blbst36

Well, if I head out that way, I'll post a review. I'll admit - I'm not normally a very adventurous eater Thank goodness you didn't say the oyster bar

It looks like there are three - which one were you referring to? - Chef & the Farmer - Boiler Room - Benny's Big Time

Ok, so I went to a restaurant today that I HAVE to recommend. Pro's Epicurean Market and Cafe It's located in Cary in a small, unassuming shopping center. Ever since I saw the menu, I've been wanting to go. Now, I want to go A LOT. I went with a friend form work, so I was able to sample two appetizers and entrees. We got the burrata and brsuchetta of the day. The burrata was served with toasted bread topped with generous garlic and olive oil on the plate. It was delicious. We were told a few times that the cheese is all made by hand by the owner of the cafe. I could eat that with a salad and be happy! The bruschetta had fig, chees (possibly goat, but I forget), THIN THIN shavings of prouscuitto, olive oil, and the most delectable balsalmic vinegar I have ever tasted. Luckily, they have some for sale on site, so I plan to buy some when I go back. For entrees, my friend got the special which was chicken picatta with carrots. It was tasty, but it's not my favorite dish. The chicken was a little thicker than I would have expected. I got a sandwich described as such: Prosciutto parma, fresh mozzarella, crisped pancetta, broccoli rabe, olive oil, roasted red pepper pesto. It sounds like a lot of different ingredients, but they melded together very well. It was amazing and I am usually not a fan of roasted red peppers. It was served with some unimpressive, but homemade chips. I think I'll see if I can change it next time. Both of these entrees were recommended by the owner's son who waited on us. He also listed out the desserts, but we were quite full by that time. I wanted to get something to go, but I didn't really trust myself. Iced tea flavor is very important to me because I drink it unsweetened, but here, it was great. It had flavor, still tasted like tea instead of just brown water The service was kind of weird. It was set up as first come/first serve tables with counter ordering. But, when we walked in, he said we could sit anywhere and followed us with some menus. He went over almost everything in such amazing detail, I wanted to have everything. As it got busier, it went more to the expected counter ordering, but there were still some tables that got the full service. I believe after ordering, he was still coming by all the tables. It took about 1.5 hours and we got there soon after opening, so definitely plan on some extra time. It's more expensive than your normal lunch places, but it was because we got appetizers. You can make it more wallet friendly by just getting an entree or sandwich. My meal was 24ish and my friend's was 30ish - both before tips. Definitely a once in a while restaurant, but I can easily see myself going back.

I've only been to Hardee's a handful of times, but I don't remember the biscuits. I'll have to go back for that! Bojangles biscuits have been crumbly and half stale the last few times I've gone

It's kind of the same curve as learning to cook on cast iron. I'm sure you'll catch on quick. It's more about being aware of the heat settings and the amount of fat being used. Things like that. If I can do it, anyone can

I've had my All-Clad for almost 15 years (maybe longer). They aren't what I would classify as non-stick. Lots of fat needs to be used. If you have never cooked on a steel pan before, it will be like learning how to cook again. That being said, I still love them and use them often with my cast-iron. Between the two sets, there's not much I am missing. Others may have a different opinion, though.

So, I booked another campsite before July. It's just for an overnight trip, so the planning will be a little different. I'll have to reign it in a bit. I don't want to bring EVERYTHING, but I also don't want to have to worry about buying food to eat. I'll be out of the house all day Saturday and most of the day Sunday, but only at the camp site for dinner and breakfast, really. I've got some ideas. The most nerve-wracking part is not to over pack, but not under pack so much that I screw myself over - lol. This goes for both food and camp stuff!!

@Nancy in Pátzcuaro - Thanks! I'll look at it when I have more time.

.....down I go into the smokey smokey bbq hole.....

Personally, I just think it's another way to make people feel superior. There isn't even a single definition of "clean". Some people mean there's nothing boxed. Others mean everything is made at home with some boxed items. Others mean that they only buy stuff made without specific ingredients. Others mean no sugar or no flour or something. Others mean everything is grown/raised themselves. It's a buzzword.

AWESOME! Thanks!

Those potatoes look delicious! Do you have a recipe? Does PC mean Pressure Cooker? Cause I don't have one of those. I usually eat them form a box and the only time I made them from scratch, they weren't good enough to deter me from boxed.

@heidih - thanks for the links.

Thanks! Yea, the flatbread will have to wait until July. For the hash, all the ingredients wouldn't fit in the small frypan (It's an all-clad from the first set of cookware I bought like 20 years ago ). Plus, it was still dirty from the flatbread/pancake attempt. I've tried to cook eggs in the steel pans and I just have problems with the sticking. Initially, I wasn't going to cook anything in the pan. Just use mostly foil. I brought the pan more as a back up than anything. With the jars, I am trying to lose weight, so I figured if I could log all the calories and pre-pack everything, then I wouldn't have to worry about it while I was out there. I also didn't want to have to do any unnecessary prep out there. That meant using refrigerated diced potatoes instead of fresh. I couldn't think of a way to get them cut and not turn black. I use jars like that a lot to take ingredients into work, so I knew it would be ok for this. I guess I could use plastic containers to try and lighten the load. Definitely a learning experience every time

Whelp - the rain won. I was there Friday night to Saturday late afternoon. It took getting soaked three times for me to say screw it and pack up. I still managed to fire up the grill and cook a few of the things I had planned. Although the flat bread didn't work out. I put way too much water in So, first meal was hot dogs of course, with asparagus. I tried to make something with the watered down flat bread, but it didn't work out. Breakfast was kind of an egg, potato, ham hash Ingredients In the mason jar, potatoes, cheese, ham. In the middle jar, butter. In the right mason jar, scrambled eggs Made a bowl with foil, coat with olive oil Put potatoes and ham in foil. Cook for a bit Don't forget the salt and pepper Finished with a bit of cheese I ate out of the foil instead of trying to scrape it into the bowl. All the fat worked pretty well in keeping most of the food from sticking. I may try some of the easy release foil next time, but it kind of skeeves me out. This is all I got cooked before bailing No kielbasa, no pork chops with bulgur. No flatbread of any kind. Kind of a big fail. And no camping trips scheduled until July. Hopefully, that one will go better than this one.

