One of my favorite recipes for fry bread comes from a good friend of mine, retired Indiana Conservation Officer Tony Sanders and is taken from the out-of-print cookbook, Wild Hoosier Home Cooking 2002 as compiled by the Indiana Conservation Officers Organization.

The ingredients are: 2 cups of flour; 2 tsp. baking powder; 2 tsp. salt; 2 tablespoons of shortening; 2/3 cup water and vegetable oil.

Mix the dry ingredients together, cut in the shortening. Sprinkle in the water while tossing the dough with a fork until all of the flour is moist and the dough almost cleans the bowl. Cover and refrigerate or place in a cooler for 30 minutes.

Heat one inch of oil in a heavy pan to 400 degrees F. Divide the dough into 12 pieces and roll each piece into a 6-inch circle.  Let the dough pieces rest a few minutes. Make a ½ inch hole in the middle of each circle and fry until puffy and golden, about 1 minute on each side. 

The hole is to ensure complete cooking but also serves as a method of lifting the fry bread from the hot oil when cooking over a fire.  Simply inserted a small, clean stick in the hole and lifted the pieces out.

Piping hot and dusted with powdered sugar or smeared with honey or jam… fry bread goes fast, so make sure you fix plenty.

Downtown Trail Network Opens In 

Marion 

On November 13, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the city of Marion celebrated the opening of the Downtown Trail Network.  The 10-foot-wide, asphalt, multi-use trail was constructed by the city of Marion with help from a $640,684 grant administered by the DNR.

“The Downtown Trail Network embodies the connections and spurred economic activity that come with trail development,” said Gary Schultz, trails coordinator with the Indiana DNR. “By linking downtown Marion with the Cardinal Greenway, we gain more connections to downtown businesses and more connections to healthy transportation on the greenway. DNR is proud to support this project.”

The Downtown Trail Network adds 0.57 miles of trail connecting Indiana’s longest trail, the Cardinal Greenway, into Marion’s downtown business district and its social and cultural landmarks. The trail is one segment of a larger city project identified in its 2019 Downtown Revitalization Plan aiming to extend the Downtown Trail Network northward and connect with the Mississinewa Riverwalk. The trails will encourage economic development and connect the Marion community to its various districts and existing city amenities.

Indiana’s DNR has led the largest infusion of trails funding in our state’s history with $180 million in dedicated trail funding administered through DNR facilitating critical trail connections within and between Hoosier communities. A total of 56 of the 89 projects are complete, with another 15 under construction. With the opening, more than 162 miles of trail have been built since the program’s inception.

Ashley Man Injured In Tree Stand Fall 

Indiana Conservation Officers are investigating a tree stand accident occurring Nov. 9 in DeKalb County.

At 4:30 p.m., officers and emergency personnel responded to the area near the intersection of County Road 17 and County Road 28 in the town of Auburn for a report of a hunter falling from a tree stand.

Upon arrival on scene, officers discovered 28-year-old Nicholas Pranger of Ashley was attempting to climb onto his tree stand when he fell. Pranger was wearing full body harness; however, it was not fully connected when he fell.

Pranger was transported to Parkview Regional Medical Center in stable condition with a back injury. The incident is still under investigation.

Indiana Conservation Officers would like to remind all hunters to wear a full-body safety harness when hunting from an elevated hunting platform and to stay connected.

The Science Behind Indiana’s Vibrant Fall Colors

How do Indiana’s trees put on such a fantastic display of color each year? The brilliant reds, fiery oranges, and bright yellows we see in the fall are present in leaves all the time, but are hidden by the green pigmented chlorophyll all summer. Chlorophyll is important in making food for plants, but as the days shorten and temperatures cool, it fades and allows the other pigments in leaves to be seen.

Like chlorophyll, each pigment has a purpose. The bright yellow and orange carotenoids protect the leaves from too much light. The rich red and purple anthocyanins protect leaves from the cold and sun while also helping the tree recover nutrients before winter sets in. The brown tannins will linger through the winter and are what’s left after the other pigments fade.

Why are certain years better for viewing fall colors than others? The brightest colors happen when the weather stays sunny, prompting the plant to produce more sun-protectant carotenoids and anthocyanins. Cool, frost-free nights help too, as too much rain or early frost can dull the colors or make leaves drop early. Dry weather at the end of summer (like we’ve had this year) can bring especially bright fall colors.

‘till next time,  

Jack

Readers can contact the author by writing to this publication or e-mail Jack at jackspaulding1971@outlook.com 

Spaulding’s books, “The Best Of Spaulding Outdoors” and “The Coon Hunter And The Kid” are available from Amazon.com as a paperback or Kindle download.