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Healthy Recipes / Nutrition Information
Stacy Beeson, RD, LD
St Luke’s Health Solutions Registered Dietitian

Nutrition Segment from
June 2 , 2008 Channel 7's Noon Show

Camp Cuisine

Don’t leave nutrition behind when you head into the woods~

Managing food is the hardest part of camping! The suggestions below involve one swift visit to the grocery store to equip the family with road trip snacks, camp snacks and the base for nutritious meals. The only thing you need to pre-make is an easy trail mix.

BARE BONES CAMP LIST: It’s good to rely on canned, dehydrated, and frozen foods and hearty fresh fruits and vegetables when you’re away from your home base. Approach each meal with the aim of a whole grain source, protein source and vegetable.

Produce

2 hearty vegetable choices for snacking (baby carrots and snap peas)
2 hearty fruit choices for snacking (apples, grapes, bananas or oranges)
Dried apricots

Protein

Chicken, salmon, tuna in pouch or can and peanut butter

Grain

Whole wheat couscous, quick-cooking brown rice, bulgur

Dairy

Smoothies in bottle, string cheese

Canned

Garbanzo beans
Diced tomatoes
Health Request soup or other healthy broth-based soup with around 3 g fat per 100 calories and <400 mg sodium per serving.

Frozen

2 packs frozen stir-fry vegetables

Seasonings

Paul Newman’s Light Balsamic Vinaigrette
Curry, cumin, onion flakes, ground pepper

ROAD TRIP TIP:
If you have a hard time avoiding donuts and chips due to complaining kids, hold your ground and remember it’s okay to say “no.” The parent is the role model and decides the WHAT, WHEN & WHERE of eating. Kids decide the WHETHER and HOW MUCH of eating. It is best to start healthy habits early to get kids used to healthy choices.

CAMP CHOW:
The benefit of this meal is that it takes 15 minutes and uses one pot and not one refrigerated item. The nutritional benefits are that it’s low in calories and contains iron, zinc, potassium and fiber. Serves 6-8

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon onion flakes
1 teaspoon curry powder
½ teaspoon cumin
1½ cups dried couscous
1, 14-ounce can fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth
1, 10-ounce can of Valley Fresh chicken
1, 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1, 15-ounce can garbanzo beans
sprinkling of red pepper flakes
cashews

In a pot over low-medium heat, heat the oil, the onion flakes, curry and cumin for a minute. Add the dry couscous for 1 minute, constantly stirring and remove from heat. Add the broth and return to heat to bring to a boil. Cover and remove from the heat until the couscous has absorbed the liquid. Stir in the canned chicken, tomatoes and garbanzo beans. Add more seasoning as you please. Throw on some cashews and call the campers for chow time. Approximate nutrition per ½ cup serving: 170 calories, 4 g fat, 24 g carbohydrates, 9 g protein.Per ½ cup serving: 170 calories, 4 g fat, 24 g carbohydrates, 9 g protein.

SIMPLE SOUP WITH SASS

1 large can Healthy Request soup
1 pack stir-fry vegetables

Add frozen vegetables to soup and heat. Serve cut-up apples with peanut butter as a side.

CAMP COOKER PIZZA
This meal uses a clever camp contraption called a camp cooker. They look like fly swatters with sandwich-size iron plates on the end of long handles. They are available at most outdoor stores and are used to cook sandwiches, pizza and dessert. This meal is interactive, takes the load off the cook and doesn’t contain grease! Serve this with frozen stir-fry vegetables drizzled with Paul Newman’s Light Balsamic vinaigrette grilled in aluminum foil over the coals.

2 slices of whole wheat bread
1 T whipped butter
3 small piles chopped red and green pepper, mushrooms, onion, artichoke hearts,
Canadian bacon, fresh or sun-dried tomatoes and any other pizza fixing
3 pinches shredded part-skim mozzarella or lowfat cheddar cheese
3 small spoonfuls of lowfat pizza sauce or pesto sauce

Lightly spread two slices of bread with whipped butter. Lay the bread margarine side down on the lower half of the cooker. Layer it with the ingredient fillings or spread the ingredient fillings out, depending on the camp cooker concoction. **To avoid overflow, do not pile ingredients on too heavily and spread them out. Place the second piece of bread butter side up on top of the fillings. Close the cookers, latch the hand and trim off excess bread. Cook, turn and check for 5 - 8 minutes.

TRAIL SNACK:
Store-bought trail mix is expensive and often contains unwanted ingredients. Make a big tub of your own and portion into ½ cup servings for a snack on the trail.

2 cups Kashi Go Lean Crunch
1 cup dried cherries
½ cup almonds
½ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup corn flax crackers
¼ cup peanut M & Ms
¼ cup mini chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients together. Makes 10, ½ cup servings. Nutrition information per ½ cup: 215 cals, 27 g carbohydrates, 5 g protein, 10 g fat.

Call Stacy at St Luke’s Health Solutions with any questions. 381-2403.

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