Real Camp Cooking for Real Campers

Blog copyright Janet Groene 2024. To ask about placing your ad on all six Groene sites for one year, one low rate, email janetgroene@yahoo.com

 

 

CAMPING & RV 

RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Eat-za Meat-za Pizza
    
1 egg
Small can mushroom pieces, drained
1/3 cup oatmeal flakes (not instant)
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 pound lean ground beef
½ cup tomato sauce
Pepperoni, mushrooms ad lib
Grated mozzarella cheese

 

     Grease a 10-inch skillet. Add water to juice from the mushrooms to make ½ cup liquid. In a medium bowl beat the egg and liquid. Stir in mushrooms, oats, and Italian seasoning. Let stand 10 minutes. Mix in ground beef until everything is well mixed.
     Press mixture into skillet on bottom and up the sides to form a rim. Spread center with tomato sauce and sprinkle with seasoning.
    Arrange pepperoni slices and any other toppings you want. Cover skillet and cook over medium heat until meat tests done at 165 degrees. Top with grated mozzarella and return to the heat until cheese melts. Cut in wedges. Serve with bread sticks. 

    

APRIL SHOWERS BRING 

MYSTERY MURDERS

    Curl up in your camper tonight with book 4 in the Yacht Yenta “cozy” mystery series, April Avenger  by widow Farley Halladay. Once a sailor, Farley now operates an online boat booking business that lets her sail virtually all over the world. She shares her shortcut galley recipes throughout the books. As a grieving widow she is also a cook, caregiver and kickass crime solver. For Kindle, Nook, Google Play and most other ebook formats.   https://amzn.to/3EKgaoP   

    

 TIPS FOR THE CAMP COOK

    * Fold together 2 cups raspberry or strawberry yogurt, 1 packet dry raspberry gelatin dessert mix, 1 can crushed pineapple with juice and a 16-ounce carton of whipped topping. Spoon into clear plastic cups and sprinkle with cookie crumbs.

* Fold a can of tuna into a tub of store-bought macaroni salad + a tub of small curd cottage cheese. Serve in lettuce cups or rice wraps.

    * Rule of thumb: To serve 100 people at a campground party you’ll need five gallons baked beans, 20 pounds cabbage for slaw, 3 pounds coffee or 10 loaves of bread.

* Wear clean rubber clubs to rub down shucked corn and the silk will come right off.  

BONUS RECIPE
Secret Ingredient Salad Dressing
    This old recipe from the Pennsylvania Dutch  is tossed with hot, cooked, cubed potatoes and served warm. Add it to taste and refrigerate leftover dressing up to three days. Reheat dressing gently and stir to use again. 

 

 

2 teaspoons flour
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cups salad dressing or
lite mayonnaise (pint jar)

    In a cold pan whisk flour, vinegar, water and brown sugar. Cook, stirring over low-medium heat until it thickens. Remove from heat, stir in mayonnaise and fold into hot, cooked potatoes. Shower with minced parsley if you have some. 

 

Just in time for Mother's Day....

 

COOKING ABOARD YOUR RV

    For yourself or a gift,  Janet Groene's timeless RV cookbook is packed with shortcuts, tips and 270 easy, delicious recipes to cook inside the camper or outside on the campfire or grill. https://amzn.to/3nNndWY

 

 

Campground Potluck Recipe of the Week
    Organize a breakfast or brunch potluck for a change. Your contribution can be this zesty dish straight from Dixie. Diced, fully-cooked ham is found in supermarkets in vacuum packs that keep for a couple of weeks in your RV fridge. 

 

 Hambalaya Scramble
 

1 pound diced ham
 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons butter
Small green sweet pepper, finely diced
Small red sweet pepper, finely diced
3-4 pods okra, trimmed and sliced thin
Small sweet onion, finely diced
3 medium plum tomatoes diced
8 eggs, beaten
2 cups ready-to-serve rice
1 tablespoon dried cilantro
Salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
Hot sauce (optional)

    In a large skillet or wok, fry ham in hot fat over high heat and keep stir-frying as you add peppers, onion, okra and tomatoes. When they are crisp-tender, reduce heat to medium and add eggs. Stir until they are starting to firm up. Fold in rice, heat through and season to taste. Makes 8 to 10 potluck servings. Pass the hot sauce.  

