Whew, finally got all the new camping gear put away, and realized I forgot to post my opinion on the Bob's Red Mill 5 Grain Rolled Cereal. Like I mentioned before, it looks like large flake oats, but in reality has 5 grains, as the name implies.
Taste wise, it was a little different than oatmeal, but not jarringly so. Depending on the flavour additions you choose, you might not notice a difference at all. I only added some brown sugar and chopped pecans.
The texture was a little different. Some of the flakes obviously soften more than oats do. It wasn't a negative though.
I'll eat it again, no problems. The only issue some might have with it is the instructions say to simmer 10-15 minutes. I don't think I cooked it that long (it would have burned if I had) but for anyone on a longer trip, who's worried about fuel consumption, it might be a concern. The increase in fiber (20% of your daily recommended amount) and the addition of flaxseed boosts it's nutritional value compared to many other hot cereals, so its worth trying.
Monday, January 14, 2013
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Trying to outfit a family with X-country skis for cheap
It shouldn't have been such a big deal. My mum already had several pairs of skis for us to choose from, one's she'd bought at yard sales over the past few years, so really, all we needed were boots to fit the family. (She had bought 1 pair that fit Chris and a pair that might have fit Squatch, but then they moved and now those boots have disappeared.
I just want to say that someone should slap whoever's idea it was to have about a dozen different type of bindings for X-country skiing. When I was a kid, there were the 3 pin kind that had shoe type boots that looked like they had a duck bill on the front. Now there are all these ones with bars on the front, which look almost the same, but have enough small differences that finding a match between boot and binding leaves you feeling like Prince Charming on a search for Cinderella.
We started our search last year, and it didn't get very far because the skis were still at my parents and we didn't know what they had...this fall we brought home the skis and started hunting second hand shops for boots.
It took two months, and finally we ended up buying one new pair of boots for bubbie, a pair of used boots with skis for me (the only pair that fit me came as part of a set), and used boots for Squatch. The process required switching bindings between 8 pairs of yard sale skis, and a whole lot of headaches.
So yesterday, Chris and I went out for a short trip around Ken Reid in Lindsay. He spent a lot of time down hill skiing as a kid since they lived minutes away from Sir Sam's Ski Hill in Eagle Lake but had never tried X-country. I was a little worried, after all that effort, and expense (more than we'd planned) he'd decide 5 minutes in that he really wasn't fond of it. The trail conditions weren't great for an introductory trip. Ice would catch at the ski every few feet and either one leg would slide out sideways or it would just jerk you to a stop making balance difficult.
But Chris isn't one to give up and our short loop ended up being much longer than we'd planned. I hadn't skied since I was about 12, and was huffing and puffing like I'd just hiked a steep incline, and he looked like he'd just been standing around. (Needless to say, I need to get into better shape) and he probably would have kept going if it hadn't been for me dragging myself along behind him.
Now we just have to introduce the kids to the sport...and that is a prospect I'm half dreading. Anyone have any advice for getting kids into X-country skiing? Other than being patient?
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Hot Cereal Options
In perusing various blogs I've noticed that oatmeal is a breakfast staple when camping. I'm assuming it's because it's easy to buy already portioned out, and is cheap, light weight, and easy to make when at camp.
If you've been following my posts you'll see I've been experimenting with mixing up oatmeal (not from packets though...) and have had mixed results. The thing is, in attempting to eat oatmeal every morning for those experiments, I've come to the realization that if I was on a week long trip, or longer, I'd come to hate oatmeal pretty quickly.
At home, I like a variety of other hot cereals, and wonder why they rarely seem to show up on people's lists of camp meals.
Cream of Wheat - You can buy this in single serve pouches just like instant oatmeal, but lets be honest...it's not all that tasty. I usually drop a few scoops of blueberry baby food into it, and it's much better. I don't see why you couldn't dehydrate baby food into fruit leather so it's good for the trail. Or you could mix in some jam from a little packet. The draw back? Apparently, it's severely lacking in fibre, so it's not such a great choice. I remember at one time there was a whole wheat option, and Bob's Red Mill has Organic Whole Wheat Farina (which is what Cream of Wheat is...) so I'm going to give that a try and see if it's any good.
