Friday Fish Recipes - Featuring my brother

Last week, I decided not to post my Friday Fish Recipes because I was on vacation and it was a holiday weekend. Sorry.

This week I want to share with you my brothers's favorite recipes. He has been cooking fish for about 15 years now.  His true passion is fishing. He is a great wealth of information to me. He sends me articles to read and recommendations on new lures to try.

Left to right: My dad, my son & my brother. My son's first fishing trip with his uncle and grandpa.

 James does love all things outdoors. He fishes all summer and hunts pretty much the rest of the year. I have even sparked his interest in bow hunting again.

Here are a couple of his favorite recipes for cooking fish.

Ameri-Chino-Citrus walleye

Ingredients

4 walleye fillets 1- 3 lb eyes optimal

1 stick of air temp butter

1 onion

4 cloves garlic super fine chop or minced or jarred minced works

1 generous shake of garlic powder

1 generous shake of onion powder

1 slight sprinkle of cumin powder

1 dash of cayenne pepper

1 generous sprinkling of black pepper red pepper mix

Lemon juice concentrate to taste

Lime juice concentrate to taste.

2 cups of cooked white rice.

Take four nice walleye fillets bone and prepared well. Take a large piece of heavy duty tinfoil not the cheap crap heavy duty tinfoil. Lay it out flat and rough butter with a butter knife your four walleye fillet area on the tin foil. Lay four fillets on foil and thin yet generous size buttered tinfoil. Then Lemon and lime concentrate walleye carefully as not to spill all over i like a good amount because this will make a sauce. Place 2 small pats of butter at each end of the fillets. Next chop and or mince garlic, cut onion into thin round ring's. Sprinkle garlic over fish, then place rings on top of fish season with all of the listed seasonings and powder. Cap and or fold over access tinfoil to form a packet. Run outside light your grill place packet on grill for 10 to 15 minutes depending on walleye size keep between 300 and 350 on your grill. Next make 2 cups of white rice. A good side for this is this packet grilling with everything minus the fish, but with asparagus or fresh green beans. When fish rice and asparagus is done place one inch of white rice on a plate put walleye on top, then cut asparagus to small pieces or place on the side. Then take fish juice at bottom of the packet and pour or spoon over fish and rice serve hot, and salt to taste but i rarely add anything. Tends to be perfect right out of the packet.

and

Chili-Dusted Catfish

This is Chili-Dusted Catfish with Cumin Rice. He got this recipe from the In-Fisherman cookbook. I know he substitutes pike and walleye in this recipe.

I hope everyone has a great fishing weekend!

Fishing different lakes...

Fishing different lakes in your area can be challenging. But what about fishing in different states? This is the dilemma I am facing now.

As I continue working to fill my tackle box…I have been struggling with what lures to buy. I struggle with wanting to buy the ones that have always worked for me in the past. The problem with doing that is that I lived in Western New York then. Now I live in Northwest Pennsylvania.

Hubby and I have different ideas about what bait to use when it comes to panfish fishing. I have always used tube jigs and minnows to catch perch, crappie and bluegill. Hubby has always used an ant jig and grubs. And the grubs work. We are catching a bunch this summer. So I can't argue with him.

Favorite tube jig

My favorite go to tube jig for panfish has not worked for me here in PA. I'm not sure if it is just the location on the lake we are fishing. Or is it the time of year? Or is it just this lake? Or maybe it is just the simple fact that we have not tried this jig with a minnow on it. (That's how it worked before. Hubby uses grubs for panfish. :p That is a whole other story.) Hard to tell. So if you can't beat them, join them...I now fish with an ant and grubs.

 We have been stocking our freezer with bluegill. So now I would like to start fishing for some pike or walleye. I want  to get some bigger fillets to try different recipes.  

WARNING ... Shameless plug ... check out my Friday Fish Recipes.  For the next month or so, I will be posting new fish recipes to try.