BLACK POT RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Creamy Celery Potage
    A  battery operated wand blender can bring this vegetarian recipe into the gourmet category. 

1 large bunch celery
1  tablespoon each butter and vegetable oil
2 crisp apples such as Fuji
Medium onion
1/4 cup minced garlic
4 cups water
4 teaspoons chicken or vegetable soup base
15-ounce can chickpeas, Great Northern or white limas, undrained
Salt, pepper to taste
1 pat butter per bowlful
Celery seed
Ground nutmeg
Whipping cream, sour cream or creme fraiche

    Trim and slice the whole celery, saving some tender leaves for a garnish. Core and cut up apples. In a large pot, heat butter and oil. Stir-fry celery, onion, garlic and apple. Add water,  flavor base and beans with their liquid. 

 Cover and simmer until everything is very tender. Remove from the fire, set the pot on a solid surface and carefully use a wand blender according to manufacturer directions. Turn the mixture into a satiny puree. Add salt and pepper to taste. Thin with a little water if it seems too thick. Reheat over glowing coals until you're ready to serve. 

    To serve, place a pat of butter in each soup plate and sprinkle it lightly with celery seed and a mere whisper of nutmeg. Ladle hot soup over butter, which will melt and float to the top. Garnish with celery leaves and  a drizzle of cream. 

Cook’s note: You can also leave this as a chunky chowder or use a potato masher ad lib. Celery is stringy, so slice it in one-inch or smaller pieces.

 

 See late breaking RV news, cues and views plus the latest campground debuts (not ads nor reviews, just hard news)  at https://solowomanrv.blogspot.com 

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Road Food for Campers and RV Travelers

 

Copyright Janet Groene 2024. To ask about placing your ad on all six Groene travel, outdoors and food sites for one year, one low rate, email janetgroene@yahoo.com 

 

 

 

    
Camp and RV Recipe of the Week

 

 
Po’ Boy Fish Tacos

 

12 good quality fish sticks
1 ½ cups shredded lettuce
1 ½ cups diced Roma tomatoes, drained
2 to 3 scallions, finely sliced (white and light green only)
1 rib of celery, diced
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Mayonnaise to moisten
12 soft or crisp taco shells

    While fish sticks heat, assemble lettuce, tomatoes, scallions, celery and cheese in a medium bowl. Fold in just enough mayonnaise to bind the mixture. Place a fish stick in each taco shell and top with the lettuce mixture. Shower with minced cilantro if you have some.  Serve at once. Serves 6 with two tacos each.  

See more of Janet Groene’s shortcut recipes at Boat Cook. During her 10 years as a fulltimer she cruised the topics in winter on a 29-foot sloop and summered in the mountains in a 21-foot diesel Class C RV.


BLACK POT RECIPE OF THE WEEK
    Gather ‘round the campfire and get the fire a-crackling while this pot comes to the boil.

 Mystery Ingredient Corned Beef & Cabbage

 

Molasses? Yup. Add it to taste depending on the type of molasses.

2 cans corned beef
2 quarts water
4 beef or chicken bouillon cubes
5 pounds potatoes, scrubbed and cut in chunks
Large cabbage, cut in chunks
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/3 to ½ cup molasses

    Scrape excess fat off the corned beef and put in the pot, breeaking it up as you go, It will break up further as it cooks. Bring corned beef, water and bouillon to a boil and add potatoes,, cabbage and mustard. Keep the pot at an active simmer, stirring occasionally and adding water as needed to keep contents covered. When potatoes are tender , stir in molasses to taste. Serve in shallow soup plates with plenty of chunky bread to soak up the pot likker.

Cook’s note: molasses is best but you might an also substitute sorghum syrup. 

CAMPGROUND POTLUCK RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Can-Can Curried Fruit

 

     This exotic condiment is perfect with chicken, pork chops or ham from the grill. Go for a colorful variety of fruit tastes, textures and colors.  Throw it together in minutes with ingredients that you have on board,

1 stick butter
1 tablespoon curry powder
½ cup brown sugar
3  cans fruit with juices*

In a saucepan melt butter. Stir in curry powder over low heat until it’s fragrant. Stir in brown sugar.  Add undrained fruit.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer to blend flavors. Serve warm  as a sauce over ham, pork, chicken or turkey and rice. Makes about 6 cups.

