Dining with Al - al Fresco That Is

I like to camp. I'm not sure why. I mean, it's not like my family went camping when I was young. I think the late night excursions into the bushes reminded Mom a little too much of growing up in the country, if you get my drift. But for some reason, camping appeals to me.

My first experience was probably 4-H or Girl Scout camp. But that doesn't really count. It's camping, but you sleep in cabins and go to the "mess hall" to eat. Besides, it's way too organized with all the arts and crafts, first aid classes, lights out times, etc.

I like the get-away-from-it-all type of camping. If it doesn't involve sleeping on the ground, cooking out in the open, and long stretches of time for doing absolutely nothing, it isn't for me. For me, it means getting back to the simple life.

I wanted to share this love of the outdoors with my husband. So after we moved to California, I asked him if he liked to camp. When he confirmed that he did, we started to acquire the paraphernalia one needs for the "simple life". It took us all Winter to collect what we needed. But, when Spring came early, we were ready.

We found a charming little county campground about an hour from our home. We unpacked, set up the tent, and settled down for a pleasantly lazy weekend. However, Mother Nature had different plans for us. It turned cold that night. We don't know how cold because we didn't have a thermometer. But, let's put it this way, the butter I brought never did get soft enough to spread even though it was in the campbox and not the cooler. To make matters worse, a storm hit about midnight the first night. The good news was that the new tent was indeed waterproof. We might have been cold, but at least we were dry.

About this time, however, I began to doubt my husband's sincere love of camping. He fussed because the ground was hard; he fussed because he was cold; he wasn't dressed in layers so when he wasn't fussing about being cold; he was fussing because he was too hot. He was surprised the first night when I made chicken cacciatore instead of franks and beans. His fires kept going out. But, it was the smores that did it. He didn't like them. I asked myself, "What kind of camper doesn't like smores?".

The last morning, I just had to ask. "Oh, Dear, how many times have you been camping?" The response was not surprising. He said, "Once in a Winnebago". A Winnebago. That's not camping. That's a Holiday Inn on wheels.

Over the next 11 years, it's gotten better. We bought thick pads for under the sleeping bags so no more complaints about the hard ground. He knows how to dress in layers, so no more too cold or too hot. He has gotten used to NOT having franks and beans. His fires last longer. But, he still doesn't like smores. Ok, so it's not perfect yet, but I'm still working on him.

Now, I know that there are those of you out there that think cooking at the campsite is a pain, so why make it harder by making something fancy. My response is that if you plan right it doesn't have to be a chore to eat something other than franks and beans. Here is one meal to try - Italian Festival al Fresco.

Chicken Cacciatore for Camping
Serves 4.

4 chicken breast halves without skin -- boned
1 medium green bell pepper -- coarsely chopped
1 small red onion -- coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic -- crushed
4 large mushrooms -- coarsely chopped
1 medium zucchini -- coarsely chopped
1 can Italian plum tomatoes -- coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon flour
1/4 cup olive oil

In a large pot, cook pasta. Drain and hold pasta for later use. In the same large pot, sauté onions, garlic, bell pepper, mushrooms, zucchini and Italian seasoning in olive oil. When onions are limp and translucent, remove vegetables from pot, but retain oil. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. Add chicken to pot and quickly stir fry. Return vegetable mixture to pot. Add tomatoes and cooked pasta to pot. Simmer until mixture reaches serving temperature. If mixture is dry, add a small amount of tomato juice. If mixture is too liquidy, mix a tablespoon of flour in a small amount of water or tomato juice. Add to mixture and stir until thickened.

NOTE: To make this really simple. Cook the pasta at home before you leave and keep in a container in the cooler until needed. Cut up the vegetables and chicken before you leave. Store in separate containers in the cooler until needed.

Garlic Bread for Camping
Serves 4.

4 whole hot dog buns
2 tablespoons butter -- softened
1 clove garlic -- crushed

Mix crushed garlic into softened butter. Split open the hot dog buns. Spread buns with butter/garlic mixture. Put buns back together with buttered sides together. Double wrap in heavy duty aluminum foil. Place by the side of the fire. How far from the fire depends on how hot your fire is. If they are too close, you end up with charred toast....too far, cold buns. Make your best guess. Turn every couple of minutes to evenly warm. Serve when the buns are warm and the butter melted.