So what lures do I buy? Do I start with what has worked for me in the past? Or do I just buy something that looks good? What I have decided is that I will pick up a lure or 2 to try and each time I go out fishing I will try a new lure out of my husband’s tackle box. :) Then when I find one that works, I can go pick up one for myself. I will buy one that looks like it could work and I will probably buy something that has worked before for me also.

Worst case, I will have the lures I know that will work when we visit family in NY. 

How do you decide which lures to buy when you are fishing in a different lake or state? I welcome your input so leave me a message.

Now that I have been writing about fishing I want to go fish, but I have to go to work shortly. Maybe I will pick up an fishing magazine to read tonight.

Baiting Hooks

Over the holiday weekend, I overcame a baiting hook fear.

Throughout my life, I always baited my hook with either a worm or a minnow. It never bothered me to bait the hook. And once I was old enough to learn how to take the fish of the hook, I did that too.

When I started fishing with my husband, I developed a baiting hook fear.  Why? Because he uses grubs as bait. I have a fear of them. Just knowing what they really are freaks me out. So I have made hubby bait my hook for the past several years. (Granted I haven't fished much since our son was born.)

Since I had always baited my hook myself, this really bothered me to be dependent on hubby to bait my hook. Several times this year I would get the grub can to bait my hook myself, but then once I opened it ... I just couldn’t do it.

Until yesterday…

We were fishing for bluegill. We were hitting a lot of little fish, throw backs. They kept cleaning our hooks. After several times of needing my hook baited and waiting for my hubby to bait the hook, I was getting frustrated.  So finally, I flicked a few grubs out of the can with my hook and then put them on my hook. (There were a few faces and “yucks” involved.)

 After baiting my hook several more times like this, I finally just picked the grubs up out of the can and baited my hook. YIPPEEE!!!!

When we go out fishing again…I will bait my own hook! But as I sit here typing, I’m still a bit freaked out by the thought of the grubs crawling around in the can. But I have done it now, so I know I can do it again! 

YES, I overcame a fear!

Do you have any fears of baiting hooks? Hubby better not ask me to bait a hook with a leach. That will NEVER happen! Lol

Summer Family Fishing!

I have fond memories of fishing at a local reservoir and family fishing trips to Black Lake, NY when I was a child. This is a family tradition I want to pass on to my son and make new memories with my own family. (Oh, and invite my dad and brother to tag along too.) I want G to learn to fish and hopefully he will love it (or at least appreciate it) like hubby and I do.

It is hard to believe that we are at the end of June already. Even though the weather has not been great this month, we have been able to get out fishing weekly. I really look forward to our mornings on the lake. And getting our freezer stocked with fish. I have fished more this year so far than I have in the past several years.

Late spring fishing 

My lil fisherman

That is partly because G is 4 years old now and  is really starting to understand what fishing is about. He gets excited when the bobber goes under and when he gets to reel in a fish. He does not always fish with us, sometimes he brings his tractors to play with or pretends he is the captain of the boat telling us where to fish.  But he knows that we are on the boat to fish.

So far this year we have been blessed by the Blue Gill fishing gods. We usually catch 30 on average each trip They are soooooo tasty!

One of my catches (nice hair)

Hopefully the weather will cooperate this weekend and we can start to do some pike fishing. Don't get me wrong I love catching blue gill after blue gill. I just like to put some variety in my freezer. I can guarantee you that if the pike aren't biting, I will be fishing for blue gill.

UPDATE - I got a fishouflage tackle box instead of a pink camouflage. Love it! I'm still working on filling my tackle box.  Hopefully by the end of the summer it will be full.

Happy Fishing!

Outdoor Summer Fun

Temps are finally warming up (for the most part). I love being out side when the weather is warm.  However, my house suffers in the summer because I get home from work, change my clothes and head outside with my 4 year old son & hubby. I don't want to be inside cooking, let alone being side because I have to clean. I wanted to tell you what we like to do when the temperature rises.

