Girl Hunter
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When I was a little girl, one day I came home from kindergarten after learning about the pilgrims and asked my dad if I could join him on the hunt for our Thanksgiving turkey that year. I vaguely remember a friendly chuckle and an explanation that the hunt would only require a short drive and a shopping cart. It seemed a normal conclusion on my part since camouflage and guns were a regular part of the landscape in our neck of the woods.
Over time I came to understand that what was once a way to procure food, deter damage to fields and crops, or even as protection, had grown into more of a sport for many. It was good to see some using the game for culinary purposes and even donating large amounts of meat to local food banks, but what I watched play out on the sides of the highways, more oft than not, were the big boys, with their camo-clad big toys flexing their testosterone for claim to a mount to proudly display over their fireplace.
Many years later when my son was kindergarten age, he asked if he could go deer hunting. I told him that if he wanted to hunt, he should be ready and willing to eat what he killed, because it wasn’t a game. He thought for a minute and then replied, “Can we go chicken hunting?” Yeah, we laughed, but I felt that the harvest should be used for more than just a good story to tell others about. But to be honest, the game that I had tasted up to that point was less than palatable.
So when I learned my friend, chef and author, Georgia Pellegrini was a hunter I was intrigued.
Someone with the culinary know-how to take food from field and stream, to the plate with flavor?
And a girl?
With mascara?
What a most perfect combination.
And now, Georgia has a new book called Girl Hunter, full of stories from some of her hunting outings. I was locked in, from start to finish. So was my husband. Georgia has a splendid way with words, and makes you feel like you’re sitting right next to her freezing your tookus off in a duck blind. She shares her thoughts from the field, along with recipes, and how to prepare a variety of game, all the while, weaving throughout the book the relationship between food and our responsibility regarding it.
“I will know while I eat. I will know how it all went down. And I still think that is better. Because it makes me a more conscious chef, a more careful hunter, and a more awake human being.”
I get it.
Totally.
And while there will be no chicken hunting in these parts, I am hoping to one day (sooner than later) hunt my own turkey for our Thanksgiving table with no grocery carts involved.
Meet the Girl Hunter herself, Georgia Pellegrini in this video…
![YouTube video](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/WdNCNj98FlE/hqdefault.jpg)
Video created by Todd Porter and Diane Cu of White on Rice Couple.
Kinda makes you wanna grab a shotgun and a skillet, and get to cooking huh?
Girl Hunter would make a perfect gift, and not just for the hunters in your life. It’s certainly is on my gift giving list this year. I think you’ll enjoy it too. For availability, be sure to check your local bookseller or order online.
Merry Christmas y’all! xoxoxoxo
I love this! Georgia is such an inspiration.