Death of a Country Fried Redneck (Hayley Powell Food and Cocktails Mysteries) (20 page)

Island Food & Spirits by Hayley Powell

 

Y’all won’t believe what happened to me the other night! Oh, listen to me. I’m even starting to sound a little southern, after all the visitors we’ve had in town lately.

Anyway, I had just picked up my daughter at the high school after a late basketball tryout, and we were heading home. Of course, my daughter had the radio blasting through the car speakers, and was screaming over the sound of the music, telling me all about how the tryouts went. She was very confident she would get a spot on the team.

As usual, Eagle Lake Road was pitch-black, and since it was a foggy night, I couldn’t see five feet in front of me. Anyone who knows me is well aware that I hate driving in fog or in snow!

We were descending McFarland Hill when suddenly the thick fog parted as if on cue and standing right in the middle of the road not more than fifty feet away was the biggest, meanest-looking buck I’ve ever seen! His cold black eyes stared right at me through my car windshield. That’s when I realized I’d seen this giant buck before! It was Bucky, the now six-point buck, who had chased Leroy and me through the woods not too long ago.

This might sound crazy, but I swear he gave me a look like he was out for revenge! If you recall, he had an unfortunate accident the last time he chased us.

My daughter took a much needed breath from talking and noticed I wasn’t paying attention to her. She glanced in front of us and let out a bloodcurdling, terrified scream, because we were heading straight toward that massive buck! My daughter’s screaming shook me out of my thoughts and I slammed on the brakes as hard as I could. (I knew the old brakes weren’t as good as they used to be, so I prayed for the best.) Trying not to lose control of my trusty old Subaru wagon, I veered the wheel to the left and then swung back to the right. None of my defensive driving seemed to work. We were still careening straight toward poor Bucky! He just stood there, not moving a muscle, just glaring at me with his dark beady eyes as if he was daring me to hit him!

There wasn’t much we could do except brace ourselves for the impact. I gave one final stomp on the brakes and closed my eyes, waiting for the sickening crunch of the impact. My last thought was, how was I ever going to pay for the damage to my car? Sorry, Bucky.

As we sat there in silence, I quickly realized the car was stopped and there was no crash. I slowly opened my eyes and, there illuminated by the headlights of my Subaru, was Bucky, still looking right at me. The staring contest went on for another few seconds, and then Bucky dropped out of view. Gone in an instant. He just fell over and hit the ground with a loud thud.

I don’t know what it is about a deer being hit by a car on the island. You can be driving along and not see another car for miles. But once you hit a deer, the next thing you know, suddenly there is a line of cars and trucks on the scene, and a bunch of men ready to take the animal off your hands! And that’s exactly what happened! Four men pulled over and offered to take home that giant buck if I didn’t want him.

I told them that whomever was on the scene first could have him, and after some arguing and grumbling, the men decided Old Joe McKinley, one of our retired fishermen in town, was there first. So Old Joe happily carted Bucky off toward his army green pickup truck. The other onlookers were visibly disappointed, but they knew it wouldn’t be a long wait for another car versus deer incident on the island.

Oh, and, just so you know, the men looked over poor Bucky, and came to the conclusion that I never even hit him! It looked to them like he just died of fright! The shock of my car speeding toward him was probably what killed him. As Old Joe said when he hauled his prize away, “When it’s your time, it’s your time!”

With all that excitement over Bucky the six point buck, I found myself craving a mincemeat pie, so for today’s recipe, mincemeat it is! But, after a very stressful evening, I decided to take the edge off before I got to cooking. And we all know there is nothing that cures stress better than some warm relaxing cocktails on a cool evening. So I think a hot buttered rum is exactly what the doctor ordered. Although, at this point, I’m afraid it’s not going to help poor Bucky.

 

Hot Buttered Rum

Serves 10 or more. (You might want to invite a friend over, depending on how thirsty you are.)

 

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg

Pinch of ground cloves

Pinch of salt

1 bottle dark rum

Boiling water

 

In a bowl, cream together butter, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Place into the refrigerator until almost firm. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the butter mixture into a mug. Pour 3 ounces of rum into the mug and top with boiling water. Stir well and serve. If serving guests, just add more mugs and repeat.

 

Mincemeat Pie

 

2 pie crusts, for bottom and top (use your favorite recipe; I like to use the refrigerated Pillsbury pie crusts from the grocery store, which come two in a pack)

¼ pound ground mincemeat

2 cups apple juice

1 cup dark seedless raisins

½ cup dried cherries (sweet or sour)

1½ cups peeled and chopped apples

¼ pound ground venison

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon allspice

 

In a 2-quart saucepan, combine apple juice, raisins, and cherries. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

 

Add apples, venison, mincemeat, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, salt, nutmeg, and allspice. Simmer for 2 hours. Check occasionally; add water to keep mincemeat from sticking to bottom of pan. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

 

Place bottom crust in 1 inch pie pan. Add mincemeat mixture and place second crust on top. Crimp the edges and remove excess crust. Make 5 or 6 slits with a knife on the top crust for steam to escape. Place in preheated 350 degree oven and bake 50 to 55 minutes, until crust is lightly browned and filling is bubbling.