Lemon Blueberry Bread

ingredients:

• 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons fresh grated lemon zest
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Lemon glaze
• 2 Tablespons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• directions:    
• 1.  line a 9"x 5" loaf pan with parchment paper (or lightly grease with butter).
• 2.  In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt, and set aside.
• 3.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend together the melted butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice.  Mix until well combined.
• 4.  While slowly mixing, add flour mixture and milk in two batches (some flour, then some milk, then the rest of the flour and the rest of the milk).  Stop mixing as soon as it's just combined.
• 5.  Rinse off the blueberries (if using fresh) so they have just a bit of moisture on them, then, in a small bowl toss the blueberries and 1 T. flour.  This flour coating will help prevent the blueberries from sinking to the bottom of your loaf while baking.
• 6. Add the flour coated berries to the batter and gently but quickly stir, by hand, to combine, then pour batter into the baking pan
• 7. Prepare glaze by simply whisking together the melted butter, powdered sugar, lemon juice and vanilla.
• 8.  set up four small rocks in the dutch oven for your pan to rest on. The pan should not be touching the dutch oven. 
• 9.  bake for about 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. 
• 10. After the cake had cooled flip it over onto a tray and pour the glaze over the top. (if you make the glaze before hand you can put it in the jar and put it next to the coals to warm it back up before pouring it)
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Jalapeño Poppers

These Jalapeño Poppers are a family favorite.  They are quick, easy, and don't break the bank, either.

Ingredients:

• 12 Jalapeños, cut in half length-wise, de-seeded
• 1 block cream cheese
• 1 pack of bacon, cut in half length-wise
• Lime juice (optional)

Instructions:

Wash and rinse the jalapeños.  Remove the stems and cut the jalapeños in half length-wise.  Use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and white part of the walls (where the capsaicin is stored).  If you leave seeds and part of the white wall in, these poppers will have more heat.

Halved jalapeños

Slice off small slices of cream cheese and insert these into the inside of each jalapeño half.  More cream cheese = creamier end product with less heat.

Cut the bacon in half length-wise.  (ex., if you have bacon that's 10 inches long and 1 inch wide, you will now have two pieces that are 10 inches long and 1/2 inch wide). 

Wrap each jalapeño half, with cream cheese inside, in a half piece of bacon.

Spritz with lime juice if you are concerned about spice.  Some jalapenos are very hot by nature and others very mild.

Heat dutch oven using 16 coals on bottom and 14 on top.

Cook for 40-50 minutes.

Results from my test run at home.

Swineapple

I was introduced to the concept of Swineapple by a random older gentleman in the airport a week before our final cookoff.  The judges loved it.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Tomato Ketchup
• 1/4 cup Yellow Mustard
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar (can be substituted for 1/4 cup honey)
• A dash of worcestershire sauce
• 1 large ripe Pineapple
• 1 container bacon (14-16 oz.)
• 2+ lbs. pork loin
• Bamboo skewers

Begin by mixing the first four ingredients (ketchup, mustard, brown sugar/honey, Worcestershire sauce) in a bowl.  This forms barbecue sauce.  Sample and adjust quantities to taste.  I added a dash of sea salt to my barbecue sauce.

BBQ sauce ingredients

Place the pork loin in slow cooker with the barbecue sauce.  Cook on low heat for 6-7 hours.

Pineapple in slow cooker with bbq sauce

The meaty ingredients

Cut the skin off the pineapple.  Core the pineapple, but leave the sides in tact.  The center area will later be filled with the pork that you prepared above.

Cut the pineapple

After the pork has finished cooking, remove the pork from the slow cooker and place it onto a plate or cutting board.  Shred or cut the meat and stuff the inside of the pineapple with the shredded pork.  

Once you have performed this step, you will now open the bacon and form a bacon weave.  The bacon weave will be wrapped around the pineapple.

Heat the dutch oven using 18 briquets on bottom and 14 on top.  Place the pineapple(s) inside the dutch oven.  Let it cook for 45 minutes to an hour.  You may want to drain the dutch oven of liquid after 30 minutes and then allow the food to cook an additional 15-20 minutes.  The longer you cook it, the juicier the pineapple will become.  It is finished when the bacon has a nice brown texture.

