We’re going to Banff in a few weeks, and I’m starting to get really excited about the possibility of seeing grizzlies, moose, caribou, wolves, and the insane wilderness of the Canadian Rockies! My excitement is reminding me that I’m in charge of the food for 4 people, and I better get prepping. Continue reading “Peach Blackberry Fruit Leather”
Author: Emily
Mountain Berry Bread
I am not the master baker of this group. We all know that title belongs to Aimee. But I’ve been backpacking a lot lately, and baked goods seem to be the best thing to eat on the first morning of the trip. So not only have I been baking, but I’ve been vegan baking! I’ve always thought vegan baking was the worst thing on earth, but my husband is vegan so I’m often without your typical dairy ingredients. Most vegan recipes call for ground flax seeds for an egg relacement, but I’ve thrown that idea out after discovering how wonderful chia seeds work for this task.
No grinding necessary, just throw a tablespoon of whole chia seeds into 3 tablespoons of water, and you have a perfect egg. Maybe even better than an egg. All of my baked goods (mostly quick breads) have been coming out more moist than anything I’ve ever made.
All three of us dirty girls grabbed our families and went on a beautiful weekend trip to Sheep Camp in the Chumash Wilderness last week for Mai-yan and my joint birthday party. We ate this mountain berry bread for breakfast before heading out.
Aimee’s parents live close to the trailhead in Pine Mountain Club, so I headed up there a day early to prep my food and take advantage of their new jacuzzi! I baked this bread up there, and so I had to adjust the recipe a bit for high altitude. I found this chart to be very helpful, and the bread came out perfect. The posted recipe is the standard, low altitude recipe. Follow the chart in the link above to adjust based on where you are baking.
Model girls of Dirty Gourmet
Zucchini Carrot Walnut Muffins
I don’t get many weekends off from work. When I get lucky with more than one day off in a row, I take advantage. This has lead to a bunch of fun quick trips so far this summer. Continue reading “Zucchini Carrot Walnut Muffins”
Red, White, and Bean Salad
How exciting to have Independence Day on a Saturday this year! Hopefully that means that all of you will be able to escape to somewhere beautiful and high up so you can see a fabulous fireworks show and enjoy a warm summery evening with your friends.
Here is a recipe that’s perfect for a day trip into the local mountains, or to take with you to the neighbor’s BBQ. It’s festive and colorful, requires no cooking in a sweltering kitchen, and won’t take any time away from your activities for prepping or eating. Just open your container, grab your spork, and dig in.
Happy Independence Day!
Cheesy Sausage Grits Cakes
I recently bought a cookbook called Feedzone Portables, literally, by looking at it’s cover. There is a picture of little portable packet meals, and I realized that this is a type of meal that is really worth focusing on.
We take a lot of climbing day trips or quick overnighters whenever we can get away with them. These are usually not well-planned (“Oh hey, we both get off of work early today and go into work late tomorrow- let’s go!”) so it’s hard to plan our meals very well. The idea behind portable packet meals is that you can whip up a batch of rice or grits or mashed potatoes (or just use leftovers from last night), stuff them with cheese, sausage, vegetables, or anything delicious that you have in your house, and you’re good to go. If you want to take it a step further, wrap that whole thing in some sort of dough and bake it for 20 minutes.
I don’t have muffin tins in my house, or I’d probably have used them for this. I used individual ramekins, so the serving sizes were on the large side. We’re planning to make empanadas in this style for our backpacking trip this weekend. Do you have another idea I could try? I still need a lunch for the second day.
Lentil Wraps
People who work for schools have the life. Wes has been on summer break for a few weeks, and has spent many days hiking and climbing in Joshua Tree, the San Bernardino National Forest, and Red Rock State Park. Continue reading “Lentil Wraps”
Black Eyed Pea Fritters
We’ve been thinking a bit more simply lately when it comes to camping food. As much as it is possible and encouraged to create amazing gourmet meals from scratch in the backcountry, sometimes it’s just nice to have things ready already.
Sun Tea Cocktails
It’s nice to make things that don’t require cooking in the backcountry. If we can avoid using valuable gas or water to make something, we will. This sun tea cocktail uses the power of the sun to create a delicious tea base that can be enjoyed throughout the day, and into the night.
Backpacker’s Chia Breakfast Pudding
Wes is planning a backpacking trip for a few weeks from now. I don’t get to go, so I’m going to make him work by testing some recipes for us.
Sesame Soba Noodle Salad
I have always loved the blog, 101cookbooks.com. Sure, it’s healthy and vegetarian, and the pictures are pretty, but I can never believe the flavors that come out of such unassuming-looking recipes. They never seem like anything super special until you make them. Here is a perfect camping recipe from one of Heidi Swanson’s cookbooks, Super Natural Every Day