Don’t get too excited, I know most of the veggie burgers you may have tried could taste like cardboard or a stale Frisbee. However, if you make them yourself, you know exactly what’s in it and they will taste delicious without requiring much time to prepare or cook.

Try telling me that does not look delicious! Photo by Seelensturm @ Flickr

Yes, beans do have some unfortunate side effects like causing the person sleeping next to you to leave the tent for some fresh air. However, if you wash your canned beans well, and soak your dried beans overnight before cooking them, you will remove the phytic acid that causes gas.

A really healthy and easy recipe follows if you want to make them from scratch.

The fun in this recipe is being inventive and taking a risk, a little squirt of ketchup, a handful of nuts or seeds. As long as you can form them into patties that will bind together without falling apart, you are good. Try the mixture, and adjust taste to your liking.

Veggie Burger

2 cups well-cooked white, black or red beans, or chickpeas or lentils, (or 1 14-ounce can, drained)
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
½ cup rolled oats (preferably not instant)
1 tablespoon chili powder, or the spice mix of your choice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg
Bean-cooking liquid, stock or other liquid (wine, cream, milk, water or ketchup) if necessary
Extra virgin olive oil or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn.

1. Combine all ingredients except liquid and oil in food processor and pulse until chunky but not puréed. If necessary, add a little liquid for a mixture that is moist but not wet. Let mixture rest for a few minutes.
2. With wet hands, shape into patties and let rest again for a few minutes. (Burger mixture or shaped burgers can be covered tightly and refrigerated for up to a day. Bring back to room temperature before cooking.) Film bottom of a large nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet with oil and turn heat to medium. When hot, add patties. Cook undisturbed until browned, about 5 minutes; turn carefully (so they don’t fall apart) with spatula and cook 3 or 4 minutes until firm and browned.
3. Serve on buns with mustard, ketchup, chutney or other toppings.

For the inventive chef: To the basic mix you could add cheese; soy sauce or herbs; ketchup, tomato paste or chopped sun-dried tomatoes; nuts or seeds; lemon or other citrus zest; and so on. You can also make these patties with mashed potatoes as a base, adding bits of any chopped vegetables you like.

Myrite Rotstein
Certified Holistic Wellness Coach
www.tastylife.org

Recipe and suggestions courtesy of Mark Bittman, NY times columnist and author of How to Cook Everything Vegetarian

Nutriciously delicious?

A common misconception is that energy bars are good for you, when in fact many of them pack as many calories as a candy bar, at usually twice the cost. You want a natural energy bar that contains simple ingredients you can understand such as fruits, nuts, and seeds. If you don’t have time before your trip to make your own bars, here’s a list of some healthy contenders you can purchase.

Look out for these ingredients:
· Sugar/high fructose corn syrup/glucose/fructose: should not be in the first three ingredients because it means the bar contains the most of that particular ingredient.

· Partially hydrogenated Oils: are trans fats, the kind we are supposed to avoid if want our arteries to remain clear

· Chocolatey coating: the term "Chocolatey" is a spiffy end-run past the Food & Drug labelling requirements. Since they aren’t actually calling this coating "chocolate", it can include any edible substance with a somewhat chocolate flavour.

This is when you say to yourself, "man I really should learn how to make my own granola bars to take with me". Easy. Here’s the recipe

Power Balls:
16 oz almond butter (or other nut butter)
8 oz of honey
¾ blender full of rolled oats/muesli or puffed brown rice cereal
Coating: bowl full of ground walnuts, sunflower seeds, grated coconut, hemp seeds, raisins, cocoa powder, or sesame seeds

Optionally for + health boost:
¼ cup ground flax seeds
1 tsp greens +
1/2 tsp ginger powder

Instructions:
1. Mix almond butter and honey in a bowl

2. Puts oats in a food processor and blend until they assume an almost powdery consistency, but still retain their form.

3. Add oats to almond butter and honey mixture and blend well

4. Roll batter into small balls, then roll the balls into your choice of topping (grated coconut, ground nuts, ground flax..)

5. Store power balls in the fridge and when you’re ready for your camping trip, individually wrap them in saran wrap and bring them along to share!

Here’s another recipe I enjoy making. For more recipes come check out my website www.tastylife.org

Happy and Tasty Trails,
Myrite

In Gaspésie it’s an obligation to eat seafood, provided that you like that sort of thing. Who doesn’t like to tuck into a nice big, freshly caught lobster? We do, and certainly took maximum advantage of our situation. We tried, with our feet in water much too cold, to coax one into the cooler, but it was in vain…. After only a few seconds, we decided, due to our numb, swollen-red feet, to go to the nearby fish store and pick a monster out for ourselves. The choice wasn’t difficult as there were only lobsters in the tank. We’ve tried to cook them in all sorts of ways and our favourite is on the grill. This worked out well as we had brought one along with us!

You will need:

1- One frisky and very energetic lobster (it must move around with vigour!)
2- A well-sharpened chef’s knife.
3- A barbecue or a grill to put over the fire .
4- Tongs (to turn the lobster with).
5- A tasty garlic butter.

