We love brownies when camping. Whether to just snack on during the day or to add to s’mores cones or banana boats for dessert in the evening (recipes to come later). After all, calories don’t count when camping, right?
We used to get the brownie bites from Costco or Safeway but then I realized I have a great recipe everyone loves so why not just make ahead. Super quick to make and so much better than store bought! Also you can pre-measure out the dry ingredients into multiple mason jars during some down time saving you time the week of camping to whip together. Just dump dry ingredients into a bowl, add eggs, butter, water and vanilla and bake for about 20 minutes!
Ingredients –
1 2/3 C. granulated sugar
3/4 C. cocoa
1 1/3 C. all-purpose flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
3/4 cup melted butter
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla
Directions –
Preheat over to 350 degrees
Mix together dry ingredients
Add melted butter, eggs, water and vanilla and mix until well blended
Spray a 13×9 baking dish and spread the brownie mixture evenly in it
Bake for about 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean
Remove and let cool in pan
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
This was a new one for last season and since then, I’ve been messing around with my homemade teriyaki sauce. I love spicy and this one definitely has a kick. But if you don’t want spicy, omit the cayenne and red chili peppers.
Ingredients –
2/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup seasame oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 inches garlic, grated – I bought one of these at an Art & Wine Festival and it has been great for grating garlic and ginger!
Add cut chicken in cubes, veggies (red onion, bell peppers, mushrooms) and cubes pineapple
Add marinade
Marinate for a few hours or preferably over night before leaving on your camping trip. (Another fun tip, if you don’t plan to have this until the second or 3rd night of your trip, marinate a few hours and then freeze. It helps keep your ice chest cool!)
Also another fun tool that makes coring a pineaple so easy to cut is this! One of my favorite purchases that I didn’t think I needed but now am so grateful to have
When ready, alternate chicken, veggies and pineapple on skewers like these and place on grill. Grill for about 4 minutes on each side.
Remove, serve with some sides like the garlic bread I previously shared and enjoy!
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
I spent last week in Austin. I love Austin. Great food, delicious cocktails and don’t even get me started on Torchy’s breakfast tacos!! In any case it made me start thinking about the bbq season. It’s finally warm and the rain has stopped here so time to clean that grill!
One of my first night staples when camping is tri-tip. Why is it a staple? Always a hit, I can cook different levels for different people’s preferences, and it makes for great leftovers in breakfast burritos!
So living in California where I do, we have an local bbq place that has amazing tri-tip so I won’t lie, I cheat on this recipe. However, I thought I would do the post for anyone who wants a sure proof tri-tip!
If you live in the Bay Area, you can just cheat and go get an already marinated bag of Kinders tri-tip and throw it on the grill once you are set up at campsite. However if you don’t have a local one or need it to be cheaper given a larger group my suggestion is this –
Go to Costco and buy their large tri-tip – rule of thumb is 1/4 – 1/3 per person but I like leftovers for other meals so go 1/3 – 1/2 per person
Find at least 2-3 Kinders bottles of original marinade
Add meat to a large ziplock bag and add Kinders marinade
Seal bag and shake around to fully coat the meat
Marinate for at LEAST 24 hours
So for camping, I always marinate the night before the trip so it is ready to go when I get to the campsite the next day
For Grilling Over Campfire –
Start campfire and work the fire until you have a good amount of hot coals in the pit
Put cast iron over heat until hot to touch
Add meat fat side down in the cast iron and place directly over heat – if you aren’t getting a sizzling sound right away, putting a foil down on the grill and searing off of that before adding to the cast iron works
Sear fat side down for 5 min and then flip for 5 more minutes
If you are using foil to get a sear, add tri-tip to cast iron pan after this step
Cover cast iron pan with foil
Continue to cook for 10-12 more minutes for medium rare, 20-25 for medium, 30-35 for medium well
If you have a meat thermometer (I personally love my Thermapen), cook until temperature is at the desired doneness
Rare: 125-130° F
Medium Rare: 130-135° F
Medium: 135-145° F
Medium Well: 145-155° F
Well Done: 155° F
Once the temperature is close to your desired doneness (about 5-10 degrees below), remove from the heat and tent with foil for 10-15 minutes before slicing to let the juices sit. The meat temperature will continue to rise during this step
Normally most my friends like medium rare so I cook to that, remove, cut the ends and add those back into the cast iron and cook to medium well for the friends who want that
For Grilling On a Grill
Preheat grill until about 350 degrees or until sizzles with a drop of water
Add meat fat side down
Sear fat side down for 5 min and then flip for 5 more minutes
Continue to cook for 10-12 more minutes for medium rare, 20-25 for medium, 30-35 for medium well or desired temperatures (above)
Remove from heat slightly before reaching desired temperature and place in a tent foil made of aluminum foil for 10-15 minutes before slicing
Serve with garlic bread, corn, salad and/or potatoes!
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
Usually by the last night of camping, I try to either make a meal out of everything we have leftover or a meal mostly from cans. My last camping trip I decided to try making a chili based off of both because it’s usually what we have at the end – even some beer!
