Roadkill + My last kabocha squash

Well, I've been sort of hoarding my supply of kabocha squash over the past couple of months, but I finally ate the last one this weekend, with lots of steak. Yum.

These steaks are backstrap, from the roadkill deer My Charming Companion named "Nice Guy" after the really nice guy who pulled over when he saw My Charming Companion by the side of the road. (All of the deer get named so as to know what one is eating, and to help remember the circumstances of that specific deer.) Their conversation then went like this:

Nice Guy: (very casual-like) "What are you going to do with that, use the hide?"
MCC: "Oh, no. I am going to eat it."
NG: (smiling now) "Oh, Yeah. I eat them too."
And then Nice Guy helped get the deer into the truck.

I have been along for some deer acquisition, and it seems common for roadkill eaters to sort of wait to reveal that yes, they do indeed eat it. One state trooper who was issuing us a permit asked "Are you bringing that home for your dogs or something?" and when we said, no - it is for us, he said "I eat them too! Sometimes I bring a cooler in my car so if I am working I can at least get the backstrap." And then all kinds of cameraderie ensues. It is quite fun, and definitely a contrast to the response of non-roadkill eaters, who tend to get a sort of confused, avert the gaze look.

Anyway, the backstrap was delicious cooked in a cast iron skillet until medium rare, then eaten with with butter and fleur de sel. I also made my 2012 fave fall winter recipe: Roasted squash with date relish and pumpkin seeds. Though in this case I used a few dried cherries in place of the dates, and just cut up the squash in small bite sized pieces to roast it for ease of prep.