Whether it’s you or your baby craving a hot, gooey s’more, it’s time to meet the craving. Heck, you really don’t even need to go camping, just light your backyard fire pit and enjoy these delicious (and easy) camping recipes.

Easy Camping Meals and Treats

The key to happy eating while camping is to come prepared. Don’t make a grocery store run on your drive, take the time to prep each meal and portion all snacks. Ziplock baggies, tin foil, and a sharpie will be your best friends. Make sure you have a good cast iron skillet and dutch oven to make your time cooking even easier. (Don’t forget your tea kettle to boil hot water, too!)

Breakfast

Pancakes: Premix your batter at home and store it in ziplock baggies you can snip the corner off of to squeeze into the pan one morning or store it in mason jars you can rinse out and use as drinking glasses the rest of your vacation. You can also cook the pancakes at home and freeze them. Simply wrap them in foil and set them over the fire to heat up.

Yogurt with Homemade Granola: Store-bought granola typically is full of sugar and preservatives, but you can whip up a batch a few days before your campout to have on hand. Mix rolled oats, your favorite nuts (sliced or chopped), seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, etc), honey, dried fruits, and seasonings of choice (vanilla, cinnamon, etc). Spread over a baking sheet and bake at 325 for 25 minutes. After it cools, break your granola into chunks and enjoy!

Breakfast Burritos: Take your cooked meat (sausage, bacon, pulled pork leftovers, etc) and add it to a large tortilla with scrambled eggs, peppers, onions, cheese, and salsa. Wrap it up with foil and let it warm in your cast iron or over the fire. Top with anything you want!

Oatmeal: Heat water in your kettle and pour over oats with a bit of cinnamon and maple syrup.

Fruit: A fruit salad is an easy and healthy way to start your day, but make sure to get in some protein to sustain yourself.

Lunch

Nachos: Using your cast iron or a foil pan, layer chips with drained beans, veggies, and cheese. It won’t take long for your cheese to bubble! Add salsa and toppings once the nachos are done.

Grilled Cheese: Sticking with the cheese theme, you can jazz up a grilled cheese sandwich with avocado and bacon or tomato and turkey.

Pasta Salad: Make this one at home and keep it cold in the cooler to munch on throughout your camping trip. Bowtie pasta noodles (cooked) mixed with your favorite raw veggies and stirred with an Italian dressing. It’s even better with shrimp in it!

Loaded Sausages (or hot dogs): Roast your sausages and top with cooked onions, peppers, and hot sauce. Serve with fruit and chips.

Dinner

Chili: While you can cook this from scratch at the campsite, it will take hours. Make it the night before you leave and bring it with you to reheat and enjoy. Any chili recipe will do, but you can’t go wrong with a hearty, meaty version full of vegetables. Don’t forget something to dip into your chili!

Onion and Bacon Meatball Bombs with Corn on the Cob: These may sound complicated, but they are not – and they are addicting. Roll your meatballs at home and cut large onion strips to wrap around them at the campsite. Use your bacon strips to wrap around the meatball and onion and hold it all together. Brush BBQ sauce on the bombs and put them in your dutch oven over the fire. You’ll know they are done when the bacon is crisp and juices run clear. Pair these with campfire roasted corn. Add your favorite seasoning and butter to the corn and wrap in foil to set near the hot coals or over the fire.

Spicy Pulled Pork and Fried Egg Sandwiches: Stick a pork tenderloin in your crockpot at home and add onions and BBQ sauce. Shred the meat and pack it for the trip. Toast your buns while you heat the meat and fry up a few eggs. Put it all together for an egg-cellent dinner!

Sausage Hash: Dice potatoes up really small (to cut down on cooking time) and toss them in your dutch oven. Let them cook with a bit of oil and seasonings for a few minutes before adding diced vegetables and sausage.

Loaded Hamburgers: Let your imagination create the ultimate burger. There are no rules on campouts.

Treats

Popcorn: A foil tray, some oil, popcorn kernels, and aluminum foil to cover is all you need to make your own popcorn over the fire! Listen for the popping to stop and be careful grabbing the hot tin.

S’mores: You can’t camp without a s’more.

Camping Cones: This is a new creation that is spreading like crazy in the camping world. You stuff a waffle cone full with your favorite chocolate candies, fruit, and anything else you love. Wrap it well with foil and set it by the hot fire. It will melt down into a delicious dessert.

Make sure to bring plenty of snacks to hold you over between meals. Stick with fruits, vegetables, and whole food items to balance the heaviness of those campfire dinners!