The Trainer's Corner Blog

Hello fellow Scouters,

As you know, I’m always looking for good camp coffee (maybe to the point of obsession!). One thing that I’ve never considered is instant coffee, because instant coffee is usually just plain terrible. Recently, however, Starbucks has come out with their own “Via” line of instant coffee. I have tried it and I have to admit it’s not bad. It’s not quite as good as a regular brewed coffee, but since it’s instant coffee, it’s easy to make with very little mess.

I probably won’t be drinking a lot of this around the home, but I’m starting to keep a stockpile at work. It’s great to heat up a cup of water and make a quick cup of coffee (remember – I’m an accountant. Caffeine is a survival tool!).

This is also a good option for camping. Although I’m not going to retire my new GSI coffee press anytime soon, I plan on bringing Via along with me when I want to make a quick cup of coffee at camp. On those mornings where you are running short on time or packing up your equipment, a quick cup of coffee with no grounds to deal with would be nice. Plus, since you can avoid bringing coffee-making equipment, I figure this would be a great backpacking option.

–

If you are looking for an easy coffee option for your next campout, consider Starbucks new Via blend of instant coffee. The taste isn’t bad, and there is very little clean up. And no, this blog post isn’t sponsored by Starbucks in any way – although a portion of each of my paychecks seems to end up going to them :-)

In Scouting,

 - Scouter Jeff <><

Hello fellow Scouters,

I learned an excellent way to make omelets a few years ago at Baloo training. These are easy to make and would be great for your next campout. They create very little mess, and although aren’t the greatest looking omelets, they taste wonderful and are easy to make! Plus, you can make several at a time, so your Scouts won’t go hungry.

–

Here’s the equipment you need:

• 1 to 2 large stock pot(s), depending on the number of omelets you will make (a large pot can make around half a dozen of these bagged omelets)
• Tongs
• Ziplock Heavy Duty quart-size freezer bags (must be Heavy Duty)
• A sharpie (to write the scout’s name on the bag)

Here’s some optional equipment:

• A lid for the stock pot (to bring water to a boil faster; you won’t us a lid while cooking the omelets)
• Scissors to cut open the bag (the omelets roll out fairly easy, but cutting the bag when done gets them out faster).

Here are the ingredients:

• Two eggs per omelet
• Salt and pepper
• Whatever fixings you like in an omelet

–

First, have each Scout write his name on his bag. Then they crack two eggs in the bag and kneed the bag to break up the yokes and mix the eggs. Then they place whatever ingredients they like in an omelet (I’m partial to crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese). Don’t forget the salt and pepper!  Then they mix the ingredients and then squeeze the air out and close the bag (I like to keep the mixture at the bottom of the bag and roll the bag up as I close it).

Next, place the bag in a pot of boiling water. You can place several bags in the pot, depending on its size (you just want to make sure that there is some room for them to float free). When I make mine, I don’t like the Ziplock bag to touch the sides too long, so I rotate and move it around. Plus, I don’t like the top of the bag to be in water, so I like to keep the zipper part out (you will see in my picture that I folded the zipper on the omelet, which floats after about a minute while cooking. You can do that if you have one or two omelets in the pan. If you have a lot of omelets, then you won’t have the issue of the zipper getting in the water).

Boil the omelet(s) for 13 minutes, rotating them around the pot to keep the bags from touching the sides of the pot, and to let the omelet cook evenly.

Using the tongs, take the bags out and set them aside. They cool down quickly, and they will roll out of the bag on to the plate when cooked evenly. You can eat it as is, or add any toppings you like. I like to top mine with my wife’s awesome salsa!

Another great thing, other than how easy they are to make, is that you can do some of the prep ahead of time, before the campout. You can fry up the bacon, cut the ham, or prepare whatever you want at home before you leave. Then you just have to place the fixings in the bag and put them in the water!

–

A note about bacon – although unhealthy, so many of us like bacon. The boys in my second den were bacon-lovers. It didn’t matter what we had for breakfast, as long as we had bacon! Bacon can be fried at the campground, but for something like this it’s easy to fry at home before the campout. When I did this, I’d fry it, pat the slices dry with paper towels, then put two slices in a sandwich bag. It’s easy to crumble in a sandwich bag and it’s pre-measured – just grab a sandwich bag and you are guaranteed two slices of bacon!

Finally, make sure you know of any food allergies or dietary restrictions your boys may have. You don’t want to get to the campout and find out that someone is allergic to eggs or is a vegetarian (both of which I’ve seen in Scouts). Know ahead of time so someone doesn’t get to the campout and aren’t able to eat breakfast.

–

Cooking with your Cubs is such an important part of the program, as I’ve blogged about here. You can teach them to cook in den meetings, and when they are Webelos you can take them and their parents out camping and teach them to cook in the outdoors. Consider adding a Ziplock bag omelet to your meal plan – it’s easy to make and tastes great! And the cleanup is a breeze.

Writing this has made me hungry! I’m off to make a gruyere cheese, bacon, and mushroom omelet in a bag.

Enjoy!

In Scouting,

 - Scouter Jeff <><