Campfire Cooking Sets

Beyond weenies: Creative campfire cuisine

Getting out of the house is the whole point of camping. You willingly trade the security of a roof and walls for the promise of waking up beside a babbling brook, a day spent absorbing the quietest silence in a piney grove, a night gawping at a sky stuffed impossibly full of stars.

Kids, braced by all the fresh air and the adrenaline spikes of unfiltered wildlife encounters, develop ravenous appetites. That's when camping can start to sound like a less good idea. Getting out of the house means you left behind the kitchen stove.

For kids, though, conjuring up a meal in the woods seems like domestic magic. That's why cooking over a campfire can make for memorable, satisfying meals. With some help from veteran campfire cooks -- an ex-camp counselor and a four-star chef who loves the outdoors -- we've gathered some preparation tips and campfire cooking wisdom to get you started.

"If you have had a long day of hiking, you're sometimes burning 5,000 or 6,000 calories. If you keep that in mind, gosh it feels good to indulge," said Valerie Baish, a chemist who started her open-fire cooking about eight years ago as a camp counselor. "Everything always tastes better when you're camping."

Planning is essential to campfire cooking. "It's the most important thing," said J.J. Richert, chef-owner at Torches on Kenmore Avenue. "If you get out there and find out you don't have something, it's really frustrating."

Your menu can run from ambitious to homey, and points in between. As befitting a chef, Richert's typical campfire meals may include dry-aged ribeye steak, skewers of shrimp and scallops anointed with cilantro mojo, canned potatoes in marinade, grilled corn with Cajun spices and grilled peaches with rum whipped cream.

On the simpler side, Baish often makes a breakfast casserole with eggs in her Dutch oven, a heavy-lidded pot that can be used for baking as well as simmering. She makes pizza bagels, wrapped in foil and laid in the coals. For dessert, she might make another foil-roasted treat: slit bananas open and stuff them with things like mini marshmallows, peanut butter or chocolate chips.

Before you go, make a list of the meals you need to have, deciding which will be cooked and which will be eaten out of prepared stores, the Pop-Tart breakfasts. Include snacks like trail mix and more substantial instant meals to reserve for rainy weather or hunger emergencies.

Learn to Camp and More at Ontario Parks | Travel Video News

Learn to Camp is a new pilot program at three provincial parks close to Toronto; Sibbald Point on Lake Simcoe, Darlington on Lake Ontario in Oshawa and Bronte Creek in Oakville. The $46 one night- two day sessions led by Ontario Parks staff teach participants how to set-up their own camp, build a campfire, and get expert advice. Most camping equipment is supplied, including a tent, cooking utensils, camp stove, dishes, campfire gear, and more. Participants bring their own bedding, food for all meals, comfortable clothing and personal items.

Besides Learn to Camp instruction, family-friendly activities are offered along with plenty of free time to enjoy the park. Further details are found at http://www.OntarioParks.com/learntocamp/index.html

Ontario is a paddlers’ paradise and for those who want to learn how to paddle, local outfitters provide instruction at many Ontario Parks. At Frontenac Provincial Park north of Kingston, for example, Flat water Introduction to Sea Kayaking is a highly recommended course taught by Frontenac Outfitters. The next course date is planned for July 9. The 7-hour workshop teaches the fundamentals of sea-kayaking including strokes, rescues and recovery skills and is open to new paddlers and those who want to refresh their skills. A kayak, paddle and other workshop equipment are included in the $175 fee. For more learn to paddle experiences in Ontario Parks, see this Parks Blog post, http://www.parkreports.com/parksblog/?p=1968

Where is Canada’s most famous painter, Tom Thomson buried? How did he die? Ever since Thomson mysteriously drowned in Algonquin Provincial Park’s Canoe Lake, locals and park visitors have been asking these questions. On August 13, they may finally get some answers at a special Algonquin CSI session planned with well-known author, Roy MacGregor. Mr. MacGregor will present forensic science and art reconstruction to prove that Thomson’s body was never removed from the park, as had been the ‘official’ account for nearly a century. Algonquin Provincial Park Outdoor Theatre, August 13, 8:00 p.m. at km 35.4

Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, one hour east of Thunder Bay, has different digital photography workshops planned this summer. A full one-day landscape photography session, for example, will run August 20 and is priced at just $59. This workshop is adaptable to various skill levels for both DSLR and point and shoot cameras. Topics discussed will include camera settings and controls, white balance and lighting, how to use a histogram, working with depth of field and composing landscape images. Full workshop details and online registration is found at http://www.superiorvisits.

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