I have sucked the marrow out of TRF as much as I can...up until that necessary function, the making of and masticating of foodstuffs. Simply speaking, I suck at cooking. So I defer to others more wise than me (not calling some of you old, but wisdom and age seem to go hand in hand.) I wish to get recipes if I may, be they dutch oven, wrapped in tin foil and thrown into a fire..I know there are websites that offer such services, but I want the tried and true ones..the ones that you have dabbled with, tweaked.."Throw a little rum into there, I say..Makes it POP!" Then come on by and see if I have done yours justice...and when I get a little culinary prowess, if you are brave, I can do the same for you. Slainte'.
You might want to look at Ren Fair Camping thread, they have recipes listed there.
Here is the thread.
http://www.renaissancefestival.com/forums/index.php?board=75.0
Thank you so very much. Seems I need to learn to navigate this forum better...or maybe it's just my inattentiveness...I guess it's as Breandan says.."The eyes are open, the mouth moves, but Mr Brain has long since departed."-
You are most welcome. Na, I have to scan the forum threads a couple time before I notice some things, so don't worry the brain is just over loading with all the good ren stuff. :)
it really all depends on what cooking equipment you have- for example, we have a pretty full setup- I'm making monkeybread this year, for sure...
Quote from: bellevivre on August 24, 2009, 04:52:46 PM
it really all depends on what cooking equipment you have- for example, we have a pretty full setup- I'm making monkeybread this year, for sure...
*Tries to prevent from twitching*
Luvs me some monkeybread.... ;D
I usually bring a propane grill with us to camp so we can have steaks or hamburgers even hotdogs, HOWEVER i almost blew up our house due to a faulty propane line needless to say i havent cooked on that thing in 4 months. Im trying to get over the fear still hehe. We usually bring a camp kitchen thingy that has hangers for paper towels, a trashbag and what not. We try to keep it simple rather than bring a shiner bock load of food with us Brookshire brothers is right around the corner for grocerys. We usually wait to buy food for faire till later that evening when we arrive. Plus its a good way to conserve on space 8)
We left some asparagus on the grill oven night one time, and the next morn when our cousin open the pit he said, " Look fairie food" so every since then we make sure to bring asparagus, grilled in scrambled eggs, chilled, or in a vinaigrette it always pleases.
We make breakfast tacos for Sat and Sunday mornings. I cook bacon and lil' smokies, scramble some eggs, bring Pace picante sauce and cheese and then mix it all up and throw it on a flour tortilla. Sometimes I'll do toast over the Coleman stove with a facinating contraption my daughter spotted at Academy.
For dinner, we keep it easy enough for a blind drunk to handle. Fri night, Dinty Moore beef stew out of the can with bread and butter. Sat night, mini-raviolis out of the can with bread and butter. Not the most pleasing of culinary delights, but it gets the job done.
Then of course for dessert, we have s'mores. If you plan on roasting marshmallows, don't forget the wire coat hangers!
I've never personally cooked at faire before, but something I saw last season which I thought was pretty nifty was this one camp that was near Defiance. They made a nice-sized fire pit and brought wrought-iron pots to cook in. The food was YUMMY.
They also baked bread in there... not sure how they managed that one though. XD
Quote from: dobbydog on August 25, 2009, 11:17:41 AM
They also baked bread in there... not sure how they managed that one though. XD
Dutch Ovens - They are freakin amazing. We bought one and brought it with us last year. I used it to make cinnamon rolls and a chicken and dumplings dinner. Both turned out awesome. Beats a conventional oven any day. Nothing can beat cast iron. We'll be adding to our cast iron collection this year too.
this is why i want a trailer- so we have space for them!!! And, btw: why not do dutch oven MonkeyBread?
Quote from: bellevivre on August 25, 2009, 12:10:28 PM
this is why i want a trailer- so we have space for them!!! And, btw: why not do dutch oven MonkeyBread?
One could do dutch oven monkeybread. In fact, perhaps I'll try that this year. Although If I do that, I may be so weighted down with monkey bread I won't be able to get my butt into the faire. I'll just have to sit in camp and watch everyone walk by and point and laugh while I sit with my face smeared with icing and cinnamon
Our guild has over the years collected quite a kitchen. We have 2 10K btu turkey friers that we cook over, as well as a nice propane grill. We plan our meals ahead of time.
So far we plan on buying a couple large packages of the Bortelli tortalini, some premade meatballs, and 2 big jugs of prego sauce for Friday dinner. One of our people made stew, froze it then, finished cooking it at camp over the burners. Then the traditional hamburger and hot dogs one night.
Breakfast usually is a scrambled egg bar. We pre chop everything in small baggies.
