8-13-12 mklka
CAMPING
COOKBOOK
COOKING
IDEAS
Forward
Who could decide what to include? Obviously, there are many more outdoor recipes. Good sources are outdoor cookbooks and the internet. The internet has many different recipes for Dutch Oven cooking. Click into Dutch Oven Cooking to get into gourmet dishes of all kinds. Or you can go very simple with creating your own dry simple soup mixes to which you just add water.
Why didn’t we keep it divided into “No Cook” , “Stick Cook”, “Foil Cook “, “One Pot”, “Dutch Oven”? Or into the method of cooking such as “No Cook”, “Camp Stove”, “Charcoal”, “Wood”, “Solar”? Primarily because most of these cooking methods overlap. For example, many dishes can be cooked over charcoal or on a camp stove. Or in foil or a pot. Or, where do we stop. . . So we did it as we did it! Snacks, Breakfast, Salad and Sides, Main Dishes, Desserts—with some wild stabs at sorting within.
Why don’t we have more recipes on cooking over wood? GS discourages wood fires except for ceremonial fires. It depletes our natural resources, generally requires carrying in wood, and is more difficult to extinguish.
Why no solar cooking? Try the little solar cooker described in the handouts and see how long it takes to cook ONE hot dog! And you must have sunshine. If your girls want to give it a try, look on the internet---dozens and dozens of sites.
This cookbook is for the girls. You should use it to teach THEM to do the cooking. They can do wonderful meals! Start simply and be sure to include them in the menu planning, shopping and cooking.
The cooking methods are covered in the outdoor cooking and camping session and in the handouts for it. If you have more questions, call the trainer who taught you. They all love to help. Sometimes, the Council presents specialized cooking classes—watch for them.
GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN. BE FLEXIBLE (there is no shame in having to go buy pizzas someplace or having a cheese sandwich because a meal didn’t turn out or it rained for a solid day).
General Guidelines
Oddly enough, girls aren’t born knowing how to cook! Before going camping and cooking, try to teach some basic skills.
*Teach a little basic nutrition: what gives us sustaining energy for hiking? Why do we include vegetables and fruit?
*Have the girls make a chopped salad sometime to develop knife and safety skills (each girl brings a vegetable for the salad). Or do the same for a fruit salad. Try cooking out at a sleepover in the backyard. The goal is for the girls to become proficient in outdoor cooking. Remember, with the girls doing the cooking, it will take twice as long.
*Teach some general cooking skills and coping abilities. Estimate some amounts so they know how much something is without having to rely on exact measurements. They should develop backup plans (No panic! We have the cheese and bread to eat since we burned that!). Teach no blame cooking—everyone is patient with each other.
Quantities to order
Take into consideration the menu and the size of the people who will be eating. Little girls don’t eat as much as older girls and generally, neither do adults. This is just a suggested list.
Meat & cheese (per serving)
Hamburger—4 ounces Sausage—4 ounces
Bacon ---3 slices Cold Ham –3 slices
Chicken—7-8 ounces Cheddar cheese—1 ounce
Baked Ham—5 ounces Cream Cheese—2 ounces
Canned Foods (per serving
Pork &Beans—8 ounces Corn, Peas, Carrots, etc-4 ounces
Applesauce, fruit cocktail-- Tomatoes—5 ounces
4 ounces (approximately Tuna Fish—1 ounce
5 per #2 can, 28 per#10 can)
Soup—8 fluid ounces
Dry Goods (per serving)
Bisquick—1 ½ ounces Macaroni—2 ½ ounces
Dry cereal—3 ounces Spaghetti—3 ounces
Rice –1 ½ ounces (1 cup dry rice makes 3 cups cooked)
Fruit (per serving) Vegetables –fresh
Apples for salad ½ Lettuce ¼ head
Watermelon – 2 pounds Potatoes—8 ounces
Fruit for eating –l
Miscellaneous Beverages
Sandwich Bread 24 slices Hot chocolate mix—1 ounce
Pudding –3.4 ounce package Juice 4 ounces
Marshmallows—32 per bag
And.
16 ounces =1 pound 2 cups sugar=1 pound 1 stick butter=1/2 cup/8 Tbsp.
4 cups flour =1 pound 16 Tbsp. =1 cup
21 fluid ounces=1 quart 3 tsps. = 1Tbs
HIKING SNACKS
Walking salads Gorp Dried Fruit
Fresh Fruits Fruit juice Cereal
Fruit Leather Granola
Nosebag Lunch: a nosebag lunch is put together using a bandana as the nosebag. Generally the ingredients in a nosebag lunch include something munchy (sandwich or boiled egg), something crunchy (carrot or celery), something juicy fresh fruit), and something sweet (cookies). It should have nothing squishy, nothing squashy, nothing sticky, nothing soggy.