Red River - (or variations on the theme...) You can get lots of mixed grain hot cereals, from 5 grain to 12 grain and they are a favourite of ours (except Bubbie of course.) Squatch will eat two or three servings of it himself. This one is the highest in fibre of the hot cereals (24% of your daily requirement I think.) The drawback for this one is that clean up is a pain in the butt. I'm going to give the Ziploc bag/cozy method a try with it though.
Oat Bran - I tried this for the first time when I was in the hospital after having Squatch and loved it. A little brown sugar, some chopped pecans and yum. It's also super healthy, high in fibre and it's really easy to make as well. I'll give it a try with the bag/cosy too.
Granola - Normally, I only eat granola on top of my yogurt, but I also love it with milk, and I know you can make it a hot cereal as well, and there's a ton of ways to make your own to your own tastes...plus you can eat it plain out of the bag, which makes it extremely versatile.
After browsing through the Bob's Red Mill website I've found a ton more options, including one that's definitely going on my must try list - Peppy Kernels Hot Cereal. Also, there's one that's like large flake oats, but it's also got other grains in it (5 grain rolled hot cereal) I had to try five different stores to find this, and will let you know how it was tomorrow after I've tried some.
I know there are recipes for breakfasts using millet, quinoa, rice and pretty much any grain you can think of...kind of makes me wonder why you'd want to eat instant oatmeal every morning...
If you've been following my posts you'll see I've been experimenting with mixing up oatmeal (not from packets though...) and have had mixed results. The thing is, in attempting to eat oatmeal every morning for those experiments, I've come to the realization that if I was on a week long trip, or longer, I'd come to hate oatmeal pretty quickly.
At home, I like a variety of other hot cereals, and wonder why they rarely seem to show up on people's lists of camp meals.
Cream of Wheat - You can buy this in single serve pouches just like instant oatmeal, but lets be honest...it's not all that tasty. I usually drop a few scoops of blueberry baby food into it, and it's much better. I don't see why you couldn't dehydrate baby food into fruit leather so it's good for the trail. Or you could mix in some jam from a little packet. The draw back? Apparently, it's severely lacking in fibre, so it's not such a great choice. I remember at one time there was a whole wheat option, and Bob's Red Mill has Organic Whole Wheat Farina (which is what Cream of Wheat is...) so I'm going to give that a try and see if it's any good.
Red River - (or variations on the theme...) You can get lots of mixed grain hot cereals, from 5 grain to 12 grain and they are a favourite of ours (except Bubbie of course.) Squatch will eat two or three servings of it himself. This one is the highest in fibre of the hot cereals (24% of your daily requirement I think.) The drawback for this one is that clean up is a pain in the butt. I'm going to give the Ziploc bag/cozy method a try with it though.
Oat Bran - I tried this for the first time when I was in the hospital after having Squatch and loved it. A little brown sugar, some chopped pecans and yum. It's also super healthy, high in fibre and it's really easy to make as well. I'll give it a try with the bag/cosy too.
Granola - Normally, I only eat granola on top of my yogurt, but I also love it with milk, and I know you can make it a hot cereal as well, and there's a ton of ways to make your own to your own tastes...plus you can eat it plain out of the bag, which makes it extremely versatile.
After browsing through the Bob's Red Mill website I've found a ton more options, including one that's definitely going on my must try list - Peppy Kernels Hot Cereal. Also, there's one that's like large flake oats, but it's also got other grains in it (5 grain rolled hot cereal) I had to try five different stores to find this, and will let you know how it was tomorrow after I've tried some.
I know there are recipes for breakfasts using millet, quinoa, rice and pretty much any grain you can think of...kind of makes me wonder why you'd want to eat instant oatmeal every morning...
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Day Trip: Snowshoeing and skating at Arrowhead Provincial Park
New Years Eve at Arrowhead...in one word...busy! The place was packed with skiers, and families checking out the skating trail. We didn't want to have to try and rent skis since the gatehouse was packed with people trying to do just that, so we stuck with our snowshoes and did the Stubb's Falls Trail.
If you'll remember, we hiked to Stubb's Falls from our campsite last Mother's Day and spent forever there taking pictures. It's just as awesome in the winter, in many ways maybe more so. The water level hadn't gone down at all, which was a bit unexpected. There was lots of it frothing over the ledges and cutting it's way through blue tinted ice. We took a whole bunch of pictures again.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. The trail can be accessed at one of two places, either the first parking area after the bridge, or the next road which also is an access point for ski trails and the skating trail. We chose the first, and crossed the road and followed the trail until we came to where the Stubb's Falls Trail meets up with the second parking area. For a while, skiers, skaters and snowshoers are all going side by side, but after a bit, the skate trail turns off and then further down the official ski trail does as well (though other trails meet up with it again by the Falls them self.)
