Kitchen Adventures || Welcome Force of Nature!

If you haven’t seen the new set up in the front office yet, we are now a PROUD supplier of Force of Nature Meats! One of our very own, Kristy (Marsillo) Sansom, helped us get the hook up to bring you fresh, sustainably and ethically sourced meats raised by regenerative farming methods.

Her new hubby, Robert Sansom is the Co-Founder and CEO of this new venture and we’re so excited to support what they are doing! Regenerative farming not only provides an incredibly clean product, but is actually better for the environment! If you remember back in February when Tim went out to Roam Ranch for the bison harvest, we mentioned these practices in that post. Well, Force Of Nature is paired with Roam Ranch to bring the products straight to the community.

Here’s a snippet from a great article you should check out if you want to learn more, “The ranch is farmed using regenerative agriculture, a conservationist approach to food and farming systems that focuses on regenerative topsoil, increasing biodiversity of species and improving the water supply in order to reduce the ongoing effects of climate change while rehabilitating land that may have been damaged over time.”

We currently have Ancestral Beef, Ground Bison, Ground Elk, Ground Venison, Ground Wild Boar, and Bison+Bacon patties available in the freezer in the front office. Grab a coach if you have any questions or need assistance and you can purchase right through the kiosk!

To kick us off, I wanted to give you guys a recipe using one of these options. I chose bison because I’ve worked with it before and I already had a pretty good idea of what I wanted to do with it. I am super proud of this one guys and it was actually pretty simple to make! The chutney was killer, but the bison was truly the star here. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
For the Meatballs
1 package Force of Nature Ground Bison
1 egg
1/4 cup riced cauliflower (raw)
2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp milk of choice
2 cloves of garlic – minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 TBSP fresh thyme

For the Chutney
1 cup pomegranate juice
1 cup dried figs, chopped and stems removed
1 TBSP honey (more to taste)
1/2 cup shallots – thinly sliced
2 TBSP butter
1 TBSP fresh thyme

To top
Fresh Pomegranate seeds
Fresh Goat Cheese
Fresh Thyme

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. I served these with roasted brussels sprouts and roasted carrots so if you’d like to do the same, you can get those roasting while you start the rest.

In a large bowl, mix the bison and all the remaining ingredients for the meatballs until well combined. Try not to over mix. Line a baking sheet with foil and grease the foil or, if you have a baking/cooling rack, place it on top of the baking sheet so that the fat from the meatballs can drip down into the baking sheet.

Roll your meatballs about 1.5 inch in diameter. I was able to get 12 equal sized meatballs from this recipe. Place them on your baking, evenly spaced without touching each other. Place them in the fridge to chill for about 10 minutes.

Then, bake for 16-20 minutes or until cooked throughout. The tops should be a nice brown color, but be careful not to overcook and dry them out!

While the meatballs are chilling you can start your sauce. In a sauce pan, bring the pomegranate juice to a low boil. Add the figs, remove from the heat and let sit for 15 minutes. You’ll then drain the figs, but reserve the pomegranate juice to be used in making the sauce.

In a hot pan over medium-high heat, melt the butter. Saute the shallots for 4-5 minutes or until they start to soften. Then, stir in the drained figs and honey along with a splash of the pomegranate juice. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally until the shallots are golden brown and the sauce thickens. If it becomes too thick, you can continue to add a little pomegranate juice as needed. If you prefer a little sweeter or more caramelized flavor, add another teaspoon of honey.

Once the meatballs are done, top with the sauce, add dollops of goat cheese, pomegranate seeds, and a little fresh thyme. Serve with your favorite roasted veggies and enjoy!