Justin (Choctaw) is an avid hunter, angler, and chef whose passions for the outdoors lead him to create Harvesting Nature in 2011. He continues to hunt, fish, and cook all while sharing his experiences with others through film, on podcasts, in print, and with recipes. He also proudly serves in the United States Coast Guard in Key West, FL.
Born and raised in Los Angeles Ara Zada is a chef, author, TV personality, food stylist and avid bow hunter. He has worked with Outdoor News, PBS, Food Network, ABC, CBS, NBC, TNT, Jaime Oliver Food Foundation and a range of others. His first cookbook ‘Lavash’ was released Oct. 2019. When he’s not cooking he’s shooting his bow, teaching his kids about the outdoors, training for triathlons and filling any available time with parkour.
Dan lives his life with his wife on a small homestead in Western MA where he raises livestock, hunts, and farms to fill their pantries and freezer. He balances family, work, and life, but also maintains the connection to his food and its origins.
Kory is a lifelong hunter and angler from northwestern Pennsylvania.He enjoys filling his freezer with the wild game and fish that Pennsylvania has to offer.His goal is to show how he has introduced his three young children to the outdoors and fostered their passion for all things wild.Follow him on his journey on Instagram, @outdoorsmandad.
Brad lives in southeast Washington State with his wife Ali and pack of Llewellin setters on a small homestead. He serves the public as a fish and wildlife biologist and active Pheasants Forever life member. His free time is devoted to habitat, the pursuit of fin and feather, and writing about his outdoor passions.
The outdoors have saved and changed my life, and this is a gift I wish to give to other people through food, education, and mentorship, and all of this is reflected in my writing.
Chase Waller is a Mississippi-born outdoorsman with a passion for hunting, culture, and food. After joining the Air Force in 2011, he has hunted, fished, hiked, and camped across the globe. Currently residing in Riverview, FL with his wife and son, Chase spends his time exploring public lands, looking for new adventures, and tinkering with recipes. He is also an active member of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.
I was born and raised in northeast Pennsylvania, and currently live in the hill country of Texas.I consider myself a western hunter at heart, enjoying glassing vast landscapes and the thrill of the stalk.My motivations as an outdoorsman are rooted in the sustenance and physical aspects.In fact, my largest driving factor for physical fitness is preparing for upcoming hunts and ensuring I’m well prepared to climb mountains and cover ground with a heavy pack.
I am a husband and a father to a beautiful family that deeply enjoys hunting, fishing, and gardening.I grew up hunting and fishing in South Louisiana and currently live in Lafayette, LA (the Sportsman’s Paradise).
Dustyn always had a love for adventure and fostered a love for hunting and fishing after his military career began. He found an appreciation of wild game meats through his co-workers and then jumped into the pursuit of wild meat wholeheartedly. Cooking and serving wild game to his family and friends has become pleasurable achievement which he looks forward to at every new journey.
At forty years young, Adam has split his life almost equally between the Rocky Mountains, and the gulf coast. Cooking professionally from a young age, as well as having a deep relationship with nature set the pattern early for the adventures to come.
I live in NE Pennsylvania with my wife and two children. My passions include chasing whitetail deer during archery season, hunting waterfowl on local creeks, rivers, and agricultural fields, freshwater fishing, and assisting my wife with the vegetable garden. I spend almost every available minute on the water and in the woods with my kids and wife, and for us, spending time in the outdoors as a family is a way of life.
I grew up in a family of anglers and hunters, and time spent in the Ontario outdoors with my father, siblings, uncles, cousins, and friends figured large in shaping who I am now. The most valuable lesson of the outdoors that I learned as a youth was that nothing took more importance than respecting the life of the animal that you had just hunted.
Jack is an outdoorsman born and raised in the Tongas National Forest of Southeast Alaska. He was introduced to hunting and fishing at the young age of 6 and hasn’t looked back since. His greatest peace of mind can only be found in the high mountains and open waters of his home in Alaska. He hopes to share both his stories and the harvest that may accompany them.
Ryan and Emily Long are Oklahoma residents that have hunted and fished all over. Their up and coming YouTube Page, “The Way We Hunt”, depicts a conglomerate of hunting, fishing, hunt training, product reviews, and wild game cooking. They are passionate about cooking with game they have harvested and making memories that will last a lifetime.
