Tomato-Basil Parmesan Soup

by Brian Hill

Use a 6 quart, 12" Dutch oven.

Ingredients:
  24-28 oz of canned diced tomatoes with juice
  1/2 cup finely diced celery
  1/2 cup finely diced carrots
  4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
  1/2 cup finely diced onions
  1 bay leaf
  1 tsp dried oregano or 1 Tbsp fresh oregano
  1 Tbsp dried basil leaves or 1/4 cup fresh basil
  1/4 cup butter
  1/4 cup flour
  1 cup Parmesan cheese
  1 quart milk
  1 tsp salt
  1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions:
  1. Pre-cook celery, carrots, and onions in broth for 20 minutes until vegetable are fully cooked.
  2. In warming Dutch oven, melt butter and add flour mixing to form a crumbly roux.
  3. Add cooked vegetables and broth, tomatoes, and all herbs and spices.  Smash tomatoes and bring to a light simmering boil.
  4. Add milk and stir often to keep the soup from sticking, melt the roux, and thicken the soup (About 20 minutes).
  5.  When soup is thickened and nearly ready to boil, remove from heat and add Parmesan cheese.

You could also run the soup through a blender or food processor for a smooth soup.

Will be especially good if cooked with double cheese grilled cheese sandwiches cooked on a cast iron skillet over your coals.

For a demo of this dish, watch this YouTube video:

https://youtu.be/14QWWNOxW3Y

No-Knead Focaccia

1 1/4 oz.       Envelope active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 tsp.)
2 tsp.            Honey
5 cups          All-purpose flour
1 Tbsp.         Morton kosher salt
6 Tbsp.         Extra virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for hands
4 Tbsp.         Unsalted butter, plus more for pan
1 pinch         Flaky sea salt
2-4               Garlic cloves

1. Whisk one ¼-oz. envelope active dry yeast (about 2¼ tsp.), 2 tsp. honey, and 2½ cups lukewarm water in a medium bowl and let sit 5 minutes (it should foam or at least get creamy; if it doesn’t your yeast is dead and you should start again—check the expiration date!).

2. Add 5 cups (625 g) all-purpose flour and 5 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 Tbsp. Morton kosher salt and mix with a rubber spatula until a shaggy dough forms and no dry streaks remain.

3. Pour 4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil into a big bowl that will fit in your refrigerator. This puppy is going to rise! Transfer dough to bowl and turn to coat in oil. Cover with a silicone lid or plastic wrap and chill until dough is doubled in size (it should look very bubbly and alive), at least 8 hours and up to 1 day. If you're in a rush, you can also let it rise at room temperature until doubled in size, 3–4 hours.

4. Generously butter a 13x9" baking pan, for thicker focaccia that’s perfect for sandwiches, or an 18x13" rimmed baking sheet, for focaccia that's thinner, crispier, and great for snacking. The butter may seem superfluous, but it’ll ensure that your focaccia doesn’t stick. Pour 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil into center of pan. Keeping the dough in the bowl and using a fork in each hand, gather up edges of dough farthest from you and lift up and over into center of bowl. Give the bowl a quarter turn and repeat process. Do this 2 more times; you want to deflate dough while you form it into a rough ball. (We learned this technique from Alexandra Stafford, who uses it to shape her no-knead bread.) Transfer dough to prepared pan. Pour any oil left in bowl over and turn dough to coat it in oil. Let rise, uncovered, in a dry, warm spot (like near a radiator or on top of the fridge or a preheating oven) until doubled in size, at least 1½ hours and up to 4 hours.

5. Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 450°. To see if the dough is ready, poke it with your finger. It should spring back slowly, leaving a small visible indentation. If it springs back quickly, the dough isn’t ready. (If at this point the dough is ready to bake but you aren’t, you can chill it up to 1 hour.) Lightly oil your hands. If using a rimmed baking sheet, gently stretch out dough to fill (you probably won't need to do this if using a baking pan). Dimple focaccia all over with your fingers, like you’re aggressively playing the piano, creating very deep depressions in the dough (reach your fingers all the way to the bottom of the pan). Drizzle with remaining 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil and sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Bake focaccia until puffed and golden brown all over, 20–30 minutes

6. Hold off on this last step until you're ready to serve the focaccia: Melt 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat. Peel and grate in 2–4 garlic cloves with a Microplane (use 2 cloves if you’re garlic-shy or up to 4 if you love it). Return to medium heat and cook, stirring often, until garlic is just lightly toasted, 30–45 seconds. (Or, if you prefer raw garlic to toasted garlic, you can grate the garlic into the hot butter, off heat, then brush right away.)

7. Brush garlic-butter all over focaccia and slice into squares or rectangles.


* I used 18 briquettes on the top and 6 underneath, but my bread didn't brown on the top, so I would recommend using more briquettes on the top as per Professor Hill*

Chicken Asparagus Soup

Ingredients:

-          2 Medium size Chicken Breasts

-          1 handful of Asparagus

-          ¼ Large Yellow Onion (chopped)

-          1 Can Cream of Chicken *or* Cream of Mushroom Soup

-          1 Can Chicken Broth (10.75 oz, or just use the empty can of soup)

-          1 can Water (10.75 oz, or just use the empty can of soup)

-          Suggested Seasonings (Chicken dry rub):

o   Salt and Pepper (heavy)

o   Oregano (heavy)

o   Rosemary (heavy)

o   Basil (medium)

o   Paprika (light)

-          Suggested Seasonings (Asparagus)

o   Pepper (heavy)

o   Basil (heavy)

o   Salt (medium)

o   Balsamic Vinegar (medium)

-          Suggested Seasonings (Soup)

o   Bay leaves (1-2)

o   Oregano (heavy)

o   Rosemary (medium)

o   Paprika (medium)

o   Garlic powder (medium)

o   Rubbed Sage (light)

o   Basil (light)

o   Chili Pepper flakes (light)

Instructions:

Chicken:

1.       Thaw chicken before preparation.

2.       Balance chicken at around ½ inch all the way around (if possible)

3.       Rub chicken with dry rub using suggested seasoning

4.       Place chicken in Dutch oven with chopped onion on top of the chicken

5.       Bake chicken at 425°F for 20 minutes in a standard oven

6.       Cut chicken into small chunks or strips

With a standard 12” Dutch oven you’ll need 31 briquettes to cook your chicken: 21 on top, 10 on bottom (with temperature adjustments as necessary). The medium-size chicken breasts should cook in about 35 minutes, if you put the briquettes on as soon as possible. Once your chicken is done, you should remove it quickly and replace the lid. If you cut the chicken outside of the oven, you will retain heat in your Dutch oven much better.

Asparagus:

1.       Cut asparagus into 3” pieces.

2.       Heat a frying pan (or your Dutch oven) to about 400°F

3.       Add suggested seasoning

4.       Heat asparagus to desired consistency

5.       Cut asparagus again into ½ or 1” chunks

To save time, I like to heat my asparagus separately, over a backpacking stove in a frying pan, while I cook my chicken. If you are hoping to use your Dutch oven, you can cook your asparagus once you remove your chicken for cutting. If you’ve timed it right, you should have enough charcoal to cook your asparagus thoroughly. It doesn’t hurt to add 3-4 briquettes on bottom and 8-10 on top to retain heat though. Asparagus cooks better and more evenly if it’s cooked in 3” pieces. I shoot for a texture that easily cuts with a fork, but crisp enough that it won’t fall apart in a soup pot. For soup, after the asparagus is cooked, I cut it again to make it easier to eat. If you want, you can also remove the asparagus, or you can leave it in the pot while cooking soup.

Soup:

1.       Mix 1 can of “cream” soup, the chicken broth, and water outside of the oven.

2.       Add suggested seasoning

3.       Put soup mix into oven

4.       Add chicken and asparagus

5.       Heat until warm

6.       Serve

If you’ve cooked your asparagus separately, you should have enough heat in your coals to heat your soup to a desired temperature. If you cooked your asparagus in your Dutch oven, you may need to add another 3-4 briquettes on bottom and 8-10 on top. Once you’ve mixed your soup mix, make sure to quickly combine the soup, chicken, and asparagus, and then cover. If you add briquettes, the soup should heat in 10-15 minutes. If you use the remaining briquettes, without adding more, the soup will take 20-30 minutes to heat, depending on how much of the briquettes remain.

