As summer break slowly winds down and the kids return to school, many people spend these last couple weeks of freedom camping in the mountains near a gorgeous lake.
Whether it is Donner Lake, Lake Tahoe, or Cables Lake, my memories of camping are priceless. Eating fresh trout caught that day from Cables Lake over the campfire coals is a memory and flavor I will never forget. Swaying back and forth over the Camanche hillside on my favorite swing with Willie Nelson songs keeping me company was pure heaven as a child. Once the stars came out, my mom had to call me inside for bedtime.
Sitting next to the campfire and roasting marshmallows with all my friends on Lake Tahoe’s shore are memories I cherish as an adult today. Catching my marshmallow on fire for a brief second to give it that burnt layer would complete my s’mores dessert.
I hope you enjoy reading my favorite childhood camping memories and were able to enjoy similar experiences as a kid or even today as an adult. As life gets busy and stressful, it is the appreciation for memories like these that slows our busy lives down for a second and leaves a smile on our faces.
I realize there are many definitions to camping these days. In many of the stories I shared with you, we would stay in a home near a lake and for fun times would sleep outside in sleeping bags, stare at the stars, and tell stories. When experiencing true camping, many hike into the campsite and pitch a tent. More often, car camping is the thing to do these days – pull right into your reserved spot and never leave sight of your car. I recently read about the new trend, glamping, which is taking the simplicity of camping and turning it into a glamorous experience. I kid you not. Look it up! You would be amazed!
With many of my friends and family heading to the mountains this week, I thought it would be the perfect time surprise my husband and bring the mountains and campfire experience to my own backyard. I will pitch a tent on the grassy patch of lawn in the backyard, and for 
the campfire, I will turn my Bull Small Rectangular Fire Pit on to set the scene. I LOVE this fire pit because it brings warmth, ambiance, and brightens up my backyard. I can control the temperature easily, and the interchangeable river rock and rock glass give this fire pit multiple looks, which I love. Another great feature, is the easily accessible door on the side to switch out the propane as needed. It is so easy; I am comfortable doing it myself. With an additional hand, this fire pit is lightweight and I can move it around the yard for different occasions. In addition to the fire pit, I will use my Bull Pizza Oven (video) to get a bed of coals going to make our dinner on tonight, and will be this week’s featured recipe. Once dinner is done, we can sit next to the fire, throw on another log, and tell stories of our past vacations with family and friends as we make s’mores over the open flame. I may even throw in some UNO cards! I am already getting excited to create this meal and show you how we can use our Bull Outdoor Products to create unique experiences and family fun in our own backyards. If you don’t own a Bull Pizza Oven, any of their grills can be used to create this campfire meal. This meal is super easy to prep and best of all is inexpensive, which is always a plus! The kids will have a blast putting their own personal touch on their meal! Whether it be a sweet peach, a pineapple dessert, or a savory breakfast burrito for the morning, the combinations are endless!
Chef’s Notes:
- For best results, use a heavy duty aluminum foil when cooking a meal over hot coals and use multiple layers to avoid a tear.
- Spray the top layer of foil with Bull Non-Stick Spray before placing the food down to avoid the food from sticking.
- I like to place a metal rack above the hot coals for more control for food placement and for cooking.
- There are many ways to seal the food in the foil when cooking over coals. For this meal, I will create a tent-shape foil packet which allows for a small pocket of air at the top of the foil. This allows for more steam and air to circulate, and is ideal when using a combination of meats and veggies like we are doing in this recipe.
- I always use my Bull Pit Mitt for extra protection when working with hot coals. When slowly opening the hot foil be very careful of the hot steam. The Bull Pit Mitt is perfect to use for extra protection.
- 8 Italian sausage links, mild, 2 per foil pack
- 12 small red potatoes, cut into quarters, 3 red potatoes per foil pack
- 4 bell peppers, red and orange, julienned, divided evenly
- 2 small yellow onions, julienned, divided evenly
- 4 each corn on the cob, kernels removed and divided evenly
- ¼ cup evoo, divided evenly
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Green onion, sliced thin to garnish
- Tear 8 pieces of heavy duty foil that is about twice as long as the food that will be placed inside of it. I always say much better to have a little extra!
- For each packet, there are 2 layers of foil, creating 4 packets total.
- Spray the top layer of foil of each packet with the Bull Non-Stick Spray.
- Evenly divide the bell peppers, red potatoes, onions, corn kernels placing in the center of each packet.
- Each packet gets 2 Italian sausages placed directly on top of the veggie mix.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Evenly divide the evoo on top of the sausage and veggies.
- Take the long sides of the foil and bring them together in the center and secure them by tightly folding together towards the food.
- To create the pocket of air above the food, stop folding an inch above the food. This creates the tent-like packet and allows air to circulate at the top.
- To finish, roll up the ends tight on the shorter sides. Leave an inch of space between the sides and the food.
- Watch this Bull Video on how to create a fire in your pizza oven.
- Once the fire has started, add a couple large pieces of wood to allow a bed of coals to form.
- Once a good bed of coals have formed, use the Bull Ash Shovel to carefully spread the coals to the center of the pizza oven.
- Next carefully place the metal wrack above the coal.
- Use the Bull Pro Perforated Peel to individually place the foil packets onto the metal wrack above the coals.
- Let the packets cook for 40 minutes.
- To serve, carefully open the foil packets, allowing the hot steam to escape, and garnish with fresh green onion. Enjoy the meal with an ice cold beer placed inside your Bull Can or Bull Bottle Koozie and don’t forget the bread to soak up all the wonderful juices inside the foil packets!
♥ Chef Amy
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