Mule Deer For Breakfast

By Eastmans’ Staff

Grinding season is upon us! It’s time to grind away at those New Year’s “resolutions” and it’s a great time to grind up all the game meat you’ve set aside for sausage, burger and specialty items. Around the Eastmans’ offices we always seem to be blessed with mule deer, for which we are very grateful. We also share a breakfast together to kickstart every week and that means we eat a lot of mule deer throughout the year. Below we’ve worked up a couple of tips for grinding any game meat into the best breakfast sausage you can make and one of our favorite recipes for a big group breakfast.

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Using mule deer to create delicious breakfast sausage is one of our staff’s favorite ways to bring mule deer to the table. While each of us have different preferences we have found some common ground when it comes to sausage and below you’ll find exactly how we prefer to have mule deer for breakfast.

Hi Mountain Breakfast Sausage Seasoning Kits

The easy to use kits from Hi Mountain are far and away our favorite way to grind up a batch or two of breakfast sausage. Todd’s favorites are the Prairie Sage Blend and Original Mountain Man Blend. Brandon Mason and Scott Reekers prefer the Hunter’s Blend while Ike, Guy and Dan Pickar all go for the Country Style every time!

The Eastmans’ Trick

Simply following the directions provided with the kits is the best way to go but we all prefer a bit of a twist. For fat we grind in 20-30% bacon ends and pieces. Bulk packs of bacon ends and pieces can be readily had at most grocery stores or Wal-Mart and the added salt and smoke they bring to your breakfast sausage is ideal for lean meat like mule deer. If you cannot get ends and pieces simply use the cheapest, fattiest bacon you can find.

Once you’ve got your sausage made it’s time to start cooking and a biscuits and gravy casserole is easy to make and sure to please just about any crowd.

Biscuits and Gravy Casserole

This recipe can be assembled the night before and baked in the morning.

1 (8-count) tube refrigerated biscuits
1 pound breakfast sausage
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups milk divided
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
7 eggs
8-oz. shredded mild cheddar cheese

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9X13-inch baking dish.
Cut each biscuit into 4 pieces and scatter biscuit pieces across the bottom of the baking dish.
Cook sausage in a large pan, crumbling it with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Once fully cooked, remove it with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. I like to leave about 1/4 cup of sausage in the pan for the gravy.
Add butter to the grease in the pan and set pan over medium heat. Add flour and stir and cook for 2 minutes.
Gradually whisk in 2 cups of milk. Add garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Simmer until thickened. Remove from heat.
Whisk together eggs with remaining 1/2 cup milk in a medium bowl. Season with a little salt and pepper.
Sprinkle sausage over biscuits. Sprinkle 1/2 of cheese over sausage.
Pour egg mixture on top, followed by gravy and remaining cheese. Bake for 30 minutes.