Why Cooking Outside is Good for the Soul

I’ve been working too much lately - so much that when I stop working, my brain just shuts off and I have to wait several minutes for it to reboot. One way to give my brain a serious rest is to turn off the real computer, hide the blackberry, and get outside where I can cook over an open fire.

This past weekend, I went camping. Camping was one of the top 5 reasons (after being near family, of course) why I moved back to the Northwest after living in New York City.  After living without a car for nearly 8 years, I realize that it’s not easy for a lot of people to spend time in the outdoors. However, it takes just a little creativity to find ways to prepare a meal outside (anyone that’s ventured through Prospect Park in Brooklyn on the weekend can attest to this).

Whether it means having a picnic at a nearby park, barbecuing in the backyard or backpacking in the wilderness - I think it’s human nature to crave a meal by a fire, surrounded by friends and family. I mentioned the concept in my “Can Cooking Make You Happier?” post and it was reinforced this past weekend while we sat around the campfire, laughing, eating and decompressing.

The importance of eating together as a family has been getting a lot of press lately. With hectic weekday schedules, it can be a challenge to get the whole family together, let alone coordinate with friends and extended family. But with summer finally here and families looking for inexpensive dining options, I can’t find a more relaxing and fun way to get together than to eat a meal outside underneath the stars.

While camping this past weekend, I saw a couple of boys, clearly city kids, having a blast racing tiny cars down a hill over and over again. I asked them if they were having more fun than if they were at home watching TV and they both looked up with huge smiles on their faces and said, “YEAH!”

Outside, sitting with the trees, I found it was much easier to “shut down” the part of my brain that worries about work, bills, projects, etc. And after we ate, I didn’t have the compulsion to turn on the TV or check my computer and blackberry. Instead, we all sat around and talked about nothing of any real importance. The only important thing going on was hanging out with each other and watching the fire cackle.

And of course, the best part of the evening was eating the food we prepared on open fire! Earthy, strong flavors never tasted so good.

So, here’s to cooking outside.  Here are some Campfire Cooking ideas (for mostly car camping):

MARINADES: I called my friend, Elana, expert camping cook, for some ideas and she said they usually bring marinated beef or chicken in a ziploc bag to throw right on top of the grill. They serve the meal along with some Farmer’s Market vegetables and guacamole and chips.

WRAPPED FOOD: Try baked potatoes, portobello mushrooms, or corn wrapped in foil and thrown right into the fire. I love grilled corn - it has such a great flavor versus the usual boiling option but it’s easy to burn so keep it to the side of the flame or throw it on top of the grill to prevent serious damage. Be sure to bring tongs or some other tool to maneuver the hot food.

ON A STICK: The easy route? Hotdogs. The more gourmet, healthy option? Meat and vegetable kebabs. Cut the meat and vegetables at home and marinate them in a ziploc - keep them separate so that vegetarians can make their own meat-free kebabs. If you are able to properly wash your hands, skewer them there at the site and then grill. Also, a few years ago I discovered how tasty grilled bananas on-a-stick with melted chocolate taste together. Or try grilling pineapple (or other fruits) and serving as is - delicious all by itself. And of course, s’mores are a camping necessity!

PAN ON THE GRILL: Bring along a large skillet - preferably iron, since it’s heavy enough to not be destroyed by the hot flames and will cook food evenly. You can cook pretty much anything you’d cook at home - but note how much more flavorful it tastes. Elana loves to make fajitas for dinner and then in the morning, prepares breakfast burritos. She scrambles eggs in the pan and then wraps them in tortillas with cheese and tops it with guacamole. That way, they have enough sustenance to go hiking all day with only a light lunch on the trail.

HAPPY TRAILS!

For more ideas, check out the Campfire Dude.