When we first realized our joint connection to the dish, we determined that it would be fun to make it in the backcountry. You may remember stories from that trip, but we’d taken fresh corn with us for it, and the weather was much warmer and muggier than anticipated, spoiling the corn before the first night. The recipe turned into a pretty sad mashed potatoes and gravy instead.

Since then, we’ve made it more successfully in other contexts, and are happiest with it as a car camping recipe. It is so quick to put together that you won’t have a problem maximizing playtime during the day and still having a hearty, special dinner to share.

At home, we place the whole eggplant in the oven, but at camp it can be wrapped tightly in foil and tossed directly in the embers of your campfire. Roast it until it’s very soft and finish the dish in a skillet on the grate of your campfire or on a camp stove.

I’ve had it both with and without peas mixed in, but I definitely prefer it with peas. I brought a bag of frozen peas and they were fine even after defrosting in my cooler for two days.

Serve this as a healthy appetizer with fresh veggies, or make it a meal with flatbread and a simple pot of beans. Enjoy!

So he is actually my neighbor now, and we are friends again- after 10 years and lots of life changes. He came to California ready to explore, and had never been to the Sierra, so we jumped at the opportunity to be there for his first experience. I was lucky enough to get us permits to Little Lakes Valley, which is beautiful and (usually) a very accessible hike that too many people are on for me to be interested. There was SOO much snow this time, though, that it kept a lot of the crowds away. Hiking across miles of sun cups (little cups in the snow everywhere that you either have to balance on the rim of or fall into, twisting an ankle) was tiring, but it was gorgeous. We explored the whole basin and camped next to one of the only unfrozen lakes.

We spent the night before the backcountry portion of the trip car camping as usual, and cooked up this quick and easy Italian Orzo Soup. It was a nice warming dish that was very easy to execute after a day of traveling and planning backpacking logistics. I highly recommend it by the campfire.

One little note: the logistics of both car camping and backpacking in the same trip are tricky, especially in bear country. We always think about being minimalist and lightweight with our backpacking food, but are luxurious with car camping food, thinking it doesn’t matter. Our cooler didn’t fit in the bear locker at the trail head this time, so we had to scramble to figure out how to store it all in a bin and bags to fit inside the lockers instead. It is very important not to leave food in the car, so plan accordingly.

We taught three classes: Campfire Cooking, Backpacking Cooking, and Fun Family Camp Cooking. Our first class of each day was “Campfire Cooking.” This was a fun class to teach, even though we couldn’t have an actual campfire on the premises. We did some magic cooking, and made this delicious and impressive Mountain Berry Cobbler in our virtual campfire. We got LOTS of positive feedback, and tested this recipe about 8 times, so we feel pretty confident that your co-campers will love it too.

This cobbler is a quick and easy dessert, but would also go great with a cup of coffee the next morning. It’s not too late to sign up for Outessa Weekend #2 in Powder Mountain, Utah. We’ll be there September 9, and hope to see you too!

Aside from veganizing it, there are a couple of other things I wanted to change about the recipe. First, in the original recipe, we called for canned or frozen corn. That still works fine, but with the abundance of corn in summer, I opted to use fresh. It’s worth the effort to grill it and then cut it off the cob for some smoky flavor. Second, this is a great recipe to make entirely on the campfire. Grill the veggies on the fire and then cook the soup in a dutch oven instead of on your camp stove (of course you still can just use your camp stove though!).

Instead of sour cream, I used cashew cream that I made ahead of time at home. This thickens the soup beautifully and makes it rich and satisfying. You can substitute 1 cup of vegan sour cream if you don’t want to make the cashew cream.

If you’re cooking up breakfast for a crowd:

• If you’re cooking for a crowd and you own a dutch oven, this Dutch Oven Breakfast Casserole is a sure hit.

  

• Dust off your old pie iron and make some Campfire Cinnamon Roll Waffles. It’ll work just fine if you have a regular pie iron, but waffle irons are fun if you’re looking for a new camping toy.

  

• Campfire Breakfast Potatoes are perfect with scrambled eggs and bacon.

  

For snacking during the day:

• Make this Spicy Peanut Dip at home and dip carrots, cucumbers and bell peppers in it for a healthy and satisfying snack.

