If you absolutely, positively can't cook worth a hoot

[gailkaitschuck]

No cooking skills?

Consider www.dreamdinners.com

I'm signing up for this. Many of the dinners come in ziplock baggies (which are provided along with all of the food/spices/recipes, etc.).

I originally thought of this for "home cooking" but it seems it would be excellent for camping too.

Gail

[asianflava]

We have 3 variations on this theme Dream Dinners, Super Suppers, and Studio Kitchen. We did Studio Kitchen, it works out great but the problem is, there is no one here (at home) that does dishes. For that matter, It was a 2 week silent treatment when I told my wife to unload the dishwasher.

I told a friend at work about it. She did Studio Kitchen and was supposed to do Dream Dinners last week. It was cancelled due to Rita (sounds familiar) and is rescheduled for this weekend. She will give me the comparison report.

[gailkaitschuck]

?Perhaps these places should also supply paper plates and plastic utensils?

I've been doing some reading on vintage camping and all the memories of summer vacations as a kid have come flooding back. Although we never actually went camping (for a period of time mom and dad looked at trailers but never bought one; perhaps the thought of cramming three rambunctious children in a 13 foot trailer was simply too abhorent to them), our vacations consisted of dragging out the roof rack, loading the family Pontiac to the gills, leaving Chicago and driving up to the 10,000 lakes of Minnesota to rent a cabin in the woods for three weeks so dad could go fishing.

During that three week period, dads activities involved getting up at 6 am to go fishing. Our activities involved swimming, bike riding, firefly hunting, campfire building (the usual summer kid stuff).

Moms activities involved cooking and cleaning. Same as at home except she was using someone else pots and pans, stove, oven and refrigerator, broom and, sometimes, vacuum cleaner. Her vacation consisted of attempting to light a gas stove she was totally unfamiliar with.

On occasion, dad would take her out fishing where she got to spend the afternoon putting the worms on the hooks and watching him cast fishing lines and drink beer. These were often short sessions because, of course, she had to be back home early to begin cooking all of us dinner.

This was long before any whimper of womens lib was heard and we just assumed this was moms job and that she enjoyed the vacation time from home cleaning and cooking in someone elses living quarters. She came back home all refreshed and ready to resume tackling her "regular" chores (in addition to cleaning all the fish that dad caught).

It's funny how those memories stay with you. I suspect if, when camping, I'm told to "rustle up some grub, woman", I'll find that a cast iron skillet makes quite a useful weapon.

Gail

[SteveH]

I'm by no means a good cook, but I'm not skinny either.

I do lots of the cooking at home (my wife works, and I' retired), but mostly from her meal planning, so it's pretty easy.

However, when we go camping, I do all the cooking. She says I built the camper and the kitchen in it, so it's mine. I'm OK with that. The worst part for me is planning the meals.

For breakfasts, I like breakfast tacos (all done in one frying pan) or something like French toast, which is pushing it because it dirtys an extra bowl. We use nothing but paper plates while camping.

Lunches usually consist of sandwiches, either the normal cold cut stuff or maybe a tuna salad that I've prepared before at home.

Evening meals usually consist of something done on the grill and canned vegetables.

Sounds yummy, right?

[TomS]

I'm the same way. Any cooking I do at home usually involves heating something up in the microwave. However, I love to cook when I'm camping. It must be one of those guy things.

Speaking of guy things...

Gail's post hit close to home. She presents a lesson that many guys, myself included, learned the hard way.

Every guy should read her comments three times. Then, turn off your computer monitors and HONESTLY asses your own contribution to the household chores.

[SteveH]

Tom,

I agree with you, and Gail is right. Especially in today's world where women are just as likely to work outside of the home as men. To burden them with all the housework on top of that is unjust.

In my defense, in addition to doing most of the cooking, I also take care of the trash, do the floors once a week, do the laundry, go grocery shopping, help with cleaning the windows, and take care of the yard.

Come to think of it, I need a raise!

