Ahhhhhh... the Dutch Oven
Well, as I threatened you in the previous post that we'll delve into the Dutch oven this time around:
Dutch oven cooking can turn into an addictive pastime, either at home or out on the range. It can involve almost any culinary style, from dumping in a bunch of hopefully compatible ingredients to make a quick 'n easy hearty camp meal, to finessing ingredients, herbs, and spices that would rival the offerings of some of the finest eateries around.
Dutch Oven:
Lodge is the Cadillac of camp Dutch ovens here in the U.S. Camp Chef is also well known. (Disclaimer: Camp Chef D.Os. are made in China, but under stricter specs.) Beware though of cheaper offerings -- mostly made in China -- that aren't built to American made tolerances such as Lodge. The foreign ovens are a crap shoot, with many units having ill-fitting lids that allow precious heat and steam to escape. Plus, many don't come pre seasoned like Lodge ovens deliver. Again, the adage applies: "You get what you pay for."
Slowly, over time, I'll be trying out camp recipes that if I subjectively like, will share under Recipes. The first one to go up is Andy's Dutch Oven Cherry Cobbler with Vanilla Cream Cheese. I took naming rights, as this recipe is an amalgam of different cobbler and dump cake recipes I found online, incorporating ideas from several I found especially appealing.
Cobblers, or dump cakes as they're commonly referred to in camp D.O. circles, are super easy to make. The name dump cake comes from the action of dumping in all ingredients into the D.O., covering, and baking. My cobbler isn't technically a dump cake, as one needs to side prep the vanilla cream cheese/yummy goody stuff before adding it to the pot.
For those who are feeling especially frisky and wish to try out the recipe but don't have a Dutch oven, it can be baked in a conventional oven using a glass baking pan, oven set to 350°, and baked for roughly 35 - 40 minutes.
¡BON APPETIT!
Dutch oven cooking can turn into an addictive pastime, either at home or out on the range. It can involve almost any culinary style, from dumping in a bunch of hopefully compatible ingredients to make a quick 'n easy hearty camp meal, to finessing ingredients, herbs, and spices that would rival the offerings of some of the finest eateries around.
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Typical Dutch oven (D.O.) design for use with coals.
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Cooking directly with coals
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Cooking over a campfire using a tripod
Dutch Oven:
Lodge is the Cadillac of camp Dutch ovens here in the U.S. Camp Chef is also well known. (Disclaimer: Camp Chef D.Os. are made in China, but under stricter specs.) Beware though of cheaper offerings -- mostly made in China -- that aren't built to American made tolerances such as Lodge. The foreign ovens are a crap shoot, with many units having ill-fitting lids that allow precious heat and steam to escape. Plus, many don't come pre seasoned like Lodge ovens deliver. Again, the adage applies: "You get what you pay for."
Slowly, over time, I'll be trying out camp recipes that if I subjectively like, will share under Recipes. The first one to go up is Andy's Dutch Oven Cherry Cobbler with Vanilla Cream Cheese. I took naming rights, as this recipe is an amalgam of different cobbler and dump cake recipes I found online, incorporating ideas from several I found especially appealing.
Cobblers, or dump cakes as they're commonly referred to in camp D.O. circles, are super easy to make. The name dump cake comes from the action of dumping in all ingredients into the D.O., covering, and baking. My cobbler isn't technically a dump cake, as one needs to side prep the vanilla cream cheese/yummy goody stuff before adding it to the pot.
For those who are feeling especially frisky and wish to try out the recipe but don't have a Dutch oven, it can be baked in a conventional oven using a glass baking pan, oven set to 350°, and baked for roughly 35 - 40 minutes.
¡BON APPETIT!