"Slap Ya Momma" Chili

Ingredients:

• 2 cans of beans (Whatever kind you like. I like to use 1 can of Pinto beans and 1 of Kidney beans) (if you use baked beans I will only judge you slightly)
• 2 cans of diced tomatoes
• 1/2 can of corn
• 1/2 onion
• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cumin
• "Slap Ya Momma" Cajun Seasoning

Instructions:

1. Brown ground beef until most of the pink is gone. Chop up the onion and add it into the beef.
2. Add beef, onions, and rest of ingredients into the dutch oven.
3. For spices, it's really up to personal preference. Just add enough until you're happy with the taste. The cumin and cajun seasoning are what really sets the chili apart so make sure you use enough to thoroughly taste them in the chili.
4. Cook for 45 minutes with 10 coals on bottom and 14 on top

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Sweet and Sour Chicken

3 pounds chicken breast or chicken tenders
1/2 cup corn starch
2 cups apricot nectar
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup oil

Cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces and roll in corn starch. Place in the dutch oven and brown. Mix the rest of the ingredients in a separate bowl and pour over the chicken in the dutch oven. Cover and cook for 30-45 minutes. Serve over rice.

Remote Cooking: Cheeseburger Soup

Recipe for Cheeseburger Soup
Source: https://www.savingdessert.com/cheeseburger-soup-recipe/
*was adapted for outside dutch oven cooking with coals*

Ingredients:

1lb ground beef, previously cooked
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3 stalks celery diced
2 large carrots peeled and diced
1 large onion chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
4 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
32 oz (4 cups) chicken broth
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
3 tbsp cornstarch
2 cups whole milk
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:

1. Prepare 32-34 hot coals to read a temperature of around 425 degrees Fahrenheit. While coals are heating, add the previously cooked ground beef, melted butter, and all vegetables and spices into the dutch oven and mix together. Add in the chicken broth.
2. Place most of the coals underneath the oven in a 4:1 ratio to allow for the soup to boil (example such as 8 coals on top of the oven, and the remaining 24 underneath)
3. Place oven over hot coals and shut lid. Allow to boil/simmer for 30-35 minutes, or until soup is boiling. While cooking, whisk together the cornstarch and half of the milk (1 cup). Set aside.
4. When soup is boiling and vegetables are softened, slowly mix in the slurry of milk and cornstarch while still on top of the coals until the mixture becomes thick and slightly frothy (about 2 minutes). Add additional coals if needed to achieve this.
5. Slowly add the remaining milk and cheddar cheese until the soup is thick and cheese is melted.
6. Remove from heat, and serve. Add seasoning as needed.
7. Enjoy!

Dutch Oven Banana Bread

Ingredients:
3 Overripe bananas
1/2 C Butter softened
1 C Sugar (I used 1/2 C brown sugar & 1/2 C white sugar)
1 Egg beaten
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1.5 C Flour
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. Baking soda
Nuts optional
(extra butter and flour for creating non-stick surface)

Grease your Dutch oven with butter and then sprinkle flour over the butter to ensure the bread does not stick to the oven. In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and nuts (if you choose to add them). In a separate bowl, smash the bananas until there are no large chunks. Add the bananas, butter, and egg to the dry ingredients. Mix until well combined. Pour the mixture into the Dutch oven. Place 18 coals on the top of the oven and 6 coals underneath (3/4 of the coals should be on top). Cook for an hour rotating the Dutch oven and lid every 15 minutes.

I doubled the recipe putting some in the normal oven as well, so I probably had 1.5x what the recipe calls for in my Dutch oven. I also added a few more coals about halfway through baking because I waited too long to put my coals on and they were already very ashy when I started my bake. It turned out very good though! It was cooked evenly and I was able to turn it out of the Dutch oven without a problem.