Pickles and Petunias: Camp Cook

Pickles and Petunias: Camp Cook: My culinary skills are nil... my mother still tries to get me to sit down and look at cookbooks with her but I would rather ...

Camp Cook

My culinary skills are nil...

my mother still tries to get me to

sit down and look at cookbooks with her

but I would rather be drug from 

a horse!

Now, that said, 

I do find it interesting

when I come across someone

that can just throw together

a bunch of ingredients and

make something that knocks

my socks off!!

(Because I DO Love to EAT!)

and that's just what I ran into

at the GannValley Celebration...

Jim Patrick and his World Famous

CHUCKWAGON

I have no idea how he did it 

or why he did it 

or how long it took him to do it

but this guy

built himself 

an exact replica 

of on 1800's Chuck Wagon...

and it was about the purdiest thing

this cowgirl's seen in a coon's age!

(I know, I just start thinking that way

when I see it all over again)

As far as I could tell...

(I clearly did not ask enough questions,

I was too busy sampling the food!)

Jim and his wife Susan

go around to Chuck Wagon cook-offs

and competitions

where they enter everything 

from their chili to their actual campsite!

What a way of life right?

They knew just about everything

about cooking on a campfire

and could purdy darn accurately

read the temperature inside their

Dutch Oven

just by holding a hand over it!

Everything at their campsite

was 1800 Period perfect...

from their clothes

to the utensils... 

You actually felt like 

you were back in time

waiting for John Wayne 

to ride into camp.

I'm sure the first thing 

he would've grabbed

was a cup of hot coffee,

the smell of that alone 

was enough to get your attention...

The campers next door had young kids with them,

they got to partake in the games with the rest of the community...

and in between the boy would sit down 

and play his mandolin...

The other fella gave some really interesting

demonstrations on roping and how 

to use a bull whip

I even tore myself away from the food

long enough to try that bull whip!

 Donut holes,

Twice Baked Potatoes,

Chili,

Corn Bread.....

and Biscuits to-die-for!!!

Biscuits at Every Meal...

a Pioneer Tradition...

The whole scene made me smile...

nobody was talking on a cell phone,

the smell of the campfire,

and the mandolin playing softly in the background...

I could've moved right in!

But, I didn't....

  I went home 

and remembered a Cookbook that

somebody gave me...

Fifty From the Trail

The Best Cowboy Cooking From A Timeless Land

it's loaded with Awesome Photos

of the American West 

and hearty Cowboy recipes

like: Tamale Corn Cakes

and Line Dancer Chili

I took a second look 

when I came across an OLD favorite 

cake recipe of my own!

But this one has a little cowboy twist to it...

The next time I make it, I'm going to try

using cold coffee instead of the water...

I just wish I had the old enamel 

cake pan that they use in their photo...

My husband has always loved this cake...

I bet the next time I fix it for'im 

he'll sweep me off my feet 

just like John Wayne would do!!

Y'all Have a Kindly Day Now!

Pickles

P.S. Here's a link I found on the web

when I googled Jim Patrick 

if you would like to read more

about their Pioneer Life Style

and competions

click HERE

In the kitchen with Herb

I don't remember my mother or grandmother's growing or cooking with herbs.

They may have...my mother talks about her mother preserving food by drying between two screens and storing the dried food in cardboard oatmeal containers on the stairs leading up to their attic.

I love stories of my mother's childhood...

she never shares many.

 

 

I planted a container of herbs to enjoy all summer long

and to dry for this winter.

Oh my! My little herb garden has really taken off.

 

 

There is seven different herbs crammed in that little space,

which means a lot of clipping and cooking.

I put basil in yesterdays Italian pasta salad.

Today I will put a few chives in my potato salad for our supper tonight.

I'm also going to make salsa this afternoon using cilantro.

 

 

Tonight I will put a sprig of that lavender under my pillowcase

for some sweet dreams.

 

~petunia