*Fruit cocktail, diced peaches or pears, diced mango, pineapple tidbits, maybe some raisins and Craisins. 

 

Janet Groene’s Survival Food Handbook is  written for campers and sailors who have limited storage space, yet may face a sudden emergency such as a mechanical breakdown or evacuation. It's a guide to buying, stowing and preparing supermarket staples for boondocking and unexpected glitches. http://amzn.to/1WdYqbe

 

 

 

TIPS FOR THE CAMP COOK

     * An easy way to make a gourmet sauce for fish is to stir finely chopped lox into mayonnaise. Add lemon juice to taste.

 
    * White coffee cups stained? Fill with water and add a denture cleaning tablet. Let stand overnight. Swish. Rinse thoroughly.

 
    * Do you always add salt and pepper to most dishes? Mix one part pepper to six parts salt in one shaker, then add some rice grains to keep the mixture from clumping. 

    * Make a quick sandwich spread. Cut up a jar of dried chipped beef and fold into two bricks of softened cream cheese. Add flavor with, say, chopped scallions, capers, Dijon mustard or sriracha.
 

FREEZE AHEAD RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Chicken Ratatouille

 
    Serve this one-dish meal as a soupy stew with crusty bread to sop up the juices. I like lots of green pepper in my ratatouille when it’s eaten fresh, but peppers tend to take over in frozen combinations, so go easy when freezing, or add none at all. Meat from a deli roasted chicken is just right for this recipe.

3 to 4 cups diced, cooked chicken
Large eggplant, peeled and diced
1/4 cup olive oil
3 large onions, diced
Small green pepper, diced fine
2 tablespoons minced garlic
3 medium zucchini, cut in bite size
1 cup water
1 teaspoon powdered chicken bouillon
28-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 teaspoons powdered cumin

    Prepare chicken. Place diced eggplant in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Let stand 45-60 minutes and drain well. Press with paper toweling to remove excess moisture. In a large kettle or wok, heat oil and stir-fry eggplant,  raw vegetables and chicken just until vegetables are crisp tender. Add water, tomatoes,  bouillon and cumin. Cover and bring to a boil. Then remove from heat. .
    Cool and package for freezing, allowing 1 to 1 ½ cups per serving. In camp, thaw and heat. To make it soupier, thin with tomato juice, broth or V-8. Serve as is or over rice.

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Camping & RV Meals Made Quick 'n Yummy

Blog copyright Janet Groene 2024. To support this free weekly blog with your voluntary subscription (52 issues), send $10 now and every April via Paypal to janetgroene at yahoo.com/

 

Recipe for Serenity: Campsite + Water + Great Camp Food 

 

 

 

CAMPING & RV RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Citrus Chicken Marinade
    Make this marinade up to a week ahead and keep it cold. It makes about two cups, or enough for 4-5 pounds of chicken parts.

 6-ounce can lemonade mix concentrate
6-ounce can orange juice concentrate
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
Heaping tablespoon dried oregano leaves
1/4 cup vegetable oil

    Combine ingredients in a two-gallon, zip-top plastic bag. Chill. The day before your barbecue, add 4-5 pounds of bone-in chicken parts to the bag and refrigerate over night, turning occasionally.
    Drain chicken. Discard the bag and marinade. Grill chicken parts until they reach 170 degrees F. Leftover chicken can be chilled to serve tomorrow or frozen.
 
Cook’s note:  Bone and cut up leftover chicken pieces and make chicken salad.   2 c. cooked,  cooled bow tie pasta, 2 c. bits of citrus chicken, 1 c. each diced sweet onion, celery, red and green peppers. 2 cup chopped celery, 1 c. diced red and green pepper, Italian dressing to taste. Toss with vinaigrette to taste. 

 

APRIL SHOWERS BRING 

MYSTERY MURDERS
 

    Curl up in your camper tonight with book 4 in the Yacht Yenta “cozy” mystery series, April Avenger  by widow Farley Halladay. Once a sailor, Farley now operates an online boat booking business that lets her sail virtually all over the world. She shares her shortcut galley recipes throughout the books. As a grieving widow she is also a cook, caregiver and kickass crime solver. For Kindle, Nook, Google Play and most other ebook formats.   https://amzn.to/3EKgaoP   

    

Tips for the Camp Cook

* Cut a medium zucchini in half  lengthwise and scoop out shallow tunnels. Press a hotdog into the tunnels and grill or  fry, hot dog side down and covered, until zucchini is crisp tender. Chop the leftover scoopings and add raw to a tossed salad.