Heh we always bring more food than we need. We usually end up feeding our neighbors :)
Our Monarch doesn't mind doing that because when he was very young all he brought to faire was booze. His neighboring rennie's took pitty on him and fed him. Since then he makes sure no body goes with out food no matter what. :)
Mouse, just remember that the more cold stuff you bring, the less room you have for beer in your ice chest! ;D
All joking aside, you will need more room and more ice for perishable food. Hence, the canned stew and ravioli's instead of homemade for us. And truthfully, we're just having too much darn fun in the evenings to spend much time preparing dinner. Breakfast is a bit easier since I'm an early riser and don't have as many distractions, so I do cook then.
I'm a fan of Jimmy Dean skillets, all cut up and ready to go, just add eggs. And if I don't want to bring real eggs, I bring fake eggs...all scrambled up you can hardly tell the difference. This year I may be attempting pancakes. Dinners I'm always trying something else; I've not settled on something I really like. I've actually had good sucess with Zataran's Jambalya with sausage.
I actually have a small seperate cooler for the food. It's a styrofoam cooler that I got when I recieved a ham from Honey Baked Ham. It is excellent! I strap the lid on with bungee cords, and I can keep it cold in there all weekend even during the hot ones.
I am a man of breakfast, of corned beef and hash, fried eggs, browned sausages, coffee and a good irish tea or lady grey. As for the rest of the meals, liquid bread and regular bread suffice....I think I have stumbled upon what I wish to do this year for halloween at least..Pumpkin soup...made with some sherry..I will only be camping two of the Three Weekends, so I shall festive it up some...Thanksgiving...I may just kill my turkey on site.
We deep fried one last year - It was awesome (of course we deep fry one every year - last year was just the first time in the camp ground). Can't wait for turkey day in camp this year.
Sir Mouse don't forget that you ride to faire in what amounts to a oven... Run your car/truck for 15-20 minutes and toss a frozen lasagna on the manifold and come back in 3-4 hours. TA DA... dinner.
*i've cooked all kinds of stuff on a motor*
Quote from: Fraser of Lovatt on August 28, 2009, 04:35:04 PM
Sir Mouse don't forget that you ride to faire in what amounts to a oven... Run your car/truck for 15-20 minutes and toss a frozen lasagna on the manifold and come back in 3-4 hours. TA DA... dinner.
*i've cooked all kinds of stuff on a motor*
LOL! I've always wanted to try that!!! ;D
Quote from: Aiacha on August 26, 2009, 03:29:39 PM
I'm a fan of Jimmy Dean skillets, all cut up and ready to go, just add eggs. And if I don't want to bring real eggs, I bring fake eggs...all scrambled up you can hardly tell the difference. This year I may be attempting pancakes. Dinners I'm always trying something else; I've not settled on something I really like. I've actually had good sucess with Zataran's Jambalya with sausage.
I actually have a small seperate cooler for the food. It's a styrofoam cooler that I got when I recieved a ham from Honey Baked Ham. It is excellent! I strap the lid on with bungee cords, and I can keep it cold in there all weekend even during the hot ones.
I remember when you made the Jimmy Dean breakfast! It was super yummy! :)
I have neve had haggis...I mention this only because upon typing the word haggis into the search (because the mood struck me), I saw this site was OVERRAN with hits on my search. My secret shame being aired out mingled with my need to find a hang over cure (as one of the matches implied it was good for), where can I get me hands on said dish...I have seen it in cans (but I do not hazard a guess that it is tasty). I can't make the dish....Lord, knows I don't want to, but I do wish to try it.
Believe it or not, the canned stuff is pretty decent. We get ours from caledonian kitchen http://www.caledoniankitchen.com/catalog/
We usually bring some with us to camp although I haven't checked or stash lately. I wonder if we even have any left.
Sirloin, Beef, or Lamb?
Excellent question. I'd like to think we get the lamb, it would be my assumption, but now I'm not completely sure. I'll have to check the pantry to see if there is any left, and then to find out of which variety we have been getting.
I'm glad to have led you from your straying path good sir. Mighty Mouse...awaaaaay. Okay, I'm done now...promise. Need to go find my kilt chiller anyways.
Y'know, if they weren't so danged expensive, I'd just buy me some MREs and go to town.
A couple of those + alcohol = a satisfied DS...
They work in a pinch... not the greatest tasting but they are food. ;)
I don't know - We had some given to us after Ike - They weren't too bad. I'd be able to live off of them for a weekend at TRF if I had too.
I actually found the corned beef and hash to be the best tasting out of them...
That must be one of the newer flavors... i didn't have much choice when they first were issued.
*would barter life away for the damn tabasco sauce*
I thought some came with tabasco sauce...granted they had maybe six drops in the little bottles...seriously, no taller than my pinky, and I have short pinkies. Green and Red...as for corned beef and hash, yes, that sounds new. Then again, I believe I got and possibly majority of the people, got the MRE's that were generally distributed amongst the generals and not the other stuff that lower rank usually at...at least that's what I was told...Oh, and those "power bars" that were included are the devil. But enjoyed the M and M's and Skittles that came with them sometimes.
