Author: Cooking with Campfire

Easy Lemon Thyme Dressing Recipe for Salads

So I know this is not the most exciting recipe but it is such a delicious and easy to make dressing, that you can whip up with so many options. I personally love it in any arugula and spinach salads. Also, this is a quick recipe to make before a camping trip. Just pour into a mason jar and you have dressing on the go for any camping meals you want to add it to!

Ingredients:

Ingredients for Lemon Thyme Dressing
  • 1/2 c. Olive Oil
  • 1/4 c. Champagne Vinegar
  • 2 tbsp. Shallot
  • Juice of one Lemon
  • 1 tsp. Fresh Thyme
  • 1 tbsp. Dijon Mustard
  • Splash of black pepper & salt

Directions:

  1. Wash thyme and remove from stems. Finely chop
  2. Mince small shallot – enough for at least 2 tbsp.
  3. Add olive oil, champagne vinegar, shallot, thyme, and Dijon mustard to a bowl
  4. Cut lemon in half and juice into the bowl with other ingredients
  5. Whisk together until combined
  6. Add salt and pepper to taste
  7. Use immediately or pour into a mason jar and refrigerate.

** One note on this dressing – when refrigerated, it will harden. Before use, let the dressing sit out at room temperature for a bit to loosen back up. Or run mason jar under warm water. Once it loosens up, just give the mason jar a good shake to combine!

Lemon Thyme Champagne Vinaigrette

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Easy Keto Cheese Steak Casserole for Camping

I was starting to wonder if I was going to get to camp this summer but thankfully I was able to find a spot for a couple of nights. So a girlfriend and I packed up the car and headed for some nature, float time and hikes! I wanted to make something easy the first night and my friend is keto so spent time searching my brain for ideas until I realized I could just re-create my cheese steak recipe for the grill as a casserole! It turned out so good we nearly at the entire pan between the two of us!

Keto Cheese Steak Casserole

Ingredients –

  • Sliced deli roast beef
  • Red bell pepper
  • Orange bell pepper
  • Yellow or white onion
  • Italian dressing (I used Ken’s Simply Vinaigrette Italian to avoid any added sugar and carbs)
  • Sliced provolone cheese
  • Sliced pepper jack cheese
  • Butter lettuce (optional)
Peppers and Onion Sauteing over Campfire

Directions –

1) Place cast iron over fire and add tablespoon of oil until heated

2) Add sliced bell peppers and onion to cast iron. Saute until semi-soft

3) Add 1/4 – 1/2 cup Italian dressing until peppers and onion are coated

4) Place sliced roast beef evenly around cast iron

5) Top with provolone and pepper jack cheese until fully covered

6) Cover cast iron with aluminum foil and heat for about 15 minutes or until the cheese has fully melted and roast beef is heated through

7) Serve with butter lettuce (as a lettuce wrap) or side salad

Sugar Pine Reservoir

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Easy Summer Salad with Kale and Avocado

Happy Summer Solstice! The longest day of the year and one of my favorite days. I love summer even though it is a little different this year. I miss baseball, barbecues, hanging by the pool and of course camping. At least I have my family. One thing my family loves is salads. We are usually trying to find new ones especially when we are starting to get tired of some of our favorites. So in honor of summer solstice, I thought I would share one of my favorites. In my family kale and almonds is a hit especially with my mom and sister but I prefer fruit/citrus in my salads. So combining the kale and almonds with some fruit was the inspiration for this one. Also, making your own dressing is so quick and easy once you find one you love, make sure to write it down. Saves on the calories in the bottled stuff!

Strawberry & Avocado Kale & Spinach Salad

Ingredients –

Salad:

  • Kale
  • Spinach
  • Strawberries
  • Sliced Almonds (toasted optional)
  • Avocado
  • 1/4 cup feta cheese
  • Sea salt

Dressing:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (usually 1 lemon)
  • 1 tsp. honey
  • 1/2 tsp. poppy seed
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1/8 tsp. fresh ground pepper

Directions –

  1. To make dressing, add all ingredients to a bowl and whisk until blended (or add to a mason jar and shake vigorously for about 30 seconds to a minute)
  2. In a bowl, toss half spinach and half kale with sea salt
  3. If toasting almonds, line on a baking sheet and toast at 350 degrees for about 5-8 minutes keeping a close watch
  4. Slice strawberries and and avocado and add on top of the lettuce blend
  5. Add almonds and feta cheese
  6. Toss with dressing and enjoy!