* For more moist meatloaf or burgers add up to 2 cups grated raw potato, apple, carrot or onion to 3 pounds ground meat.

    * Make nutty-butter scrambled eggs. Melt a chunk of  butter in the pan, swirl in 1 tablespoon pecan meal per egg and cook until meal is lightly browned, then add beaten eggs.  

* Put a layer of mini marshmallows in the pie shell before adding pumpkin pie filling. Bake as usual. This also works with custard pie. 

 Where are all the campsites for this summer? Get earlybird news of zoning changes, expanding parks, permits, plans, new owners. See CAMPGROUNDS; GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS at https://solowomanrv.blogspot.com 

    

Campground Potluck Recipe of the Week
Lemon Rice Pilaf

 

   
    Bring this affordable side dish to the campground fish fry. My easy rice pilaf goes well with ham steaks, grilled salmon or fried catfish. Make it in a pretty stove-to-table pan.  
 
½ stick butter
1 cup diced onion
3 cups thin-sliced celery
6-ounce can lemonade mix concentrate
 cups water
4 cups raw long-grain rice

    In a large saucepan melt butter and sizzle onion and celery until it’s crisp-tender. Thaw lemonade and add to the pan with the water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook over low heat 20-25  minutes until rice is tender. Serves 10-12. 

 

Do you follow a fitness regimen no matter where you travel? It may (or may not)  pay to join a nationwide gym chain.  See https://solowomanrv.blogspot.com

    
FREEZE-AHEAD RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Tamale Meatloaf

 

 This eatable heatable is unbeatable for freezing in portions. The recipe is easily multiplied. I mix meatloaf by hand, wearing disposable plastic kitchen gloves. The next time you bake cornbread, bake an extra batch to use in this recipe.

20-ounce package ground beef, pork or turkey
2 eggs, beaten
2 to 2 ½ cups crumbled cornbread
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup salsa (mild or medium)
8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

    Mix everything together well. Bake in a greased loaf pan until interior temperature is up to a minimum of 165 degrees F. Cool and chill for easier slicing. Then slice and wrap individually. Thaw and heat. Serve as a knife-and-forkk dish of meat and fixin’s,  or heat slices and serve in buttered buns. 

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Fix Spring Break! See Camping & RV Recipes

Blog copyright Janet Groene 2024. To ask about placing your ad on all six Groene sites for one year, one low rate, email janetgroene at yahoo.com

 

 

 

 

Let' s Eat!

 

 

 

 

 

 BONUS RECIPE TO MAKE AND TAKE

Janet Groene's 

Hummingbird Breakfast Cake

Ahead of time:
2 cups oat flakes
1/3 cup each brown sugar and milk powder
1 teaspoon each salt, cinnamon, baking powder
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans
½ cup shredded coconut

    Place in a bag and seal shut. Jostle bag gently to mix ingredients. Keep cool and dry. 

1 cup water
2 eggs
2 bananas, cup up
1/3 cup well drained crushed pineapple

In camp, generously grease a heavy skillet or Dutch oven. In a bowl, whisk eggs and water, then fold in bananas, crushed pineapple and contents of the make-ahead bag. Mix well. Scoop batter into the cold pan, cover and bake over low/medium flame until it’s set and pulling slightly away from sides of the pan. Cut in wedges to serve 4 to 6. 

 

APRIL SHOWERS BRING 

MYSTERY MURDERS
 

    Curl up in your camper tonight with book 4 in the Yacht Yenta “cozy” mystery series, April Avenger  by widow Farley Halladay. Once a sailor, Farley now operates an online boat booking business that lets her sail virtually all over the world. She shares her shortcut galley recipes throughout the books. As a grieving widow she is also a cook, caregiver and kickass crime solver. For Kindle, Nook, Google Play and most other ebook formats.   https://amzn.to/3EKgaoP   

    

Camp and RV 

Recipe of the Week

 

Easiest Ever 

Apple Betty

2 cans apple pie filling, regular or no sugar added
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
1 stick butter

    Set the oven to 375 degrees and grease a 9  X 13-inch baking pan. Spread apple pie filling iin the pan and drizzle with lemon juice. Sprinkle evenly with graham cracker crumbs and drizzle with melted butter. Bake about 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until a crusty top forms. Serve with a spoon. Serves 8.
    Stove-top method: Spread apple pie filling in a large buttered skillet (or microware dish)  and drizzle with lemon juice. Set aside.  In a medium skillet, melt butter and stir-fry crumbs until lightly browned. Watch carefully so they don’t burn. Gently heat apples in skillet or microwave. Just before serving, sprinkle evenly with toasted crumbs. Serve at once.
    
