Roasting marshmallows over a campfire is one of life's greatest simple pleasures. But since you can't eat them all day (well, maybe you can), add some variety to your camping cuisine by experimenting with other ingredients cooked over hot coals.

These creative but low-maintenance recipes will keep you fueled up all day and all night while you hike, swim, and commune with nature.

Breakfast

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Boiled egg in a cup

Ingredients:
Eggs
Shredded cheese
Diced ham
Diced green pepper
Mushrooms
Tomatoes
Green onions
Other desired fillings
Salt and pepper to taste

Equipment:
Large pot of boiling water, set over campfire flames
Pint-size, heavy-duty ziplock bags
Permanent marker
Metal tongs

Instructions:
1. Select the desired number of eggs for your omelet, then break them into a ziplock bag. Knead the outside of the bag to beat the eggs.
2. Select desired fillings for your omelet, then add them to the bag; season the mixture with salt and pepper. Reseal the bag, pressing out all the air, knead the bag again one last time to blend all the ingredients, and write your initials on the bag in permanent marker.
3. Drop the bags into the boiling water. When the eggs are cooked through, use tongs to remove your omelet from the pot.

Bannock on a Stick

Originally Canadian aboriginal fare, bannock is a biscuitlike quick bread.

Ingredients:
4 cups flour
8 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup lard or shortening
1 Tbsp. white sugar
1 tsp. salt
Approximately 3 cups cold water

Instructions:
1. Mix together first 5 ingredients until crumbly. Add about 3 cups cold water and blend until mixture is smooth and elastic.
2. Wrap dough around the tip of a clean stick and cook over coals until golden brown. Serve with butter, honey, or jelly.

Omelet in a bag

This mass-production technique is ideal for cooking numerous omelets at once. Each camper can add his or her own preferred fillings.

Ingredients:
Eggs
Shredded cheese
Diced ham
Diced green pepper
Mushrooms
Tomatoes
Green onions
Other desired fillings
Salt and pepper to taste

Equipment:
Large pot of boiling water, set over campfire flames
Pint-size, heavy-duty ziplock bags
Permanent marker
Metal tongs

Instructions:
1. Select the desired number of eggs for your omelet, then break them into a ziplock bag. Knead the outside of the bag to beat the eggs.
2. Select desired fillings for your omelet, then add them to the bag; season the mixture with salt and pepper. Reseal the bag, pressing out all the air, knead the bag again one last time to blend all the ingredients, and write your initials on the bag in permanent marker.
3. Drop the bags into the boiling water. When the eggs are cooked through, use tongs to remove your omelet from the pot.

Dinner

Hamburger Hobo Pack

Ingredients:
Ground beef or turkey
Canned potatoes
Canned carrots
Bell pepper, diced
Mushrooms, sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
Worcestershire or steak sauce (optional)

Equipment:
Heavy-duty aluminum foil, cut into 12-inch-long pieces
Paper towels
Permanent marker
Resealable storage containers
Metal tongs

Instructions:
1. Place first 5 ingredients in resealable storage containers.
2. Sandwich a wet paper towel between two pieces of heavy-duty aluminum foil.
3. Select the ingredients you'd like to include in your hobo pack.
4. Seal the foil packet tightly, then write your initials on the bag in permanent marker.
5. Place the packet on warm coals for 10?20 minutes, depending on the packet's ingredients and weight.
6. Remove the packet from the coals with tongs and let cool for a few minutes. Eat the meat and vegetables directly from the foil.

Shish Kebabs

Ingredients:
Steak or chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch cubes
White onions, quartered
Bell peppers, cut into 2-inch pieces
Pineapple chunks
Salt and pepper to taste

Equipment:
Straight hardwood sticks, peeled and sharpened at both ends

Instructions:
1. Soak the cooking end of the stick in water while you prepare the ingredients.
2. Slide pieces of food onto the cooking end of the stick, alternating ingredients and leaving a small space between each addition. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Hold the shish kebab over hot coals and rotate slowly to sear the meat.
4. Poke the opposite (also sharpened) end of the stick into the ground near the coals to finish cooking (approximately 15 to 20 minutes); rotate the stick every few minutes.

Fish Packets

Ingredients:
4 salmon or trout fillets
Butter or cooking spray
2 cups uncooked minute rice
1 14 oz. can of chicken broth
1 cup matchstick carrots
1 tsp. Mrs. Dash garlic and herb seasoning
1/3 cup fresh chives
1 lemon, sliced

Equipment:
4 pieces heavy-duty aluminum foil, each about 20 inches long
Metal tongs

Instructions:
1. Mix the rice and chicken broth in a bowl and let sit for 5 minutes.
2. Stir in carrots and seasoning.
3. Place 1 fish fillet on each aluminum foil piece. Top with a pat of butter or coat lightly with cooking spray, sprinkle with Mrs. Dash seasoning, and top with two lemon slices.
4. Spoon rice mixture around fish; sprinkle with chives.
5. Fold aluminum over fish and seal, making a tight 1/2-inch fold, leaving some space on all sides of the fillet.
6. Grill packets about 5 inches from heat for 14 minutes or until fish flakes easily with fork.
7. Remove the packets from the coals with tongs and let cool for a few minutes. Eat the fish and vegetables directly from the foil.

Dessert

Banana Boats 

Ingredients:
1 firm banana per person
Chocolate chips
Mini-marshmallows
Other bite-size ingredients (such as chopped nuts, shredded coconut, and raisins)

Equipment:
Heavy-duty aluminum foil
Metal tongs

Instructions:
1. Slice carefully through one section of peel, leaving it attached to the banana at one end.
2. Peel the sliced peel back to expose the banana, then scoop out a trough in the flesh.
3. Fill the trough with desired ingredients.
4. Cover the stuffed banana with the peeled-back peel and wrap tightly in aluminum foil.
5. Bury the banana in hot coals and bake for 10 minutes.
6. Remove the banana from the coals with tongs and let it cool.
7. Open the foil, remove peel, and eat with a spoon.

Cake in a Mug

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp. cake flour
4 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 egg
3 Tbsp. milk
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
Dash vanilla extract
3 Tbsp. chocolate chips (optional)

Equipment:
1 large metal coffee mug

Instructions:
1. Add dry ingredients to mug; mix well with a fork
2. Add egg; mix well.
3. Add milk, oil, vanilla, and chocolate chips; mix well.
4. Place the mug on hot coals and cook till cake rises over the rim.
5. Let it cool slightly, then eat out of the mug.

Campfire Eclairs

Ingredients:
1 8-ounce can Pillsbury crescent dinner rolls
2 vanilla Jell-O pudding snacks
1 tub whipped frosting (chocolate)

Equipment:
Thin-tipped cooking sticks
Heavy-duty aluminum foil
Cooking spray

Instructions:
1. Cover tip of stick with aluminum foil and coat with cooking spray.
2. Stretch one crescent roll over foil and squeeze tip to close and tighten.
3. Cook over campfire until golden brown, rotating frequently, until crescent roll slides easily off foil.
4. Fill center of crescent roll with vanilla pudding, spread chocolate frosting on top, and eat.

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