Getting you started on outdoor adventures

Archive for the ‘Fun Food Fridays’ Category

INGREDIENTS

• 2 TBS cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup quick oats
• 1/4 cup plus 3 TBS oat flour (Make your own by blending oats in a food processor or blender until they become powder. Measure after blending.)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips (mini chocolate chips would work better but don’t run out and buy them if you don’t already have them in your pantry!)
• Slightly less than 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 TBS water
• 3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 drops pure peppermint extract (don’t use more!)

In a mixing bowl, combine all dry ingredients and stir well. I only had full-sized chocolate chips so I chopped them up a bit; otherwise they are a bit too large for the texture of the cookie.

When adding peppermint extract, put the three drops into a measuring spoon and then add to the liquid ingredients. Three drops is VERY concentrated and you don’t want to end up with too much peppermint!

Combine liquid ingredients separately, then pour wet into dry and stir until incorporated fully. If the mixture is too dry, add a bit more water. If too wet, add more oat flour. After the mixture is incorporated fully, mash it together HARD with the back of a spoon. Or put into a zippered bag and smash.

Roll into small balls and place in the refrigerator until firm. Makes about 9 cookies.

If you’ll be taking these camping, store in an air-tight container in the ice chest. I recommend placing wax paper between layers or they’ll merge into a big sticky mess!

They’re super yummy but just remember that as tempting as it is to eat the whole batch: DON’T! Or you’ll be paying the price of all that roughage!

These cookies aren’t sticky sweet. I think the cookie balls could be lightly dusted with powdered sugar to add a bit of sweetness and keep the cookies from sticking together. The original recipe called for 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon but it was way to sweet for me!

Recipe based on No-Bake Mocha Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love s’mores. But, I always find that while my MOUTH may want a second one, the sugar hits me like a truck and I just can’t handle it. And I find that while I have the perfect way to make s’mores, it’s a lot of work.

Enter: The S’more Sundae

Ingredients:

• Waffle cones (it HAS to be waffle, the bigger the better)
• Mini marshmallows
• Mini chocolate chips
• Strawberries
• Bananas

The fruit pieces weren’t nearly small enough. Make them LITTLE so they fit in the cone better!

Cut the fruit up into tiny pieces. And when I say tiny, I mean the smaller the better! I recommend putting each ingredient into its own bowl so if somebody doesn’t like something, they don’t have to eat it!

This is your chance to control and blend the flavors how YOU want it.

Layer the ingredients into a waffle cone. I recommend starting with two or three chocolate chips since nothing else fits into the tip of the waffle cone.

It could have held a bit more!

Continue layering until the cone is as full as you can get it! Then, wrap it loosely in foil. It will probably look something like a taco.

You don’t want to wrap the foil too tightly or the sundae starts to burn.

Toast for three to five minutes over low heat. You want to heat the marshmallows and fruit and lightly melt the chocolate. But the chocolate can scorch and burn so keep an eye on it! I’ve tried this over mostly-cool charcoal briquettes and on a regular propane barbeque. Both work well. Carefully open the foil packet.

We had already cooked (and eaten!) steaks so the coals weren’t very hot.

You can mix it all together with a spoon and eat or eat it in layer. I prefer it in layers. And I don’t scoop it out of the cone with a spoon but just carefully nibble the cone and sundae together.

Other suggested ingredient combinations:

• Carmel chips
• Granny smith apples
• Walnuts
• Marshmallows

• Blueberries
• Chocolate chips
• Marshmallows

• Canned mandarin oranges
• Marshmallows

You can buy chips in caramel, carob, white chocolate, and peanut butter so the possibilities are endless!

Sonic® used to have the best snack: the chili cheese wrap. But, sadly, our local Sonic® took it off the menu. This recipe combines all the same flavors but it cheaper! (But probably not really better for you, just based on the ingredients!)

Ingredients

• Large flour tortillas
• Can of Hormel® chili (no beans)
• Fritos® original corn chips
• Shredded cheese
• Chopped onions (optional)

Heat the chili in a small sauce pan. While it’s heating, shred the cheese. Warm a tortilla.

On the warmed tortilla, put down a layer of Fritos® making sure that you use a large-ish handful. Top the chips with chili, shredded cheese and onions. Roll up like a burrito and enjoy!

I found that one can of chili made two large burritos or three medium sized.

I know, I know, this isn’t exactly outdoor cooking. But seriously, it’s JANUARY. How many of us are camp-cooking outside in January?

I ate mine with a barbequed sausage and barbequed mushrooms. Nom, nom, nom.

This recipe is super-simple. In fact, the hardest part of it is remembering how to spell broccoli! (I always think it should have a silent ‘h’ in it…)

INGREDIENTS

• 1-2 large bunches of broccoli
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper
• 4-6 garlic cloves

Pre-heat your oven to 425.