Here are my top favorite outdoor activities in the summer:

• Being on the water. Whether we are canoeing down a creek or on our pontoon boat (we spend most of our time on the pontoon). We do a LOT of boating during the summer. We meet up with our friends, anchor the boats and hangout all day on and in the water. One water sport that I would like to try doing is kayaking. 

 

• 4 wheeling is another favorite summer activity. There is something about riding all day and getting muddy that just puts a smile on my face. 

• Cookouts & picnics. Hubby is the grill king in our house. We eat our dinner out on our porch almost every night in the summer. Eating outside after a crazy day at work just relaxes me and puts my mind at ease. We also enjoy getting together with our friends for cookouts.

• Fishing! I crave a good fish fry, especially when it is the fresh fish that you caught that day. Fishing is becoming a family weekend activity. I hope to be able to start fishing at least once a week with my hubby and son for the rest of the summer.
  
  
  
  
  
• 3D shoots. On any given shoot, we have about 3 or 4 friends with us. Sometimes we even have a larger group of friends shooting that we divide into girls/guys groups. There is just something about girl time in the woods!

• I enjoy hiking. Walking through nature trails, a field or the woods with my family looking for wildlife. Sometimes we also drive our truck around at night to spot of deer.

• Last but not least camping with my family. Last year was the first time we took our son camping in a tent.  I want to do a little more camping this year, even if we just camp in our backyard on the weekends. I think we will camp in our backyard next weekend! G will love it.

What are your favorite summer outdoor activities? What should I try?

Refocusing...

As in the comment I left on my post about Goals for 2013, I have not kept up with my goals. Work, life, and laziness got in my way. So now it is time to re-evaluate my goals and refocus.

So my original goals for 2013 were:

*Being the best wife, mother and friend I can be.

*Taking care of myself.

*Being outside more.

*Practice Practice my archery shooting. 

*Fishing.

*Learn more about guns.

*Blog more.

*Harvest more game.

*Improve 3D scores.

Let's start with what I have been working on.  I am trying to be more patient with my family. But I can still work on that and being a better friend. Now that the weather has turned nicer here in Northwest PA, I am outside everyday.  I am working on my tan too. :)  With the warmer weather I have been shooting my bow almost everyday. We have had two 3D shoots at our archery club this year and I shot all of them. My scores for the 2nd shoot were better than my first. I did take a hiatus from blogging but I'm getting back in the groove now.

Now for the goals I have not quite reached. I still need to make more time to call my friends and be even more patient with my family. If I would get into a regular workout pattern, I think I would have more energy and patience to be my best. So I have not been taking care of myself. I have not fished yet this year. Learning more about guns is still on my list. Currently it is Spring Gobbler in PA so I am working on harvesting a turkey.

First I feel I need to pair down my goals a bit. Then I can really start to refocus and get somewhere with my goals. So here are my paired down goals for the rest of 2013:

*Actively be more patient with my family.

*Figure out a plan to take better care of myself and lose some weight.

*Continue to practice shooting my bow and get some practice with shoot my guns also.

*Once our boat gets docked for the summer, get out and start fishing again!

*Actually purchase the book Shoot and read it.

*Keep blogging.

Being a full time working women, mom, wife and hunter do not leave a whole lot of time for other things. But I realize that I need a few other things in my life to make me the best that I can be at all of the above. So tonight when I get home I am focusing on making decorations for a friends baby shower, shoot my bow if I have time, snuggle with my lil man while reading him a story, and then snuggle with my hubby while watching the hockey game tonight!

Have a great night.

Fishing Gear

Now that spring has arrived (well mostly arrived). My family is thinking about fishing. We need to restock our freezer with some fresh perch, crappie and pike.

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been purchasing some new fishing gear. And considering purchasing a new tackle box.

I grew up fishing for bass, walleye and pike with my father. But this was not  enough action for me. So I started pan fishing while my dad fished. I soon discovered how fun pan fishing was. I rarely fished for anything else from that point on. Now that I am get excited about fishing again, I keep thinking about the fun of pan fishing and hoping to pass the excitement on to my son.

