Summer Essentials & Easy Cooking Tips for Camping or Vacations

Dirt, smores, pot guts, sleepless nights, laughs, truth or dare, campfires, hot dogs, mofia, sunsets, pine trees, hikes, dutch oven breakfast, flat air mattresses, mosquito bites, and FUN.
What do all of these things spell?
SUMMER & CAMPING
Thanks to my cute husband and father in law, we spend a few weekends a summer in the beautiful Wasatch Mountains of Utah. He even got me out camping with a 3 week old for a night--ah!Whether your family goes on a camping trip this year, or spends a nice clean weekend in a hotel, there are many ways to SAVE money on your summer vacation budget. Last summer I gave several tips and recipe ideas to help make your summer get-aways more relaxing and inexpensive. Visit the following post to find out how you can eat DELICIOUS meals while camping or spending time doing your family's favorite activities this summer. With a little meal planning and thinking ahead you can have some of the following meals with little hassle and literally NO preparation once you are to your destination.
http://dealstomeals.blogspot.com/2009/06/many-of-you-have-emailed-me-asking-for.html
TIP: Use items from your food storage/freezer and watch the weekly sales and your vacation food budget will be kept to a minimum.

Breakfast Burritos (eggs, sausage (cook up before), peppers, onions, cheese, tortillas, and hash browns).

Chicken salad, tunafish, or peanut butter and jam sandwiches.
Serve sandwiches with fruit, chips, jello or pasta salad, etc.

Shredded BBQ Pork Sandwiches, chips, vegetables/dip, fruit salad, etc.
Taco Dinner is also an easy meal to put together before your trip. Just pack taco meat (make up before), shells, taco toppings, corn, salsa, and fruit.

A favorite treat to take camping or on vacations/car trips: Peanut Pretzel Gumbo

Peanut Pretzel Gumbo

1 c. sugar

1 c. corn syrup

½ c. peanut butter

Put sugar and corn syrup in pan and boil over low for 1 minute or until sauce begins to thicken and sugar is dissolved. Take off of the heat and stir in peanut butter and pour over 5-6 c. Special K Cereal (or Corn Flakes), and 2-3 c. mini pretzels. Pour into a greased dish or a large bowl. Serve warm or cold.

One more summer tip: When camping items go on sale at your local grocery store or sporting goods store, stock up! Having a good supply of extra items for your emergency cooking needs is a great way to stay prepared for your summer BBQ's as well as a major disaster. Here are a few items I like to keep well stocked during the summer and throughout the year.

Dutch ovens, charcoal, lighter fluid, matches, and tinfoil.

Keep atleast one extra propane tank on hand for all of your grilling needs.

Camping stove fuel is a MUST have in our storage. Whichever fuel your camping stove takes, make sure and have a good supply of extras on hand for an emergency.

A few other items to make sure your family has plenty of for an emergency (and for your camping/vacation needs) are the following:
shelter (tents, tarps, stakes, etc.)
warm sleeping bags
warm clothing and rain jackets for each member of the family
warm blankets
flashlights and batteries
lanterns
heavy duty rope
sanitation needs (toilet paper, hand sanitizer, hygiene products)
first aid kit
mosquito and insect repellent
pocket knives/large knives
basic cooking supplies
2 week supply of water (for emergencies--14 gallons per person)

Hope you are having a wonderful summer and that as we prepare for our summer 'adventures' we will also think of ways we can prepare for any unexpected emergencies that may come our way :)