Our old trailer is well over twenty years old and has pretty much seen its last days. So, Wifey and I went to the big RV show and bought a new one. Though it is smaller than the old one, it has a slide out, so it is much bigger on the inside. We did have to give up some storage space. The only outside storage is the compartment under the bedroom. It has no basement like the old one. We streamlined our gear and found that we carried way too much useless and redundant stuff. So, after packing everything in, we headed up to Monterey for Thanksgiving weekend. We stay at Laguna Seca raceway. It is a beautiful spot and you can watch the racers practice during the day. The weather was perfect. 70s during the day and a bit cool at night, but that's what campfires and central heating is for. One additional bit of gear that we bought was a pair of Lodge cast iron Dutch ovens. For Thanksgiving, we did a whole chicken, since it was just the three of us. Our grand daughter tagged along. I marinated it in olive oil, lemon juice, rosemary, salt and pepper. In the pot went onions, carrots, garlic, mushrooms, more lemon and a bit of dark beer. Plopped in Mr. Chicken with a sprig of rosemary under each wing. About 10 charcoal briquettes on the bottom and 15 on the lid. After an hour, or so, it was a done deal. I used the broth to make gravy for the potatoes which I did in the smaller oven,which was just set on the lid of the big one with about 10 briquettes on top. Stack cooking. Meanwhile, yams, salad and sushi (sushi?????) was being prepared in the trailer. It was quite a feast. The next morning, it was cowboy breakfast in the Dutch oven. Throw some hashbrowns, some cooked bacon, sausage, Spam, ham or whatever you have, some eggs and top with cheese. Charcoal on the top and bottom and wait about 25 minutes. Very good and filling. You could add anything else that suits your fancy, salsa, peppers, onions, whatever. That night, it was chili. I just used ground beef, three different kinds of beans, garlic, onions, canned tomatoes and Carroll Shelby's chili mix. After about an hour, I mixed up two packages of Jiffy corn muffin mix and spooned it right into the pot, covering the top of the chili. Lid back on and cook for another 15 or 20 minutes. It turned out really good. The corn bread cooked up real nice and was not soggy, on the bottom, as I feared it might be. On Saturday we ate out at Cannery Row. When we got back, I made a dump cake. Two cans of apricots in the Dutch oven, sprinkle in a yellow cake mix and a half can of Seven-Up. Same routine as before with the coals. It was good, though I think I should have let it cook for a bit longer. In all, I'm sold on Dutch oven cooking. Next time out, we'll try some other recipes.