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Delicious Frosé Recipe for Warm Days

Anyone else getting creative with cocktails during this shelter in place? It has been getting warm where I live lately. We are about to hit almost 90 degrees this week so I will definitely be making this again.

I’ve also been getting a lot of requests for my recipe so thought I would share it here. Enjoy!

Frozen Rose - Frose

Ingredients –

  • Bottle of rose wine – use something you wouldn’t mind drinking any day but not expensive is my go to
  • Vodka
  • Frozen strawberries
  • Lemon

Directions –

  1. Pour bottle of rose wine in a quart size Ziploc bag at least a day before you plan to make the Frosé.
  2. Put bag in the freezer for at least 12 hours or a day until rose is mostly frozen.
  3. In a blender add the frozen rose wine, a handful of frozen strawberries (5-7 strawberries), 1/3 cup vodka and juice of one lemon.
  4. Optional – if you like drinks sweeter, add a bit of simple syrup to the blender
  5. Blend, pour and enjoy!

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Make Your Own Taco Seasoning at Home

As we are getting close to the end of the 6th week of quarantine, who is running out of items but doesn’t want to go to the store? So instead of bearing the lines, face masks, social distancing, etc. I thought I would share one of my go-to spice recipes!

Note: You can also use this in my Campfire Enchiladas or my Southwestern Chicken Rice

Taco Seasoning

I use taco seasoning on many things that one packet is never enough. Therefore, just make your own with spices in your house. You can store in a mason jar for whenever you might need it. Especially now when a quick store run doesn’t exist!

Ingredients –

  • 1 – 2 tbsp chili powder (depending on how spicy you like it)
  • 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp 15 black pepper

Directions –

  1. Measure all ingredients and add to a small bowl
  2. Mix ingredients together to combine
  3. Pour combined spices into a mason jar and tighten lid. Store in a cool area like a cabinet

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Easy Strawberry Margarita Recipe for Camping

It’s another Friday during Shelter in Place”, and what a perfect time to test new drinks in my BlendJet. I love using my BlendJet while camping for frozen drinks. Today’s drink of choice – Strawberry Margaritas.

So a fun trick I found years ago for camping is Limeaid works great for camping beverages especially margaritas. It is a mix of lime and simple syrup together!

One note on the image below is I would use fresh strawberries instead of frozen. Add in liquid first, then fresh strawberries with a few small ice cubes.

Camping Strawberry Margaritas with BlendJet

Ingredients –

  • Strawberries
  • Limeade
  • Tequila of course (I prefer blanco)

Directions –

  1. Add 1.5 oz tequila (or a bit more if you like boozy like me) to blender
  2. Add two spoonfuls Limeade
  3. Add 3-4 strawberries depending on size
  4. Add a couple small ice cubes if using BlendJet. Add a few more for a larger blender
  5. Blend, pour and enjoy!

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

DIY Mango Banana Daiquiri for Camping

What crazy times we are living in right now! I recently bought a BlendJet and I’m so grateful it came before this quarantine/shelter-in-place, because it has given me an opportunity to test out cocktail recipes before future camping trips. I can’t wait to use this portable blender on my camping trips as you can take it anywhere and no plug is needed! If it dies, I can use my car to re-charge. This is going to bring camping cocktails to a whole new game!

At the same time, just dreaming about the days when we can really get out again. Also, who doesn’t love a delicious tropical dream while dreaming of warmer weather and beaches.

Mango Banana Daiquiri
Mango Banana Daiquiri

Ingredients –

  • Pineapple juice or frozen pineapple juice
  • Mango or frozen mango
  • Banana
  • Rum
  • Cream of Coconut, such as Simply Squeeze Coco Real
  • Ice

Directions –

  1. Start with putting 1.5 oz rum, pineapple juice (or frozen pineapple juice) and a couple squirts of cream of coconut into BlendJet
  2. Add mango and banana to BlendJet
  3. If not using frozen fruit, add a couple of ice cubes
  4. Blend until smooth and pour into glass
  5. Sit back, relax and enjoy!