Here’s the trick: make sure your broccoli is super-super dry. I have issues with not washing produce so I ran mine under some water and then shook it, patted it dry, and let it sit for fifteen minutes to air dry. If you’re okay with not washing, go for it.

Before...

Cut the broccoli into large florets. (As large as you can manage!) Then toss with olive oil and salt and pepper. You want it coated with oil but not drippy.

Put the broccoli on a cookie sheet with the garlic. I peeled mine but again, that’s up to you. To keep my kitchen as mess-free as possible, I line my cookie sheet with foil and then just drizzle the broccoli right on the pan. A sprinkle of salt & pepper and I’m good to go.

Bake for 25 minutes. The broccoli will be tender before then but not crispy so leave it as long as you can!

and after!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 can chili
• 1 can pinto beans
• 1 lb ground hamburger
• Rice (minute rice is nice for camping)
• 1 bag Fritos®
• Shredded cheese

Brown hamburger and drain off fat. Season to taste. Set aside in a covered dish to stay warm. Cook rice. Heat the chili in a small sauce pan. In a second sauce pan, heat the beans.

(Yes, if you like it, you can substitute chili with beans!)

Pour Fritos® into a zippered bag and crush.

In a soup bowl, layer the rice, beans, chili, and meat. Top with the crushed Fritos® and shredded cheese.

This recipe is included in the eBook “Camp Cooking from the EatStayPlay.com Newsletter” Get your copy today!

Sent in by reader Suzanne Dodds, Arizona

INGREDIENTS

• Pre-cooked ham or Spam
• Velveeta (Thick slice)
• Butter
• Brown Sugar
• Tortillas (if desired)

Cut ham into slices (1 per person) and place on section of foil. Layer on Velveeta slice, sprinkle on brown sugar and heaping teaspoons of butter. Wrap completely in foil and place in coals for about 10 min. Unwrap, eat. (Repeat if necessary to completely melt cheese and heat meat).

My mom would do this on family camping trips when we were young but she used Spam. I never liked Spam so I switched to ham. Recommend for first morning breakfast due to potential spoilage of ham. You could also wrap in tortillas.

Do you have a recipe to share? Email it to me!

This recipe was sent to me by my friend Jessica. (Or Jes-ka! as I call her!) It totally fits my definition of a Glamping Recipe.

In Jessica’s Words

I doubled the batch to feed six people (and had a stack of leftovers as you can see in the picture, ha!).

I totally made the batter in the blender the night before we left and then filled a water bottle with the mix. Two mornings later it was perfect crepe-ing. (It was two mornings because our other friends couldn’t join us until the second night we were there).

They brought mimosa stuff and we cut up strawberries and fruits and had nutella…. nom nom.

Almost too decadent for camping. Almost.

Blended all ingredients in blender and funneled it into the water bottle. They cooked very well on the stove with a spray of Pam, I was impressed..

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt and butter; beat until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.

Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Serve hot.

What Is Glamping?

Are you familiar with the term glamping? It’s “glamour camping” where you might be in a tent but it has a Persian rug and you’re served with fine china. Typically, you would pay a LOT for these camping “adventures”.

Anybody who knows me knows that glamping just wouldn’t be in the style of The Outdoor Princess; I’m more of a get dirty kind of girl. But, that doesn’t mean that I wouldn’t bring a bit of glamping to some camp cooking!

The difference between a glamping camp cooking recipe and a normal recipe would be that you might need exotic ingredients or more specialized equipment. And the final bit to take it from ordinary camp cooking to GLAMPING camp cooking? It has to be a to-die for recipe!

I have recently become acquainted with the wonderful ingredient of panko. Panko is Japanese bread crumbs. This is a recipe that The Queen Mother found (somewhere) that has become one of my go-to staples for a quick dinner.

INGREDIENTS

• Cube steaks
• Panko (I use Kikkoman brand)
• Dijon mustard
• Vegetable oil

I serve two cube steaks per person since the steaks are very thin. Coat each side of the cube steak liberally with Dijon mustard. Make sure you get the mustard all the way to the edge of the steak.

Roll in the panko bread crumbs until fully coated on both sides.

In a skillet, heat the vegetable oil. I don’t measure, just pour in enough to cover the bottom of the skillet. When it’s hot, reduce heat to medium-high and put in the steaks. (I cook two at a time!)

Fry 2 minutes per side on medium-high heat. And trust me on the two minutes!

Yeah, so I tend to cook everything on HIGH so they're a little darker than if you cook it on medium-high... Still tasty!