Directions:

1- Separate the pincers from the live lobster.

2- Put the lobster on its belly, with the tail nice and flat, and stick the point of the knife in its head. Then with an energetic and firm stroke, cut the lobster length-wise down the middle so you have two pieces. You will find this cruel, but tell yourself this beast can’t feel a thing.
3- Slather the lobster meat with garlic butter and put it meat side down on a very hot grill.
4- After about 5-7 minutes, turn the lobster shell side down on the grill.
5- At this time you can put the pincers on as they take less time to cook.
6- You’ll know the lobster is ready when the meat separates easily from of the shell. This will take around another 5-7 minutes depending on the size of your lobster.

Bon appétit.

*Translated by Judy Altitude

Where the sea begins...

We knew we wanted to camp most of the time in national parks, so we equipped ourselves with a grill for cooking meat over the fire, good cooking utensils, our camping stove – MSR Whisperlite international – and a good pot. Not to mention the cooler we used to drag our belongings around problem-free, and in particular, to keep the beer cold….

First Dinner in Gaspésie

We prepared chicken Tandoori drumsticks. They were frozen so we could put them in the cooler several hours even 2 days in advance without worrying. This way they marinate longer, taste better and are juicier.

Magalie at the grill

Chicken Tandoori Drumsticks

For two hungry people

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes.

Ingredients

8-10 frozen chicken drumsticks
750 ml plain yogourt
1 head of garlic, minced
5 tbs. Tandoori spice mix
juice of 2 lemons

Directions

1- Mix all the ingredients together until well combined.

2- Put the chicken in a zip-lock bag with the spice mix.

3- Close the bag and mix everything around so the drumsticks are well coated.

4- Keep the chicken cold until you’re ready to cook it.

5- To cook the chicken, the best is over a fire or on the barbecue. Shake off the excess marinade from the drumsticks and cook them until the meat comes easily off the bone.

Accompanied with baked potatoes wrapped in aluminum foil, this chicken is finger lickin’ good.

*translated by Judy Altitude

Magalie and baked potato

In a can!

Altitude-blog.com and Altitude-sports.com invite you to wake up your taste buds. Oh yeah ! All day Saturday, along with our friends at Gastronomie Le Naked Lunch, we're having a taste test of camping food. Come in and savour some of Le Naked Lunch's great meals. With dishes like Thai Chicken and Coconut Soup or Duck Brest Smoked Meat, amongst others, you know you're in for a treat

sealed for your pleasure

Where: Altitude Sports, 4140 St-Denis, (514) 847-1515

When: Saturday, August 1st, 2009 from 10am to 5pm

Why: For good times, of course

And if ever you can't make it, fret not as Gastronomie Le Naked Lunch's products are always available at Altitude-sports.com and at the Altitude Sports boutique on St-Denis.

See you soon,

Juan Altitude

Are you looking for an easier way to cook while camping or hiking? Would you love to make sautées but don't like the hassle of carrying around messy oil or butter? Well, our friends at La Guilde Culinaire have a great solution for you! It's called Mycryo cocoa butter and if you hadn't heard of it until now, join the club! All I know is that after having learned about it, it's on my must-have list.

WHAT IS IT?  It is a butter in a powder form. It has insulating properties that bring out the color, texture and natural taste of every food.

- 100% plant-based

- Natural

- Convenient

- Preserves natural flavors & textures; does not add any flavor

WHY USE IT?

- Less fat : 50% to 70% less calories

- Neutral cholesterol effect

- Easy to use and measure

- Saves time on preparation

WHY USE IT FOR MY OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES?

- Solid, thus not messy

- Easy to carry

- Easy to clean

- The heat stability of Mycryo butter (200°C) allows for fast cooking.

HOW TO USE IT

First sprinkle your ingredients with Mycryo butter.  Second, warm your frying pan without any oil or fat. Third, put your ingredients in when your frying pan is red hot.

TIPS

Mix your breadcrumbs directly with the Mycryo butter, it will stick to your meal and you don’t have to use flour or eggs.

WHERE TO BUY IT?
Some cooking schools and fine grocery shops.

MORE INFORMATION

Go to www.cacaobarry.com to see an online demonstration as well as more tips

Happy cooking!

Judy Altitude

Sweet Potato Hash

Sunday morning was gloriously warm and sunny. Appropriately, Leigh Partington, (another loyal altitudiène), Carie, one of Leigh’s friends, and I brought our picnicking equipment, i.e., camping stoves, fuel, coffee, food, blankets, cutlery, cups, plates, bowls etc., to Jeanne-Mance Park in Montreal where we proceeded to cook ourselves up a delicious little breakfast. Trying to recreate the most authentic camping scene that I could, I wanted to think of a recipe that would be appropriate for folks spending some time out in the trees, or along the beach, or in the mountains, and that wouldn’t be too difficult.