Ingredients –
1 medium onion, chopped
5 cloves minced garlic
1 green bell pepper chopped
2 jalapeño peppers chopped
1 can of Chipotle chili’s in adobo sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 16 oz can chicken broth
1 12 oz beer
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can black beans, drained and rinse
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tsp Tabasco
Any leftover items you might have – cheddar cheese, sour cream, green onions…
Directions –
In a Dutch oven or cast iron pan, add a couple teaspoons of oil and create a thin layer on the bottom. Last summer I bought this pan from Macy’s and it worked great for this meal and fed four people easily!
Move pan closer to the flames and heat
Add the chopped onion and minced garlic until onion is soft
Add a bit of the adobo sauce from the chili can, tomato paste, peppers, cumin and Italian seasoning.
Stir and cook for about 3-5 minutes until peppers have softened
Add tomatoes, broth, and beer with the sugar and mix to combine
Move the pot away from the heat towards the edge of the campfire grill
Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes
Add beans and re-cover and cook for another 10-15 minutes
Remove from heat and serve into bowls
Add the toppings you have (sour cream, cheese) and serve with campfire cornbread – recipe to come!
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
Baseball season is finally here and with that being an Oakland A’s fan means many tailgates. I love tailgating for the friendship bonding time and getting to test out new recipes that sometimes make the camping menus on our trips.
Usually my bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers are a staple for tailgates but lately it seems like all my friends are either Keto, Paleo or vegetarian so for our first tailgate of the season, I wanted to come up with something that everyone could eat. So here I give you a meat option for those Keto and Paleo friends and a goat cheese option for the vegetarians.
Keto & Paleo Friendly Bell Beppers –
Ingredients:
Mini bell peppers – I grabbed the 1.5 lb at Costco
1 lb. Ground beef (or turkey but I feel beef has a lot more flavor)
Taco seasoning packet
1/2 to 3/4 cup Tomato sauce
Small onion
Tomatoes (optional)
Black olives (optional)
Directions:
Slice mini bell peppers in half and scrape out the seeds
Add a little bit of olive oil to pan and add and saute onions for a few minutes. Then add ground beef and cook fully.
Add taco seasoning to ground beef and the tomato sauce. I added enough sauce that it was coated but not watery. Let beef simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Fill bell peppers with meat mixture
Top with tomatoes and olives if you want. The people in our group preferred no tomatoes or olives but really up to your audience
Create foil packets and add bell peppers to them. Grill for about 10 minutes or until the inside of the bell pepper looks heated through
Goat Cheese Mini Bell Peppers –
Ingredients:
Mini Bell Peppers
10.5 oz. Goat Cheese Log – I find the Kirkland brand 2 pack goat cheese logs at Costco the best for value
2/3 cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Three cloves of garlic, minced
2 – 4 Jalapenos (depending on spice level), seeded and chopped
Directions:
Slice mini bell peppers in half and scrape out the seeds
In a large bowl, combine softened goat cheese, diced jalapenos, minced garlic, and shredded parmesan cheese
Fill the mini bell peppers with the goat cheese mixture. Note: I find just using your hands is the easiest for this and I fill them to almost overflowing the brim of the peppers
Create foil packets and fill packets with bell peppers. Grill for about 10 minutes or until cheese looks heated through and oozing.
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
Ok I love rain but I am officially tired of this constant rain in California right now. I saw blue skies the other day for a couple hours and my body rejoiced! Now I know this is what people in other states feel all the time and I swear I love the rain and so much patience but for once in my life, I never felt so happy to see sun and then realize how spoiled I normally am.
In any case, warm sunny weather normally gives me the ability to try out campfire meals on a grill before I go camping. This recipe actually came from something I normally make and my friends said “you should do this when we are camping”. What makes me so excited about this item is there are so many variations I can mess with!
Ingredients –
Ears of corn (however many you are doing – for this I will do 4)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup cotija cheese
Chili powder
Lime
Cilantro (optional)
Directions –
Mix mayo, chili powder, cilantro and lime in a bowl until well blended.
Rub generously over each ear of corn
Sprinkle with cotija cheese
Top with cayenne pepper
Now here you can also mix it up on how to cook – grill corn before you smother it with ingridents or after. I personally like to prepare and then throw on grill but honestly up to you
If you want to mix things up even more add other butter blends, herbs and spices!
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
One of my favorite traditions is this week – Mardi Gras! Also known as Shrove Tuesday, Fat Tuesday and the main reason I love it – Pancake Tuesday. I love a good breakfast for dinner sometimes, and during college, I always heated up my pan and put together crepes, or pancakes, with all the fixings for my roommates and I. Of course some hurricanes always paired nicely. So this week, I give you breakfast!
I make large batches of this mix before the summer starts so I always have it ready to go for camping trips throughout the season. It’s also great just for an easy breakfast on the weekends. Just bring this mix, a small thing of buttermilk and 2 eggs.