  

• These Spicy Potato Flatbreads are one of my favorite snacks. They’re savory, and totally satisfying even if you eat them at room temperature (i.e. they’ve been sitting in your pack all day)

  

• Sometimes a packaged bar won’t do. Take these Blueberry Coconut Almond Bars along for a day hike.

  

Some of our favorite hearty and easy camping main dishes:

• We’re all about communal eating and a Bruschetta Picnic Potluck is one of our favorite ideas. Lots of little dips and spreads complement each other to create a fun eating experience.



• This Albondigas Soup is warm and filling, yet still feels summery and fresh.

  

• For a simple and delicious meal, Crunchy Skillet Fried Tacos are a crowd-pleaser.

  

Dessert, of course:

• If your trip includes kids, s’mores are a must, but mix it up a little bit and make some Campfire Cones one night.

  

• Impress your friends by making a from scratch caramel sauce at camp. This Toasted Pound Cake with Pineapple and Coconut Rum Caramel recipe is easier than it sounds!

  

We highly recommend using park rangers to your advantage when planning a backpacking trip. They always know the best places to go. The ranger sent us over to Yoho National Park onto the Iceline Trail, stopping at Yoho Lake for the night.

It was only a few kilometers (less than 5 miles American), but still deep enough into the woods to be surprised to see Adirondack chairs, picnic tables, and tent platforms when we arrived in camp. They don’t require bear canisters there because they’ve installed huge poles with cables for hanging bags. No need to worry that you may be doing it wrong. They do, however, require that you carry bear spray with you in many areas, and travel in groups of at least 4 (or sometimes 6!) to keep yourself safe from large mammal encounters. Yoho was one of the few places we went that wasn’t as strict with these rules, helping us feel more at ease.

The campground was right on the beautiful little glacial blue Yoho Lake. We threw our beers into the water (you can bring beer when it’s less than 5 miles) and the boys jumped in behind them. We ate jerky and licorice, and played cards until dinner. It started raining just as we started cooking, but we found a perfect little hideaway among a trio of douglas firs.

It really felt like summer by 9pm when there was plenty of daylight left. Even though it was raining, we decided to take a short little hike to look for wildlife. We found none, but it was good to play before bed.

The next day, we hiked up to Iceline Summit on the Iceline Trail. From here, you can see the icefields and glaciers that are completely hidden from the trailhead. It always feels so satisfying to see stunning views that you know you could never see without walking yourself there to see them. The trail continues to several other lakes and falls, but we headed back down to Takakkaw where we started to continue our adventure back in Banff the next day.

You don’t have to go far into the backcountry to experience the incredible sites that Banff National Park has to offer. Yoho Lake is a perfect destination for balancing easy access with getting a little off the beaten path.

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!

It’s always motivating to have a trip coming up. We’ve been hiking and running pretty consistently to get in shape for all the activities we plan to cram into one little week. This week, we spent a morning running in the local mountains, and we stumbled upon blackberry bushes growing right up against the trail. We ate a few on the way out, and I focused on finishing my water bottle so I’d have storage for more on the way out. It was a perfect running morning, because it was gray and rainy. We rarely get these, so I was really excited to take advantage of it. It’s amazing how much less whiny I am on cool days.

Though we sacrificed a bit of fitness to stop (for a while!) and pick a whole bunch of blackberries, it was worth it. We got back to the car stained red, scratched up, and quite happy. The day stayed rainy, so we stayed in the kitchen. I taught Dutch Oven Cooking basics at REI the night before, and had overpurchased peaches for the cobbler I made, so I pureed them with the blackberries, and dried the whole thing into a big roll of fruit leather.

It was very easy to make fruit leather, but I did make a small mistake. I wanted to show off the contrast between peaches and blackberries, so I swirled the two purees together without mixing them fully. This turned out beautiful, but created inconsistencies in the thickness of the puree while in the dehydrator. It dried unevenly, so I had to peel chunks out as they dried and leave the rest to continue. I think the swirl would still be pretty if I’d done a bit better job of evenly distributing the puree.

I’m going to try to get this fruit leather to last until Canada (August 1), but I don’t see how that’s going to be possible. If it does, I’ll give you a full report about the perishability of the product.

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