Cold Splinters

Whether you’re a vegetarian or just looking for an alternative to tuna/salmon/sardines/freeze dried beef stroganoff, you may (or may not?) want to try Textured Vegetable Protein the next time you’re on the trail. Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) is made from defatted soy flour that’s been cooked under pressure and then dried. It’s high in protein (12 grams per 1/4 cup serving) and, because it’s soy-based, takes on the tofu-like characteristics of tasting like whatever your season it with. But unlike tofu, it’s got the texture of ground meat and doesn’t need to be drained. All you have to do is quickly rehydrate it, making it a perfect camping companion. And the kicker? It’s wildly inexpensive. If you can’t find it at your local grocery store, you can buy it here for around $2.50 a bag.

*Recipe for Curried Sloppy Joes after the jump…

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Great for the trail. Cook your lentils and rice, heat up some onions, toss with a little cumin and allspice (cinnamon is good too) and have at it. Mujadara.

More complete recipe can be found here.

MP3: Charles Mingus – Solo Dancer

As a young person at summer camp in northern Minnesota, Original Corn Nuts were just about the greatest thing you could find in a package sent to you by your parents. And while these days I’d take the bargain bin variety (corn, olive oil, salt if you can find it) over the ubiquitous Planters-owned bags, it’s a sure bet that you’ll find Corn Nuts at one of the gas stations en route to whatever trail it is you’re driving to. (And of course, making your own is always the best option.) Most of the cooks on television will tell you to finish off a meal with some freshly chopped herbs, but when most of your food consists of sandwiches for lunch and noodles for dinner, there is no better garnish than the Corn Nut. Just a few sprinkled on whatever it is you’re eating (Almond Butter, bananas, and Corn Nuts on a pita? Yes, please.) and you’re golden.

Only thing better? If you’ve got a Latin Food market near you, try to find Peruvian Cancha. Heat it up in a little oil with whatever seasonings you’re hip to and put a big ol’ bag of them in your pack before you leave. And speaking of corny…

MP3: Fleetwood Mac – You and I, Part II

Thanks to Netflix, I’ve been spending a lot of time watching and/or listening to How It’s Made as of late. A few of them are Cold Splinters friendly (whatever that means), so there’s sardines, harmonicas, snowshoes, and Swiss Army knives after the jump. Because really, what else do you need on a winter camping trip? Nothing. The answer is nothing.

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As I’m sure you know, cravings on the trail are constantly changing. These days, as far as food goes that’s packaged and easy to find at your local grocery store, the ol’ CS backpack usually has a few staples. I’m sure they’ll change by the end of next week, but for now:

- Ocean Prince Sardines With Green Chiles
(Any kind of sardines will do, but ones with green chilies? Game changer.)
- Celestial Seasons Cinnamon-Apple Spice
(Self-explanatory, yeah?)
- Brach’s Autumn Mix
(What can I say? I’m a sucker for Indian/Candy Corn and Mellowcreme Pumpkins.)

**WHAT GROCERY STORE STAPLES ARE YOU CARRYING AROUND?**

After a long, wet, and muddy day on a New Hampshire section of the AT this last weekend, eating Mexican-ish pumpkin soup in a dry lean-to was a great way to end the hike. Happy fall travels, y’all.

2-3 cups water
1/2 vegetable bouillon cube
1 can pumpkin (Make sure not to buy the pumpkin pie mix.)
1 small can green chiles
1 small can corn (Mexican style if you’re feeling it)
1 can black beans (I’m a fan of butter beans as well)
1 small bag Corn Nuts
1 tbsp dried cilantro
1 small yellow onion

Cut up your onion and throw it in the pot with water. Bring the water to a boil, drop in your bouillon and stir. Add your pumpkin, green chiles, corn, black beans and let simmer for a few minutes, adding water if you like it a little thinner. Take it off the heat, stir in your cilantro and pour it into your bowl. Top with Corn Nuts and dive in. Will feed two hungry hikers.

MP3: Thoughts & Words – Morning Sky

Yes, GORP, GRANOLA, and all those other trail snacks  are all about personal preference and the art of worldly wisdom. (The GORP pictures above, from an old BACKPACKER, feature a recipe with Teddy Grahams. Genius.)  And on the few occasions that posts about food have showed up on this rag, the conversations have turned out to be pretty darn interesting. Nerdy as hell, but pretty darn interesting nonetheless. Most of the time, as I’m sure you’ll agree, trail snacks are better to make at home (when you’re carving your pumpkins this season, roast the seeds and stick em in whatever you’re hiking with) but it doesn’t always pan out like that. Case in point: EARLY BIRD GRANOLA. Without diving too deep – it’s granola, for heaven’s sake – this stuff, made in Brooklyn, NY, makes you wonder what else you’ve been missing out on over the years. I guess sometimes you just have to leave it to the pros.

**Go get yourself some and then tell me what’s better.

MP3: Billy Fay – Tiny

Published in 1972, The Complete Sourdough Cookbook is a little bit more story-telling than biscuit-making, but with tales like the one above, that’s doesn’t matter much. And if you actually read “Bannock Bill the Biscuit Maker” and are wondering what a bannock is, well, it’s a type of quick bread – bread that doesn’t utilize yeast – similar to a scone.

Don Holm and his wife, Myrtle, also wrote the Old Fashioned Dutch Oven Cookbook, Don Holm’s Book of Food Drying, Pickling and Smoke Curing (which are both just as fine and just as available on Google Books), and Wholesome Country Living (not available on Google Books.) It is no easy task to read about sourdough biscuits being made over an open fire while sitting on a laptop.

MP3: John Jacob Niles – Go ‘Way From My Window

Adding hot water to an instant packet of oatmeal or mac and cheese is easy as pie, sure, but you have the wrappers to deal with, you need about 5 of them to feel full, bla bla bla. It might take a few extra minutes to cook, but if you’ve got that time, and I know you all do, try bringing bulgur wheat along the next time you’re in the woods. It’s cheap, cooks quickly (buy the least coarse variety you can find), and tastes just as good with something sweet for breakfast as it does with something salty for dinner. That means if you’re in a safe enough place to do it, you can make extra at night and use the leftovers in the morning.

Put some dry bulgur in your bowl, add boiling water, cover it for a couple of minutes, and when it’s soft enough for your liking (I prefer it a little chewy, actually), sprinkle on whatever you’ve got in your pack. Honey and raisins, dried mushrooms and chili sauce, sardines and sliced almonds. Enjoy it.

I’m sure many of you have long stretches of taking the same food on each hike, swearing by a recipe, not able to understand why you ever ate anything else. Happens to me all the time. Then, a week or two later, you’ll find something totally different and have the same love affair. These past couple of weeks have been the good ol’ PBHB (judging the B’s ripeness and not smooshing it in your pack is a camping skill in itself, yeah?) because, really, there’s not much better. Period. Sure, if you’re home and the bananas are frozen, that’s better. And if you have the energy to toast up the bread a little near the fire, that’ll make it slightly better too. And, of course crunchy. Always crunchy. What do y’all got?