Think of all the fruits: Apples, oranges, fresh Pineapple, Watermelon, Peaches Plums, Melons, Bananas, Grapes, and Pears
Pita Pocket Sandwiches
Cut the pita in half and fill it with you choose, for example: chopped lunch meat or ham, shredded cheese, mayonnaise, tomato and lettuce; jelly or honey with sliced bananas; cheese and apples.
Walking Salads
Use paper cups for salad bowls, cut celery and carrots longer than the length of the cup, pack in plastic sandwich bag, and take along a new jar of ranch dressing. At snack time pour ranch dressing in the cup and dip vegetables. (Adjust to number of hikers. Could be combined with crackers but be careful how they are packed as they will crush or get soggy).
BREAKFAST
Try to incorporate some protein into breakfast as it will provide longer sustained energy and it’s the most important meal of the day!
NO COOK
Cereal, bagels, and muffins with some fruit make good breakfasts when you are in a hurry to get some place!
Breakfast Banana Splits
1 banana per person oranges, peeled and chunked
Apples, washed and halved grapes, washed and halved any other fruit
Frozen Yogurt (2 scoops per girl is about right
Granola
Slice banana in half, lengthwise, and place in bowl. Put two scoops of frozen yogurt in between the bananas then spoon fresh fruit over top. Top off with granola and enjoy!
COOKED
Misty Morning Stuffed Toast
1 dozen eggs 1 tsp. vanilla extract ½ cup milk
2 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese
1 (21 ounce) can fruit pie filling
2 (1 pound) loaves French bread, sliced ½ inch thick
Butter to taste for frying the stuffed toast
Maple syrup to taste
Whisk eggs, vanilla and milk together in a bowl; combine cream cheese and fruit filling in another bowl. Smear one side of bread with the cream cheese and fruit mixture. Cover with another piece of bread. Dip each sandwich into the egg batter, coating both sides. In a pan with melted butter, cook each side over low heat (cover pan while frying). Serve with maple syrup.
This is also good for lunch by substituting your choices of sliced meats and cheeses, dunked in the egg batter and frying them (Monte Cristo sandwich).
Pancakes
Buy pancake mix that doesn’t require any additions but water. Mix in a container from which you can pour the batter onto the griddle. (Note: a cast iron griddle works perfect as it distributes heat well.) Pancakes are difficult to serve if you have a lot of people for whom to cook and, especially at a higher altitude as they get cold very quickly.
Bacon and eggs
1 dozen eggs l lb. bacon shredded cheese
Whatever you want to add to the eggs: onions, green peppers
Salt and pepper to taste
Fry the bacon in a skillet. While it is frying, whisk eggs and chop any other ingredients. Drain grease from bacon with a turkey baster, so the girls don’t have to tip the hot skillet. Pour in eggs and other veggies. Do not overcook. Stir frequently. Top with shredded cheese.
Eggs in a bag
Pint or quart size Freezer plastic zipper bags, labeled with each girls name in permanent pen
Eggs for each girl (2 to 3)
Inclusions: chopped onion, green pepper, salsa; shredded cheese (girls pick)
Bring water to boiling in large pan. Girls fill their bags with eggs and whatever they wish to include, squeeze them to scramble and put in the boiling water to cook. Number of bags in a pan differs by size of pan. Push them back down as they float easily. You may want to spray the inside of the bags with oil.
Add your own:
SALADS AND SIDES
Build a salad 1 Start with lettuce and mayonnaise
For a: Add:
Green salad Radishes, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes Bunny salad Cottage cheese, raisins, nuts. Roll in lettuce leaf.
Build a salad 2
Start with chopped apples and celery and mayonnaise
For a: Add:
Waldorf salad nuts and raisins (or grapes)
Island salad pineapple chunks
Build a salad 3
Start with chopped cabbage and mayonnaise
For a: Add:
Apple slaw chopped apples and green peppers Hawaiian Slaw Pineapple and shredded coconut
Walking salads
1. Celery filled with cream cheese. Garnish with raisins—called “Ants on a log”
2. Cream cheese or long pieces of cheese rolled in lettuce
3. Slice of cheese and a pickle rolled in lettuce
4. Carrot and celery rolled in lettuce (or put in a paper cup to which salad dressing has been added
Stuffed Fruit
Apples, pears or peaches (cored or pitted). Stuff with raisins, nuts and mayonnaise; cream cheese and nuts; celery and mayonnaise; chopped dates and cream cheese; cottage cheese; or whatever the girls like.
