Camp Dining

The weekend went off without a hitch. We met up with Eric, Erin and sweet baby Laila on Friday afternoon. What a treat to see those 3! I never expected to have the chance to share Camp Freedom with them this year. It's not even officially summer yet and we've already had visitors from both coasts! They also had the opportunity to meet our friends, the Schausts' and it seemed like everyone got along great. The rain held off until Saturday afternoon which was better than any of us expected. There had been a ton of rain before we got there and the wetlands were flooded. Trooper, the Schausts' German Shepard puppy turned out to be quite the water dog and thoroughly enjoyed splashing around in the muck. Georgia, however, prefers dry paws and enjoyed lazing around on tarps and under the picnic table. I am continuing to work on my outdoor cooking skills and had some successes. (Readers, have any ideas to share? Leave a comment with your favorite camp recipes!) I made a beef stew in the dutch oven. I cut up all the ingredients at home and threw everything together on site with some water and a few splashes of box wine. I set the whole thing over the campfire for a few hours and it was tender and delicious by dinner time. I served it with a crusty loaf of sourdough which I toasted next to the pot for a few minutes. It was a rich and satisfying meal. Ray experimented the next night with a campfire cobbler. He poured 2 cans of apple pie filling in the bottom of the dutch oven. On top of that he poured one package of yellow cake mix and one can of 7-up. It baked for about 30 minutes. The cake was moist and the apples caramelized and tasted great. A dish of that topped with a squirt of Ready-Whip was a delicious dessert after a more humble supper of hot dogs and beans. Good friends, good eats, plenty of dogs and a beautiful baby girl - not a bad way to spend a rainy weekend.