A Glamping Cooking Experience

Glamping has been a vacation choice for quite some time now. It's a glamorous take on camping - think a Downton Abbey picnic stretched out for a few days. What do you bring to eat? Glamorous food - what else.

Usually camping cooking  and cuisine consists of wienies on a stick If you're lucky,it's a fish caught in a nearby lake or stream , steamed in a foil packet.Cooking gear can be any of the  twigs you can find along with tin cups and plates bought at the local sporting goods store..  Put all those away. Glamping demands fine food eaten on non paper plates .Most glamping sites have some kind of canteen however there are some with  outdoor kitchens for campers. There is usually a small two burner stove and a microwave.Some sites have a communal fridge with only enough space for one group of campers. Other glamping sites offer refrigerators with freezers for two glamping groups. You will have to bring your own plates and utensils as well as some cooking gear. Glam plates and glasses can be found at Amazon . They have a Picnic At Ascot-Surrey willow picnic basket,  complete with a coffee service for two. It comes with sturdy melamine plates and glass wineglasses. There are also metal knives and forks along with salt and pepper shakers. What else to take? Camping cookware. There are sets that contain kettles, pans for frying along with spatulas for flipping filet mignon burgers.

What foods to take on a glamping trip?Treat yourself to the good stuff. Start the day with eggs Benedict on slices of brioche bread. The bread can later be used for sandwiches., whether for lunch or  dinner. You can also treat yourself and crew to French toast with fresh fruit from the nearby farmer's market and maple syrup if you're near any maple farms. Lunch can be an easy mushroom pate, served on crackers or the brioche bread. A salad is also a good choice , along with it being an easy make. Again, take advantage of any of the farmer's markets and farms you passed on the way to the campsite.A  bowl of mixed , organic greens dressed with a homemade blueberry vinaigrette is always a good choice.  You can buy already roasted chicken  to cut up and put into it. Another idea is the Provencale sandwich, pain bagnat . This a a demi loaf of French bread stuffed with sliced hard boiled eggs, Genoa tuna (tuna in olive oil), tomato and red onions. A simple red wine vinaigrette give its its' flavor. As for dinner. if you're glamping by the coast, then take advantage of the seafood. Boiling lobsters can be messy - and traumatic. Buy the meat already cooked. Serve on toasted , buttered rolls or as a cold meal mixed with crab and shrimp. Dessert can be s'mores but use Valrhona dark chocolate and gourmet marshmallows in coffee or strawberry flavors instead of the usual fare.

Glamping is a fun spin trip out of the ordinary. It requires sophisticated cooking and foods. This is what makes the experience even more unique.

Exotic Ad Easy - Mother's Day Meals

What do you give the woman who cooks for you all year round, including major holidays. A home cooked meal - and not a can of Spaghetti-o's heated in the microwave. Give your mom something out of the ordinary. Think easy and exotic. It'll be simple yet memorable - the perfect Mother's Day gift.

Many non chefs or novice home cooks look to ordinary for a lunch or dinner. It's usually a meat loaf or pasta with prepared sauce. Yet there are many dishes from around the world that are just as simple to execute. Think the Southern French or Provencale dish pain bagnat.It's a tuna sandwich amped up with tuna in oil (always a richer taste however if it's too much then stick with  tuna in water) There's also hard boiled eggs, anchovies and sliced bell peppers. Scallions and Dijon mustard are added for more flavor. Use a rustic bread like a hollowed out ciambatta or French bread. After constructing, soak in oil  and wrap in Saran wrap for twenty four hours. This allows all the flavors to meld into all these delicious tastes of briny and mellow, sweet and salty. If you want a cooked meal then think of Indian curried chicken. This is heating boneless breasts with onion in olive oil simmering in a large skillet.  One third of a cup of curry powder is then added and then the covered dish is cooked for forty five minutes over a medium low heat. Afterwards, remove the skillet's lid and cook for an additional fifteen minutes. Just be careful because curry burns easily. Cook up some basmati rice for real authenticity or serve with warmed naan bread.

