Hello once again, you gorgeous "losers"!!

Yup, it's that time again -- haul out the tent and stock up on bug juice! Hmmm ... I wonder how much weight you lose if you are the mosquitoes' main course ...

Okee dokee. Here's the thing. First of all, bravo for making the effort to stay On Program whilst camping. Ya know, this IS a lifestyle change, and if camping is part of your lifestyle, at SOME point you're going to need to learn how to eat smart wherever you are.

Okay. That said, I gathered up a bunch of posts and supplemented them with a couple of links -- it's not my best work, but it'll give something to start with if you're hitting the wilderness.

Just one (okay, two) little requests from your Nature-lovin' mama: 1) leave the site cleaner than you found it, and 2) PLEASE pipe down ... to many freakin' yahoos hootin' and hollerin' in parks and campgrounds ... sheesh ... some folks like to enjoy the QUIET .. and the real animals that live out there ... so be respectful of others out there. You can *still* have a blast without being a doofus!!

Okay, soapbox put away, here are the tips I found (and thank you to all you peeps who posted them!).

As per the question that got them started, we are looking for foods that are:

a) family friendly
b) easy to store
c) easy to prepare

azziecat:

• BBQ (veggie dogs/burgers/steak/chicken)
• Kraft Dinner with tuna stirred in
• Pita sandwiches (pita packs well)
• sliced potato, sliced onion, sliced carrots, zuke, etc., with a TEENY bit of butter and salt and pepper, wrapped in tin foil and cooked on the BBQ or the fire... mmmm....

MarilynB:

Anything in a can. Beans, stews, chili, ready-to-serve soups. Another benefit of cans is that they are raccoon-proof.

KAREN4MYSELF:

That pre-cooked bacon does not need refrigeration and is split into two packs of 7 slices. It's clean and heats up in a few secs in a heated pot or pan.

TAIRAH:

i love camping and yes food preparing is extremely time consuming.. we eat:

• sandwiches
• corn on the cob in the husk on the fire
• jiffy pop OHHHH YUM
• anything that can be bbq'd
• the prewrapped baked potatoes.. but cook them on the fire the night before you want to eat them cause they take a really long time.. we usually plan to eat them for dinner then they take to long so we end up slicing them really thin the next day in foil for breakfast
• we also eat lots of fruits and veggies (prepared at home before hand.. cleaned and cut)
• those little cereal boxes so you don't need to use a bowl and skim milk
• if you get a grill cheese maker thing... its for over the fire you can make grill cheese, little pizzas, pies in them... its GREAT...
• those little hashbrowns that come in the freezer section, they go nicely on the bbq as well...
• also toast and bagels also go really well on the bbq

sheila140:

Here's a couple of our fav's.

• spaghetti - make your favorite sauce - put it in a heavy duty freezer bag. Take the noodles dry. Heat the sauce in boiling water still in the freezer bag - no mess and then you have your washing up water all hot and ready for after the meal.
• The same trick works for breakfast - toss as many eggs as you want into a freezer bag , smoosh em around (close the bag first!) kids love to do that part, throw in some green pepper or cooked ham or cooked bacon,whatever you like in an omelet, add a little milk and boil in a bag breakfast is only minutes away.
• I love the Uncle Ben's rice that comes in boil in bags too (seeing a theme here?)
• We cook knockwurst over an open flame - my kids won't touch them at home even off the BBQ but camping they'll eat almost anything. Perhaps it is the added dirt?
• The freezer bag thing works well for pancakes too my son the boy scout is telling me as he reads over my shoulder - mix the dry ingredients before you go then just add the liquids on site. But these you cut a corner out of the bag after they're all mixed up and cook em on the griddle.
• KD is easy camp food too.
• What do you take for cooking on? We have a Coleman stove which I had too learn not to fear once I became a single parent - he always lit it before!! Most camp sites have a campfire pit but some times open fires are banned so then you are more limited.
• Cheese and crackers are our staple rainy food and for some reason we always bring skittles - family traditions I guess.
• Don't forget the marshmallows no one can over eat them when they are fire toasted they're too sickly sweet, and have fun.
  

DARLENEELIZABETH:

Sheila .. what an EXCELLENT idea about the spaghetti sauce in a bag ... no clean up! The egg idea is fantastic too ... would work just as well with egg beaters too!
I love camping cooking ... and have elevated it to a bit of an art, but then I don't mind the work/time involved because I'm really enjoying doing it.

I bought a book just recently called "Chef in your Backpack" which is all food for camping/hiking. It's fantastic ... each recipe is made up to a certain point at home, packed in bags/containers and then the final assembly is done at the campground. Lots of GREAT ideas ... most of the recipes look very ample to serve two, the author obviously figures the people are super hungry! I got lots of good ideas in it to try this summer while we're camping.

newmomof2:

If you are a veggie person, eggplant, zuchinni, and carrots keep well and taste great. Slice them thick and on angle so they are wide, and grill them on bbq (brush with lemon juice and olive oil). mmm mmm mmm

glennelli:

• I would take raising bran or another yummy cereal - easy to transport and can be eaten dry or with milk (if you have it).
• Mini carrots and apples are also pretty hardy for traveling.
• There are some tasty low fat or vegetarian burgers in the stores now if that is what everyone else will be eating and you want to join. Just use half a bun (or none) to lower the point value.
  

redhead20_05:

• Hi I'm camping over the long weekend also for 5 days these are some of the things I'm bringing....steak..chicken..low fat burgers...low fat hotdogs...and i premade a spaghetti sauce and froze it so all i have to do is cook the noodles
• For lunches were going to do soup and sandwiches and also i bought campbells chunky chili you cane have 1/2 the can for 4 pts and its very filling
• For snacks i have skinny chips, peanut butter slim fast bars, cheerio snack mix, pretzels
• And crystal light to drink

Hope this info helps :0)

Stellamama always gets the Last Word!!

Pitas, tortillas and laughing cow cheese and veggies all travel well. Also, instant skim milk powder! Mix up a bit at night, cool it in the stream or cooler, then you have milk for your breakfast!

I spent 2 hours (!) researching camping recipes online before I convinced myself that you probably wouldn't use them anyway. So. Here are 2 sites you can check out, if you are actually gonna do something other than scarf chips the whole trip.

Things you can cook in those Reynolds Wrap foil Bags

Outdoor meals for any time of day: http://camping.about.com/library/recipes/blreccat.htm

Earth-friendly campfire cooking

Other foil meals