Camp fire special!! Part 1

Writing this post is bittersweet to me. Why, you might ask? Well I left the blog, twitter, and other implements that we use to keep us going in the hands of my trusted contributors 4 days ago. I turned 21 again on the 19th of August and my friends and I decided that we want to celebrate another way rather than just going out and partying. I - a camping newbie to say the least - spent the last 4 days in the wilderness cooking over an open fire, gathering wood, and cutting it down to size with only a hatchet! So what I write here is just 2 of the creations that I came about while camping. I hope you one day will spend a few days out in the woods - hiking, biking, and sleeping on the ground. It's a joy, and relief to disconnect from the world and just be you. This officially marks the end of my summer, and will be moving back to my campus by the end of the week. But don't fear I will stay here! Without further ado, I present to you: Campfire Foil Dinners!

I apologize for not having a picture, my camera was dead.

Here's what you'll need:

• Tinfoil
• Ground Meat
• Potatoes
• Carrots
• Onions
• Garlic
• A splash of oil if on hand
• A CAMPFIRE!! (It's kinda important)

Optional:

• Garlic Powder
• Onion Powder
• Meat Tenderizer
• Seasoned Salt

First, lets wash the vegetables as best you can, with whatever clean water source you have. Don't worry about peeling anything, we're going rustic here! Spread out a fairly large piece of tinfoil onto your campsite table and if you have a bit of oil lightly grease the bottom. The next thing you will want to do is to grab your ground meat and press it flatly down on the tinfoil, leaving ample room on the edges. Next cut up the all veggies into small almost bite sized chunks and throw those on top of the meat. I unlike other campers had several spices - I mean, common.. I want full flavor! - including onion and garlic powder, meat tenderizer, and seasoned salt. I sprinkled each of those on the meat and veggies along with a bit more oil. I then tried my best to enclose the tinfoil packet with more foil.... After successfully putting 3 pieces of foil around it, I won the battle. I then placed (don't throw like usual it might break) this packet into the hot embers of the fire and let it sit. I fashioned a turning device with sticks and flipped the food every 5 minutes. After several flips, the meat was fully cooked and the veggies were amazingly soft and tender. I had myself a hot, delicious dinner. Cut open that foil, place it on the picnic table, and dig in.
Enjoy!

Vegetable Fried Rice

Want to put a spin on the same rice that you always have? Well This recipe is really easy, and I'll let you know how to do it.

Heres what you'll need:

• 4 c cold white rice
• 1 carrot
• 3 green onions
• 2 tbls oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 egg (OPTIONAL)
• 2 tbls soy sauce

First lets slice the green onions, and slice the carrots. Then in a large pan or wok heat up 2 tablespoons of oil. Once the oil is hot, throw in the carrots and allow them to cook until they are soft. Once the carrots are done, throw in the green onions next. After a minute or so, crack in egg and scramble it. This is a good time to break apart the egg into tiny pieces. Once the egg is fully cooked, throw in the rice and break that down if it is in clumps. Allow the rice to get hot, then add 1 teaspoon of sugar, and continue mixing. To finish off the rice throw in 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and mix through.

Once the soy sauce is completely mixed through and the rice is hot again, remove from heat, plate and enjoy!!

Tortellini Salad

So even though the title of this blog is "Best Served Hot" here is another salad! This is perfect for summer bbq's and to add a fun change to your run of the mill pasta dinner. Thanks to Aunt Cindy for this one, it's so delish!!!

What you'll need:

• One finely chopped medium sized red onion
• Three or four  chopped carrots
• Three or four chopped stalks of celery
• One finely chopped red pepper
• One finely chopped green pepper
• One finely chopped yellow onion
• Two pounds of tortellini cooked al dente.

Chop and mix all veggies with lite Italian dressing while tortellini cools. Mix in tortellini cover and refrigerate 2-3 hours before serving

Crispy and Crunchy Coleslaw!

Need a refreshing side dish for the summer? Don't like what you buy in the store?? Well change that now!

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 sm head of Cabbage
• 1/2 c Mayo
• About 1/2 cup Sour Cream 
• 1 Tbsp Onion Powder
• 1 Tsp Garlic Powder
• 1 Carrot
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
• Pinch of Salt and Pepper

Start by getting the mayo, sour cream, onion, garlic powder, lemon juice, salt and pepper mixed well in a medium sized bowl.  Next peel and shred the carrot and throw that into the bowl, mix well. Once the carrot is getting to know it's new neighbors, shred and separate the Cabbage. Once its all separated and into bite sized pieces, throw that into the bowl mix well, and ENJOY! It's that simple!

