Starting your week right with Breakfast!

Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day and that doesn’t change when you are camping. No matter how awesome bacon is, it’s good to have variety in our diet and what a great time camping can be to try out all those recipes you’ve been saving up. Planning is an important first step to a successful meal around the campfire. Here are some tips to make your meals as simple and easy as possible.

·        - Keep preparation to the minimum by chopping, shredding, or slicing ingredients at home. Measure the necessary amounts and pack them in disposable or reusable containers or zip-close bags.

·        - Pack perishable items in a cooler loaded with ice-packs or ice blocks, and keep cold until ready to cook.

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·        - Explore the area surrounding the campground. Look out for great local farmers markets where you can get some fresh vegetables and fruit.

·        - If you are cooking over the fire, plan to cook in batches and unless you have a helper, plan for meals that only require one skillet at a time. If you are going to a park that has fire rings on the campsites, you will have a rack with enough space for two pots or pans.

·         -If cooking on a rack, bring aluminum foil to cover the rack so no food directly touches it.

And here are some great recipes to try out!

Quick and Easy Fruit Salad (Add/subtract any type of fruit you want!)
 Ingredients 
1 pint strawberries- cleaned and sliced
3 kiwis, peeled and sliced
1 pound seedless grapes, halved
3 bananas, sliced
1 (21 ounce) can peach pie filling

Directions
In a large bowl, combine the strawberries, grapes, kiwis, and bananas. Gently mix in peaches. chill for 1 hour before serving.

Potato and Bacon Hash

Serves: 4

Total Time: 50 minutes

Recipe may be halved or frozen.

Camper’s tip: For ease of preparation, you can boil potatoes at home. Transport in a resealable plastic bag and keep cold in a cooler until ready to cook. Skip the first step if you have already boiled the potatoes at home.

Ingredients:

3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes

6 slices of bacon (suggestion: hardwood-smoked lower-sodium bacon tastes great!)

1 small onion, minced

½ tsp. dried thyme, crushed

1 scallion, thinly sliced, divided

¼ tsp. ground black pepper

1. Place potatoes in a medium saucepan; cover with cold water, then bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover loosely, and gently boil until just beginning to turn tender but still slightly firm, 6 to 8 minutes. Potatoes should be underdone. Drain.

2.  Meanwhile, line a plate with paper towels. In a large nonstick skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp, 7 to 9 minutes, flipping over periodically. Transfer to prepared plate. Drain off some fat, leaving approximately 2 tbsp. of fat in the skillet; discard extra.

3 Add onion and thyme to skillet; cook over medium heat until onion is tender, about 4 minutes, stirring frequently.

4 Raise heat to medium high or move skillet to the center of the campfire. Set aside about a tablespoon of the sliced scallion greens. Add the rest of the scallion to the skillet, along with potatoes and pepper. Cook until potatoes are tender and browned in spots, 12 to 17 minutes, stirring occasionally. Crumble bacon and stir into the potatoes, mixing to distribute. Garnish with reserved scallion greens and serve immediately.

Homemade Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes

Serves 4-6

Total Time: 30 minutes

Recipe may be halved or frozen.

Camper’s tip: Premix the dry ingredients and transport in a resealable plastic bag. Have you ever tried pancakes made out of bisquick? This just add water mix in a shake and pour container comes in extremely handy for a quick and healthy breakfast. Add whatever you like to the mix, fresh blueberries or cinnamon to make them even better.

Ingredients:

2 Cups all-purpose flour

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 Tbsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

2 cups 2% milk, plus additional as needed

2 eggs

¼ cup canola or vegetable oil

1 Tbsp. dark brown sugar

1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

Fresh berries (optional)

Maple syrup (optional)

1.       In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add milk, eggs, and oil; whisk just until combined. Transfer ¾ cup of the batter to a small bowl and stir in brown sugar and cinnamon; mix until thoroughly combined. Transfer cinnamon batter to resealable plastic bag. Snip a ¼ inch opening at one corner.

2.       Spray a large nonstick skillet with vegetable oil cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Working in batches, for each pancake ladle ¼ cup plain batter into the skillet, cooking 2 or 3 at a time, depending on the size of the skillet. Immediately squeeze the bag of cinnamon batter over each pancake and make a swirl pattern.

3.       Cook pancakes until tops are covered with bubbles and edges are slightly dry, 1 to 2 minutes. If pan gets very hot, lower heat to medium or move skillet to edge of campfire. Turns pancakes over and cook until bottoms are golden brown, 45 to 90 seconds. Transfer to plates and serve with berries and maple syrup!