Mexican food is always fun and super easy to whip up. Forget the tacos, unless they're mom's favorite. Think fajitas with either chicken, flank steak,or grilled shrimp. Of course its' the  chili powder and cumin mix gives it zing but it's also the addition of sliced bell peppers and onions that highlight this recipe too For vegan mothers, you can sub in any kind of mushroom from button to portobello. Make sure the lady of the day also gets a margarita Try a frozen watermelon one, made with Cointreu and tequila along with two and a half cups of cubed watermelon and one and a half cups of crushed ice.If mom likes sushi, surprise her with home made tuna or California rolls. It is a bit labor intensive ,but that's mostly comes from preparing the rice. Start with the glutenous white sort and rinse in a colander or sieve until the water pouring through is clear. It's then boiling it for twenty minutes.At the same time combine rice wine vinegar, sugar , vegetable oil and salt in a saucepan. Cook until the sugar dissolved and then stir into the rice  to create  that tangy layer. If you're unsure about using raw fish, then use cubed avocado and matchstick cut carrots,cucumbers ,green bell peppers and zucchini. Serve with a sake for a nice touch. Instead of sushi you can sub in the tasty , fried tempura. The batter is feather light, consisting of only egg whites, flour and water, beaten almost like a meringue . All sorts of meats and vegetables can be dipped in and then fried in vegetable. oil.

Treat mom to a easy and exotic  meal for her special day, Don't go for the ordinary. Travel the culinary globe for the right recipe that's fun and different.

Heat Wave Cuisine

Don't believe anyone who says he or she loves to cook during a heat wave. It's just not possible, even if there's outdoor grilling involved. There is a way to eat through these hot and sticky days - heat wave cuisine. It's just coming up with cool, oven free ideas that make for filling lunches and dinners.

One of the easiest hot weather dishes to make is salads - and not necessarily the lettuce and tomato kind (More on those a little later)Egg, tuna and chicken salads are simple to whip up .Egg salad does require a tad more work  because the eggs have to be hard boiled. As for the chicken take the leftovers from an already roasted one and chop coarsely You could also grill chicken breasts , let them cool and then cut them up .If this is too strenuous then buy canned chicken and use that. Try a dash of tarragon to liven up the salads and serve on onion rolls. Tuna salad can have the extra oomph of  chopped celery, picked fresh from the backyard or bought from the farmer's market. It's good on white bread, but even better on French  which brings to mind a pain bagnat - a Provencale treat. This  has the fish along with anchovies, tomatoes and hard boiled eggs in an olive oil soaked sandwich. This is made an hour or two before eating so that the oil soaks through everything.It's a wonderful Saturday night or Sunday lunch , especially served with a chilled wine.

As for those salads, think big , hearty ones. Try a chef's salad for a midweek dinner. You can get the necessary meats at your supermarket's deli counter. Usually they're roast beef, chicken and/or turkey and ham, but you can vary the meats with the addition of some pancetta or Genoa salami. Add some hard boiled eggs too for more protein along with some cherry tomatoes and peppers for color. A simple vinaigrette will suffice as a dressing however you can try a ranch if you want or a blue cheese one for the cheese lovers.Spinach salad is another  easy meal to make during a heat wave. This is just spinach with hard boiled eggs and bacon. The bacon can be made quickly in the microwave or you can buy the precooked slices from Hormel. Because the flavors are so intense, use a mild dressing, such as oil and vinegar. For a lighter one, nix the eggs and bacon and add walnuts and strawberries and a fruit based dressing instead. Salad Nicoise is a great summer salad, especially if you simplify it .  start off with a good head of Boston lettuce. Add some canned green beans and potatoes along with tuna and anchovy filets,then mix with sliced cherry tomatoes and chopped onion. Once done garnish with black olives and a simple Dijon based dressing. Have a slice crusty baguette on the side to sop up the dressing.

No one should cook during a heat wave. Try an easy salad or hearty salad to make  for a lunch or dinner. They're both filling but without the fuss.