Food > packing

This week we’ve been busy preparing for our big road trip to South Carolina. Sometimes when you’re busy, food takes a backseat in order to get things done. Lucky for Antoine, food tends to be my first priority, and this week was no exception! Our trip was just the push we needed to take the shiny new dehydrator we received for Christmas out of its box. We started off easy, making dried mango overnight Monday as a sweet treat for the road.

The mango turned out great, and gave us the confidence to try our hand at jerky next. A small eye of the round roast and simple overnight marinade, and we were on our way! We want to improve our slicing next time to ensure thin, consistently sized strips; but for a first attempt we’re very pleased with the results. I’m afraid the jerky may not make it to the road, as I keep catching Antoine sneaking slices. This tells me we’re going to need a lot of jerky to get us through the Yukon trip this summer!!! I’ll be keeping my eye on the flyers for sales on beef, but we’re also excited to try our hand at moose meat jerky thanks to a donation from my Dad.

In addition to some trip treats, we also used our trusty slow cooker this week to help ease the cooking burden leaving more room for packing. (Ok… I’ll admit I haven’t started that yet…) I know I promised a blog detailing our last trip south to Florida, but please accept tonight’s slow cooker recipe as a stop gap! I hope to finish that post sometime on the 17 hour drive to South Carolina.

Slow Cooker Moroccan Chickpea and Red Lentil Stew

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and chopped
• 3 carrots, diced
• 4 stalks celery, diced
• 2 cans petite diced tomatoes (540mL) – I used the black pepper and garlic/olive oil varieties
• 2 cans chickpeas, drained
• 1 cup split red lentils
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 teaspoons paprika – I used smoked, but regular paprika works too!
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 bay leaves
• Topping: Fresh herbs such as parsley, cilantro or mint.

Instructions

1. Add all of the ingredients to a large Crock Pot and stir.
2. Cook on low for 8 hours, until lentils are tender and stew is thick and hearty. Serve with assorted herbs such as parsley, mint or cilantro if desired.

Thanks for reading!! We hope you enjoy this recipe; there will be more to come as we continue experimenting with our dehydrator in preparation for backpacking and car camping this summer.

Liz & Antoine