Evan Sarah Epstein

Warmer weather has finally come to the northwest! Now, I am sure there are some rainy and gloomy days ahead of us, but it does seem distinctly summery here in Seattle this week. My hope is buoyed further now that it is actually summer and it isn’t unreasonable for me to wish and hope for sun.

With this warm weather my thoughts immediately turned to camping, and luckily I know people who had a similar inkling.

Before I could get too excited about camping this weekend, I had to face the facts that our garage was never really unpacked from our move last fall – and I was going to have to do something about it. Mostly because I knew our camping gear was at the back of the garage.

So… four hours later and much unpacking and organizing later, our garage is a thing of beauty considering how small it is. Seriously – I wish I took a picture of it before I started to have a good before and after shot. I know it sounds dorky, but I felt such a thrill when I realized it was all done and I could easily navigate the crowded space. I was even able to fanangle enough space for Sean to set up a workbench!

It always seems like the first camping trip of the season takes longer to plan than the others. Mostly because I have to get the dry goods box together, check batteries, make sure nothing dreadful happened to the tent and sleeping bags over the winter, etc. I promised myself that I would make this trip as easy to plan for as possible, but, unable to help myself, I somehow found myself on Friday morning making a mushroom barley stew, baking cookies and baking a loaf of bread to take with up on our trip. Best laid plans I suppose.

No, really, I was just going to do potatoes in the fire and hot dogs on a stick, but then I saw the mushrooms and knew they would go bad if left unused all weekend. And I hate to let food go bad. Luckily the recipe is very easy and it’s something that tastes far better after it’s been sitting for a day or so. It is from one of my go-to cookbooks, How it all Vegan. This was the cookbook that helped me eat healthily as a poor undergrad, and still serves as one of my faves.

Mushroom Barley Stew
Ever so slightly adapted from How it all Vegan

1 med. Carrot, chopped
I med. Onion, chopped
2 – 4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 red pepper, chopped
4 tbsp. olive oil
15 – 20 small mushrooms, chopped
1 cup dry pearl barley
I can drained chickpeas
2 tsp. cumin
splash of Tabasco
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp. soy sauce
4 cups good quality chicken stock (I use Better Than Bouillon)

In a large soup pot, sauté the carrots, onions, garlic, and peppers until the onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and sauté until they become tender. Add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Tastes better the next day!

I am a ridiculous list maker, so in order to keep the rest of my planning reigned in and timely, I made several lists: cold food to pack, dry food to pack, clothing, and general camping gear. It sounds silly – I know – but I swear it helps me from bringing tings we don’t need or want. It also helps me make sure I bring easy to forget items like sunscreen.

So, all the bags are packed, I’m ready to go… now all I need is Sean to come home so we can head out on our first camping trip of 2010!