S’More to it Than That!

by Chewy

Why anyone would want to camp in this weather is beyond me. But, hopefully, cooler weather will finally reach us and once again our nature lovers will want to pack up the tent, and all the gear that goes with it, and hit the trails. Unless you plan on eating off the yield of the land  ( a true Man, Woman, Wild adventure), food will require a great deal of forethought. Not to be overlooked are your campfire desserts.

Growing up, we did a lot of camping.  Compared to other campers, we had pretty deluxe accommodations. A three compartment tent consisted of the children’s wing, parent’s boudoir and a spacious “no man’s land” in-between. My dad created quite the traveling kitchen and dish washing system. It was almost like home. No it wasn’t. No electricity, no indoor plumbing, no refrigeration. It is why I don’t camp today!

It was, however, a great family bonding experience and I did learn a few culinary lessons germane to the outdoors. First, baked potatoes are better if you don’t leave them in the fire too long. This results in oblong charcoal briquettes. Great for starting another fire but not so much for dinner. Second, those little white round things in the fish flesh are worms. THROW THEM AWAY! Preferably bury them a great deal of distance from the camp site. Bears don’t mind the worms and, along with the disgusting fish, will grab a to-go snack from your food reserves. Third, s’mores can pass as a complete meal if all the prior events occur. Once again, never underestimate the power of the dessert!
As delicious as they are, s’mores can become a bit mundane if your dessert selection is limited to these as a nightly ritual. After a while, the time it takes to roast the perfect golden marshmallow becomes a bit tedious leading to sloppy cooking procedures. These fall into two categories. Under cooking, a gratuitous waving of the marshmallow over the flame and the flash roast, a deliberate flaming followed by the extinguishing, either by blowing it out or wildly waving around of stick. Here’s an alternative to the procedure. Grab a flour tortilla, sprinkle some mini chocolate chips and mini marshmallows on it and wrap like a burrito. Seal in some aluminum foil and place on coals until melted. Check frequently, a lesson learned from the potato debacle. Open carefully and let cool a bit.

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When you think éclair, you think campfire right? Although taking some forethought, a campfire éclair provides an alternative dessert on a stick (the traditional campfire cooking utensil).  You’re going to need some refrigerated bread stick dough (such as Pillsbury), vanilla pudding (grab a 4-pack of the already made snack packs)  and a container of chocolate cake frosting. Wrap your dough around the end of your stick in a coil and roast over fire until golden brown (golden brown is the ultimate goal of all fire roasted items).  Gently slide your bread coil off the stick. You now have a ready made center receptacle for the pudding. Spoon it in or get all fancy and pipe it in through a plastic baggie with tip cut from corner. Spread with the chocolate frosting.

Our final entry is shortcake-on-a-stick. You can make the dough ahead of time and bring it with you if you have sufficient refrigeration. If not, save this for the patio campfire. For the dough you will need 2 cups of Bisquick, 4 tablespoons of melted butter and ¼ cup of heavy cream. Mix and roll dough into 1 ½ inch balls. Flatten balls to ¼ inch and wrap around the end of your prerequisite stick. Then roast over your fire until when? Yup, golden brown. Crumble into a bowl and cover with those fresh berries you foraged from the woods. Remember, not ALL blue berries are blueberries!

After a hard day of pitching the tent, swatting the bugs, inflating the air mattresses, swatting the bugs, hanging the food (remember the bears, raccoons and other critters like people food too), finding a water source, swatting the bugs and FINALLY getting that fire started, you can bask in the warm glow and  relish your golden brown dessert!

Uprising at the Leavening Corral

by Chewy

Have you ever made the mistake of using baking powder instead of baking soda (or vice versa)? I have. Did it make a difference? I’m not sure. Can it make a difference? Apparently so, or why would they differentiate between the two. Want to know the details? Too bad, I’m going to tell you anyway.

Both baking soda and baking powder are leavening agents. When they are added to baked goodies before cooking, it produces carbon dioxide which causes them to rise. To muddy the waters a little, baking powder contains baking soda. To go all chemistry on you, (an Alton Brown-Good Eats moment) let’s take a look at their individual makeup, what the differences mean to your baking, and under what circumstances you use each.

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Baking soda is pure sodium bicarbonate. Dipping into pure baking soda, you will find it has a bitter taste. When combined with an acidic ingredient (yogurt, chocolate, honey, buttermilk, etc) it neutralizes. This results in a chemical reaction that produces bubbles of CO2 (carbon dioxide). Since this reaction starts immediately upon combining the ingredients, these recipes need to baked at once or fluffy will turn to flat. Baking soda also tends to become unstable at higher temperatures, so typical recipes would be those that don’t require long baking times, such as cookies or pancakes (ah, now you’re seeing the bubbles, right?).