[IraRat]

I cook.

But I haven't washed a plate, done a load of laundry, made the bed, or vacuumed since I got married.

I really think my wife LOVES that stuff, so I let HER do all of it!!!!

[gailkaitschuck]

Oops...didn't want to turn this into a feminist tirade.

I'm a lousy cook. Lazy too (despite being a dietitian in "real" life).

The dreamdinners thing sounds like a neat way to throw 12 meals together in under 2 hours, pack them easily into a cooler and have them ready to cook while enjoying the "real" fun of tear drops (hiking, kayaking, showing off the teardrop, shooting the bull, consuming interesting liquid concoctions, etc. etc..)

The site provides the nutritional content of each dinner with the focus on low fat, high fiber (more room for dessert and further liquid refreshment).


Gail

[oklahomajewel]

Hi all.... I like to cook, but got out of the habit and lost some interest and the then husband sorta took it over. I am a working mother and two teen boys but now divorced and we've been eating out way too much! It's too easy but $ and I'm getting sick of it, so are they.


I started dating a guy and he loves to grill and cook, and it is a lot more fun when we're in there together talking, having a glass of wine and knowing that he enjoys it (the cooking part!)

ANYHOO... your link was interesting and reminds me of something I always wanted to start doing , which was Once A Month cooking, or freezer cooking, I heard about it and got a book or two from the library .
It essentially is planning some meals, cooking what you can ahead of time, and putting a LOT of stuff in the freezer so most of the work is already done. You essentially cut all your onion and veggies, and put together some casseroles or marinades and meat, or the like and do your cooking in one day and put it in the freezer.
Big part of it is meal planning, and part of it is cooking ahead.
I have a Foodsaver vacuum system and I will say that it is great and I should use it alot more!

Don't know how this would work for the camping yet, but like now I had some hamburger I needed to use so I went ahead and browned it and mixed up some Manwhich filling. I have it frozen in one or two serving pouches so I could just pop that in the teardrop cooler and heat it up for a Saturday lunch , whether in a microwave or pot of boiling water.


Julie

[DestinDave]

Several years ago I started following Bill Phillips' Body For Life plan of exercise and nutrition. Basically you eat 5 or 6 balanced meals per day along with an intense exercise routine. In order to have the meals as needed it's almost required to fix them in advance and just nuke 'em or eat them cold. I have always cooked (through 3 marriages and a long period of singledom totalling 30 years) and I've always enjoyed having large dinner parties. It was no problem for me to cook large meals then subdivide them into Tupperware containers and freeze or refrigerate them.
Cooking like this for camping trips makes perfect sense except that I really think meals like hotdogs and burgers and grilled corn-on-the-cob and lots of cold drinks are what camping is all about. That and marshmallows on the fire. Oh, yeah, and S'mores...

[WarPony]

I LOVE cooking on the fire!! My GF and I canoe and love to eat good after a good day of paddling. I don't like stuff that takes alot of prep time at camp so I mix it all up at home and bust it out when the fire is hot! I have a Foodsaver vacuum and love that thing. Porkloin, steaks, hamburgers, potatoes, corn on the cob.............. bring it on!!

[asianflava]

Several years ago I started following Bill Phillips' Body For Life plan of exercise and nutrition. Basically you eat 5 or 6 balanced meals per day along with an intense exercise routine.

I followed BFL 2 years ago, I did really well, lost 45lbs. I got screwed up when my gym closed for a month to do rennovations. I got tired of my treadmill then got off my routine. Now I'm back to my original weight.

It seems to me that many of these diets are very similar BFL, Sugar Busters, South Beach, Atkins. They come down to exercise, reduce carbs (not remove), eat small meals several times a day. It's just that some emphasize different aspects. I was just looking at some pics when I ran a local 5K, man I was skinny (relatively) then I'll have to start again.

[billnut]

Gosh I have a Dutch Oven and a Cobb
and a Sis that loves to use them!
And we eat off paper plates. It would not work for me!!
Bill