Kamp Krumhardt

Last week, my awesome twin Kristen and her awesome husband Arnaud visited us from Switzerland. Over the week we made and ate a lot of great food together including fried shrimp, lasagna, smoked pork shoulder, hot crab dip, asparagus tempura, etc., etc... But I have to say the most fun cooking experience we enjoyed was our camping trip at our parents' pond in rural Boone county, Iowa—a place we like to call Kamp Krumhardt. It's quite gorgeous out there right now—everything is bright green, flowers abloom, frogs croaking, birds chirping, billowing prairie grasses, relatively clear pond water, minimal mosquitos and ticks.. I mean really, what more could you ask for? So to celebrate this loveliness, we decided to prepare one of our favorite camping dishes: Puerco Pibil. It's a Mexican pork stew that cooks in banana leaves. Not only is it utterly delicious and always a total hit, it also happens to be really easy to make, allowing me to focus my creative cooking energy on other parts of the day-long feast. 

I began our camping menu with guacamole made with fire-roasted poblano peppers. Then, realizing that I had purchased a few too many poblanos for this dish, I opted to make some chile rellanos with the Mexican farmer cheese I had brought along. These were also cooked over the fire, of course. They turned out quite scrumptious, as I find many of my spur-of-the-moment dishes do. For the next course, I prepared beef skewers marinated in a mustard-cumin seed rub. Other than some of the skewers burning up over the fire (I need to remember to soak the wooden skewers in water first!), these were very tasty. 

The final course of the evening consisted of my campfire baked beans (a recipe I am always perfecting), chipotle-garlic pasta salad, and the puerco pibil. Let me tell you, we were all very stuffed. 

Then next morning we decided to use the leftover pork, potatoes, and beans, along with eggs, bacon, limes, tortillas, and hot sauce, to create some over-the-top breakfast burritos. Man were these things amazingly delicious! A total hit. Then, for dessert of breakfast, we enjoyed my friend Matt's cinnamon rolls cooked inside orange rinds with the pulp removed (see photo). These things are great—the orange rind flavors the cinnamon rolls inside for quite a sensational flavor explosion. (Not to worry, nothing goes to waste at Kamp Krumhardt—we used the pulp to make ourselves some morning cocktails.)

This was a great camping trip to start off a summer of camping adventures. We had so much fun! Here are a few recipes from the first camping trip of 2009:

Camping Puerco Pibil

Start this one day before your camping trip. Look for banana leaves (in freezer section), white potatoes, and annatto seeds at Mexican food stores.

1. Into a spice grinder or blender, place 5 tablespoon annatto seeds, 3 teaspoons cumin seeds, 1 tablespoon peppercorns, about 5 whole cloves, 8 allspice berries, 2 teaspoons coriander seeds, 1 bay leaf, 2 teaspoons brown or yellow mustard seeds, and 1 teaspoon oregano. Grind until totally ground up.

2. Into a blender, place 3 jalepenos (coarsely chopped), 2 tablespoons sea salt, 1/4 cup white vinegar, a shot of tequila, a bit of the zest and all of the juice of 1 lemon, 2 limes, and 1 orange, and 8 cloves of garlic (smashed). Puree until smooth.

3. In a resealable plastic bag, combine 5 pounds of pork shoulder (cut into small chunks), 2 onions (wedged), the jalepeno mixture, and the spice mixture. Seal and turn to coat. Marinate for 24 hours.

4. At the camp site, line a large roasting pan with a lid or a Dutch oven with about 3 layers of banana leaves (you'll need one package total—see photo of me doing this). Pour the marinated pork into the leaves. Place about 10 medium white potatoes around the edges of the pork. Cover with the remaining banana leaves. Pour one 12-ounce can of cheap beer around the edges of the pan. Cover and place over a moderate fire for about 3 or 4 hours (or more). Remove from heat and serve. 

Mustard-Cumin Seed Beef Skewers

Be sure to soak the skewers for about 20 minutes before you assemble these.

1. In a spice grinder, combine 2 teaspoons cumin seeds, 2 teaspoon mustard seeds, and 1 teaspoon coriander seeds. Grind until ground. In a medium bowl, stir together the ground seeds with 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, about a teaspoon each of salt and pepper, 2 tablespoons canola oil, and 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar.

2. Cut about 1 1/2 pounds thinly sliced beef (available at Mexican food stores) into 1 x 4-inch strips (may vary the size a bit). Toss the beef in the spice mixture to coat. Thread the beef strips onto pre-soaked bamboo skewers. Place the skewers in a plastic container and allow to marinate for at least 4 hours.

3. At the camp site, place the skewers over moderate to hot fire. Cook for about 5 minutes, turning them once halfway through cooking. Serve hot off the fire.

Chipotle-Garlic Pasta Salad

1. In a large bowl, stir together 1 cup mayonnaise, 1/4 cup milk, 2 chipotle peppers (chopped), 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 3 cloves garlic (very finely minced), 4 roma tomatoes (seeded and finely chopped), 1 small red onion (finely chopped), 1 teaspoon sweet paprika, a handful of chopped parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. 

2. Cook about 12 ounces medium-size pasta of your choice. Rinse with cool water, drain, and dump into the dressing. Stir well, cover, and chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Pour additional milk into the pasta salad if it seems dry upon serving. 

Campfire Chile Rellanos

1. Halve about 6 poblano peppers. Remove seeds and white membranes. Place on grill over a medium flame. Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes, turning and rearranging a few times while cooking. Remove to a piece of foil when they are somewhat softened and charred in a few places. Let cool, then remove any loose charred skins. 

2. Place the peppers, skin side down, on a double layer of foil. Season the insides of the peppers with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Place strips of Mexican farmer cheese into the peppers. Cover loosely with foil and return the grill. Cook over a low to medium flame for about 20 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted.