This attitude is very common among outdoorspeople. Most of us have been going out there to find seclusion and ourselves for a long time. We all want others to experience this, in theory, but not in the same place we’re doing it. Wes and I had this discussion as we slowly trolled through the first-come, first-serve campgrounds looking for a place to sleep. It is often hard to find a site, but it was ridiculous this time. And the worst part of it was that some of the people we spoke to were actually quite rude. We witnessed arguments, park rangers regulating improper parking, wildflower crushing, and frowny faces. Camping is supposed to bring out good vibes and connection! What was this all about? Don’t these people know the rules??

We ended up backcountry camping, which is an option most people don’t know about (or maybe aren’t comfortable with), and it was one of the most relaxing nights we’ve had in the park. Sunset fading to a full moon, quiet, and our own personal field of untrampled wildflowers. We cooked these hearty mushroom french dip sandwiches, adapted from this recipe, on the grill at a day use area before heading out so we didn’t have to carry much with us (since we didn’t even bring real packs).

When more people want to spend time outdoors, the need to protect more places for all of us to fit in will increase. This is a good thing! But let’s all do our best to communicate the important outdoor ethics that we know, and learn the ones that we don’t so we can keep these places wild. They belong to us all.

Adan is a pro fly fisherman (we’ll be demanding lessons soon), and he doesn’t just cook his trout- he smokes it. When I was growing up in Florida, I had a few lucky New Year’s parties where my best friend would show up with her family’s smoked mackerel. That was one of the most delicious things I’ve ever eaten. I haven’t even had Adan’s smoked trout, but I’m sure it’s just as delicious.

Where are you going to camp with your ENTIRE family and all your friends next year? Now’s the time to start planning (especially since the planning process requires a BBQ!) Let us know so we can be your neighbors!

What is a pie iron?

A pie iron is made of cast iron, and it is basically a sandwich press on a stick, made to cook directly over coals. Pie irons come in multiple shapes and sizes, and you can use them to cook a variety of things. Most recipes are some version of a stuffed sandwich, but we’ve thought up a few other ways to use it as well.

Why do I want one?

Most pie irons cook individual servings. This can be beneficial if everyone is out doing their own thing and expecting dinner at a different time. They can also help if you’ve got dietary restrictions to accommodate, or if you just want dinner to be more fun! Pie irons turn cooking into a group activity. Everyone can try their own recipe variations, and our favorite pie iron dinners always end in a cook off.

How do I use it?

Build a good cooking fire. This just means letting your fire burn long enough to build up a bed of hot coals. Preheat your pie iron. Hold it over the coals for about two minutes, flipping once halfway through. Then remove it from the heat, open it up (carefully- remember it’s hot!). Spray both sides inside with cooking spray, and fill it with ingredients.

Close the pie iron and put it back in the coals. It usually takes less than 5 minutes to cook, so it’s best just to hang out rather than walk away. Check the status of your recipe often.

There are a lot of factors that determine how long it will take for your recipe to cook. It takes some trial and error, but the errors can be corrected quickly and easily- just make another one!

How ‘bout some recipes!

Here are two favorite pie iron recipes. If you’ve got some great ideas, we want to hear about them.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Stuffed French Toast

• 2 tablespoons cream cheese, room temperature
• ¼ cup blueberries
• 4 slices bread
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla

In a bowl, smash blueberries into the softened cream cheese. Spread two slices of bread with the cream cheese mixture. Top each slice with another bread slice. In another bowl, beat the egg with the milk and vanilla. Dip each side of the sandwiches into the egg mixture. Coat pie iron with cooking spray and place the french toast sandwich inside. Close the iron and cook each side for a few minutes until bread is golden brown.

Stuffed Hash Browns

• 2 cups hash brown potatoes
• 1 tomato, thinly sliced
• ½ avocado, roughly chopped
• ¼ cup shredded cheddar
• salt and pepper, to taste
• pinch cayenne (optional)

Coat pie iron with cooking spray and fill each half with about ¼ cup hash browns, packing them in. Top each side with cheese. Arrange tomato and avocado on one side and sprinkle with seasonings. Close the iron and cook on each side for a few minutes until hash browns are golden brown.

Post in partnership with REI and Emily is an employee. All opinions shared here are our own.

Potatoes were an easy choice for the wedding meal. There’s never been a potato-hating human that I’ve ever heard of, they’re easy to make ahead, and they pair well with sausages. But we’ve been trying to come up with a fancy enough option. We found this recipe first, and thought it was unbeatable. Until I made these olives. We tested them as an appetizer, and they were delicious, but they shriveled too easily in the oven. I can’t be worried about watching them while also getting pretty on wedding day, so I’ll have to do something different with olives. But using the same recipe on fingerling potatoes produced the best potatoes I have ever eaten. Super flavorful! Almost like salt and vinegar, but with more interest and a little more kick. These are perfect. Now, I just have to find bulk fingerling potatoes, and remember to buy twice as many as I think we’ll need. They’ll make a perfect midnight snack.

We’ll be cooking Wes’ famous, made-from-scratch, perfected-over-years-of-practice sausages. These will be paired with some sort of delicious potatoes, and this Apple Fennel Mustard Slaw. It is simple, hearty, bright, crunchy, tangy, and a little fancy. We can make it ahead of time with no worries that it will go limp before the party. It will play the role of both a salad and a topping for the sausages.

I’m still looking for one more side dish to complete the meal, if you’ve got any ideas. Safe enough that everyone will like it, probably a vegetable, and bright-colored though seasonal. It’s not an easy task!

We’ll keep you posted on more recipes and outdoor party ideas that we gather throughout the process.

Adapted from Beer Braised Brats with Apple Mustard Slaw on Honestlyyum.com.

Last year’s Dirty Gourmet successes:

• Hiked Mt. Baldy, which turned into attempting the 8K Challenge
• Got a mountain bike, which turned into a mountain bike race
• Took the babies on their first camping trip and to the beach
• Ran the Wild West 10 Mile Trail Run, where 2 out of 3 of us medalled in their categories

This Year’s Plans:

• Get married!!
• Have a new baby niece!!
• Climb 100 Routes
• Grow an awesome garden
• FOCUS more

I think I’ve finally realized that I’m not the type of person who can feel her way through a situation. If I want to be successful, I need to FOCUS. I need to stop, think, and act carefully. My brain works pretty well- I should use it! This is true when dealing with anything from directions to cooking to managing relationships. Some people are great at feeling their way through and being unprepared. I’ve spent a lot of time approaching situations with the idea that I actually am good at that. But I’m not. I wish I was, but I guess its finally time to admit that to myself.

We spent our New Year’s at Joshua Tree National Park again. It was a perfect trip. Lots of climbing, perfect weather. We got a good jump on the 100 routes, and I practiced focusing during climbing. We made these cheesy chicken potatoes over the campfire. They were simple, delicious, and healthy, just as a New Year’s meal should be.

Good luck with your resolutions, if you have any! If you don’t, good luck at being overall successful this year anyway.

Wes took me on my first mountain bike ride in years last week at our local park. He taught me some techniques and let me have a little taste of different types of terrain, from semi-steep uphills to a few rocks and ruts in the road. I felt ok about my abilities, but was worried about going on a slightly harder ride with a friend the next day. Luckily, that friend cancelled on me, but somehow I was signed up to participate in the SoCal 12 Hrs of Temecula Race instead!

The boys kept telling me that I only had to do one lap, our team wasn’t competitive at all, and I’d be fine. I got on my bike and took off on my own, straight up a mountain, and immediately fell over in front of a speedster who was definitely being competitive, almost getting my head run over. I just carved up my knee instead. The mountain kept growing in front of me, for endless miles. I had to pull over twice on the verge of heat stroke, but never fell again. By the end of the 8.6 mile loop, I’d started feeling awesome about my skills, no longer afraid of steeps or ruts or boulders, and even making it up some hills (my weakness) without having to hike. Its too bad nobody I knew was there to see me, because I totally looked like a pro by the end. Although I can’t imagine having done so well if a friend was there to listen to me whine. Funny what you can do when you are all alone and stuck with no option other than to toughen up and deal with yourself. If you haven’t been in that situation in a while, I encourage it.

This recipe is a great one to add to your fitness-filled winter camping trip. Its really just a hearty delicious grilled barbecue sandwich that everyone will love, but its more focused on health than any other you’ve had. Its made from tempeh, which many of us have a hard time loving, but trust us on this one. You’ll get everyone on board. The spicy slaw brightens the sandwich up and is hearty enough to withstand a good day of hiking (in cool weather). Thanks again to one of our current favorite cooks, Bryant Terry for another fabulous recipe to inspire us. Keep playing!

I guess this recipe came about around the same time I started obsessing about the Snackster I found in my kitchen. I realized the appliance had very similar effects to the pie irons we received last Christmas, and decided it was time we finally started experimenting with the things. (I know what you’re thinking- “bacon wrapped smores? snackster? pie irons!? What are these things!?” so its a good thing I put links to them all).

My first genius move was a spaghetti sandwich- leftover spaghetti and mozzarella stuffed inside parmesan garlic bread. The bread is sealed on the edges and the rest of it basically turns into a pie crust. It is so great. I submitted this recipe to the monthly contest on pieiron.com, but haven’t yet heard back. I wanted to post that one first, or maybe Mai-yan’s pie-ironed puff pastry Caprese Sandwich. But then we figured this one out, and it had to be first.