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Delicious Camping Side Dish: Red Potato Packets

California is being teased with an early spring right now. It’s either that or sadly we might be headed back to a drought. Either way, I’m going to enjoy the 70 degree sunny days with some delicious bbq!

While I might not be camping right now, bbq’ing gives me a great opportunity to try out new recipes. Potato packets have always been an easy side dish option for me when camping, but I love to try out different varieties.

I’m doing a community garden with some friends and right now we have some delicious parsley, green onions, rosemary and thyme! As for type of potatoes, I’ve done russet and red potatoes but I think I prefer the small red ones for this. I always start with a butter and garlic base and then add from that. Also my friends know how much I love garlic that if I see a recipe for 2 cloves, I immediately change it to 6. For this recipe I will keep it at a normal amount but if you love garlic at me, definitely double or even triple the amount.

Ingredients:

  • 4-5 small red potatoes
  • 2-3 tbsp. butter
  • 2-3 garlic cloves
  • Thyme
  • Rosemary
  • Oregano
  • Salt
  • Pepper (optional)
  • Green onions (optional)
  • Aluminum foil

*One note – when I am camping, I will just use Italian Seasoning or Herbes de Provence instead of fresh

Directions:

  1. Rip a piece of aluminum foil that is big enough to hold potatoes and close into a packet loosely
  2. Cut red potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes (cut in half or quarters depending on size)
  3. Cut butter into 1 tbsp pieces and then quarter into quarters
  4. Align potatoes into the center of the foil and place the small cubes of butter evenly on top of potatoes
  5. Mince garlic and add also to the tops of the potatoes
  6. Chop herbs and green onions and place on top of potatoes
  7. Sprinkle with salt and pepper
  8. Wrap foil into packets with a loose opening on top
  9. Place on campfire or grill and heat for about 45 minutes
  10. Remove, open and either place on a plate or even eat out of the packet!

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

How to Make Gooey S’mores in a Cone

This is one of my favorite desserts for camping that is super easy to make. All you need to do is take anything you might want to stuff in the cone and wrap in foil. Then, place on the campfire grill for about 10 minutes until inside is melted and cone is warmed.

Gooey Delicious S’mores

Ingredients:

  • Waffle Cones
  • Mini marshmallows
  • Mini chocolate chips
  • Aluminum foil
  • Peanut butter, butterscotch chips, banana – whatever additions your heart desires that fit in the cone

Directions:

  • Rip off a sheet of aluminum foil
  • Stuff the waffle cone full with your desired ingredients
  • Wrap waffle cone in the aluminum foil and put on a campfire grill in indirect heat
  • Heat for about 15 minutes or until inside ingredients are melted and cone is warmed (might require a couple of checks)
  • Once ready – eat and enjoy!

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Super Easy Game Day (or Camping) Pasta Salad

So one of my easy go to side dishes for any event and definitely easy to throw together for an addition to any meal while camping.

I’ve recently joined a community garden with some girlfriends and right now our parsley is growing like crazy and is so fresh so I added it.

Also if you are not making this while camping and instead at home, I highly recommend this pan from Ayesha Curry. The lock lid is a lifesaver!!

Ingredients:

  • 1 box of pasta like rotini
  • 1/2 to one bottle of Italian dressing
  • Grape tomatoes
  • 3-5 celery stalks
  • 1 can of black olives
  • Italian seasoning
  • Celery salt
  • Salt and pepper
  • Parsley (optional)
  • Cucumbers (optional)

Directions:

  1. Cook pasta according to package
  2. While pasta is cooking, chop celery and cut tomatoes into quarters
  3. Drain pasta
  4. Allow pasta to cool. Tip for camping – add to a large ziplock bag and add to cooler for quicker cooling
  5. Add pasta to a large bowl
  6. Add the tomatoes, celery, black olives and cucumber (if using)
  7. Add about 1/3 Italian dressing and a few shakes of all seasonings. Mix well and continue to add more – testing periodically until you have the amount of dressing and seasoning that you like
  8. Top with chopped parsley

I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!

Rating: 5 out of 5.