Blog copyright Janet Groene 2026
Start the New Year with a new repertoire of smart, affordable recipes for all the exciting camp-outs and road trips you plan to have in '26.
CAMPING & RV RECIPE OF THE WEEK
Tuna CORNival
Save fuel and mess. Just throw this dish together in a nonstick pan and heat it up. It’s a money-pinching main dish that stretches one can of tuna to feed a family of 6. Use ready-to serve, instant or from-scratch rice.
15-ounce whole kernel corn, drained
15-ounce can cream-style corn
3 or 4 hard-cooked eggs, cut up
1 can tuna, drained and flaked
1 can cream-of-something soup
½ soup can milk or water
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
Crisp chow mein noodles
Optional garnish: shredded cheese, chopped scallions or a few shakes of soy sauce.
In a large skillet or Dutch oven, layer rice, corn, eggs and tuna. Whisk soup, milk and mustard and pour over skillet. Cover and heat gently. .Place a scoop of chow mein noodles on each plate and smother with the hot mixture. Garnish ad lib. Serves 6.
Campground Potluck Recipe of the Week
Zucchini Monterey
When you’re asked to bring a vegetable side dish, this zucchini recipe will add color and zing to the potluck table.
Large onion, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablesppoon each butter and vegetable oil
Salt, pepper
4-ounce can diced chilies, drained
4-ounce can diced jalapeños, drained
3 or 4 plum tomatoes, diced and drained
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
In a large wok or skillet, melt butter with oil and stir-fry zucchini, gradually adding onion and garlic. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Fold in peppers and tomatoes. Cook until zucchini is crisp-tender. Sprinkle with cheese. Serves 10.
Cook's note: recipe can also be prepared in a skillet or wok, then put in a greased casserole dish and refrigerated to bake later.
THE GIFT THAT GIVES ALL YEAR
AND ONE SIZE FITS ALL
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, camp stove or grate.
POTLUCK RECIPE #2
Bean Pot in the Orchard
You’ll be asked for the recipe for this merry mingling of beans and sweetness. To make it vegetarian, omit the ham and use vegetarian baked beans instead of the pork and beans.
1 pound cooked ham, diced small
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 onions, diced fine
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 can pork & beans such as Van Camp’s
1 can butter beans, undrained
1 can each, drained: and rinsed:
Green lima beans
Kidney beans
White beans such as Great Northern or cannellini
8-ounce can pineapple tidbits, undrained
2 tart apples, peeled and cut up
1/3 cup Craisins
½ cup “lite” molasses
½ cup ketchup
In a large pot or Dutch oven, fry out diced ham in hot oil, gradually adding onions and garlic. When they are crisp-tender, reduce heat and begin adding remaining ingredients, stirring to mix well. Add water or broth as needed. Heat on the stove, or campfire or in the oven until bubbly. Serves 16.
Bonus points: soak Craisins in strong, hot cinnamon tea. Drain before, before adding.
TRAVEL EMERGENCIES HAPPEN
How much food will you need for a week in the woods for two adults and two kids? A month in a remote, fly-in fish camp? Two weeks in a national park? See Survival Food Handbook for lists, tips on buying, stowing, and recipes that need no fresh ingredients. Be prepared for delays, refrigerator failure, supply chain interruptions and the unforseen. Stuff happens. http://amzn.to/1WdYqbe
Campers have limited storage space for emergency food. Survival Food Handbook is just for van campers, truckers, RV travelers and boaters. Make the most of every ounce, inch and dollar. Have a stash of staples you will use and replenish. Keep a few emergency meals on hand in case there is a sudden evacuation, fridge failure, shelter-in-place order or other unplanned speed bump on your journey. http://amzn.to/1WdYqbe
BONUS RECIPE
Camper’s Crabpot
1 chicken flavor bouillon cube
12-ounce package imitation crabmeat, cut up
8-ounce can mushroom steps and pieces, drained
Small green pepper, finely cut up
2-ounce jar chopped pimentos, drained
Small can sliced ripe olives, drained
1 envelope cream of leek soup mix (such as Knorr)
3 cups instant white rice
½ stick butter
Suggested garnish: lemon or lime wedges
Bring water to a boil,. Dissolve bouillon. Add crab, vegetables and soup mix. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 8 minutes. Bring back to a boil. Stir in rice, cover and turn off heat. Let stand 7-8 minutes out of the wind until rice is tender. Stir, drizzle with melted butter and serve. Makes 6 portions.