Lettuce Wraps

Crunchy and delicious. Super Simple. Fun and healthy.  Trifecta! : )

What you'll need:

• 1/2 Head Iceburg Lettuce
• 1lb 99% Fat Free Ground Turkey
• 1 Carrot
• 1/2 Cucumber
• 1 Handful Dry Roasted Peanuts
• 1/2 Green, Red, or Yellow Pepper
• 1 Clove Garlic
• 1/2 Jalepeno

Dipping Sauce:

• 2 tbls Hoisin Sauce
• 1 1/2 tbls Peanut Butter
• 1/4 cup Lite Soy Sauce
• 1/4 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
• 1 tsp Ginger
• 1 Clove Garlic
• Fresh Lemon
• 1 tbls Rice Wine Vinegar

Start this off with making the sauce. I like to make the sauce as a a little potent because ground turkey is very bland and flavorless and tends to soak up all the flavor of this sauce when it's cooked in. 

Very simply mince the 1 garlic clove and ginger as finely as you can. Add all the ingredients of the dipping sauce together in a mixing bowl and whisk until completely mixed or peanut butter blends completely.

Let this refrigerated while we work on everything else. Taste test...is the sauce a little salty for your taste? Add a little water and a teaspoon of sugar!

Julienne (cut into thin, long strips) the carrot, cucumber, jalepeno and peppers. In a small bowl add some Rice Wine Vinegar and let them soak. Chop up the jalepeno a little more if you're afraid of the heat.

Rise your 1/2 Head of Iceburg lettuce well and gently pull off the "cups" and arrange on a plate.

In a medium dry heated pan, add the ground turkey with the other minced garlic clove. As is begins to cook, start chopping the meat until it starts to look crumbled. Cook thoroughly for approximately 15 minutes.

Once the turkey is about 80% done, add the sauce and let it cook in. (*If you broke the rules and are using ground beef or chicken or turkey that is not 99% fat free, please drain the fat from your pan before adding the sauce we made.) Have extra sauce? Good! Put it in a small cup on the side for dipping! Continue to cook for another 5 minutes, or until the turkey is done cooking.

Then, drain the vegetables that were soaking in the Rice Wine Vinegar.

Arrange the veggie blend on a large serving plate next to a small pile of peanuts with the lettuce cups and a small cup of the dipping sauce in the center.

In a small bowl, serve the ground turkey on the side or on the plate for individual servings.

Let the fun begin by building your wraps with all your favorite pieces!


*Editors note:  I mentioned serving this with peanuts. They are supposed to be on the plate until I realized my lovely boyfriend ate them all. So, you get a dinosaur instead. Don't eat the dinosaur.

Steak Salad

This might just be the best Steak Salad you will ever have...YUMMO!!

Start this recipe earlier in the day or the night before by marinating the steak. The marinade is what makes this salad!

Marinade:

• 1/4 cup Light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
• Fresh Lemon Juice

What you will need:

• London Broil (or your favorite cut)
• Romaine Lettuce
• Corn
• Carrot
• 1/4 cup crumbled Goat Cheese
• Craisins
• Half bulb of Red Onion
• Half of a Granny Smith Apple

Make It:

As mentioned before, marinate the steak overnight. 

I don't have a grill because I live in an outdoor-less grill hating apartment. So I cook this on the stove in a frying pan. You can broil this too.

Heat your pan with a teaspoon of oil. Let the pan get hot and then add the marinated steak. We want the steak to sear and crisp up on both sides. It will hold in the moisture and be nice and juicy.

Cook approximately 5 minutes on each side on high heat. After both sides sear, lower heat to medium and cook approximately 10 more minutes on each side, depending on size and preference.

In a smaller pan, heat a teaspoon of oil and add your sliced red onion. I don't add any salt or seasoning, because there is enough in the steak marinade. Saute the onion until they become translucent. 

Slice up your cold veggies, plate them, and keep it on the side. When onions are done, add to the top of your salad. 

When the steak is done slice it nicely and lay on top of your lettuce and veggies and then top with crumbled goat cheese. 

And there you have it. Enjoy your healthy, inexpensive, delicious steak salad.

I'll get better at the picture taking eventually...