Fun camping hack! Before every trip, I crack open eggs into a large bowl and very slightly beat (just to fit through the funnel). I then use emptied and cleaned plastic water bottles that I collect before preparation and insert a funnel into one. Then pour the eggs in through the funnel until full. Seal tightly and save in the fridge until you load your cooler. Of course you can’t do any crazy egg varieties this way (sunny side up, over easy) but works great for scrambled eggs, breakfast burritos and recipes like this that ask for 2 eggs!
Also this is one recipe I do on my small propane grill that I also bring. You can very much do it on indirect heat in a cast iron on the campfire in the morning but I’m usually doing such a big breakfast, I’ll have both the small propane grill and campfire grill going at the same time and just end up doing the pancakes on the propane grill.
Last year I got these stack-able pots and pans that I absolutely LOVE (see above)! GSI Stackable Pots
They even come with a small cutting board. It saves on space when packing the car, and gives you two pots, one saucepan and a cutting board all in the size of the big pan. Totally worth the money and less stress of trying to find the right pans to bring. If you are going to do the pancakes on the grill, I recommend a cast iron pan and melting a half stick of butter in the pan first to reduce sticking with the heat of a campfire.
Multi-use Baking Mix Recipe (adjust this to how much of a batch you want to make)-
3 cups Flour
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 tablespoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Salt
Recipe –
2 cups of Multi-use Baking Mix Recipe
2 cups (475 ml) buttermilk
2 eggs
Butter
Optional – chocolate chips, coconut, fruit slices you have at camp
In a large bowl, whisk together 2 cups baking mix, 2 cups buttermilk and two eggs until well blended.
Melt a little piece of butter in a medium saucepan (or half stick in a large cast iron). Put 1/4 cup batter at a time into the skillet.
If you want to add other items, spread on top of pancakes here. Chocolate chips are of course a big hit with the kid campers!
Cook edges look slightly brown and firm (about 3 – 5 min), then flip.
Cook other side until golden brown and firm.
Repeat until batter is gone.
I love to serve up with bacon and french pressed coffee!
Another fun tip – if you want to get people up at your campsite to start the day, start cooking bacon 😉
Laissez les bon temps rouler!
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
I love to make at least one pasta dish on a camping trip (see previous lasagna recipe) and what goes best with pasta? Garlic bread! It also just make a great snack or side dish for many meals. Warning – this garlic bread is highly addicting and I usually triple the portion you think normal people would eat when planning for the meal.
I think the first time I did this recipe while camping was at Mary Smith campground up near the town of Shasta. It’s a bit of a drive from the Bay Area but a pretty drive and the campground has nice hiking. Sadly when we went it was too cold to get into the water. Maybe next time!
Ingredients –
Loaf of French bread
2 to 2 1/2 sticks of butter – accept it, love it, trust me!
Garlic – I use at least 8-9 cloves
Italian seasoning
Parmesan cheese – shredded
Foil
Directions –
Cut french loaf in half longwise
Mince garlic to fine pieces
Mash room temp butter, minced garlic, a little bit of shredded Parmesan cheese and a couple teaspoons of Italian seasoning in a bowl until well combined
Spread garlic, cheese, butter mixture evenly on the two layers of bread
Top with more shredded Parmesan cheese
Put each loaf separately in a piece of foil and fold up so foil creates a boat and top of bread doesn’t touch top of foil
Place on indirect heat on campfire and cook for about 10 min or until bread is warmed and cheese on top is melted
Remove from heat and slice into 2 inch pieces or eat as whole (just kidding but you’ll want to)
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
This week marks the 10 year anniversary of my dad passing from ALS, and I can’t think of a better way of remembering him with baseball with my sis. So as fate has it, an annual work conference that is normally earlier in the month got moved to this week and spring training starts on Thursday! I can’t wait to root on my boys in green and gold with my sis! So this week’s recipe is going to be my fan favorite (at least as my friends tell me) – bacon wrapped jalapenos!
I’ve tried a few different ways of how to cook these but I find the best to wrap tightly and cook in a layer of foil sheet but you can insert toothpicks and cook in pan or come up with your own new way. If you have a suggestion on best way to cook these, leave a comment. I love trying new ways but for now this has been the best way
In honor of my 20 year high school reunion shenanigans last night, I decided to do a cocktail post this week. So I’ve tried a few versions of these but I find the classic and basic one the best. However feel free to add anything that sounds tasty to you (I.e strawberries or jalapeños)
1 can of limeade – I pour into a mason jar and keep in the freezer until I’m packing the cooler
Tequila – anejo or blanco are my go to’s
Club soda
Limes
Fill glass with ice. Add 1.5 oz shot of tequila. Add a large spoonful of the limeade. Fill remaining of the cup with club soda. Stir and garnish with a lime
Also if you want a little sweeter, I sometimes add a topper of Grand Mariner.
Cheers!
I would love feedback! If you have tried this recipe, please rate below and/or comment!
Cooking with Campfire 