Camp COMFORT FOOD OF THE WEEK
Shortcut Cholent
No traditional cook would endorse my shortcut version. However, here’s a way to have a delicious hot, one-dish comfort food in quicktime.
12-to 14-ounce can corned beef
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 large onions, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 cans butter beans (cooked large limas) undrained
Freshly ground pepper
Tomato juice of beef broth as needed
Paprika for garnish
Optional garnish: hardboiled egg
Scrape and discard excess fat from the corned beef. Break up corned beef in hot oil, stir frying while adding onions and garlic. Cover and cook over reduced heat until onions are tender. Stir in butter beans and pepper. Simmer to heat through, adding a little broth if needed. Season to taste. Sprinkle lightly with paprika. Serves 6 to 8.
TIPS FOR THE CAMP COOK
Craving Manicotti but you forgot to bring a box of shells? Make your usual filling and sauce. Roll it in flour tortillas or homemade crepes. Arrange seam side down with sauce and a topping of cheese.
Receive a full page of shortcuts, hints and camp cooking tips, hints and work-arounds by return email. Go to janetgroene@gmail.com and put Cook Tips in the topic line. I’ll send you a dozen or more random tips from my archives.
WILL 2026 BE THE YEAR YOU GO FULL-TIMING?
WHY WAIT TO RETIRE?
Do you dream of living, traveling (and perhaps earning a living) in a complete home on wheels? We did. Living Aboard Your RV, 4th Edition by Janet Groene & Gordon Groene is a total guide to the full-time life on wheels. Should you sell the house or rent it out? Downsize possessions or put them in storage? Too young to retire? See the chapter on ways to make a living anywhere. Kids on board? We cover home schooling and also an exit strategy if and when the time comes to settle down. Order at any book store or let Amazon gift wrap and ship it for you. https://amzn.to/29XFEk
BONUS RECIPE
Surimi and Spinach
Imitation crabmeat makes this seafood casserole affordable, tasty and nourishing.
20-ounce bag of chopped spinach
20 ounces imitation crab, cut up or shredded
Large sweet onion (e.g. Vidalia) finely diced
8-ounce package grated Cheddar cheese
1 stick butter, divided
1/4 cup cooking sherry
2 tablespoons flour
1 can condensed tomato soup
1 cup sour cream
Thaw spinach and squeeze it dry. Lightly scatter some of the spinach in a sprayed 9 X 13-inch casserole. Sprinkle with some of the cheese, crab and onion and continue until you’ve used all but about a cupful of the cheese.
Whisk ½ stick butter, melted , with the flour, sherry, soup and sour cream and pour over the casserole. Dot with small bits of the remaining butter and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly. Serves 6.
Love Sea Travel? Discover Yacht Yenta Cozy Mysteries
People are dying in Okecoochie County FL, but nobody can guess how the deaths are connected. Meet Farley Halladay, a salt-cured sailboat widow who has an online charterboat booking business. She dodges a wayward sister, cares for an old Navy SEAL veteran who was her late husband’s mentor and wrangles a large circle of wacky friends. She cooks, copes and solves crimes in this unusual cozy mystery series. Go to Kindle, https://amzn.to/3bB5XPh
NO BAKE DESSERT OF THE WEEK
Creamy Apple Pie
Large deep dish crumb pie crust, chilled
½ cup cold milk
8-ounce brick of cream cheese
1 box instant French vanilla pudding mix
1 cup cold milk
1 teaspoon each almond and lemon extract
1 can apple pie filling
Optional Glaze:
1/3 cup clear jelly such as apple or raspberry, melted
In a bowl beat the ½ cup milk with softened cream cheese. When it’s smooth, add the full cup of cold milk and the pudding mix. Stir in extracts. Pour into pie crust. Chill until set. Spread apple pie filling on top and drizzle with melted jelly. Chill. Serves 8.
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