If you follow me on Facebook at all, you’ll have seen my mentions all summer long about how I think barbequed plums should be a food group. I read about putting stone fruit (like plums or peaches) on a barbeque in a magazine. But when I went to find the recipe (or the how-to) I couldn’t remember where I’d found the information.

So, I just figured it out with trial and error!

INGREDIENTS

• 2-3 Stone-fruit like plums (or peaches) per person

Cut the plum in half and remove the pit. Make sure you’ve removed and stickers! If you wash it first (I don’t bother) make sure that it is fully dried.

Pre-heat your propane or gas grill and use a wire brush to knock off any dirt, grit or other crusty items.

Once the grill is hot, place the plum fruit side down. Now, this is really important: the fruit should sizzle when you put it on the grill. If not, the grill isn’t hot enough and you should remove the plum half and wait for the grill to get hotter.

Here’s the other important thing I found through trial and error: Don’t fuss with the plums! Just leave it there. Close the lid. Walk away. Leave it alone! I go for at LEAST two minutes, but maybe a bit longer depending on the size of the fruit.

After a couple of minutes, carefully flip the plum over to the skin side. I use tongs since my plums always fall off my spatula. (Can you tell I’ve been making this for lunch all summer?)

Again, leave that plum alone. The skin will start to slide off — that’s fine. Once the plum is hot all the way through and the skin begins to get crispy or burnt, you’re all done. Again, from experience, I turn of the grill so I can get my plate REALLY close to the plums; at this point they tend to nearly fall apart when you grab them with the tongs.

I serve this with a beef kielbasa sausage (fully-cooked so I’m just heating it on the grill). I start the sausage and plums at the same time but the plums take longer to cook so I put THEM on my grill hotspot and the sausage somewhere cooler.

Have you ever seen a recipe in a magazine and said, “Yes! I’m going to try that!” And then, you try it and say, “Did those people ever actually MAKE this because it doesn’t work/taste the way they said?!”

Well, this recipe started out that way, but let me assure you, I’ve made it twice and it DOES work and it is yummy. This is perfect recipe for a summer barbeque or any hot day. And since it’s made with seasonal fruit it makes the flavors extra special.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 seedless watermelon
• Vodka (chilled)
• Limes

The original recipe said to chunk the watermelon and then run it through a food processor. Don’t even bother! You get watermelon all over the kitchen. (Three weeks later and I’m STILL finding sticky pink spots on my counters and wall.) Don’t believe me? Try pouring watermelon pulp out of a food processor cylinder. There’s no lip for a spout (unlike a blender) so the pulp doesn’t pour; it plops. And splashes. And did I mention it gets EVERYWHERE?!

DO cut up the watermelon into tiny pieces and run through your blender. I used the “liquefy” setting. The watermelon bits need to be pretty tiny to get it to blend. If they’re too big, the blades just whirl with no liquefying action. If you cut the pieces too big (like I did) smash them deeper into the blender with a wooden spoon while the blender is off.

Strain the pulp through a colander to get just the juice. Now, here’s the trick: use a colander with HOLES as opposed to holes on the bottom and slits along the sides! You’ll need a pretty large bowl to catch all the juice. I ended up using two bowls the last time I made this.

You could also strain through a cheesecloth but you’ll be there all day! The trick is to pour a bit of the pulp into the colander and then stir with a wooden spoon. The juice trickles through and the pulp remains. Discard the pulp (or put it in your compost!).

When you’re done liquefying most of the watermelon, freeze the watermelon juice. You’ll want to reserve a few slices for a garnish. Now, I’ve done this three ways:

1. Freeze until chilled and just a BIT frozen.
2. Freeze until slushy — there’s mostly frozen and a bit of juice
3. Freeze until firm.

I prefer the firm. Then you “shred” the frozen juice with a fork to make it fluffy. I think the technical term is “granita.” It’s a bit of work, but the texture is out of this world!

No matter which freezing technique I’m using at the moment, I serve this in BIG glasses. So for my big glass, I squeeze in a quarter of a lime. Then add chilled vodka to taste. Garnish with a watermelon wedge.

If you’re not interested in a martini, this is good with just the lime. I also recommend a bit of sparkling water or even ice tea.

PS: The original recipe called for LEMON juice (a lot of it) and tequila. Frankly, I didn’t like it at all. And after all the work I went through to juice the watermelon using the stupid food processor technique it was heartbreaking not to like the drink. Once I hit upon the LIME and VODKA mix, the taste was perfect.

Between the impossible to pour pulp from the food processor and the way watermelon and lemon DON’T go together, I’m thinking the original publishers of this recipe thought it up but never actually TRIED it. Or maybe they just like tequila more than I do. Either way, I’ll save my tequila for margaritas and serve my watermelon with vodka!