Cooked swineapple

Sprite Chicken

Prep Time: 30 MIN  cOOK TIME: 1 hR

SERVES 8

INGREDIENTS

1. 1/2 pound bacon, cut in bite-size pieces
2. 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in 1-inch cubes
3. 1/2 Tablespoon seasoning salt
4. 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
5. 1 yellow onion, chopped
6. 2 pounds red potatoes, cut in 1-inch cubes
7. 1 pound carrots, cut in 2-inch pieces
8. 6 ounces Sprite (lemon-lime soda)
9. 14-inch Dutch Oven

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Fry bacon in dutch oven on camp chef or stove top until crisp. Remove bacon pieces with a slotted spoon, leaving grease inside. Set bacon aside.
2. Combine seasoning salt and flour in a large gallon plastic bag. Add chicken to flour mixture and shake to coat. Add coated chicken pieces to dutch oven and and brown in bacon grease.
3. Remove chicken and set aside.
4. In this order add onions, then potatoes, carrots, chicken and bacon to dutch oven. Pour Sprite all over the top. Cover with lid.
5. Bake at 350° F for 1 hour. Carefully remove from oven. Remove lid and let stand 5 minutes before serving.
6. ** If cooking at a campsite follow directions above. When ready to cook cover with lid and place dutch oven in hot coals. Cook 45 minutes to 1 hour. (Or until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are tender.)

Chicken and Waffles

Chicken and Waffles
Cook-off Winner

This recipe is basically three separate recipes. Below you find first the schedule that I followed and then the three recipes.  When I was looking for these recipes I found that there are a LOT of different versions of chicken and waffles. I tried to put together these recipes based on what I thought would be the best overall pulling from several recipes.

Schedule

Day Before

• Prepare the chicken tenders and refrigerate overnight
• Mix all of the dry ingredients and put in bags ready to use.
• Set aside all of the wet ingredients ready to transport.

Day of

• Pack everything the car and the food into coolers. 
• Prep coals for the Dutch ovens
• Mix waffle batter and set aside to rest.
• Take out the bowl of chicken and let it rest to remove the chill.
• Preheat Dutch oven and add oil for frying
• When the batter has rested start cooking the waffles.
• When the oil is ready, fry the chicken. 
• In the meantime prep the sauce (I did this the night before)
• Plate the chicken and waffles (use a toothpick if needed and/or is pretty), add the sauce and top with green onions. Serve with a smile.

Chicken

Tools

• Dutch Oven X2 (can be done with one)
• Large tray (to bread the chicken) X2
• Tongs (to bread the chicken)

Ingredients

• Dry Ingredients
• Flour – 2 ½ Cups
• Oregano (a lot) – 1 tablespoon
• Thyme – 1 teaspoon
• Paprika - 1 teaspoon
• Cayenne Powder – ½ teaspoon
• Chili Powder – 1 teaspoon
• Onion Powder – 1 teaspoon
• Garlic Powder – 1 teaspoon
• Salt (a lot) – 1 tablespoon
• Rosemary – 1 teaspoon
• Pepper – 1 teaspoon
• Wet Ingredients
• Buttermilk – 2 cups
• Hot sauce (optional)
• Chicken Tenders – 4 or more sliced
• Vegetable Oil (for frying) – At least 1 bottle

Directions

   Day before

• Fill a large bowl with a carton of buttermilk, and add some oregano, salt, and cayenne pepper into it, and mix it around a bit. (Optional: add a splash of your favorite hot sauce)
• Then add the chicken tenders. 
• Let the chicken sit in the buttermilk for at least a few hours, but overnight is preferable. 

   Day of

• Preheat the Dutch oven and fill with oil (about 2 inches). You will know when the oil is ready for frying by throwing a pinch of flour into the oil. If the oil bubbles and hisses, it’s ready.
• Preheat a second Dutch oven as a warming oven to hold the chicken until you are ready to serve it.  
• Take out the bowl of chicken and let it rest to remove the chill.
• Fill a large tray with flour, and then add the seasonings into it. You may need to add more seasoning based on how much chicken you are making, or how strong you want the flavors to be. 
• Take the chicken out of the buttermilk, and put it in the flour tray, covering it in a layer of the seasoned flour. Re-dip in the buttermilk marinade and dip in flour mixture again.
• Put ONE piece of floured chicken into the oil as a test, to make sure the chicken won’t burn and the skin will be crispy enough. Take the chicken out when it reaches 165 degrees.
• Add the chicken to the oil 3 or 4 pieces at a time. Make sure they aren't sticking together, then cover the skillet and fry for 5 to 7 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure the chicken isn't getting too brown. Turn the pieces over, cover again and cook 3 to 5 minutes more. All the while, monitor the temperature of the oil to make sure the chicken doesn't burn. Transfer the fried chicken pieces to a baking sheet
• Put the chicken in the second Dutch oven to keep it warm and to help the internal temperature of the chicken even out.