If you’re a woman at the RV wheel, check out Janet Groene’s weekly travel  tips and trips and her exclusive CAMPGROUNDS GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS at https://www.SoloWomanRV.blogspot.com

 

VEGETARIAN DISH OF THE WEEK
Blushing Rice Cakes
    Serve these crusty cakes as a vegetarian main dish or as a side dish with meat from the grill. 

8-ounce can tomato sauce (1 cup)
2 large eggs   
1 cup  flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon dried, crumbled thyme
½ teaspoon each salt, pepper
3 cups  cooked rice
½ cup optional extras*
Vegetable oil for frying
.
    In a bowl whisk tomato sauce and eggs. Beat in flour, baking powder and seasonings. Fold in rice and extras*.  Cook in hot oil as for pancakes until set and crusty. Serves 3-4  as a main dish or 5-6  as a side dish.

*Finely chopped onion or scallion, chopped cooked meat or fish, chopped and cooked vegetables, grated cheese, small dice tofu or coarsely chopped nuts

  

 

Campground Potluck 

Recipe of the Week
Waikiki Couscous Salad

 

    Couscous is absorbed, not cooked, so it’s a whiz to make-and-take, all in the same dish.  Vary fruits freely, aiming for lots of juicy goodness and bright colors.

3 cups prepared couscous (directions are on the package)*
20-ounce can pineapple tidbits
10-ounce can mandarin oranges
10- or 12-ounce can mango or peach chunks
8-ounce carton orange flavor yogurt
8-ounce carton lemon flavor yogurt
1 ½ cups whole pecans or cashews
1 cup shredded coconut

* Drain fruit juices and use as part of the water measurement when making couscous.

    
1. Drain the fruit well. Add fruit  juices to the water measure for the couscous. Make and cool couscous. Drain if necessary. .  
2.  Fold everything together. Serve now or chill. Serves 10 to 12.

 

Does SOMEONE YOU KNOW

LONG TO GO RV ROVING?

   Living Aboard Your RV, 4th Ed. This book is the perfect gift for retirement, get well, Mother's Day, Father's Day or birthday. It covers the full-time RV life from making the decision to taking the exit ramp when and if that time comes. Order at any book store or have Amazon gift wrap and ship it for you. Paperback or Kindle, http://amzn.to/29XFEkq
 

Tips for the Camp Cook

    * Chop 2 slices cooked bacon and 2 -3 scallions. Cut corn from one fresh cob. Toss together. Sprinkle on salads.

    * Chop a 4-5 slices bacon. Fry out until crispy. Dump a package of shredded cabbage coleslaw mix into  fat. Stir-fry over high heat to crisp-tender. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper.

    * Substitute for 1 can sweetened condensed milk. Combine 1 cup powdered milk, 2/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup warm water, 1/3 stick butter, melted. Stir to dissolve. Cool.

    *Stir-fry a generous layer of onions and green peppers until crisp tender. Top with 4-6 portions of meaty fish such as mahi-mahi. Whisk 8-oz. can tomato sauce with 1 packet onion soup mix + 1/2 c. dry white wine. Pour over fish, cover and cook 15-20 minutes.

Freeze-Ahead Recipe of the Week    
Turkey Marengo

    This recipe is easily multiplied. Freeze it in batches suitable for your needs, even if you’re just a party of one. Allow ½ to 1 cup  per serving. I  buy large, meaty turkey thighs, discard skin and bone and cut meat in bite size. 

1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless turkey cut in bite size
2 tablespoons canola oil
Medium onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, diced
6-ounce package sliced mushrooms
1 teaspoon minced garlic
½ cup dry white wine
15-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon crumbled, dried oregano
1 teaspoon lemon pepper
2 tablespoons butter
To serve:
Serve over Texas toast, biscuits, rice, campfire-baked potato, crisp Asian noodles or other starch.  