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Baking powder contains sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), cream of tartar (an acidifying agent) and starch ( a drying agent). These ingredients change both the taste and the results. There are a couple of purposes for the cream of tartar. Since it is an acid it gives an overall neutral effect and recipes don’t require an acidic ingredient. It also acts as a second leavening agent and kicks in when the sodium bicarbonate becomes inactive after long exposure to heat. The starch absorbs extra moisture and prevents the sodium bicarbonate from acting too quickly. Coming in two types, single acting powders are activated by moisture and must be baked immediately, and double acting powders reacts in two phases and  can stand for a while before baking. Examples would be, cakes, muffins, biscuits and non-yeast bread (banana, zucchini, etc).

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By now you have figured out that these two items are NOT interchangeable. But here’s where all this knowledge comes in. In a pinch, you can exchange baking POWDER for baking SODA but you’ll need more of it and this may (will) affect the taste (bleak!). It’s a four to one strength exchange, so 1 teaspoon of soda would require 4 teaspoons of powder. If only it were that simple. You then have to figure in acidic ingredients, neutralizing, blah, blah, blah. Just go buy a box! You cannot substitute baking soda for baking powder. That being said, you can make your own baking powder if you have baking soda, cream of tartar and corn starch. To make 1 teaspoon of baking powder, combine ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon cream of tartar and ¼ teaspoon corn starch.

Here’s a trivia question for you; Which one lasts longer, baking powder or baking soda?
Baking soda can be passed down as an inheritance (aka, forever). Baking powder has a shelf life of about one year. If it gets wet or is stored in a humid environment it will lose potency. If you are unsure of it’s age or efficacy, simply put some in a glass of water. If you get bubbles, get baking. No fizz means a trip to the store and if I have to do that, I’m heading to the bakery.

Chocolate Shortage? Yikes!

By now, all of you  who venerate chocolate, have heard the dire news that we are heading for a serious cocoa shortage. Once again the sky is falling, or rather the sky is the limit, for cocoa prices. You know how that translates for us poor souls who NEED, as in a medical necessity, our regular dosage of chocolate (Yes, I am talking about you Counte).  Will this lead to long “chocolate” lines, a growing black market for that precious brown powder or worse yet, institutions for those unable to emotionally cope with the dearth of this serotonin booster? Not necessarily, IF we take the requisite steps now! I am not suggesting hoarding or stockpiling as this is a temporary fix leading to eventual  exhaustion of said precious product as consumed. We must take the challenge head on with lasting personal benefits.  How is this possible? Our own private cocoa tree. Never again let the fluctuating and mercurial market affect your personal indulgence. Planting, cultivating and harvesting from your own cocoa tree will ensure you of a never ending supply. It’s not as difficult as you think and even if it was, isn’t it worth the effort? Really, wouldn’t you grow diamond and gold trees too if you could?  With the following directions from eHow.com, you can laugh at the impending crisis and be the envy of your neighbor as you raise your cup of fresh hot cocoa. Viva le chocolat!



How to Grow a Cocoa Tree

Things You’ll Need

* cocoa tree seedling
* Garden Hoe
* Shade netting
* Peat moss
* Bagged compost
* 15-15-15 fertilizer   
* Cotton swab

Most of us don’t live in tropical conditions, but never fear. These can be container grown and kept in an area that doesn’t dip below 60 degrees with a humidifier to provide appropriate tropical conditions.

1) Loosen the soil down to 12 inches, spread 4 inches of peat moss and bagged compost over the loosened soil and mix in with trowel.

2)  Plant tree seedling at the same depth it was growing in the nursery container. Water until soil is thoroughly moist. Continue watering every one to two days. Always allow the soil surface to dry visibly between watering

3)  Feed the tree ¼ tsp per 1 gallon of water of a 15-15-15 soluble fertilizer during the growing season. During the winter months, do not feed.

4)  Hand pollinate if there are no insects to do the job for you. Cocoa trees will flower and produce seeds once they are 3 to 5 years old, 4 to 6 feet tall and develop multiple leaders. Touch a  cotton swab to the cocoa flower’s yellow anthers. Move to the next cocoa flower and touch the tip of the cotton swab to the flower’s white stigma. Continue process until all flowers are pollinated.

by Chewy-bacca-nista