Dreaming of Camping...

Every year we take our kids camping...all six of us, two tents, sleeping bags, and a million other things you need to camp in comfort and style! It takes me a couple of weeks to prepare and pack, then another week to unpack and put away....so we limit our trips to 3-4 per summer season.

We always look forward to the meals and the fun times around the campfire. This year I definitely intend to try my hand at making bannock over the fire! Bannock is delicious made in the oven, and is one of those easy breads you can make in a pinch.

Irish Bannock

But, I do look forward to seeing the kids making bannock on a stick as a treat by the fire at night or in a fry pan or a dutch oven for breakfast with some bacon and eggs and fresh brewed coffee...yum!

Here are some interesting details and recipes for you to enjoy...I apologize, but I do not remember where I found these recipes or I would also include a link. I had it saved in my camping file.

What is Bannock?
Bannock is a bread that you can cook using little more than a fire
and a stick though it can also be baked or fried. Names for bannock
include bushbread, trail bread, grease bread and galette.

Bannocks origins are lost in the mists of time, but some believe
bannock was first made by the Scotts from the same oat flour that
gave their horses great strength and endurance. With stomachs fed
with hearty oat bannock those who became explorers and mountain men
in the new world introduced the bannock recipe to the Native
Americans and other outdoorsmen who lived in the wilderness.

The most simple bannock recipe consists of just flour of
nearly any kind and water. Kneaded into a dough and wrapped around a
green stick, this most basic bannock cooks into a fine tasting bread
that can be eaten alone or used as a basis for a full course meal.

Bannock on a Green Stick

The following recipe provides enough bannock for one day. Stored in a
waterproof bag, it is easy to carry a week or ten day supply.

1-cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons milk powder

Mix all the ingredients well, making sure the butter is evenly
distributed throughout. Sometimes I will melt the butter before
adding it to the mixture. Then slowly add water while mixing until a
dough ball is formed.

Cooking Bannock...Make the bannock dough into a cigar shape and wrap it
around a green stick. Try to keep the thickness of the dough about ½
inch.

Slowly roast the bannock over a hot fire, rotating occasionally until
it turns a golden brown. You will hear the butter sizzling and your
stomach rumble as the bannock cooks.

Multi-flour Bannock Recipe
This combination of flours, spices, and dried fruit makes the bannock
a delicious meal of itself and makes me hungry just thinking about
it. It can be cooked over an open fire on a green stick or formed
into a loaf and baked and makes a 3-day supply:

1 Cup Barley flour
1 Cup Wheat flour
1/2 Cup Rolled Oats
1 Cup White Sugar
1/2 to 1 Cup Raisins or other dried fruit
1 1/2 Cup Buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tbsp. Coarse Ground Salt
1 tbsp. Cinnamon
1 tbsp. Cloves
1 tbsp. Nutmeg

Fried Bannock
If you like fried foods then you need to try fried Bannock.

4 cups flour
2 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 can milk, mix with water
1/4 cup margarine/butter
2 eggs
1/4 tbsp salt

Mix all the ingredients so a dough ball is formed. Break off pieces
and flatten into rounds about ½ inch thick. Fry to a golden brown in
the oil of your choice.

Every camping enthusiast should know how to make bannock and
cook it over an open fire. The recipe your great grandfather used has
not changed and it remains an excellent food for the hungry survivor:

2.5 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
One cup cold water
Mix and kneed the bannock ingredients. Then place in a greased pan
over a glowing bed of coals; or better yet cook it on a stick.