Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Dump Soup for Camping, Readers Circle Kicks Off on Friday

Cooking over the campfire.
Hello and welcome to the J Q Rose blog,

We camped with our daughter Lee Ann and family over the Memorial Day holiday weekend near Stony Lake in West Michigan. Always the "event" planner, she invited our other daughter, Sara, (who is not a camper) and family to join us on Sunday for a fun dinner with Dump Soup as the main entree.

I bet you've heard the folk tale Stone Soup. Hungry strangers convince the people of a town to share a small amount of their food in order to make a meal that everyone enjoys.  Well we weren't exactly hungry strangers, and we didn't ask fellow campers to contribute to the soup pot, but that is Lee Ann's idea for next month when we all camp together, including Sara, at family camp,

Lee Ann coined the term "Dump Soup" because we all brought ingredients to dump into the soup pot. There is NO recipe. That's the fun part. Just whatever is offered is added to the pot. Lee Ann poured in beef broth, beef consomme, and I added mushroom soup as a base for all the other stuff e.g. beans, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, onions, cans of veggies, etc.


All ready to cook over the campfire.

Lee Ann combined it all and placed the pot over the campfire for the men to watch while the ladies took a walk. Of course we came back to check on the progress of the soup. After an hour and one half over the fire, we gobbled down the soup. It was delicious. The soup must have been good because the kids loved it too, especially with lots of crackers.


Another of our family faves for dinner over the fire is "hobo dinner." I've heard it called foil packet dinner too. We spray the foil with vegetable oil, place bacon on the first layer, hamburger or chicken next, and then add whatever fresh veggies you like to the foil e.g. potatoes, carrots, green pepper, onion, butter, and celery.
Ingredients ready to wrap.

Be sure and wrap the packet tightly so the grease doesn't run out. Then place them in the coals or on a grate over the fire. Depending how you cut the veggies and how hot the fire is, the packets need to cook 30--45 minutes. Chicken may take longer. PS--It's easy to use your grill at home too.
Dinner wrapped in foil packets.
Clean-up is easy. Just wrap up the foil and throw it away. THEN it'll be time to roast the marshmallows to make S'mores! But first you may want to go for a swim or a hike!

What are your easy go-to recipes when having a crowd over to your house or when camping?


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UPDATE: Deadly Undertaking is now available at major online bookstores.

Books We Love has added my cozy mystery, Deadly Undertaking in all formats to major online booksellers. AND the book is available in paperpback too.!


I am thrilled to know more readers will be able to enjoy this romantic suspense with such a variety of formats.
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We're kicking off the Summer Readers Circle Series this Friday, June 2. Tricia McGill takes her seat in the circle. Meet or re-acquaint yourself with this talented author and her books.
Summer Readers Circle Series begins Friday, June 2.
Please join us for lively discussions and win prizes and giveaways 
every Friday this summer!


10 comments:

Nan P said...

Yum! Ray's car club has an annual picnic camp-out where everyone brings a pot of their own chili and throws it into the communal pot. You might think chili is chili, but everyone has their own secret ingredients, and the combination of all those variations is interesting.

J.Q. Rose said...

That sounds like a great idea, Nan. The operative word here is "interesting" I think. I know there are as many variations of chili as there are chili makers. Thanks for stopping in.

Helena Fairfax said...

That looked a lovely weekend, JQ, and a really impressive camp fire. Eating outdoors is always fun! Baked potatoes in the fire (wrapped in foil) is a British tradition on our bonfire night. They taste so much nicer than microwaved. Glad you all enjoyed your weekend!

J.Q. Rose said...

Mmm, baked potatoes in a fire are delicious, Helena. Maybe I should pack some taters and foil for this weekend's camping trip! Thanks for the idea.

Marsha said...

Hey, JQ. What a fun time. I'm not much of a camper. I do like to grill outside. Usually chicken, salmon and steaks. Occasionally hamburgers for holidays. Love grilled veggies, too. My very favorite. Impressive looking fire.

Susan Bernhardt said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Susan Bernhardt said...

What a fun post, J.Q.! I love your ideas of camp food. Would be fun to do this with Corbin when he is old enough to listen to the story of "Stone Soup" and understand it. :)

J.Q. Rose said...

Hi Marsha, I love grilling too--well eating grilled food. GT does the grilling! Thanks for sharing the blog post!

J.Q. Rose said...

Oh Yes, Susan. Include the story and the cooking! Great idea! Glad you enjoyed the post.

Patricia Carter said...

Wow, It must have taken ages to make soup like this.
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