Campfire Breakfast by Guest Writer Paul Kirtley

Baking powder makes pancakes rise a little. Companions of the author take to the pancake helm during a wilderness canoe trip.

Pancakes cook best on hot embers, rather than searing flames.

three core ingredients, eggs, flour and milk. You also have the option of adding a little baking powder to raise the pancakes a little and make them fluffy. Some form of fat is needed for the pan at least.

At home, we’d use fresh eggs and fresh milk to make our pancake mix. If you are living in a fixed camp, or making a vehicle-based trip, then you might have fresh eggs, at least to begin with. Less likely is fresh milk, as without a fridge it goes off quickly, especially in summer. UHT milk stores for a good amount of time and can be used too.

Campfire pancakes always seem to bring a smile.

Otherwise, we can use powdered milk. There is also powdered soya milk available these days too. You have two options with using powdered milk, to mix the powder in with other dry ingredients before adding water, or to mix the milk powder with water then add this to the pancake mix. I prefer the latter as it provides more control over the consistency. So mix the powdered milk as per the instructions on the packet or tub. See below for amounts.

If you can’t carry fresh eggs, then you will have to resort to powdered eggs. These work perfectly well and I always try to add them on canoe trips in Canada, where powdered egg is easy to come by, even in camping stores. In other countries, powdered egg generally seems a lot harder to find in regular stores. I’m certainly not a body builder but I’ve found that body-building nutrition and supplement suppliers often carry powdered egg.

Pancakes and scrambled egg. What will you have with yours? Another happy camper – pancakes, fruit and syrup.

Then start adding the milk, mixing as you go. Break the dough down with the spoon and start to beat the mix as it becomes thinner. There will be lumps. Squash these against the side of the mixing pot with the base of the spoon. A few small lumps won’t be a problem, but do your best to squish as many of them as possible.

Pancakes – Campfire Pragmatism

I’ve spent a good amount of time experimenting with field expedient campfire cooking recipes and here’s what I find works consistently for cooking pancakes on a campfire, both for me and for others I show this method to.

♦ One egg per person. ♦ One handful of plain flour per person. ♦ Enough milk to create a mix which is the consistency of single cream.

On the face of it, this pancake mix is a little vague. But I’m preparing you for camping situations or expeditions here. We don’t take kitchen scales with us. In terms of measuring jugs, the nearest we’ll probably have is a camping mug with a couple of volume measurements on the side.

The way we apply the basic pancake mix is to add the flour to the mixing container. Then crack the eggs into the flour. Mix with a spoon. This will make a solid dough. Keep adding the milk until you have a batter the consistency of single cream. That’s single cream, not double cream. So, you see this basic recipe can be applied whether the base ingredients are fresh or all powdered.

Expedition Pancakes – Dry Ingredients Only

If you are using powdered egg and powdered milk, here’s a method. Look at the powdered egg packet and work out how much powder is equivalent to one egg. Add this amount per person (i.e. one egg per person). Add one handful of flour per person. Mix this dry mix of egg and flour before adding any liquid. If you are going to add any baking powder (no more than a teaspoon per 6 people), mix this into the dry mix too (dry ingredients should always be mixed before adding liquid). Mix the powdered milk with water in a separate container as per the instructions on the milk packet. Stir in the milk to the egg-flour powder mix until it is the consistency of single cream.