Flickr Pool
THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED! Congrats to the winner, comment #13 Valerie Saurer
You don’t have to be a hunter to enjoy Georgia’s book, Girl Hunter Revolutionizing the Way We Eat, One Hunt at a Time. Georgia uses style and wit to introduce us to hunting and the art of cooking what you eat. Throughout the book you will meet several characters, learn how she gets along in a sport dominated by men, and find out how to take food from field and stream to plate with mouth-watering recipes for a variety of wildgame. Girl Hunter is full of enthusiastic stories that any new or experienced hunter, chef or foodie can appreciate.
You may even find yourself itching to grab a shotgun and skillet!
Win It: Georgia and Da Capo Lifelong Books is providing 1 lucky TidyMom reader with a Girl Hunter book!
Required Entry: Tell me about your experience with eat, cooking or hunting wild game. If you don’t have any, tell me about what kind of books you enjoy reading. (if you are reading this post via email, please note that you must enter on the blog post, NOT by replying to the email)
Want extra entries?
- Tweet this giveaway: I want to #win a copy of @GPellegrini #GirlHunter via @TidyMom enter #giveaway here https://ow.ly/8ucI4
- Join The Girl Hunter -Georgia Pellegrini and TidyMomon Facebook
Official Rules: No purchase necessary. Open to residents of US and Canada . Must be over 18. Giveaway will end on January 24, 2012 at 5:00 pm CST. One winner with a valid entry will be selected at random using random.org. Winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to claim their prize or another winner will be selected. TidyMom, Georgia Pellegrini and Da Capo are not responsible for lost or undelivered emails.
Good Luck!
Disclaimer: This giveaway is sponsored by Da Capo Lifelong Books. I was sent an advanced copy of Girl Hunter to read. I was not compensated in any way for this review or giveaway.
Hi there, I'm Cheryl!
As a wife, mom, and caffeine enthusiast, my journey has taken me from bustling mornings with my family to sharing delicious recipes, home care tips, and heartfelt decorating insights with wonderful readers like you. My love for baking, photography, and tidiness shines through every post I craft. Dive into my world and discover the art of homemaking, one tidy moment at a time. Read more...
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looks like an awesome time! Oh my…I remember when I was a little girl, my Dad shot a rabbit w/ a bow and arrow that was hopping through our back yard. Poor little cute bunny. I was scared for life! Then my Mom made a stew from it. I refused to eat it and I got grounded!!! lol But I do love me some deer meat!
Looks like you guys had a nice time,..
I have no hunting stories to speak of, but I do know that my auntie prays when her hubbies goes hunting not to kill anything. And he never does.
I suppose he may have to sneak hunt to actually score something.
Would love to win!
PS I tweeted!
OH how fun! I learned how to cook quail and venison in college, frogs legs too, but that is not as good LOL. I have cooked wild buffalo too, that was at the country club I cooked at, man that was some good stuff. My fathers friend is a hunter and sends us moose meet all the time, I don’t if I would be brave enough to hunt, but would love to try shooting at least once.
I’m not entering giveaway, just wanted to say great recap Cheryl! Took me right back to the weekend of fun!! Miss you & everybody so much!!!!! *PULL*
Oh My Gosh! Cheryl, this is the most amazing post, I feel like I just relived it all over again. It was such a special time together and I really hope we can do it again one day. And thank you for your thoughtfulness about my book, I’m so glad you liked it! xox
What a great weekend and fun time it looks like you all had.
Oh Cheryl, I am in love with this re-cap. Can we go back now!!! Beautiful photos & oh so fun 🙂 xo
So glad you all had so much fun!! As for books, I’m all about historical fiction, but just read The Hunger Game series and loved it!
I come from a family that hunts and fishes. I’ve cleaned hogs, fish and deer. We also make our own venison and pork sausage.
Blessings,
Lorilee
I always hunt with my dad and uncle. Now my husband is getting into it with my dad so I’m looking forward to going out with both of them. I love deer chili. Doesn’t even taste different than beef to me. I’ve also eaten rabbit before, i didn’t kill it, someone else did but it tasted just like chicken.
I recently moved to the Maine woods, where practically everyone hunts. The freezer is full of game, and I have been learning to cook it. My specialty has always been soup stock: I am notorious for seizing the remaining carcass whenever anyone cooks a bird. Here, surprisingly, people tend to throw the bony parts away and only cook the actual meat parts. As a soup maker, I find that outrageous. So now I also stake claim to the bones of other animals as well. I have recently laid claim to all of the deer legs that the hunters throw away, because the hooves are full of all that yummy gelatin that makes soups so wonderful. Yup, they think I’m a crazy hippie, but I’m loving the fact that I can make delicious and nutritious foods out of the parts they think are trash. I have signed up to take the next hunter safety course in March, so that next season I can get my own game. I’ll have my license just in time for spring turkey seqson. I can’t wait!
A few weeks ago my husband came by a good size piece of venison. I not much on venison but as soon as I saw it I knew I had to cook it right away and not let it go to waste. I had to run out and buy a huge roasting pan just to cook it. I added apples, onions and spices and friends and family said it was the best they ever had. I’m sure if any family gets their hands on one again I’ll be the designated cook!
wow, that looked like it was so much fun. we’ve fished as a family, but that’s about it. I have a teen and a tween, both boys interested in guns of course. we’ve had venison at home but would love the opportunity to expand our palette 🙂 I have personally had rabbit, pigeon, and cow tongue. loved the rabbit, pigeon was not worth the effort, and cow tongue… I’m not crazy about.
