After the cooking, the cleanup.

[toedtoes]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

With my grandmother, it was the clean factor. She didn't want to look into the garbage and see a mess...

Ha! I bet those boys still have nightmares!

[Denni2]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

My grand mother also saved and reused aluminum foil, waxed paper from cracker and cereal boxes, bread sacks, glass jars, and butter containers. They were very poor and this was a way to save money. I have to admit I wash and reuse some foil, plastic bags, and some glass jars. I don't like to waste money on a lot of disposal items. However, when camping, I do dispose of foil and paper plates under some circumstances.

[isoc]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

isoc, I don't know if you are aware of it but, over the years Coleman produced many different accessories for their stoves that can really broaden you're horizons as far as "what to cook". Everything from an oven that folds flat for travel and yet does a great job baking biscuits and muffins, Corn bread, etc. on the stove-top to a drip percolator that operates on the stove-top instead of using electricity, to a variety of two-burner griddles that make breakfast a snap. Check out the Coleman Collectors Forum (I posted the link in the "Liquid fuel stove question" thread three threads below this one.) Have fun!

Thanks, SupGen. Right now we're just getting into the camping scenario, so it's a bit premature to gather a lot of equipment until we get some experience, and that won't happen until after the Spring Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere next year, as we don't want to start when it's cold/cool and more darkness than daylight. But we'll keep that in mind as we get experience. And thanks for the link to the Collectors Forum. - Ted

[MountainMama]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

Our grandmas rocked! They really knew how to stretch that dollar.

Now I use these little disposable foil pans for things like baked beans and such. They look like miniature loaf pans, maybe 1/4 the size. They come in a pack of 4 at Walmart or Dollar Tree. Perfect for things requiring a sauce pan to eliminate the clean up. They can go in the aluminum bin at the campground with the cans too. :-)

[NYCgrrl]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

Our grandmas rocked! They really knew how to stretch that dollar.

Now I use these little disposable foil pans for things like baked beans and such. They look like miniature loaf pans, maybe 1/4 the size. They come in a pack of 4 at Walmart or Dollar Tree. Perfect for things requiring a sauce pan to eliminate the clean up. They can go in the aluminum bin at the campground with the cans too. :-)

I use those shallow foil trays from the dollar stores to make baked beans on the grill. It allows the syrupy sauce to cook evenly as well as the bacon slices I cover the beans with. Since that style of tray is wobbly I slide a piece of cardboard under it to remove from the grill; makes it more stable and the cardboard makes a nice trivet to carry to the table. And yes into the garbage it goes when finished! Nana is prolly spinning in her grave over the sheer waste.
I like those mini loaf pans for freezing and sometimes cooking individual meatloaves. Think I'll try lining the pans with parchment paper and then cooking on the paper this year just to lower my "garbage" footprint.

[isoc]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

H'mmm, baked beans are on my camping menu, so there's another good idea. And my wife loves those dollar stores!

- Ted

[bluestar99]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but our group are big Camp Dutch oven cooks. Everything you can make at home can be done in a dutch oven with charcoal. Bread, rolls, pizza, chili, stew, roast with veggies, cobblers, you name it. If you use a parchment liner, cleanup, even with a sugary cobbler is super easy. Just remove the liner and any left overs. Wipe the oven out and heat up some water in it and lightly wash it out. After it's clean I will use the DO to heat some more water for dishes if there are any. Dry the oven, quick spray of oil and put it away.

[MountainMama]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

I use those shallow foil trays from the dollar stores to make baked beans on the grill. It allows the syrupy sauce to cook evenly as well as the bacon slices I cover the beans with. Since that style of tray is wobbly I slide a piece of cardboard under it to remove from the grill; makes it more stable and the cardboard makes a nice trivet to carry to the table. And yes into the garbage it goes when finished! Nana is prolly spinning in her grave over the sheer waste.
I like those mini loaf pans for freezing and sometimes cooking individual meatloaves. Think I'll try lining the pans with parchment paper and then cooking on the paper this year just to lower my "garbage" footprint.

I love the idea of the shallow ones for some fried baked beans! May have to try that.

