looking up?

so... showing my truck again this weekend. the guy actually checked it out last week and drove it around the neighborhood; he wants to take it out on the highway sunday and he actually even mentioned possible paperwork should he like what he sees come sunday. we'll see. i'm not getting my hopes up. every time i do the whole "all eggs in" thing, i get let down. i'm just crossing my fingers and praying. that's about all i can do.

in other news, i have three days in a row off starting sunday!! if i can find a decent hiking trail in the charleston area, i might go on a mini-backpacking trip. maybe. we'll see. i'm semi-excited about this. 

also, a few awesome hiking discoveries:

1) i'm getting better at figuring out how much things weigh by the feel of 'em! =) i picked up four pears today at publix and figured i'd take a guess at how much they weighed. i was spot on at 1.5#. i was sorta proud of that. :) 

2) baby bell cheeses just came out with a white cheddar cheese! yes!

3) i discovered this new product at publix today... it's called mia? mio? anyways... it's a drink mix and it comes in quite a few different flavors. i picked up the sweet tea mix just for shits & giggles, and it's not bad at all! no weird aftertaste that you get with all of those other zero-cal sweeteners. none of that nasty, back of the mouth grossness.

umm... that's about it for now. until i sell my truck, there's no real new news on the hiking front. just sleeping in my sleeping bag and trying to pretend i'm on my way to springer.

as a side note, i went to a thrift store today just to see what i could find. i found bill bryson's "a walk in the woods" in there. right where it belongs. that book is so overrated. i guess i wouldn't have been nearly as disappointed as i was in it had i known going into it that he didn't even hike a quarter of the trail. but everybody raved at how great a book it was because he hiked the AT and wrote about his experiences, blah blah blah. he basically stayed in a hotel the whole time and bitched when the goin' got tough. i dunno. i just wasn't a big fan, and thought it kinda funny that the "most popular" book on the AT is sittin' on a shelf, waitin' for somebody to plop two quarters down and buy it.

as a second side note, i also saw TWO copies of a book that i bought in a discount bin a while back. "amanda bright @ home." it makes me wonder just how crappy the book really is, for me to have bought it in a discount bin, and for two copies to be sitting in the same thrift store. i wonder if it'll even be worth my time? o.O oh well... i guess if i can read twilight, i can read this book. but then again, the writing in "the memory keeper's daughter" was so bad i couldn't even get past the second or third chapter. "light of the streetlight"... that still gets me. 

fewd

Bacon Polenta

Serves 1

½ cup instant polenta

2 tablespoons shelf-stable bacon

½ tablespoon onion flakes

½ tablespoon butter powder

1 teaspoon chicken or vegetable broth powder

2 packets Parmesan cheese

At home: combine everything except the Parmesan in a zip-locking plastic bag.

In camp: Bring 1 ½ cups of water to a boil. Add the polenta and simmer until cooked

and creamy. Top with the Parmesan cheese and enjoy.

Chai Cheesecake
Serves 4

This dessert needs either cool weather for it to set up. It can also be divided in half for smaller portions.

1 11.1 oz package instant cheesecake mix
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ cup crystallized ginger, chopped
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon coriander
¼ teaspoon turmeric At home: open the cheesecake mix. In a zip locking plastic bag, combine the crust mix, 1 teaspoon ground ginger and the crystallized ginger. In a second zip locking bag, combine the cheesecake mix, powdered milk and remaining spices.

In camp: in your pan, combine the cheesecake mix with 1 ½ cups water. Stir to combine, breaking up any lumps. Set aside to firm up. Once set, top with crust mix.

Nutella Cream Pie
Serves 1

Try this with banana pudding too!

2 T Nutella (or 1 single serving package)
1 snack pack vanilla pudding
1 mini graham cracker tart shell

At home: put the Nutella in a screw top container (or bring the single serving package) Place everything in zip locking plastic bag.

In camp: spread the Nutella over the sides and bottom of the tart shell. Top with all of the pudding. Eat!

other recipes...

whenever i cook, i actually cook and don't usually take shortcuts. if i want something quick, i use frozen meals that just zap in the microwave: i don't try to act like i'm really cooking and use instant gravy, etc. therefore, it's almost like a light bulb moment when i come across very simple, quick recipes online that actually uses those sorts of things. i feel i should keep track of them, however, because it's just not that stuff i think of everyday. 

• foil pack of chicken, stovetop stuffing, instant mashed potatoes, instant gravy, craisins
• three-minute pasta, foil pack of chicken, pizza sauce
• hot chocolate mix :)
• Chicken Mushroom Cheese Couscous
  Serves 1
  
  1/3 cup couscous
  2 T dried mushrooms
  1 T dried chicken (or a small can/pouch)
  2 T cheddar cheese powder
  1/2 t chicken or vegetable bullion
  1 T dried peas (or vegetable of your choice)
  
  At home: combine all of the ingredients in a zip locking plastic freezer bag.
  
  In camp: add hot water to cover. Stir well, place in a cozy and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Stir again before eating.
• 1 package ramen noodles (any flavor, discard the spice pack) 380 cal
  4 Tablespoons olive oil 520 cal
  4 slices pre-cooked bacon, crumbled into bits 70 cal
  1 Tablespoon garlic powder
  4 Tablespoons parmesan cheese (could use the packets that Pizza hut and other pizza places give out) 80 cal
  red pepper flakes (again, from Pizza Hut) and black pepper to taste
  
  Boil the ramen noodles, discarding the spice pack. Drain the water. Add remaining ingredients and stir until well mixed.
• www.wildernesscooking.com
• www.onepanwonders.com