My son tried to kill a rabbit by throwing a caribeaner at it. He hit it (to our surprise–and his), and the rabbit fell over. My son who was about 7 at the time, fell over crying hysterically. By the time I got him calmed down, we looked up and the rabbit had hopped away.
My husband is ALWAYS killing and bringing things home! I need great recipes for his game.
It was so much fun; I would go back in a heartbeat!!! Love that Georgia’s book is such a success….she’s an inspiration!
{PS…not entering the giveaway, just saying hi!}
Great post! Looks and sounds like a blast!!
It sounds like a fun weekend…and you were not far from my good ‘ole Texas home. 🙂
Well no hunting stories here either…but I do LOVE reading recipe books!!!!
As the wife of a Central Texas Cattle Rancher – we hunt, sorry, HE hunts! 😉 I do love a good pot of venison chili or a an espresso rubbed back strap…Looks like a very interesting book – thanks for a great giveaway! Looks like you all had a great girls weekend!
We are Texas farmers/ranchers so I could go on and on and on…, but to give you a taste of what I’m talking about ~ If you were to open one of our freezers you would find yourself looking straight into the eyes of a skinned hog head. If it’s moving, it’s free game. As my husband says, “we cook everything but the sqeal.” 🙂
I have never hunted but I have shot a few guns before. My fav is definitely deer sausage. I beg for it from all my hunter buddies! (That looked like it was a blast!)
This looks like you girls had a wonderful time! It’s tough finding girls with mad shotgun skills! I so love to hunt! The outdoors is a remarkable place to enjoy when you can. There are many many ways we cook up our delightful bounty. Funny story, my husband once used dry pancake batter (thinking it was flour..so much for pretty unmarked containers in my kitchen) to “flour” some beautiful Chuckar meat….it since has become our favorite! Happy hunting & eating girls…. 🙂
My dad was a hunter, my brother was a hunter, my husband is a hunter. I grew up eating deer meat. That’s about as close to hunting and wild game as I get.
I tweeted about the giveaway. @sebh55
I like you and The Girl Hunter on FB. (Susan Brown Hatcher). Thanks for all the chances to win.
what a great post, Cheryl. Especially love the top collage! Sounds like the perfect girls weekend to motivate and inspire girls everywhere!
I have hunted quail, wild turkeys, dove, deer, etc. I have fished (trout mostly) too! This of course led to cleaning and cooking what we brought in. I would love to learn so new recipes for preparing wild game! What a great idea for a fun weekend. Have you ever heard of Women in the Outdoors….they have been putting on womens outdoor weekends for years all across the nation!
I come from a HUGE hunting family, and I mean HUGE! But I have always had trouble fitting in, I can hunt, and I do often, but usually Im just along for the ride. This book seems like a must read for a woman in a family of hunters!
I helped by ex boyfriend paint his overlook for hunting 🙂
Oh my goodness I would love to win! I’m not a hunter, but my fiance definitely is…the absolute best way to eat duck – cut into little pieces, wrapped in bacon, and grilled (jalapenos optional)!
Thanks for the opportunity!
Allyson
http://cupcakescandycanes.blogspot.com
I’d love to win the book. I come from a hunting family, mainly deer hunters. Venison is sometimes hard to cook. We’ve had the most luck with tenderloin, roast and cubed steak. I don’t like it ground as it tastes gamey to me that way.
The most delicious venison I’ve ever tasted was cooked at my daddy’s hunting club. They sliced tenderloin, rolled it in mustard, then flour and fried it. Oh.my.goodness. That’s my favorite way to eat it.
P.S. My son works at a shooting sports farm.
Cheryl, that really is a great post. Such fun memories 🙂
I’m a vegetarian so I have never hunted, but I’m thinking about gardening more. I’m interested in cultivating what I eat and seeing the process from planting, or in this case hunting, to it becoming food on a plate. It’s a process that we rarely witness in this era!
I developed an issue that prevents me from eating beef and pork. Luckily, my dad and grandfather enjoy hunting. I usually have a freezer full of venison year-round. It’s cheaper and healthier, too!
Tweeted as @bchan5720 https://twitter.com/#!/BChan5720/status/159319888329052161
Liked The Girl Hunter -Georgia Pellegrini and TidyMom on Facebook
I’m an avid hunter and do every step…from the woods to the table; kill it, clean, and prepare it, no middle man with me.
We have family that are hunters and I love quail (it has to be cooked right!) and also Elk. Especially when they make jerkey out of some of it. We also love to fish! Great fishing in Northern Idaho and Oregon! Sounds like a good book!
This fall I shot my first buck! It was truly a over the river & thru the woods at nightfall experience to retrieve. My husband is such a good guide!
I grew up in a “hunting” family, and to this day venison (deer) is my favorite meat to cook & eat! I’ve got girl hunters in my family, and even though I don’t actually do the hunting I sure am happy when the meats brought home!!! 🙂
I Like you & The Girl Hunter on FB! : )
Oh I am so interested in this book! My husband, son, & son-in-law are all hunters. I prepare venison, elk, antelope, and pheasant. When lucky, some fresh fish as well. Not my favorite fare to make, but I do it because it’s important to them.
I like you and the girl hunter on fb
My favorite is the Venison Jerky we get every year at Christmas from my Brother-In-Law. I also love a good Missouri Catfish dinner!
I follow you both on FB
I would have loved to get together with all you amazing women on that GH weekend! I just got together with Marla for coffee last week and she told me how fabulous it was, as I knew it would be.
I grew up watching my grandfather hunt and my grandmother making use of *Every single part* of the animal. Truly nothing! was wasted. If people are going to hunt, then they should use it all!
What a fun weekend!