Point of irritation...the stairs you must descend to get to the bridge over the falls means you have to take off your snowshoes. Now, this wasn't a problem for the adults. Our snowshoes are relatively quick to get done back up, but Squatch's took us ages since they are just a bit too small, so Chris opted to carry him down the steps.
The truth is, you don't need snowshoes. The trail is packed and easy to walk on, at least it was for our trip. We ended up carrying them for the last half of the loop since we were always passing people in sneakers and felt kind of stupid.
After we got back to the car, we decided to try out the skating trail. The trail is 1.1km of flooded road looping between road two and three of the Little East River Campground. Bubbie had to rent skates, and swears they were dull as a kitchen knife, so it took us forever to make one circuit. Chris and Squatch made two more after us girls limped our way back to the picnic tables to sit around the fire and get warm.
There were a few handy warming shelters where you could sit and eat your lunch. The one we stepped into was full so we didn't stick around but I did notice there were racks hanging over the wood stove for people to put their hats and mitts, giving them a bit of drying time.
Unfortunately, the tubing hill was closed but I don't know why. There seemed to be lots of snow, but the girls at the gate house were looking pretty harassed so I didn't want to bother them for details. I highly recommend making Arrowhead a destination for winter fun though. The skating trail was very cool, and there are certain nights the loop is lit by tiki torches which would be very awesome. There is also a lot of cross country ski trails ranging from beginner to expert. Rentals are available, and the cost of entering the park ($14) is included in the cost of your trail pass (something like $33 for a family of four) so it's a bit more expensive to ski than the other options.
I am a little surprised they charge extra for trail use though. I did a quick check to see if Algonquin does, and found there's no extra charge. I'm wondering if maybe they need to charge to justify having staff on at times other than Christmas holidays. Algonquin is going to have a fairly steady flow of people, but I'm guessing not many people know about the trails at Arrowhead. It's too bad because for people coming from the city, it's easier to go up Highway 11 and get to Arrowhead than it is to get to Algonquin.
Personally, I prefer it when there isn't a ton of people around, so I'm hoping we get back up there on a random weekend to see how busy it is. It would be nice to be able to take pictures of the falls without having to try and frame it to keep a dozen strangers out of the shot, or to have every skier we passed tell our kids to not step on the ski trail with their snowshoes (when I'd already told them that before we got out of the car, and they weren't near the ski track anyway.) It would have been nice to have been able to sit in the warming shelter and eat lunch (not that we packed one...Mum brought a bag full of peppermint patties, and that was all we had, not even drinks. We're really going to need to work on preparing for these trips better)
All said though, Arrowhead is a nice place to spend a snowy winter day, and I highly recommend it to anyone.
On a side note, I have pictures to post, but am having trouble getting them from iPhoto to the blog on my new computer...I'll figure that out and post them separately.
If you'll remember, we hiked to Stubb's Falls from our campsite last Mother's Day and spent forever there taking pictures. It's just as awesome in the winter, in many ways maybe more so. The water level hadn't gone down at all, which was a bit unexpected. There was lots of it frothing over the ledges and cutting it's way through blue tinted ice. We took a whole bunch of pictures again.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. The trail can be accessed at one of two places, either the first parking area after the bridge, or the next road which also is an access point for ski trails and the skating trail. We chose the first, and crossed the road and followed the trail until we came to where the Stubb's Falls Trail meets up with the second parking area. For a while, skiers, skaters and snowshoers are all going side by side, but after a bit, the skate trail turns off and then further down the official ski trail does as well (though other trails meet up with it again by the Falls them self.)
Point of irritation...the stairs you must descend to get to the bridge over the falls means you have to take off your snowshoes. Now, this wasn't a problem for the adults. Our snowshoes are relatively quick to get done back up, but Squatch's took us ages since they are just a bit too small, so Chris opted to carry him down the steps.
The truth is, you don't need snowshoes. The trail is packed and easy to walk on, at least it was for our trip. We ended up carrying them for the last half of the loop since we were always passing people in sneakers and felt kind of stupid.
