Backpacker Magazine – February 2001

Organize Your Backpacking Trip

Meet Jamie and Joe, who need help with everything from planning to packing to eating well. Enter our team of experts, with a few simple tricks designed to turn them-and you!-into well-oiled backpacking machines.

by: Michele Morris

Tags:
• Skills
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• Technique
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• Camping
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• Adventures
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• Weekends
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• Vacations
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The 3-Day, Two-Person Meal Planner
	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Breakfast	At home or on the road	Lemon-Raisin Bars	Lemon-Raisin Bars
Lunch	On the road	Light and Lively	Traditional Filling Fare
Dinner	Cashew-Ginger Chicken and Rice	Dorcas's Trail Chili	Road-trip pigout
Dessert	Mincemeat Pudding	S'mores In A Bag

Recipes

Dinner Entree

Cashew-Ginger Chicken and Rice

Recipe Ingredients

• 2/3 Cup raw cashews
• 1 1/4 Cups freeze-dried corn
• 3 Tablespoons chopped dehydrated onion
• 1 1/2 Cups instant brown rice
• 6 thinly sliced dried mushrooms
• 1 Ounce Coconut Ginger soup mix
• 5 Ounces can chicken in water

Serves: 2

At Home: Spread nuts on a cookie sheet and toast at 300ºF for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool, then store in a zipper-lock plastic bag. Combine corn, onion, rice, and mushrooms, plus seasoning packet, in a second zipper-lock plastic bag.

In Camp: Place bagged corn mixture and chicken in a pot and cover with water; mix well. Bring to a boil; simmer 5 minutes (adding more water as needed) or until done. Garnish with nuts.

Calories: 884
Carbohydrates: 128
Fat: 24.896
Protein: 33.863
Saturated Fat: 5.701

Dinner Entree

Dorcas's Trail Chili

Recipe Ingredients

• 22 1/2 Ounces kidney beans
• 1 box dehydrated vegetarian chili mix
• 1 Ounce dry-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• 1 Dash hot sauce (to taste)
• 2 Ounces Cheddar cheese
• 30 corn chips

Serves: 2

At Home: Drain and rinse kidney beans, then dry in dehydrator or oven. Package in a zipper-lock plasic bag with chili mix and tomatoes.

In Camp: Pour contents of plastic bag in pot with 7 cups water. Stir well. Let stand 15 minutes to allow ingedients to rehydrate (add water if necessary; ingredients shouldn't be above waterline). Bring to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes, until ingredients are completely hydrated, stirring continuously to prevent sticking. Mix 1 ounce cheese into each serving and sprinkle with half of the corn chips.

Calories: 429
Carbohydrates: 58.2
Cholesterol: 20
Dietary Fiber : 13.6
Fiber: 15.3
Protein: 21.8
Saturated Fat: 5
Sodium: 911
Total Fat: 13.7

Breakfast Entree

Lemon-Raisin Breakfast Bars

Recipe Ingredients

• 2 Cups raisins
• 14 Ounces sweetened condensed milk
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon lemon rind
• 1 Cup butter
• 1 1/3 Cups brown sugar
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons vanilla
• 1 Cup flour
• 1/2 Teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 Cups rolled oats
• 1 Cup chopped walnuts

Serves: 6 (2 bars per serving)

At Home: In a saucepan, combine raisins, milk, lemon juice, and lemon rind. Heat and stir until bubbling, then remove from heat to cool slightly. In a bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar, and vanilla to make a batter. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt, then add oats and walnuts. Press all but 2 cups of the batter into a greased 13 x 9-inch pan. Spread raisin mixture on top of batter to within 1/2 inch of the edges. Sprinkle with dollops of reserved batter; press lightly. Bake at 350ºF for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool, then slice into 12 bars and package 2 bars per zipper-lock plasic bag.

Calories: 1165
Carbohydrates: 166
Cholesterol: 113
Dietary Fiber : 5
Fiber: 6.8
Protein: 17.1
Saturated Fat: 25.4
Sodium: 696
Total Fat: 52.5

Lunch Entree

Light and Lively

Recipe Ingredients

• 1 1/2 Ounces pepperoni
• 1/2 Cup Goldfish crackers
• 4 dried pear halves
• 2 pieces hard candy
• 4 malted milk balls
• 3 slices French bread
• 1 Ounce Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 bell pepper
• 2 Tablespoons nut butter

Serves: 1

Here's a lunch that provides lots of variety. If you're a big person who gets hungry fast, you may want to increase the amounts.

Calories: 1483
Carbohydrates: 220
Cholesterol: 77.1
Dietary Fiber : 20.7
Fiber: 31.7
Protein: 38.7
Saturated Fat: 17.4
Sodium: 1808
Total Fat: 57.5

Desert

Mincemeat Pudding

Recipe Ingredients

• 6 Ounces condensed mincemeat
• 1/2 Cup chopped walnuts

Serves: 2

In Camp: Crumble equal portions of mincemeat into 2 insulated cups or bowls. Add 1/3 cup boiling water to each. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Stir equal portions of walnuts into each cup before eating.

Calories: 1067
Carbohydrates: 224
Cholesterol: 0
Dietary Fiber : 7.5
Fiber: 8.9
Protein: 4.3
Saturated Fat: 1.7
Sodium: 1461
Total Fat: 19.4

Desert

S'mores In A Bag

Recipe Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup crumbled graham crackers (about 1 1/2 crackers)
• 1/4 Cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 Cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Serves: 2

At Home: Combine all ingredients and divide evenly into two small oven roasting bags.

In Camp: Squeeze as much air from the bags as possible. Make sure the bags are securely closed and submerge them in hot water until the chocolate has melted. Remove the bags from the water and spoon the contents into your mouth.

Calories: 215
Carbohydrates: 21.5
Cholesterol: .05
Dietary Fiber : .9
Fiber: 1.8
Protein: 3.5
Saturated Fat: .9
Sodium: 40.8
Total Fat: 14.2

Lunch Entree

Traditional Filling Fare

Recipe Ingredients

• 2 flour tortillas, any flavor
• 1/2 Cup instant hummus
• 2 Ounces Cheddar cheese
• 4 Ounces pretzels
• 5 dried peach halves
• 2 medium-size strips jerky
• 4 fig bars
• 1/4 Cup gorp
• 2 Ounces yogurt-covered raisins

Serves: 1

Super-hungry people may want to increase the amounts.

Calories: 3003
Carbohydrates: 473
Cholesterol: 104
Dietary Fiber : 27.5
Fiber: 36
Protein: 68.4
Saturated Fat: 64.8
Sodium: 3575
Total Fat: 108

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