With aluminum, you don't have to feel guilty as long as you separate it to be recycled. :yipi:

[NYCgrrl]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but our group are big Camp Dutch oven cooks. Everything you can make at home can be done in a dutch oven with charcoal. Bread, rolls, pizza, chili, stew, roast with veggies, cobblers, you name it. If you use a parchment liner, cleanup, even with a sugary cobbler is super easy. Just remove the liner and any left overs. Wipe the oven out and heat up some water in it and lightly wash it out. After it's clean I will use the DO to heat some more water for dishes if there are any. Dry the oven, quick spray of oil and put it away.

Once I get the RV (or a car of my own) I plan to try some DO cooking for sure. Right now feeding all those picayune hellions 3 times a day, day in and out for 2-3 weeks causes me to wanna do much of my stewing and soup making at home and freeze. I need to keep the eyes at the back of my head well focused for whatever shenanigans they are up to:winktongue:. Which reminds me... I think I just invited a 4th child this year. Someone hand me a gun....

[bluestar99]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

You are very brave. Kids do change a vacation in many ways. My daughter is all grown and married. But when she was a kid we took her camping when ever possible. Since I like to cook, she was my helper. I had not discovered Dutch Oven cooking back then or I would have used one. But my daughter and I made all kinds of things for meals. To this day she is still a scratch cook. She buys few prepared foods. Much of her love of cooking came from those trips cooking together. We still share recipes today. Maybe try including the kids in the process. Might burn off some energy and they always eat better when they helped make the meal. When she was young we did a lot of pie iron meals. Ever tried that with the kids?

[MountainMama]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

Once I get the RV (or a car of my own) I plan to try some DO cooking for sure. Right now feeding all those picayune hellions 3 times a day, day in and out for 2-3 weeks causes me to wanna do much of my stewing and soup making at home and freeze. I need to keep the eyes at the back of my head well focused for whatever shenanigans they are up to:winktongue:. Which reminds me... I think I just invited a 4th child this year. Someone hand me a gun....

Going off topic a tad, but the opening is here. :he:

Speaking of shenanigans, I took my two youngest (both boys 12 - 14) and two of their friends camping once on my own. Four boys together .. oh my! It was very late season up north and parks ready to close for the winter. There were only a few campers in the loop.

There was a small group of tween girls camping near us with their family / friends. Wanting to get the attention of said girls, they devised a plan. They tied a stick on some fishing line and sneaked into the girls bathroom and placed said stick halfway across the room.

When the girls all went (right before dark,) the boys, who were hiding behind trees nearby, pulled the string sent the stick flying across the bathroom. The girls shrieked so loud and long that you would think they were being pursued by a serial killer.

Instead of running out and into the company of would-be-hero boys, the girls went INSANE. They were screaming (OMG sooo loud) and crying and running. Parents come running from their campsite.

So, instead of everyone seeing this was just a stick tied to fishing line, and clearly a kids' prank, they called 911! Here comes cops, rescue, fire trucks - lights and sirens. It was a total mess and ridiculous over reaction to a moving stick. Kids can't have fun anymore.

[NYCgrrl]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

Kids can't have fun anymore.

Why sure they can!........they can lock every bathroom stall door and then slide out under 'em and wait for their grandmother to figure out the who, what, when and where. What the info came from some passerby grandmothers talking about "disgraceful behavior" in the bathroom. GRRR. Was my face red.

In somewhat the same vein....at the campground we take the kiddos to for long trips, tweens hang out in front of the playground in sex segregated groups; you can readily tell the boys from the girls by how much their lips shine. Every year I live in fear my kids will be old enough to hang out there and and my time is coming. Shu-duh-derrrrrrrrrrr.

[MountainMama]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

Why sure they can!........they can lock every bathroom stall door and then slide out under 'em and wait for their grandmother to figure out the who, what, when and where. What the info came from some passerby grandmothers talking about "disgraceful behavior" in the bathroom. GRRR. Was my face red.

I remember doing that when I was a kid! LOL Probably not as funny from my position of not being able to crawl under anymore. I would just flag down a kid to help me though. Still an innocent prank as far as what is going on the world these days. :-)

[toedtoes]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

I remember doing that... Well, I remember there was an evil ghost named Felix who lived in the girls bathroom at camp and who locked all the bathroom doors.... The camp photographer was NOT a happy camper that day. I rather sympathize these days.

[Irate Mormon]

Re: After the cooking, the cleanup.

The flying stick story cracked me up! I used to be quite the prankster - some of my exploits are family legends. I wonder what happened. Oh, yeah. I got old. THAT happened.