If there is one thing that can improve upon a pleasant day on the beach, fresh baked bread might be it.
My wife and I went canoeing on our very first date and I proposed to her while we were on a 72-day canoe trip to Hudson Bay. We continued to canoe-camp after getting married, but now that we have kids, I often feel like we are relearning how to enjoy it. The biggest difference is the amount of time we spend in camp. In addition to hauling a huge dry bag full of painting supplies, board games, and books, we started bringing a reflector oven, plus mixes for baking cookies, cakes, and breads.I once looked forward to camp sweets just as much as our young daughters do now. Pineapple-cherry dump cake baked in a Dutch oven was a staple of my Boy Scout troop campouts. The recipe was easy: dump a can of pineapples and cherry-pie filling in the Dutch oven, top with a cake mix, put the lid on and cover oven with coals. Dutch ovens can be used to make a wide variety of cakes, pies, and casseroles. Many are cast iron, which is way too heavy to carry on a portage, but we often use a lighter, aluminum one that heats almost as well and doubles as a frying pan.
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Comments (2)
Good article. Brings back memories of my Boy Scout days using the ovens you describe. Carolyn Shearlock publishes The Boat Galley on line. She recommended the Omnia Stove Top Baking Oven.
Just thought I would pass it on as it appears to be a fairly lightweight device that claims to be compatible with camp stoves. Full disclosure, I have never used one nor do I have stock in the company, but it does look interesting.
A kayaking buddy used to bring an aluminum Dutch oven on trips. He always rehearsed the project at home before the trip, which let him know precisely how many charcoal briquets he would need to go under the oven, and how many for the lid. At Rugged Point (Vancouver Island) one time he baked a perfect apple cinnamon coffee cake that was one of the best treats I’ve ever tasted. Of course it helped that we got to enjoy this in a campground on a beautiful beach.
photographs courtesy of the author
Good article. Brings back memories of my Boy Scout days using the ovens you describe. Carolyn Shearlock publishes The Boat Galley on line. She recommended the Omnia Stove Top Baking Oven.
Just thought I would pass it on as it appears to be a fairly lightweight device that claims to be compatible with camp stoves. Full disclosure, I have never used one nor do I have stock in the company, but it does look interesting.
A kayaking buddy used to bring an aluminum Dutch oven on trips. He always rehearsed the project at home before the trip, which let him know precisely how many charcoal briquets he would need to go under the oven, and how many for the lid. At Rugged Point (Vancouver Island) one time he baked a perfect apple cinnamon coffee cake that was one of the best treats I’ve ever tasted. Of course it helped that we got to enjoy this in a campground on a beautiful beach.