There are many kinds of hash, but from what I gather, there are two kinds: wet and dry. Wet hashes use gravy in their preparation and dry ones use the fat rendered from butter or meat. (My recipe will be for a dry hash, but if you’d like to experiment by adding gravy, or searching for other recipes on the Internet, please, be my guest.) I am of the opinion that you can throw whatever the heck you want into hash. Maybe you want to add other ingredients such as spinach, cheese, dried herbs, and spices, to name a few. The main point is that you want your hash to have lots of crusty crunchy bits that will contrast silky yolks of fried eggs, or light pillowy scrambled ones. To avoid waiting an hour for breakfast to be ready, use pre-cooked potatoes that you have left over from the night before. That way the hash will heat up and cook quickly to a golden brown.

MSR Whisperlite International

You can use almost any stove to cook this meal because it involves quick sautéing and browning. I have a MSR Whisperlite International stove, which has two settings: high and low. It’s a hearty, lightweight little machine meant for expeditions and simple cooking. Using this as my number one weapon of choice, I have every intention on becoming a master, backpacking chef (even though I heard that the heavier MSR Dragonfly is the Rolls Royce of camping stoves….)

It’s also nice to have a friend like Leigh along who will bring her Jetboil and make you coffee while you cook. The Jetboil Personal Cooking System (PCS)is the ultimate solo hiker’s dream. It boils water at a rapid-fire speed, is insulated with a neoprene case so you can pick it up with your hands and everything fits into the canister! The real bonus is if you buy the French Press attachment, which you can also store inside the pot, it’s a real one-pot operation.

The Jet Boil (PCS)

For actual cooking I’ve however heard that it’s a bit tricky. Leigh said she burned a perfect black sphere into her pot of oatmeal when she left the pot unattended for 30 seconds. Next time I’m going to give it a go, so you can look out for an update. For now, here’s the recipe.

Sweet Potato Pesto Hash

Make this recipe after a night of fire-roasted potatoes and any meat you have left over such as, hamburger, hot dogs, other sausage, bacon etc.

For four hungry hikers/campers/picnickers

2 eggs per person
2 C diced cooked potato (or raw)*
2 C diced cooked sweet potato (or raw)
1 C chopped meat (can be uncooked)
1 C chopped onion
A couple TBS of pesto
Salt and Pepper

*If you use raw potato, this will take much longer.

Fry your onion and meat (I used bacon) together in a frying pan until it’s tender and brown.

Frying the onions and bacon

Then add your potatoes, sweet potatoes and pesto. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cook until crunchy and crispy, it’s okay if some parts are almost burned.

Hash cooking

Set the hash aside in a pot with the lid on to conserve heat.

Cook eggs according to preference. I fried mine over-easy, but scrambled would also be delicious.

Energy Bars

Ingredients :

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup raisins (or other favourite dried fruit like mangoes or cranberries)
1 cup chocolate chips (use good quality dark chocolate for best results)
1 cup seeds (mix of sunflower, pumpkin, flax, sesame seeds etc.)
1 cup peanuts (or a mix of other nuts such as pistachios, walnuts or almonds)
1/2 cup of melted butter
1 can of Eagle Brand condensed sweet milk (low fat, it’s healthy)

Method :

Mix everything together in a large bowl.

Line an 18 X11 inch edged pan with a silicone map or parchment paper. You can also use aluminum foil, or just the surface of the pan, but don't forget to grease either with butter.  Then, pour the mixture into the pan and spread it out evenly with a wooden spoon.

Bake at 325 F for 25 - 30 min

Let the bars cool 10-15 min before you cut them. To do this, turn your pan upside down onto a cutting board, remove the silicone mat or parchment paper and cut into bar shaped pieces.

Let me know how you like this recipe and send me yours if you have the chance!

Judy

My Oatmeal with Coconut and Flax

For two campers
(it doubles, triples, quadruples very easily)

1 C quick or instant oats
¼ C coconut
2 TBS flax seeds
2 C water

Set your pot on the stove and let it heat up just a little. Dump in the oats, coconut and flax seeds. Stir them around and let them toast a bit. You don’t want them to burn, so keep stirring throughout the toasting process. The mixture is ready to take off the heat when it has a deep nutty fragrance. Pour the oats into a bowl and set aside. Next boil two cups of water and pour the oats back into the pan filled with water. Cover and wait, stirring occasionally. You can use less or more water depending on how you like the consistency of your oats. More water for creamier oats, less for thicker oats. [Note that rolled oats are great, but they take around 7 or 8 minutes to cook in simmering water instead of quick oats which take only 3-4 minutes after you add boiling water and turn the stove off.] Then, pick out some toppings that you would like to add. I had almonds and raisins lying around, so I used those. I sometimes add dried fruit to the oats while they cook because it adds sweetness and becomes tender. Finally, as a luxury item, you might want to bring a small container of brown sugar along as much for your coffee as for the top of your coconutty oats.

Suggested Toppings

Slivered almonds (then you don’t have to cut them up)
walnuts
Raisins
Dates
Dried banana
Dried tropical fruit (pineapple, mango, papaya)