And when outdoors camping it can be even grimmer than usual: the water is generally tepid; the pans are more filthy than normal; and the light (assuming we're talking about after dinner) is so poor that only a reader of Braille can tell if something is actually dirty. Which leaves only the washer uppers. Whether grown ups or children attention to detail is at an all time low and quality control is zero.
So in preparation for a family surf trip planned for later on in the month this weekend I was experimenting with edible crockery. Years ago I went to a cafe in Fishermans Wharf San francisco that served chowder in a hollowed out sourdough roll. That seemed quite wasteful as all the insides were torn out, so I experimented with what can only be described as a shaped pizza base.
Making up 250g of normal pizza dough (ie enriched with olive oil) I used some greased upside down ramekins as a mold. I varied the thickness of the dough to see what worked best: thin (about 1 cm deep); medium (2 cm) and thick (3cm). I put them into a hot oven (240 deg) for 10 minutes, then took them off the ramekins, sparked some olive oil on the inside and returned them to the oven for another 10 or so minutes. This makes the inside more robust - vital unless all diners eat as quickly as I do. They seemed pretty robust, but in this case the proof of the pudding was literally in the eating.
The choice of filling seemed quite important:
- more gloopy than sloppy - anything too watery might sink through too quickly
- a meal in a bowl was required - these bowls don't come with matching saucers!
In the end I made a lamb and squash tagine.
The results? Well I have to say, not bad. They held a good quantity and more importantly lasted a good time. Long enough for two of us to have seconds.
As far as size goes, the thick version really was too thick - more of a loaf with a crater than a bowl. But the thin one was pretty much perfect for the job. The base held together and meant that at the end it could be broken up and used to swipe the last few bits of tagine from the cooking pot (a bit of a double bonus in the washing up stakes I would say).
Clearly a work in process, but I think that cooking up a batch of these, freezing them and then using for that vital first night dinner when time is short and tempers shorter.
Anyone else tried this and have any tips? The trip is with about 26 people - I don't think I can afford for it to go wrong!
Let me know.
And finally, don't forget to sponsor me for the Royal Parks Half Marathon I'm running on October 7th in aid of Cancer UK.
The link is here.http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/Jim_and_Alex
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