The Camp Kitchen

[Jeff]

Now that the weather is getting warmer we all tend to get out in the middle of know where much more frequently. We all know that all that exploration can work up quite an appetite and while spending the day, night or multiple nights we all have to prepare meals some are quick and easy some are quite elaborate, personally i like the quick n easy with the occasional elaborate meal. Depending on how much time i have will obviously dictate what i prepare. If I don't have much time I will rely on cereal bars or protein bars for the morning and snacks such as trail mix,jerky, Cliff bars and cheezits for the afternoon, for dinner i will bring or fix a sandwich ( I'm usually beat by the end of the day so the quicker the better). When I have more time I will fire up the stove or the Dutch oven and it's eggs,sausage,bacon,hash browns and sometimes pancakes( not usually all at the same time) in the AM. A sandwich,burgers and dogs with potato salad,beans and chips for lunch and Steaks,Dutch Oven Ribs,roast or chicken with a salad of sorts on the side in the PM. I would like to learn much more about how to efficiently use my Dutch Oven (uh...hum...Joanne) but so far what I have made has hit the spot.

The purpose of this thread is to share recipes or food ideas for the field so what is your cuisine of choice while out camping and/or exploring?

[Crystal]

You missed out Jeff on that Cail trip, I feed everyone well.
My newest found recipe is taco in a bag. I love it because it's high in protein and super easy to make and carry around with you. It even tastes great cold! Here's the recipe
Ground Beef
Cheese
Kidney Beans
lettuce
olives
salsa
and whatever else you like in you taco.
chips

Mix all together put in a bag and enjoy! I don't add my chips until I am ready to chow down.


What are other peoples underground meals? So far this is the best one I've found.

[Jeff]

Oh yeah I forgot all about that! is that what you had when we went to the Pink lime pit a couple weeks ago? That's a good one i'll be trying that out for sure.

[Joanne]

When I'm out for the day, everything is pre-made and thrown in the cooler. It's usually sandwiches and chips, with something sweet for dessert.

It goes without saying that when I camp that the meals are a bit more upscale (though never anything "fancy"). While I tend to evangelize for Dutch Oven cooking, there's a lot more options for camp cooking. Here's a simple recipe that is quick & easy to make and quite filling. Substitute chicken if you don't care for tuna.

Mac & Cheese with Tuna.

1 box Velveeta Shells & Cheese
1 can tuna fish, drained & flaked apart
1/4 onion, finely diced

- Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the box. Drain.

- Stir in the Velveeta cheese, tuna & onions.

- Return to the stove over low heat, stirring frequently until hot. Be careful not to let it scorch.

Joanne

[btay801]

My favorite easy dutch oven recipe.

8 strips bacon on bottom o oven.

8+ chicken breasts on top.

1 can cream of mushroom.

1 can cream of chicken.

1 can cream of celery.

1 bottle of your favorite bbq sauce.

And I usually top it off with 4 or more cans of sliced potatoes.

Add your spices as you like. Italian sausage helps for more heat, but the girls might not appreciate.

[Jeff]

I will definitely have to give both of those a try!

[Joanne]

Peach - Pineapple Cobbler

There's a lot of talk about "Dump Cake" cobblers, but here's my twist on a quick and easy cobbler. It's so simple you can have it cooking in 5 minutes or less. Using premade cinnamon rolls may be cheating, but I've never had a complaint!


Hardware
12 inch Dutch Oven
26 briquettes (more if it's windy or cold)


Ingredients
2 large cans of sliced peaches (around 30 oz cans)
1 small can of crushed pinapple (8 oz can)
2 tubes Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls
1 tbl cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tbl corn starch


Procedure
Note: I like to preheat the lid when I am cooking this cobbler. Set the lid on a holder and throw on 16 coals. Leave the coals on the lid while you prepare the cobbler.

1 - Open and drain the peaches and pineapple

2 - Mix 2 tablespoons of corn starch into 1/4 cup (or less) of water, mixing until no lumps

3 - Pour the peaches, pineapple, cinnamon and nutmeg into the oven. Mix together.

4 - Pour the corn starch mixture over the peaches and mix in. This will cause the juices to thicken a bit and keep the cobber from getting too runny. If you don't have corn starch available, just skip this step. The cobbler will still be good

5 - Place the cinnamon rolls on top of the peaches. You can leave them whole, or you can tear them into little pieces. I leave them whole because they look nice.

6 - Place the pot over the 10 lower coals and put the lid on.

7 - This should take around 15 minutes to cook. I suggest that you spin the lid 1/4 turn every 5 minutes or so. After 10 minutes sneek a quick look to see how the rolls are cooking. Remove the cobbler from the heat when the rolls are golden brown.

8 - Drizzle the frosting that came with the cinnamon rolls all over the top.

9 - Serve and enjoy.

Keep in mind that the peaches and pineapples are already cooked. You just want them nice and hot, so don't overdo bottom heat. You need top heat to bake the cinnamon rolls, so add a few more coals to the top if the rolls aren't cooking the way you want.

If you are cooking in a 12 deep oven, add an additional 3 to 4 briquettes on the lid.

[ExpUt]

One of the best 'trail' meals I've ever had was actually not on a trail but a river trip last summer. They called them 'Tacones' because they rolled up the tortillas like a ice cream cone and then scooped the goodness in. From their website:

Mexican Salad

(To serve 6)

1 can kidney beans
1/2 can black olives sliced
1/2 teaspoon garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 lb grated cheddar cheese
10 oz sour cream
10 oz salsa
2 diced tomatoes
1 diced avocado
some diced green onion

Mix all together.
Add broken corn tortilla chips just before serving (or they go all soggy).
Serve in flour tortilla cones.