@Thanks for the Crepes - Thanks for all the tips! I am hoping to hang out in my hammock most of the time. Luckily, it looks like Friday is 20% chance of rain, Saturday is 60%, and Sunday is 40% (the day I leave). The site I reserved is actually pretty covered with trees. The tarp is just some extra protection. I was also going to use it to have a clothesline down the middle so I can hang anything that's too wet. Since I'm short, I don't expect it to be very high, so it will hopefully not have as much rain going underneath The guy at REI did warn me that the cheaper (big blue) tarp may lose the grommets in strong wind or something, but it was like 12 bucks. Oh well. I don't think it's supposed to be that windy. I'm hoping for more of a soaking rain than torrential storm. I also bought some pants better suited for the rain and a new rain jacket. I didn't even think about an umbrella for the bathroom. I have one, though. I'll have to take it with me. I did think about baskets and such for the fire, but to be honest, I don't want a fire in the heat Hopefully I can start that back up in September, October, and November. I want to use my hot dog fork!! I'll have to check Dollar General out. I don't want to spend too much since they'll be a sometimes use. I think there's one in Brier Creek. Or Big Lots! Although I get in trouble there with all the cheap snack food I can close the lid on the grill which should help keep the flame alive, it's just no fun to grill in the rain. Also, I don't drink coffee, so no worries there For kitchen supplies, I have leftover jars from Penzey's to use for the salt and pepper. They're glass that have a shaker lid and regular sealed lid. I also got some nalgene bottles I am planning on using for soap and olive oil. One good thing is I won't have to worry about taking a shower, I can just stand in the rain - LOL! I'm pretty sure I have my menu down, but I'm not going to tell you until I get back

I've got a grill! I settled on a Blue Rhino portal propane grill I've got it built. I think it'll work well. It does have a broken locking clasp which is disappointing, but not enough for me to take back. Hopefully, I can just get a replacement part. It's a rainy week here in NC. Sadly, it will be the same when I go camping. I am trying to plan for rain with the hopes that it will change (like the weather here does). I'm trying to figure out the menu, but I think that rainy food and non-rainy food are two different beasts. If I can get my hammock up and under the rain fly, I will be a happy camper. I also want to see if I can get something set up over a larger area so I can cook on the grill and with the camp stove Mark my words, regardless of the weather I WILL have a grilled hot dog! If I am lucky, I will be having some kielbasa, too!

We were a gravy master house, too. I still use it, but I don't make gravy like my mother at all. I do it traditional with a roux, drippings, and some gravy master to round out the taste

Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't want a stove. It's not as practical for me as a portable grill. I'll get more use out of a grill in non-camping situations.

I did think of foil packets, too I figured I could prep them at home and even freeze them if needed to help with the cooler. If I can figure out a grill solution, I may still try them. The cookbook was suggested a while ago. I did get it, but it is more for families and groups than a single person. The recipes are actually quite involved. I am picking a couple that can be easily adapted for just me or that can be prepared ahead of time. There's no way I am doing any cooking in a dutch oven just for me! That salad sounds lovely! Thanks! That's what I am seeing in a lot of the reviews. That it runs hot and is difficult to attach the tanks. I feel like whatever I select, there's going to be problems

I ALWAYS have cream of chicken. Apparently it's weird to just eat it as soup. Who knew?!?

So, NEXT week is going to be my second camping trip. Since the temps have been in the 80s+ this week, I was contemplating getting a portable gas grill. I don't need a stand. Every where I'll take it has a picnic table. I want gas so it will be easier to cook for just me. I don't think I need a large cook space, though. I don't want a stove, I want fire. That way I can cook my wieners properly I was thinking of the Weber Q. Reviews say there's a problem connecting the tanks and with the regulator. It also only has one burner. There's also a multitude of coleman grills. I haven't looked into these too much. I started getting overwhelmed I be lost. HELP!

True, true. I was hoping to have a recipe I can cook directly over the fire, but better to start something than nothing.

Alas, I have cancelled the camping trip. They gave me an out "because it's going to be hot" this weekend and I jumped on it. At this point, I am not sure I even care if I get the money back. It will mean you have to wait a few more weeks for camping food I still may take the same approach for the next one, though. If it's still hot, I am going to want to keep the fire to a minimum.

I have another camping adventure coming up next weekend. It's with a hiking group that I joined, but left me behind on my first trip with them. I would cancel, but I've already paid and offered to help the person setting up. As of now, there is no information on the fire situation or anything. I am planning on treating it more like the hike in sites I have reserved later in the year. I want to see if there is any way that I can leave the cooler in the car and walk back and forth to get food or if I should depend on dehydrated/canned food. What I have planned so far: Breakfast - Egg tacos wrapped in foil I can reheat on a small skillet on my camp stove - Backup - Shelf stable cheese and sausage with bread or crackers Lunch - Sandwich and fruit - Only one lunch day. Could be while hiking - Backup - Canned soup Dinner - Assumption is there is at least one fire a day - Hobo packet with chicken and veg - Backup - Canned soup Definitely taking my 5 gallon water jug. I need a smaller container for a limited kitchen box. Maybe just a box for now, but long term, it should be something else. Maybe I should make a bag or something easy to carry. Or use a duffel bag. Experimentation time!