Waffles

This recipe came out a little crumbly at first.  I added some water and it worked out better but in the future, I might use a regular recipe with a few add-ins or maybe cornbread waffles.

Tools

• Waffle Iron (I used a cast iron waffle iron to use outside.)
• Trivet (to hold the waffle iron above the Dutch oven.
• Spray pan/oil (I used a grilling one to try and avoid flare-ups.)
• Gloves

Ingredients
   Dry Ingredients

• Flour – ¾ cup
• Corn Starch – ¼ cup
• Baking Powder – ½ tsp
• Baking Soda – ¼ tsp
• Salt – ½ tsp
• White Sugar – 1 tbsp
• Brown Sugar – 1 tbsp

   Wet Ingredients

• Buttermilk 1 – ¼ cup
• Vegetable Oil – ½ cup
• Vanilla Extract – 1 tbsp

   Optional

• Chopped green onions
• Chives

Directions

• Mix all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Stir it around with a wooden spoon until the dry ingredients are all combined. (Do the night before.)
• Now pour the buttermilk and the oil into the mix, then the vanilla. 
• IMPORTANT: do not mix it very much. You just want to combine the liquid and the dry ingredients and get huge lumps out of it. Its ok if there are some little lumps. You really don’t want to overmix the batter, or your waffles will not be fluffy and light and wonderful. Mix it for like 10-15 seconds.
• Now let the batter rest for 30 minutes. Resist the urge. 
• Pam/Oil up the waffle iron, then cook the waffles according to your waffle maker. 

Sauce

Tools

• Saucepan

Ingredients

• pancake syrup – 1 cup
• bourbon (use bourbon extract) – 1/4 cup
• salted butter – 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick)
• cayenne pepper – 1/4 teaspoon

Directions

• For the sauce: Pour the pancake syrup and bourbon in a small pot and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and whisk in the butter 1 tablespoon at a time, then the cayenne.

Clam Chowder

• 4 center-cut bacon strips
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 3 small potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 cup water
• 1 bottle (8 ounces) clam juice
• 3 teaspoons reduced-sodium chicken bouillon granules
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups fat-free half-and-half, divided
• 2 cans (6-1/2 ounces each) chopped clams, undrained

In a Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove to paper towels to drain; set aside. Saute celery and onion in the drippings until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the potatoes, water, clam juice, bouillon, pepper and thyme. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

In a small bowl, combine flour and 1 cup half-and-half until smooth. Gradually stir into soup. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened.

Stir in clams and remaining half-and-half; heat through (do not boil). Crumble the cooked bacon; sprinkle over each serving. Yield: 5 servings.

EASY BBQ Chicken and Potatoes

Ingredients

• 3-4 large chicken breast
• 1 package of bacon
• 5 small potatoes sliced into 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices
• 1 red onion chopped
• 1 lb butter optional
• 1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce
• 26 coals

Instructions

1. Make sure your coals are burning nicely. Place dutch oven on top and put bacon in dutch oven.
2. Cook bacon until cooked. Drain most of the excess grease (you want to keep probably 1/4 cup in the dutch oven)
3. Add onions, potatoes, chicken breasts, onion, butter, and BBQ sauce into the dutch oven.
4. Cover with lid and make sure there are 14 coals underneath the the dutch oven and 12 on top.
5. Cook about 35-50 minutes, or until the chicken is done.

Notes

This Recipe was so easy and yummy! Make sure you give yourself enough time to cook the bacon AND the chicken and potatoes, the bacon may take a while depending on how fast your oven heats up. I added extra chicken and potatoes and it increased the time about 40 minutes. Chicken was tender and juicy, the sauce mixes really well with it all, almost no effort