    In a large, lightly oiled skillet or Dutch oven heat oil and brown turkey pieces, gradually stirring in vegetables and garlic over high heat. Scrape up brown bits.  Add white wine and tomatoes with oregano and lemon pepper. Cover and cook over low-medium heat until turkey is tender. Serve over Texas toast or another starch such as noodles or rice.

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Then come back next week for more recipes and tips

Camping Dishes for March & Beyond

Blog copyright Janet Groene 2024. To support this free blog with a voluntary subscription, 52 issues per year, send $10 via PayPal to janetgroene at yahoo.com

 

Janet and Gordon Groene full-timed for 10 years, summering in their 21-foot diesel Class C camper and wintering on board their 29-foot sloop.
 
CAMPING & RV RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Espresso Cheesecake

    Packaged crumb pie crusts are a boon to camp chefs. They have a long shelf life, come in many sizes and flavors and can be filled with whatever you have on hand.

1 store-bought 8- or 9-inch inch crumb crust (preferably chocolate)
1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder
8-ounce brick of cream cheese
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
About 1/3 cup chocolate jimmies

    Set the oven to 350 degrees or pre-heat a covered grill to Medium. Let cream cheese come to “room” temperature. Whisk egg, then beat in sugar, cream cheese, vanilla and espresso powder. Pour into crust and bake 15 to 20 minutes, just until it’s “set”.  Sprinkle with chocolate jimmies. Let cool before cutting. Chill if you like. Serves 6. 

 

JUST IN TIME FOR MOTHER’S DAY
    Does Mom dream of selling everything and hitting the road in her own home on wheels? RV. Living Aboard Your RV, 4th Edition by Janet Groene and Gordon Groene is an A to Z guide to the full-time life on wheels. Sell the house or rent it out while gone?  Downsize possessions or put them in storage? Too young to retire? We show ways to make a living anywhere. Kids on board? We cover home schooling. Order at any book store or let Amazon gift wrap and ship it for you.  https://amzn.to/29XFEkq

Camping and RV Recipe of the Week
No-Bean or Low Bean

Chili in a Skillet

 

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound lean ground beef, pork, sausage or turkey
1 teaspoon each salt, pepper, chili powder
3 cups thawed or reconstituted  hash brown potatoes
Medium onion, diced
Small green pepper, seeded and diced
Small can mushrooms pieces, drained
1 cup water
1 teaspoon beef or chicken Better than Bouillon
10-ounce can (1 1/3 cups) tomato sauce
2 tablespoons steak sauce such as A1

Optional: drained and rinsed canned chili beans, kidney beans, pork 'n beans, red beans, etc.

    In a large skillet, heat oil and fry out meat. Sprinkle meat with chili powder, salt and pepper. Keep stirring meat over high heat while adding onion, green pepper, mushrooms and potatoes. When everything is nicely browned add water and bouillon to mix well. Add tomato sauce and steak sauce. Stir in beans if using.  Cover and heat through.  Serves 6 or more.
Optional: at the table pass hot sauce, chopped scallions, diced sweet onion, grated cheese and/or sour cream.

Tips for the Camp Cook

    * Put a sweet, mahogany finish on grilled chicken by whisking three parts light  molasses with one part dark beer. Grill chicken until it’s nearly done. Then brush often with glaze during final grilling. Turn often and keep brushing until chicken is dark and glazed.
    
    * Make Chili in a Skillet above in a large skillet. Then make indentations in hot chili with the back of a spoon. Break eggs into the holes and poach to taste. Serve for breakfast.
    
    * It’s easier to wash a sooty pot if you rub the outside with a soft bar soap such as Ivory before placing it over the fire.  Most of the soot comes off with the soap.

    * Heat canned sweet potatoes, drain and mash with flavored coffee creamer such as caramel or hazelnut.
 
Campground Potluck Recipe of the Week
    When it’s your turn to bring a starch dish, wow ‘em with this Louisiana rice classic.