After we got back to the car, we decided to try out the skating trail. The trail is 1.1km of flooded road looping between road two and three of the Little East River Campground. Bubbie had to rent skates, and swears they were dull as a kitchen knife, so it took us forever to make one circuit. Chris and Squatch made two more after us girls limped our way back to the picnic tables to sit around the fire and get warm.
There were a few handy warming shelters where you could sit and eat your lunch. The one we stepped into was full so we didn't stick around but I did notice there were racks hanging over the wood stove for people to put their hats and mitts, giving them a bit of drying time.
Unfortunately, the tubing hill was closed but I don't know why. There seemed to be lots of snow, but the girls at the gate house were looking pretty harassed so I didn't want to bother them for details. I highly recommend making Arrowhead a destination for winter fun though. The skating trail was very cool, and there are certain nights the loop is lit by tiki torches which would be very awesome. There is also a lot of cross country ski trails ranging from beginner to expert. Rentals are available, and the cost of entering the park ($14) is included in the cost of your trail pass (something like $33 for a family of four) so it's a bit more expensive to ski than the other options.
I am a little surprised they charge extra for trail use though. I did a quick check to see if Algonquin does, and found there's no extra charge. I'm wondering if maybe they need to charge to justify having staff on at times other than Christmas holidays. Algonquin is going to have a fairly steady flow of people, but I'm guessing not many people know about the trails at Arrowhead. It's too bad because for people coming from the city, it's easier to go up Highway 11 and get to Arrowhead than it is to get to Algonquin.
Personally, I prefer it when there isn't a ton of people around, so I'm hoping we get back up there on a random weekend to see how busy it is. It would be nice to be able to take pictures of the falls without having to try and frame it to keep a dozen strangers out of the shot, or to have every skier we passed tell our kids to not step on the ski trail with their snowshoes (when I'd already told them that before we got out of the car, and they weren't near the ski track anyway.) It would have been nice to have been able to sit in the warming shelter and eat lunch (not that we packed one...Mum brought a bag full of peppermint patties, and that was all we had, not even drinks. We're really going to need to work on preparing for these trips better)
All said though, Arrowhead is a nice place to spend a snowy winter day, and I highly recommend it to anyone.
On a side note, I have pictures to post, but am having trouble getting them from iPhoto to the blog on my new computer...I'll figure that out and post them separately.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Not as cool as I'd thought...
So, a month ago, I saw bags of heirloom carrots in the grocery store...you know, the ones that come in colours other than the normal orange? I thought it would be awesome to dehydrate them and add them to the kid's ramen noodles along with dried corn, celery etc. This way at least there's some vegetables in the meal, plus, I love the purple carrots.
In theory, a cool idea...but when you rehydrate them, some of the colour comes out of the purple pieces and turns everything you cook with them a gross blue-grey colour. It doesn't change the taste or anything, but ramen ends up looking like zombie brains or something. Ugh. Lesson learned.
In theory, a cool idea...but when you rehydrate them, some of the colour comes out of the purple pieces and turns everything you cook with them a gross blue-grey colour. It doesn't change the taste or anything, but ramen ends up looking like zombie brains or something. Ugh. Lesson learned.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Three Sister's Soup
I apologize for not posting this sooner. I've had a few days of internet issues, and the hamster escaped...in my office. The whole room got torn apart as we chased him down, so until I got it all reorganized, I couldn't get to the computer. I still have a narrow path through boxes, it's sort of a treacherous journey getting over here, but since all the kids' unwrapped Christmas presents are hidden under my desk, I couldn't let anyone else help.
Anyway, I did try this recipe from The Complete Trail Food Cookbook and it was alright. I think I'd go a little lighter on the thyme and add a tsp of vegetable soup base (without any MSG) and see how it works.
My only issue with it is that it tells you to let the ingredients soak for 20 minutes then simmer for another 10-15. I'd like to try it with a cosy (when I make one) and see if it works that way simply for fuel conservation.
THREE SISTER'S SOUP
2 tbsp dried corn kernels
2 tbsp dried green bean pieces
2 tbsp dried winter squash pieces
1 tbsp dried potato slices, crumbled
2 tsp dried onion pieces
2 tsp dried celery slices
1/2 tsp dried parsley, crumbled
1/4 tsp dried minced garlic
1/4 tsp crumbled dried thyme
1/4 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 cups water
Soak the ingredients in the water for 20 minutes than bring to a boil and simmer 10-15 minutes. The book says once you mix the ingredients, they only have a shelf life of a month (I imagine freezing them would give you more time.)