Anyway, make your cornbread batter at home, and expect to add a little extra moisture to it just before baking. We lined our pie irons with foil, but you could just spray yours with cooking oil. (By the way, cooking spray is the secret to camping- why did it take us until this weekend to figure that one out?!) Start with a generous heap of cornbread batter, and then nestle slices of hot dog into it. Try to get as many dog slices in there as you can. Pour on the BBQ sauce, cover the whole thing with more batter, close up the pie iron, and bake over marshmallow-perfect embers. The whole thing should come out as a handy enclosed hand pie package, and it should taste like your favorite corn dog. These also make great cold leftovers for breakfast.

If you don’t have a pie iron, it’s a worthy investment, but I can imagine this working as a full cake cooked in a dutch oven or cast iron skillet as well. We also made traditional corn dogs on a stick, and that worked just fine. We wrapped them in foil while roasting.

A quick note: We camped in Joshua Tree this weekend. Before we left, we were told it would be 30 mph winds and under 55 degrees during the day. That always makes it hard to stay motivated to want to leave your snuggly home, but push through it. You’ll never regret it, and the coldest, miserablest camping trips usually turn out to be the most memorable and positive experiences of your life.

In reality, it snowed a few flakes this weekend, which was a friend’s first experience with falling snow, there was no wind at all, and I can’t remember the last time I saw so many stars.

We went to a new old location this year. A repeat trip of Carrizo Plain National Monument was originally planned, but a known lack of wildflowers took us closer to home for everyone. Uncle Danny chose Sawmill Campground near Lake Hughes and Castaic. It was a place he hadn’t been for many years, but we trusted him anyway. He always makes it a top priority to find us a location where we can truly feel free. From crowds and from the law. To let our dogs run wild and our music be loud. We look like band of traveling gypsies when we set up for Easter.The location ended up being perfect for just that, despite the shocking visits of three rangers checking to see if we might be having a rave.

I arrived after dark (after taking a nice detour up I-5 past my turnoff, and then another detour past my second turnoff on a bobcat-spotted backwoods road). The road up to the campground was rutted and bumpy. Wes had never taken his Corolla into such conditions before, and his attitude as a passenger was admirable. I made it the majority of the trip up before spotting my dad, who escorted us the rest of the way, and then took credit for the whole of my success. We were greeted at the campground gypsy town entrance by color-changing solar lights, trailers, more multi-colored string lights, a raging campfire, and beer. The parents are experienced. They know what they are doing.

The majority of the party showed up Saturday morning, just as “the grate master” had finished cooking up the perfect amount of campfire potatoes for the people that slept there. We spent the rest of the day talking about running 15 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail, while instead drinking whiskey and learning to shoot a BB gun (I shot four bottles/cans in a row, and was the only one to beat the original reigning champion- my mother).

I did end up running on the PCT on Sunday morning with Uncle Danny, Aunt Linda, and Wes, though the 15 miles goal turned into 5. It was beautiful and I can’t wait to go back to explore more of it.

This year, I decided to give up shyness for Lent. I did it mainly to avoid having to give up cheese, the thought of which had me binge cheesing immediately. I’ve given up some interesting things in my past- yelling, the mirror, meat, indecisiveness- and each opened up new worlds for me. Some of them even stuck. It truly is amazing what you can convince yourself to do when you convince yourself that you “have to.”

Anyway, this year’s choice has been really successful. I started talking to people- even initiating conversations- in places like the climbing gym and the hair salon. I hung out with my next door neighbors and became a member of a CSA, since I wasn’t afraid to answer the door. I went to see Wes give a talk at the college where he teaches, and I raised my hand and asked a question! I even went to NPR’s studios and spoke into a microphone. Giving up shyness has gotten me more web development work, new friends, and maybe even a little confidence that I could continue being unshy after Lent is over next week. It’s a little like that “Yes Man” movie.

We just had our annual family Easter Camping Extravaganza this weekend, and Lent is over, so no more forcing me to make phone calls or go shopping alone (notice how I didn’t admit what I gave up for Lent until after it was over). A bunch of fabulous recipes came out of the weekend, especially since it was a birthday party for my mom (and Uncle Steve- her brother that was born on her second birthday) as well.

For now, here’s a man-friendly recipe we had in Joshua Tree last week. We were just on a day trip, and not even there to climb. And hey- I know these pictures aren’t the most glamorous. But would you really want to eat a glamorous chili dog? I had to run 13 miles, and running through wildflowers in the desert was the thing that motivated me to do it. I can’t believe I’m still not excited about running! I was hoping that after my marathon, I’d just be a runner, but I’m not sure that’s gonna happen. Maybe next Lent, I’ll figure out what to give up that will help me achieve self-motivation.