Sunshine Salad (24 one- half cup servings)
Mix ¾ cup lemon juice and ½ cup sugar for dressing. Combine 4 cups shredded carrots and 1 cup raisins. Toss with dressing and serve on cabbage or lettuce leaf if desired.
Fruit Salad Deluxe (serves 25)
2 large cans fruit cocktail 3 apples 3 oranges
4 bananas Optional: raisins, marshmallows, nuts
Drain fruit cocktail. Chop apples, oranges, and bananas. Mix chopped fruit with optional ingredients. Add fruit cocktail, let sit for a few minutes before serving.
Ambrosia
2 large tart apples 1 #2 can crushed pineapple 2 lg. seedless oranges
1 large lemon 1 Cup flaked coconut 2 lg. bananas 1 cup raisins
Cut fruit and put into large bowl. Add lemon juice and coconut, stir.
Fruit Slaw (serves 12)
1 head cabbage shredded 2 16 oz. Cans of fruit cocktail
2 cups nonfat vanilla Yogurt Juice of l lemon (or 2 limes) ½ C. honey ½ C. vinegar 2 sliced bananas
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
Add your own:
VEGETABLE DISHES
Company Green Beans (serves about 12)
3 16 oz. cans French-style green beans
1 8 oz. can sliced water chestnuts
1 can cream soup (mushroom, chicken, or celery) 1 jar Cheez Whiz or 1 cup grated cheddar cheese (4 oz.)
1 small chopped onion or dry onion flakes
Heavy duty Foil
Drain beans and chestnuts; then add all ingredients and mix thoroughly. Put into foil packets, seal and place on charcoal. Remove when cooked thoroughly. If you use onion flakes, it cooks quicker. May be put in larger foil packets to cook for a group. Remember, it requires a restaurant fold (see Handout) to seal as you will want to flip the package over. This recipe may be cooked together in a pot or Dutch oven or oven.
Glazed Carrots Packet
5 16oz. cans of sliced carrots or 2 packages (16 oz.) baby carrots.
2/3 Cup orange marmalade
Brown sugar
Ground Cinnamon
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
Heavy Duty Foil
Clean and slice carrots (if fresh); add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Put in foil packets, seal and place on the charcoal. Remove when cooked thoroughly (obviously the fresh carrots take longer). Remember this requires a restaurant fold. May also be cooked in a pan.
Italian Vegetables
3 lbs. Pkg. Mixed cut frozen or canned vegetables—broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, water chestnuts, green beans, etc.
Small bottle Italian dressing
Italian seasoning
Seasoned salt or salt and pepper
1 small shaker of grated Parmesan cheese
Add all ingredients, season and mix thoroughly. Put in foil packets (use restaurant fold) and place on charcoal. May also be cooked in a pan. Remove when cooked thoroughly.
MAIN DISHES
No Cook
See hiking snacks. Also, consider cold sandwiches of various kinds: PBJ (check for allergies first); cold cuts, etc. Especially good to have a cold lunch if you are leaving shortly after noon—no dishes to wash or fire to put out! Have campers make lunches with breakfast – store in refrigerator or cooler if needed.
Cooked
Master Plan for One-Pot Meals
The following serves 12:
Brown together: 3 lbs. hamburger 1 small onion & 1 green pepper chopped Add and heat: 2 cans tomato soup or chopped tomatoes
Add ingredients for one of the following:
Chili: 4 cans kidney beans, chili powder to taste
Spaghetti: 1 lb. spaghetti, cooked; Italian seasonings, garlic, to taste
Hunter’s stew: 4 cans vegetable soup
Sloppy Joes: spoon basic recipe on buns
Pita Joes: Add 4 large cans pork and beans. Spoon mixture into ½ pita, top with shredded cheese, lettuce (chopped), chili powder, etc to taste
Chili Cheese Franks (serves 20)
4 1 lb. cans of chili with beans 2 cans cheddar cheese soup 20 hot dogs 20 hot dog buns Corn chips
Combine cheese soup and chili in a large pot. Add hot dogs, heat to boiling. Simmer about 5 minutes to blend flavors. To serve, place hot dog on a bun, top with chili cheese mix, and sprinkle with crushed chips.