For anyone who's interested, the dried ingredients weighed 1.1 oz and fit easily into a snack size zip top bag.
Anyway, I did try this recipe from The Complete Trail Food Cookbook and it was alright. I think I'd go a little lighter on the thyme and add a tsp of vegetable soup base (without any MSG) and see how it works.
My only issue with it is that it tells you to let the ingredients soak for 20 minutes then simmer for another 10-15. I'd like to try it with a cosy (when I make one) and see if it works that way simply for fuel conservation.
THREE SISTER'S SOUP
2 tbsp dried corn kernels
2 tbsp dried green bean pieces
2 tbsp dried winter squash pieces
1 tbsp dried potato slices, crumbled
2 tsp dried onion pieces
2 tsp dried celery slices
1/2 tsp dried parsley, crumbled
1/4 tsp dried minced garlic
1/4 tsp crumbled dried thyme
1/4 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 cups water
Soak the ingredients in the water for 20 minutes than bring to a boil and simmer 10-15 minutes. The book says once you mix the ingredients, they only have a shelf life of a month (I imagine freezing them would give you more time.)
For anyone who's interested, the dried ingredients weighed 1.1 oz and fit easily into a snack size zip top bag.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
What experiments to try next
I've been busy drying ingredients so I can try out a few of the recipes from The Complete Trail food Cookbook and have finally managed to get a good basic assortment of dried vegetables. My goal today is to try making Three Sister's Soup. I'll post later with my thoughts on how it worked out.
I've also been busy browsing my recipe books in search of meals that can be adapted for camping, whether that be something with minimal prep for car camping, or something that can be dehydrated and taken canoe camping or backpacking.
The first step will be to try the recipe as is, at home, and see how it passes the kiddy test. If that goes well (and I don't get my hopes up...you may have noticed Bubbie is a bit picky) then I'll break it down and see if its better to make the recipe as a whole and dry it, or dry the ingredients individually. I haven't really gotten to this part yet, which really depresses me. I'm starting to think I never will. So far I've tried three recipes that looked like they had a lot of potential for camp food. One would have been awesome in the dutch oven, and the other two I'm pretty sure could have been modified for backpacking. As always, three out of the four of us liked it, and one merely nibbled a bite smaller than a mouse would eat and pushed it away. Something tells me she'll be eating a lot of instant rice and spaghetti on camping trips.
On the other hand, last year on our Mew Lake trip, she ate things I didn't think she'd eat, and not only ate them, but went back for seconds and thirds. I don't know if the trick is to only let her try things at camp, or if that was a fluke. I know there's that magic "all food tastes awesome at camp" phenomena....hmmm
Anyway, lots of drying going on here, and there should be some good experiments over the next few days. One recipe I want to try modifying this week is called Caribbean potato and kidney bean curry. The picture looked good anyway...but then they always do, don't they?
I've also been busy browsing my recipe books in search of meals that can be adapted for camping, whether that be something with minimal prep for car camping, or something that can be dehydrated and taken canoe camping or backpacking.
The first step will be to try the recipe as is, at home, and see how it passes the kiddy test. If that goes well (and I don't get my hopes up...you may have noticed Bubbie is a bit picky) then I'll break it down and see if its better to make the recipe as a whole and dry it, or dry the ingredients individually. I haven't really gotten to this part yet, which really depresses me. I'm starting to think I never will. So far I've tried three recipes that looked like they had a lot of potential for camp food. One would have been awesome in the dutch oven, and the other two I'm pretty sure could have been modified for backpacking. As always, three out of the four of us liked it, and one merely nibbled a bite smaller than a mouse would eat and pushed it away. Something tells me she'll be eating a lot of instant rice and spaghetti on camping trips.
On the other hand, last year on our Mew Lake trip, she ate things I didn't think she'd eat, and not only ate them, but went back for seconds and thirds. I don't know if the trick is to only let her try things at camp, or if that was a fluke. I know there's that magic "all food tastes awesome at camp" phenomena....hmmm
Anyway, lots of drying going on here, and there should be some good experiments over the next few days. One recipe I want to try modifying this week is called Caribbean potato and kidney bean curry. The picture looked good anyway...but then they always do, don't they?
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