Camping With a Rice Cooker

So, we went camping again last weekend. I really don't like to spend much time cooking or cleaning up while camping. Since I knew we were going to have a campsite with electricity, I decided to take our rice cooker along to do the majority of the cooking. We still used our cookstove to heat up water, but I didn't get out any other pans.

The food was a hit with everyone.

Here were our breakfasts:

RICE COOKER SCRAMBLED EGGS

I had mixed 6 eggs together before we went camping, and froze them flat in a ziploc bag. I had also put some ham cubes in ziploc, maybe 1/2 c. cheese in a baggie, and 2 T. butter in a little sandwich bag. When it was time to cook, I put the butter in and let it melt a little, then I added the ham to mix it with the butter a little. I poured the eggs in and stirred. It cooked pretty fast, maybe about 5 minutes, with me stirring it every couple of minutes. Then I added the cheese, stirred and let it all mix together. (This would have been great by itself, but I had about 1 1/2 c. leftover shrimp and rice that I stirred in until it was warm. Very good.)

RICE COOKER COCONUT RICE PUDDING

3/4 c. rice
1 1/2 c. water
1/4 t. salt
2 cans coconut milk
1/2 c. sugar
Cinnamon

Cook the rice, water and salt in the rice cooker. When rice is done, stir in the coconut milk and the sugar. Cover and turn the cooker back on. After maybe 15 minutes, start checking and stirring the rice every 5 minutes or so until it has the right consistency. I don't remember how long this took, but it didn't seem too long. It was a big hit and very filling.

RICE COOKER OATMEAL

The day before we left home, I soaked 2 c. oatmeal with 2 cups water and 2 T. yogurt in a bowl on the cupboard. Before we left, I put it in a ziploc, and then into the cooler. We used it 3 days later. When it was time to cook it, I emptied the oatmeal ziploc into the rice cooker and then added a can of coconut milk. It did not take very long to cook at all, maybe 5 minutes, and I liked the consistency. I served it with dried cranberries and some half and half. (I had planned on having it just plain, but I happened to be in a grocery store the day before we had it and I splurged on a small container of half & half)

I like this method of making oatmeal. I think during the school year, I'll set it up in the rice cooker (using water instead of coconut milk) the night before so Dave can turn it on when he gets his coffee. That way, he can have fresh oatmeal without having to work for it, and it will stay warm for the rest of us.

BONUS RECIPES:

SHRIMP & RICE

Before we had left home, I'd cut up a green pepper and onion and placed them in a baggie. We also had a quart sized baggie of cut up broccoli.

Put in rice cooker:
1 stick of butter
onion and pepper - let it cook for a minute or two.
Add:
1 1/2 c. rice
1 can broth
Bag of broccoli
1 lb shrimp
Old Bay Seasoning

Turn cooker on, stir, and let it cook. You might want to add the shrimp close to the end so it doesn't get too chewy.


RICE COOKER MACARONI AND CHEESE

In rice cooker, add:

2 c. uncooked macaroni
1 c. broth
1 c. milk or cream
Ham cubes (optional)
Broccoli (optional)

Cook until the macaroni is done. Then, add:

1 1/2 c. shredded cheese
2 T. butter
Salt & pepper

Stir and keep warm until ready to serve.

Lower Sugar Rhubarb Cobbler

Another one of those maybe-not-the-healthiest-breakfast-in-the-world breakfasts. A while back, my sister-in-law gave me this recipe for lower sugar rhubarb cobbler. I made it earlier this week, and we had the leftovers for breakfast the next day. With vanilla ice cream. Quite decadent.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Spread in the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan:

4 cups cleaned and cut up rhubarb (1/2" pieces)

Sprinkle with:

1/4 teaspoon baking soda (this helps to neutralize the tartness of the rhubarb)

Set aside.

Combine in a bowl:

2 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
2 T. coconut oil (or butter)
4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
Stir in
1 c. water until mixture is crumbly.
Set aside

Combine in small bowl:

1 c. sugar
1 T coconut oil (or butter)
Mix until crumbly. Set aside

Pour
1/2 c. boiling water over the rhubarb
Top evenly with the flour mixture.
Sprinkle with the sugar-oil mixture

Bake until bubbly and beginning to brown, 35-45 minutes.

I made this with white bread flour this time. It turned out great, with a nice crusty top. I tried it about a month ago with whole wheat pastry flour, but I missed the part about adding the water to the flour mixture. It didn't turn out as great, more of a crisp than a cobbler, but my family still liked it. I might try playing around with the recipe to see if I can soak the flour.

My sister-in-law got this recipe from a newspaper. The original author was Teresa Corsello of Sugar Grove (I assume Illinois)