I was born in Anne Arundel County, Maryland on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. My family moved to Southern Maryland when I was seven. Southern MD was where my parents instilled in me a love of the outdoors. Summers were spent fishing, crabbing and camping. Blue crabs, rockfish, perch, and croaker were always plentiful in my youth. Many summer days were spent out on the Patuxent River and its tributaries, casting rods and pulling trot lines. Winter time was spent hunting for food to fill the freezer. The winter menu in the Peake household consisted of White tail deer, ducks and geese.
Kendra Stoner is a free diver, rock climber, forager, hiker, surfer, solo adventurer, world traveler, and advent epic experience seeker. Most would say she is an adventure gal with a super power of connection. Her ability to connect to those she meets creates beautiful interactions and opportunities, and her love for nature allows for an incredible connection to the world around her.
Chef Victoria "Tori" Loomis, honors the effort it takes to bring a meal from harvest to the plate, and that respect is evident in every meal she prepares. She has a deep-rooted appreciation for bringing people together, to gather, and to #EATGOODFOOD. Tori is passionate about telling authentic culinary stories through food. “Perspective is only as powerful as the ingredients we choose to lace within it. The same can be said for our food, our time, and our daily habits.”
Cooking gives me a creative outlet to transform wild game and bring it into traditional recipes from around the world to help expand people's perceptions.My goal is to celebrate local fish and wild game and provide achievable, bright recipes designed to build confidence for new cooks, and inspire everyone to elevate their cooking.
I hope that by sharing and celebrating the food I create with the fish and wild game I harvest, I can highlight the great contribution so many hunters and anglers have made to conservation in this country, and reflect the freedom we have to enjoy America's great outdoors.
My hope is to reach out to our future generations to pass on the tradition and honor of the harvest with the same caring hand that passed it down to us. I hope to help shape our image as outdoorsmen and women not as blood thirsty hunters that are after every animal in the woods, but as harvesters that honor wildlife and that are passionate about fair chase, ethical hunting and fishing, for those hunters and anglers that live the tradition of the harvest. I hope to inspire others to be that small piece of this big pie known as conservation to take part in caring for the wildlife we admire, the land we know, and the outdoors we love.
Collin is a novice hunter and angler who is quickly becoming more seasoned each year. He began his outdoor adventures in PA as a kid, and has had the opportunity to hunt and fish in various places across the U.S as an adult. His newest journey will take him to the Pacific NW where he will continue to grow his passion for the outdoors whilst learning to hunt and fish in new country.
The Meat Pies in Natchitoches, LA are known throughout the
south for their hand sized delicacy. So
much so, that people from Texas, Arkansas, and Mississippi will travel several
hours to another state just to get their hands on some. Several years back, I was in a deer hunting
lease just outside of Natchitoches. The
hunting there was mediocre, but the food was outstanding. Our hunting group would travel to town
between the morning and evening hunts to eat these delicious pies. Truthfully, I probably stayed in the lease
longer than I should have, just because of the nearby pies. It didn’t take me long before I developed my
own version of meat pies. My pies would include venison instead of some old
boring beef.
One of beautiful things about this dish is its
simplicity. 8 ingredients and a hot oven
are all that’s needed. I used Guidry’s creole seasoning. This Creole seasoning
mix is made from a range of fresh, natural ingredients, including yellow onion,
bell pepper, celery, green onion, parsley and garlic. You can substitute your
own mix of these vegetables if you cannot find Guidry’s in your local market.
Ingredients:
1 lb of ground venison
1 small can of mushrooms (drained)
3 tsp of B-V Broth and Sauce (I find mine at Rouse’s)
Once tender, add the mushrooms and cook for
several minutes.
Add the ground venison and cook until
browned.
Add the B-V and cook for several more
minutes. It is important that you do not
drain the liquid.
Add the flour to thicken your filling.
Remove it from heat to let it cool for 15
minutes or so.
While this is cooling, take the puff pastry and
gently roll it out with a rolling pin.
Cut pastry dough 4” squares. One sheet should provide you with appx 4
squares.
Place the filling on one square and cover it
with another.
Seal them on the edges with a fork and paint the
egg wash on the top so that it will brown.
Place into a preheated 400 degree oven and cook
for approx. 15-20 or minutes or until browned.
This dish would be a great appetizer or as a main course,
served alongside homemade onion rings and a good beer. If you find that you have too much stuffing
at the end, save it to add to your scrambled eggs the next morning. Bon Appetit
Follow Jason on
Instagram at @edible_outdoors_cook
or on Facebook on Edible Outdoors COOK
I am a husband and a father to a beautiful family that deeply enjoys hunting, fishing, and gardening. I grew up hunting and fishing in South Louisiana and currently live in Lafayette, LA (the Sportsman’s Paradise).