 Natchitoches (NACK-a-tush)  Rice 

  

    
Large sweet onion, peeled and finely diced
4 large ribs celery, diced
1 stick butter
3  cups raw white Louisiana rice
4 chicken bouillon cubes
Juice of one orange plus grated zest of the orange
Water
2 teaspoons crumbled, dried sage
7-ounce jar salad olives, drained

    Cook onion and celery in hot butter until well coated. Stir in rice to coat. Add water to orange juice to make 6 cups.
     Add water and bouillon to rice, bring to a boil and stir to dissolve bouillon. Add sage and orange zest. Cover, reduce heat to Low and cook without stirring 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Fluff with a fork, fold in olives and serve hot. Makes 12 servings of ½ cup each. 
                               
Freeze Ahead Recipe of the Week
Mule Kick Bean Soup

 

    Chilly spring nights in the campground call for a crackling campfire and cauldrons of hot soup. This soup is made quick and easy with canned foods. Make it vegan or vegetarian if you wish and use low sodium everything.  Then pass the salt shaker, pepper mill and hot sauce at the table. The recipe is easily multiplied and it freezes well.  
    
Large onion, diced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
15-ounce can of refried beans
14-ounce can of Mexican style diced tomatoes, undrained
15-ounce can of low sodium, white shoepeg corn,  undrained
2 tablespoons from a packet of taco seasoning
2 cans, 15 ounces each, undrained beans e.g. kidney beans,  red beans, black beans, white, navy.
Canned or cooked, diced ham or chicken,(optional)

    Heat oil in a large saucepan and sizzle the onion, gradually adding garlic. When onion is softened, add refried beans and break them up while stirring in juices from the corn and tomatoes. When refried beans are broken up, add tomatoes, corn, seasoning and beans.  Add meat if using. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer to blend flavors. Soup will be very  thick.
    Freeze in batches of one cup per serving, e.g. one quart soup = four camping servings.  To serve, reheat 1 cup soup with  ½ to to one cup water, broth, bouillon, gravy or tomato or V-8 juice. This makes servings of 1 ½ to 2 cups each.  
    Serve with bread or toritilla chips and a dollop of sour cream. Top with a sprinkling of dried or fresh minced parsley or cilantro, or some chopped scallions if you have some. 

 

 

Where to travel next? See destination and dates for future trips from travelwriter Janet Groene at https://janetgroene.blogspot.com

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Hot to Go Camping & RV Meals

When March Goes Out Like a Lion

Serve Hot 'n Easy Camping Meals

CAMPING & RV RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Cracker Crust Quiche
    No messy rolling out dough. Best of all, this toothsome crust can be baked  and refrigerated up to 3 days before filling and finishing.

 

2 eggs
2 sleeves saltines, coarsely crumbled
1 stick butter, melted
½ cup grated hard cheese such as Parmesan
    Beat eggs until foamy, then fold in saltine crumbs, melted butter and cheese. Press into bottom and sides of a deep dish 10-inch pie pan and bake 18-20 minutes, or until toasty, at 350 degrees. Cool. Set aside.
Filling:
½ pound mild sausage
Medium onion, diced fine
3 cups packed spinach, cut chiffonade style
1 cup shredded cheese such as cheddar
4 eggs
1 cup light cream or half and half
½ t. each salt, pepper
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
 

   Increase oven heat to 425 degrees. Fry out sausage, breaking it up into crumbles. As sausage gives up its fat, stir in onion and spinach to coat. When vegetables are limp and sausage  browned, spread in cracker crust and top with shredded cheese.  Beat egg and half and half with seasonings and pour over all. Bake 25 minutes or until quiche is set. Cool 10-15 minutes, then serve in wedges. Serves 6 to 8. 

 

Just in time for Mother's Day....

 

COOKING ABOARD YOUR RV

    For yourself or a gift,  Janet Groene's timeless cookbook is packed with shortcuts, tiips and 270 delicious recipes to cook inside the camper or outside on the campfire or grill. https://amzn.to/3nNndWY

 

Campground Potluck Recipe of the Week
Kaffee Klatch Lemon Kuchen

 

1 package puff pastry, thawed
8-ounce package cream cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/3 cup sugar
Optional glaze:
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
Optional frosting:
½ cup powdered sugar
About 2 teaspoons lemon juice
    
    Unfold pastry on a greased or parchment lined baking sheet and press seams gently to seal them. Set the oven to 375 degrees. Let cream cheese come to “room” temperature in a bowl and stir in sugar and lemon.  Dab cream cheese mixture down the center of the pastry. Cut sides  of the pastry in strips  and fold over the filling, forming a braid. 
    Beat egg with water and brush on kuchen. (This step is optional, but it makes a nice glossy glaze).  Bake 15-18 minutes or until golden.
    Stir lemon juice into the sugar to make a thin frosting that spins off the spoon. Drizzle over the baked kuchen.