Quote from: Lord Dragonspyre on September 02, 2009, 01:39:22 PM
Y'know, if they weren't so danged expensive, I'd just buy me some MREs and go to town.
A couple of those + alcohol = a satisfied DS...
Some of the price may be offset by convenience. With an MRE you don't have to worry about heating it up on a stove, or having a pot to cook in. Well, not as long as you can find a "rock or something" for the heater...
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3180/2437466889_3a2a59069f.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3033/2438299798_ced0e28d12.jpg)
Definately not gourmet fare, but not half bad, although I've heard the omlette is inedible.
If you have access to a fire pit, you could try tin foil dinners. I've always used a ground fire though, never a raised pit. It might make a difference. I make mine with hamburger, potatoes, carrots, and maybe onion (yeah, real creative, I know). Add some garlic powder, seasoned salt, and pepper to hamburger meat. Put a serving size lump in the middle of a piece of heavy duty tin-foil. Put the onions on top of the meat (if too close to outside of packet they will burn), then add the carrots and potatoes. Cut the carrots thin so they finish cooking at the same time as the meat and potatoes. Add a couple tablespoons of water, and fold the tin foil around the food to make a packet. Make sure you seal it up good. You want to keep the ashes out and the steam in. Put the packets near the edge of the fire on top of the coals, and scoop some coals and ashes over the top of the packet. Let them cook for about 20 minutes, then fish one out and see if it's done.
Breakfast is cold cereal. I'm not gonna waste daylight cookin' or washin' dishes. ;)
Quote from: tigerlilly on September 03, 2009, 10:27:42 PM
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3033/2438299798_ced0e28d12.jpg)
bwaaaahahahahahahahaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!!! I'd forgotten about that little piece of info!
Hahahahaha!!! Thanks Tigerlilly, I needed that!
Hummm.... ya know I do believe I CAN find a rock or something, now that you mention it.
The "or something" just kills me, but I'm sure it was a necessary addition. Can you just picture some poor little 18-year-old private on a field training exercise....
"I had to eat it cold, because I couldn't find a rock to prop it up on!"
Quote from: tigerlilly on September 03, 2009, 11:07:03 PM
The "or something" just kills me, but I'm sure it was a necessary addition. Can you just picture some poor little 18-year-old private on a field training exercise....
"I had to eat it cold, because I couldn't find a rock to prop it up on!"
Funny, I thought they put the "or something" there for the butterbars...
Quote from: Lord Dragonspyre on September 03, 2009, 11:09:28 PM
Quote from: tigerlilly on September 03, 2009, 11:07:03 PM
The "or something" just kills me, but I'm sure it was a necessary addition. Can you just picture some poor little 18-year-old private on a field training exercise....
"I had to eat it cold, because I couldn't find a rock to prop it up on!"
Funny, I thought they put the "or something" there for the butterbars...
*Shakes head and walks away*
Quote from: Mouse on September 03, 2009, 02:30:09 PM
I thought some came with tabasco sauce...granted they had maybe six drops in the little bottles...seriously, no taller than my pinky, and I have short pinkies. Green and Red...as for corned beef and hash, yes, that sounds new. Then again, I believe I got and possibly majority of the people, got the MRE's that were generally distributed amongst the generals and not the other stuff that lower rank usually at...at least that's what I was told...Oh, and those "power bars" that were included are the devil. But enjoyed the M and M's and Skittles that came with them sometimes.
Not the ones i got during Desert Shield/Storm. When they were first issued, you sometimes got Hormel Top Shelf becuse they couldn't keep up with the war time demand.
*i always had spices in my kit... you can make ANYTHING taste edible with the right spices.*
I might just take you up on that Fraser.
Gotta share:
cheap and easy faire breakfast: Trash Tacos!
VERY easy if you have a spring chopper like this: http://snipurl.com/rs9r3 (And yes, I like this one, because it butterflys open to clean as most now dont (my old Zyliss does))
anyway- chop fine:
1/4 onion
1/2 bulb garlic (5-6 cloves)
2 potatoes (red are best, good to have varied size pieces)
Chop your meat (we used spam, but you could use sausage, bacon, ham, fajita meat, whatever)
Drizzle hot pan with olive oil, set onions and garlic to cooking down first- add potatoes, then meat. Let meat cook through and potatoes soften, then add as many eggs as you like.
Can be served with cheese on breakfast tacos, or just in a bowl.
You can really add whatever you like, make it thanksgiving sweet with apples, sweet potatoes and cranberries. Or make it meatless with mushrooms and tomatoes.
The best thing is, you can pre-chop all your ingredients at home, put it all in freezer bags, and when you wake up, dump into a skillet and go! Plus, it's just greasy and carb-y enough to be a good hangover salve.