Adventures Galore!

September 18, 2015
I was supposed to be writing an article about “Glamping” for the Oklahoman Newspaper. We were at Bennett State Park in Missouri for a short camp out. The highlight of the trip was to be a 7 mile Kayak Run down the Niangua River.
My family moved to Rolla, MO right before my senior year in High School. There’s not much going on in Rolla, and even if their was, I got a job at A&W hopping cars after schools and on Saturday, so I didn’t have too much time for social time. It was a tough time, mostly biding my time until I got to BYU, the Shangrala of the Mormon dating scene.
But I fell in love with Missouri Rivers. Cool, clean, beautifully scenic, wending their unhurried paths  past bluffs and meadows, forests and mountains. Float trips let you have all the fun of a scenic hike with much less effort than required in the mountains, with refreshing swims thrown in whenever the mood strikes you.
The Niangua River promised to be all of the above.
But a tiny mistake turned our last delight of summer into a dangerous trial of endurance. I’ve sold the “Definitely not glamping” story and included in it a lead up to the kayak trip. It’s going to be in the Sunday paper. I’ll post a link as soon as I have it.
I included the link to my blog for this recipe. We started off the camp out with a decadent dessert!

Here’s my very favorite dutch oven recipe. It’s easy to carry in two zip lock bags and just add water. Served warm in a chilly camp, it’s the BEST!

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake for a 14″ dutch oven with legs and a cupped, flat lid

Combine these ingredients in one Quart sized ziplock bag or other tight container. If space is no issue a plastic bowl with a good lid works great.

Baggie 1
2 cups flour (I use whole white wheat) and gluten free flour works fine, too.
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4  cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup dry powdered milk
2 teaspoons vanilla.
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Zip closed

Baggie 2
 2 cups brown sugar and 1/2 cup cocoa.

In camp, heat 30 charcoal briquettes until mostly white. I use a chimney with a handle. It speeds them up and they’re easy to maneuver. Heat 3 cups of water until boiling.
 Mix contents of first baggie with one cup of water until well blended. Spread evenly on the bottom of the greased dutch oven. I line the dutch oven with foil to make cleanup easier.
Sprinkle the dry contents of baggie 2 over the thick batter. Pour 3 cups of hot water over the dry layer. DO NOT STIR. It will separate into a layer of moist cake on top and rich pudding on the bottom. I don’t know how, but it always works!
Place lid on top of the dutch oven. Place 15 coals on level place and place the dutch oven over the coals. Using tongs, place the other 15 coals on the lid.
Let bake for 35 minutes.
Remove coals from lid and carefully move lid aside without dumping ash into the dessert.
Serve hot with vanilla yogurt, (above) or whipped topping. If you’re home, serve with ice cream.

You can bake this dessert in a regular oven. Use a 9×13 greased pan, uncovered. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.  

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