BONUS RECIPE
Shortcut Balsamic Berry Vinaigrette
    Why wait weeks for an infused vinegar? Use this instant dressing on greens, fruit salad or drizzle over hot braised Brussels sprouts.

 

 

 

1/4 cup each red wine vinegar and balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup strawberry or  raspberry jam
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil such as canola

Stir together and keep cold up to one week, stirring each time before use.

 

 

 

SKILLET Recipe of the Week
Bubble ‘n Squeak
     A specialty of British pubs, this skillet-fried crisp fried treat is a one-course meal. Here is my shortcut version.

 

6-serve packet instant mashed potato
2 ½ cup shredded cabbage for coleslaw
Medium onion, diced fine
½ cup extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
½ teaspoon each salt, pepper
Vegetable oil for frying
    
    In a bowl, stir boiling water into instant potatoes until creamy. Cover and set aside. In a large skillet, heat ½ cup water with the cabbage and onion. Cook until limp. Add drained cabbage mixture, cheese, seasonings and mustard to potatoes.
    Heat 1/4 inch oil in a large skillet until it shimmers. Drop dollops of the potato mixture into the oil (I use a spring-release ice cream scoop). Flatten to make patties and cook on both sides until browned and toasty, adding more oil as needed. 

THE CAMPING "BE PREPARED" BOOK

 

 

        Survival Food Handbook is not just another prepper book. It's for campers and boaters who have limited space for spare supplies. Make every dollar, inch and ounce count when you use this book to plan a stand-by pantry that can produce attractive, nutritious meals for several days in case of a mechanical problem, road closure or shelter-in-place order. https://amzn.to/3mIfryC    

 

Tips for the Camp Cook

    * Make Easter “eggs” the easy way. Make a recipe for Rice Krispies cookies. When it’s cool enough to handle but still shape-able, use buttered hands to shape into “eggs.” Roll in different colored pastel sugars.

    * Roast vegetables on the grill or in the oven and toss with a sauce that sings. Combine 1/4 cup each olive oil, tahini and honey.  Peel and cut up one large or two medium seedless oranges. Fold it all together.

* Spread plates with hot cheese grits, instant or from-scratch. Top with creamed chipped beef.

    * Make your own instant oatmeal. In each snack bag mix ½ c minute oats, 1 T.each brown sugar,raisins and chopped nuts, 1/8 t. salt, 2 T.  each shredded coconut and fine-snipped apricots. Seal bags. To make breakfast, put mix in a bowl, add 1 c. boiling water, cover loosely and let steep 5-10 minutes. Serve as is or with cream, fresh fruit, cinnamon sugar or maple syrup.

MAKE AHEAD RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Spicy Pork Noodles

2 pounds medium or  hot pork sausage
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup minced garlic
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 cup ketchup, regular or spicy
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon dried basil

8 servings cooked, drained  ramen, spaghetti, fettuccine,  rice noodles or soba noodles.

 
Fry out sausage in a large pot, gradually adding garlic. When sausage is done and crumbly,  stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer over low heat 5 minutes. Toss with hot noodles. Cool. Divide into 8 portions and package for the freezer. To serve, thaw and heat.

To serve at once, use a spaghetti claw to serve in 8 bowls or plates. 

 

PUT THIS IN THEIR EASTER BASKET

Do they dream of selling everything and hitting the road in a self-contained home on wheels? Living Aboard Your RV, 4th Edition by Janet Groene and Gordon Groene is a total guide to the full-time life on wheels. Sell the house or rent it out while gone?  Downsize possessions or put them in storage? Too young to retire? There’s a chapter on ways to make a living anywhere. Kids on board? We cover home schooling. Order at any book store or let Amazon gift wrap and ship it for you.  https://amzn.to/29XFEkq 

 THERE'S MORE! SCROLL DOWN. To receive a quick email each time new posts go up here, contact janetgroene@yahoo.com and put RV Cook in the topic line.