Better Not Bigger

Bigger is not always better when it comes to fish and game. The young and the small of the species are usually the best eating.

It's a twofer when it comes to fishing. You get to catch your trophy fish and let them go, and you get to catch and keep the little ones to eat.

Not so with hunting big game. You have to decide, usually ahead of time, if you are meat hunting or trophy hunting. Ten points or bigger, though, and ego wins out. It's the hunter /warrior part of our past.

A rainy day after a few perfect sunny summer days is a good day to make soup. I got a 16 bean soup mix, just the legumes - don't buy the kind w/ the seasonings included because they cost more than twice as much - and added chicken base, garlic, bay leaf, crushed red pepper, gently boiled for an hour and a half , and added tomatoes, carrots, onions, and celery and cooked for another hour. Add bratwurst or Italian sausage or chicken( already cooked - we are using leftovers from supper for this) for the last 15 minutes. Just before serving add fresh herbs like parsley( for sure)and thyme or sage or basil. and probably more garlic. It has great depth of flavor and nutrition which is to say it tastes good and is good for you. Love those legumes. Most soup bases generally have a lot of salt, so don't add salt of your own.