More than S’mores: Campfire Recipes

We love to go camping and we always eat better camping than we do at home. And by better, I mean better tasting, not necessarily better nutritionally! I spend most of my time at our campsite planning, preparing or cleaning up meals. That may sound exhausting, but it isn’t; I absolutely love it. We hike and swim and ride bikes, too, and I always spend a little time reading in the hammock. But my favorite thing about camping is the food! Even if you don’t actually go camping, you can still enjoy the amazing campfire meals right at home!

Here are some of our very favorite campfire meals. You can cook these over a grill, in the oven, over a bonfire, or over a campfire! Some of our best memories are camping and I hope you will venture out and sleep under the stars, even if it is just in your back yard!

Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:

• 1 bag frozen hash browns or tater tots
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 large container of egg beaters or 8 large eggs, beaten
• 1 lb. of sausage, browned
• 2 cups cheddar cheese
• sour cream
• jalapeños
• salsa
• salt/pepper to taste

Directions:

In iron Dutch oven (or casserole dish if cooking inside), layer potatoes, peppers, onions, sausage, and eggs. Meanwhile, start about 20-30 charcoals. Once they are hot (grey in color), separate about 10 coals and put the Dutch oven over remaining coals. Place the 10 coals on top of Dutch oven and allow to cook about 30 minutes. Remove coals from top and then remove lid. Put the cheese on top of the casserole, replace lid and coals, and allow to cook about 10-15 minutes, until cheese is melted and eggs are cooked through. I always brown any meat at home and chill it before we leave, and chop up any veggies ahead of time, too. This saves prep time and dish washing at the campsite. Serve with sour cream, jalapeños, and salsa. Delicious!

Blueberry Pancakes

These pancakes are absolutely the best! I cook them on our camp stove or on my iron griddle over the fire. Mix all the dry ingredients up ahead of time and store the mix in a sealed container that you can add the liquid to at the campsite and then just shake it up. Easy. Peasy.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup corn meal
• 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, plus some for the top
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled
• real maple syrup

Directions:

Mix all the dry ingredients up ahead of time and put them in a container that leaves enough room for the rest of the ingredients to be added at the campsite. Before cooking, add the milk and egg to your dry mix and shake it up, then add the blueberries. Cook however you like; I use butter and an iron skillet over the fire or on the camp stove. You’ll know when it is time to turn them because you will see bubbles form on the edges. Serve with butter, blueberries and maple syrup.

HOBO Packs

These are the most fun, and you can put anything you choose in them. You make little pouches out of tin foil and then just toss them on the fire or hot coals. Let them cook 20-30 minutes and then pull them off and serve. Easiest camp meals you will ever have, especially if you put them together at home before you leave and just throw them in the cooler until you are ready to cook.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. chicken thighs (or meat of choice, sausage or steak work well, too)
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 1 green pepper, sliced
• red potatoes, sliced (two per hobo pack, so about 12 if you have six chicken thighs)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil
• steak sauce or sour cream for topping

Directions:

Make a pocket out of aluminum foil by cutting a large rectangle and folding in half. Place potatoes, chicken, onion, garlic, pepper, olive oil, and salt and pepper, and then seal up all the sides of the tin foil so that none of the oil can escape and forms a nice steamy pack. Place in hot fire (we make up hot coals and just throw the packs on top) for 45 minutes or until chicken and potatoes are cooked thoroughly. Serve with steak sauce or sour cream.

Lemon Pepper Wings

Ingredients:

• 4 pounds wings — I get a huge frozen bag at the grocery store
• 1 stick of butter, softened
• Mrs. Dash lemon pepper seasoning

Directions:

Grill wings on campfire or grill. Then toss in butter and ½ of the Mrs. Dash. Enjoy! You can deep-fry these in the Dutch oven, but it is much more work and they don’t taste nearly as good as cooking them on the grill or fire!

Fruit Cobbler in Dutch Oven

Ingredients:

• fruit pie filling (two large cans of fruit of your choice; we like peach or blackberry)
• yellow cake mix
• butter, 1 stick
• ice cream or whip cream for topping (optional)

Directions:

Be sure to season your Dutch oven with oil or baking spray, and heat about 20 coals. Place two large cans of fruit pie filling in the Dutch oven. Then pour dry cake mix over top. Take butter and place slices on top of cake batter evenly. Place lid on the Dutch oven and put over hot coals, placing half the coals on top. Cook for about 45 minutes, checking a few times to make sure it doesn’t burn. Top with ice cream or whipped cream. Clean your Dutch oven out as soon as it is cool enough because this can make a big mess! But it is worth it!

There you have them — recipes perfect for cooking over a campfire or at home! I hope you enjoy them as much as my family does!