So I have purchased a few packs of tube jigs, sinker hooks and bobbers. My favorite tube jig has a red body with a chartreuse skirt. So I purchased  a fairly large quantity of the jigs. As fun as pan fishing is, I will also want to give pike fishing some time too. So I will look to purchase some spinner baits, Mepps and other pike lures.

Spinner Bait

Mepps

And this is a pic of the tackle box I am looking at purchasing.

Yes I like to have a little pink in everything I do.

What are your favorite pike or pan fish lures? I would love to hear your suggests and will give them a try.

Time to Fish...

I really have not fished much in the past few years. As a child and teenager, I fished often with my father and brother. This year I am really looking forward to fishing. 

This year is different for me, because of my son. He is more interested in fishing now that he has his own fishing pole and tackle box. G will be 4 in a few weeks, so he understands more than he did last year. I just love being outside with my husband and son and seeing G experience new things. Fishing is the first outdoor activity we will be able to do as a family. It brings back memories of fishing with my dad and my brother as a toddler. We will have to wait a few more years to take him big game hunting. 

My husband went fishing on opening day of trout season (although he was not fishing for trout). I was hoping to get out last Sunday but the weather did not cooperate. It was a bit to chilly to be out on the lake, so we went 4 wheeling instead. This weekend we are so busy. I have a bridal shower, a baby shower and a bachelorette party on Saturday. Sunday is a 3D turkey shoot at our local archery club and our archery league banquet in the afternoon. Did I also mention, Saturday is opening day for Spring Gobbler.

So, I have to put fishing on hold for a few more days. Maybe one night next week or next Sunday we will get to go out.  Since I haven't really fished much in the last few years, my tackle box is empty. So I have been shopping for some new fishing hooks, bobbers, jigs and lures. I think I will shop for a new tackle box also. A soft one that has a shoulder strap, easier to carry.

Have you went fishing this year?
What is your favorite fish to catch?
What is your favorite lure?

Goals for 2013

Happy New Year! Sorry for being M.I.A. I'm back and want to write about my life as a wife, mom, friend, hunter, and all around outdoors woman. 2012 was a memorable year. I tried so many new things; I participated in my first Techno Hunt league, started going to 3D shoots, turkey hunted, small game hunted, and killed my first deer. I am looking forward to an even better 2013. My son will be 4 in a few short months, that will mean new and exciting things in my life. And I am looking forward to hunting more deer, turkey and small game with my hubby (and maybe this year my brother will get me out goose hunting.). I'm also excited to see how good of a hunter Sage, our beagle pup, will be.

To help make 2013 a better year I have set some goals for myself and I wanted to share them with you. Feel free to check in on me throughout the year and see how I am doing. Keep me on track.

* Be the best wife,  mother, and friend I can be. That starts with taking better care of myself. Then making sure to make the effort for more quality time with my family and friends.

* The above stated "taking care of myself" entails getting to the gym. I want to try to get to the gym for 2 days of cardio and 2 days of lifting (which is Body Pump class that I am loving).

* Just being outside more. Enjoying all the wonders of the outdoors.

* With that said, I want to get outside to shoot my bow more. Practice Practice. I would like to be over 50lbs by archery season this year! (I was at 47lbs.)

* Get a fishing license and go fishing with my hubby and son. Good quality family time on the water. Maybe even get to fish some with my brother and dad.

* Learn more about guns and hunting. Get out an shoot my guns more, become more comfortable with a gun in my hands. I am ordering the book Shoot by Julie Golob to help me learn more about guns and shooting. Learn how to clean my guns....I know I know...hubby has been doing it for me.

* Blog more often about my life and all things outdoors.

* Harvest more deer this year. I wanna feel that rush again. I would also like to shoot some rabbits, pheasants & turkeys.

* Improve my 3D shoot scores. Note to self, RELAX you have all the time in the world to shoot the target.

So I've got my goals set and now it's time to start making good on all of them. I wish everyone a happy and healthy new year! Enjoy life!