Food, Glorious Food
It was a gorgeous fall weekend for a campout, really the best that Indiana can offer. We had about 170 Scouts and Scouters gather at Maumee Scout Reservation for our West Side Camporee. I was in charge of the main program event, the Ultimate Patrol Cookoff. We also had a chili cookoff for adults, giving awards at the Saturday night campfire for Most Exotic, Spiciest, and Best Overall Chili. And there was a Best Coffee contest for adults, too. For the Scouts, especially those eliminated from the Cookoff, we had a series of interesting drop-in activities, such as a professional chef’s tour of our kitchen facilities; a demonstration (with samples) of jerking and smoking meats; demonstrations of how to make all-in-one-bag backpacking meals; how to cook over a wood fire; and a session on menu-planning to help Scouts complete Cooking Merit Badge.
At the Friday evening cracker barrel, I had patrols wishing to compete in the Patrol Cookoff fill out a patrol roster, whereupon they received a Styrofoam clamshell with a number on it. They were to bring a portion of breakfast back at 8:30 the next morning in that clamshell. Their breakfast was to contain a meat, two eggs, some kind of starch (cereal, pancakes, biscuits, potatoes . . . ) and fruit. Fifteen patrols completed the first challenge, returning with some mighty fine looking eats. Our three judges then had to nibble their way through all four elements in fifteen breakfasts to score their chow. Judging was blind: the judges had only food in a container, without any knowledge of who had prepared it.
Two of our three judges begin working through breakfast entries
It was obvious that the Scouts were really into the challenge. We had some amazing breakfasts turned in. All were tasty, with only a few undercooked potatoes or burnt bits here and there. One of the best had two perfectly poached eggs lying on top of asparagus, with hollandaise sauce, with bacon and a blueberry scone. Another gorgeous breakfast was accompanied by a mug of pumpkin spice latte. We saw biscuits and gravy (with scratch biscuits, mind you), as well as steak and eggs. Fruit tended to be bananas or oranges, though these were presented artistically; meanwhile, there were some fried apples that looked tasty. After the judges had finished scoring, several of us harvested our breakfast from nibbling at the fifteen platefuls before us.
A grilled breakfast sandwich, hash browns, and an orange
Note the pumpkin spice latte accompanying this entry
Easily the best breakfast on offer
At 9:30, we had an all-camp assembly, where I announced the ten patrols who would go on to the second round. As I called up the patrols for the next round, I gave them a new clamshell, with a different number on it. Once again, there would be a blind judging, this time with two elements: a one-pot meal with a bread element (N.B., anything with a crust on it would count as the required bread element). They had until 12:30 to turn these in for judging.
Tony Zizak teaching menu planning
Making backpacking meals with Tom Gregory
Tom Hobbs (R) jerking and smoking
Cook's tour with Jed Carlisle
If they had impressed the judges with their ability to cook breakfast, they outdid themselves with their lunch fare. Most of the presentations were visually stunning. We saw several stews, a soup, a chicken and noodles dish, some lasagne, a very passable pepperoni pizza, a very sophisticated mac and cheese (with a bay leaf strategically placed on top). Once again, some scratch biscuits made their appearance here and there. Both for presentation and flavor, most of these we would have been glad to pay real money for in a restaurant.
Judging was hard and close. The morning had presented a bit of a bell curve, with the bottom third being eliminated. But with lunch, we had a very narrow range. I was worried there would be ties that would have to be broken to advance the final three patrols. In the end, though, the scores came out perfectly. Out of 75 possible points, there was a three-way tie for first at 61 apiece. Then there was another three-way tie at 59, with the last four close behind. So we had a clear set of three patrols to advance.
Lunch time
Second helpings
But wait! There's more!
Interestingly, the three patrols who made the final cut were not among the early contenders we had marked out in the morning. Everybody stepped it up just that little bit. The three patrols advancing to the finals were announced at 1:30 at an all-camp assembly. Those three were the Spartans from Troop 231 (our most varied patrol, with boys from about 11 to 17), the Bass Atomic from Troop 119 (boys from about 11-14), and the Fire Ducks of Troop 2064 (younger girls, about 11 or 12, with one 10-year-old Webelos doing her exploratory campout with the Troop). None of them had been among the early favorites of the morning. In fact, when Tony Zizak (the Camporee Chair) was informed that the boys from his troop had made the finals, he did a double take that would break your neck and said, “My boys? MY boys?”
Immediately upon dismissing the assembly, I gathered the three finalists at our kitchen stadium, a set of picnic tables set in a circle before the shelter at Cheyenne Meadows. I showed them the cooking gear they would be using. I gave them a complete list of the pantry ingredients they would have available to them (though not the four mystery ingredients they would have to include), so that they could strategize. We talked about managing time in a cooking competition. They would have 45 minutes to produce a composed entrée plate (protein, starch, veg) and a separate dessert, using the four mystery ingredients and whatever else was on hand. Then I dismissed them to make their plans while I prepared kitchen stadium.
Each patrol would have a two-burner propane stove and a small backpacking stove, with a full complement of pots, pans, and utensils. In addition, we had a gas grill available to them and a firepan with some charcoal, in case they wanted either. There were Dutch ovens available. A huge array of ingredients, spices, produce, baking items, canned and boxed goods – it took four columns of print to list it all – was now spread out on a table, ready to be grabbed as soon as we started the contest.
The Fire Ducks getting their ducks in a row
The Spartans, ready for battle
Bass Atomic (that's bass as in fish, not bass as in guitar)
At 3:00, the whole camporee assembled and sat around kitchen stadium while the patrols were introduced at their cook stations. I also introduced our judges, Rick Gaither, Tom Gregory, and Jessica Hamilton, who would watch their work and evaluate what they produced. Tony Zizak was our official timekeeper. There was a caterer’s bag on each table, and the final act of preparation was having them draw out their designated mystery ingredients. Each patrol was given three pork chops (one inch thick), a pound of fresh asparagus, a tub of Greek yogurt, and a small bag of caraway seeds. Then I shouted, “Time starts NOW,” and they ran for the ingredients.
While they cooked, I added color commentary, telling the audience what they were using. I chatted with the judges about the mystery ingredients. As we talked about the applications and difficulties of each ingredient, we were subtly passing on tips (if any were needed) about how these things might be used. We wanted the patrols to succeed, and some of these things were hard to use. I was pretty sure none of them even knew what caraway seeds were, let alone what they were used for. I did some spot interviews with the Scouts about what they were making. We shared a mic for all this so the audience could hear what we were talking about. Every few minutes, I would ask for a time check, and we would let the patrols know how much time they had left.
I must say, I was impressed with how the Scouts worked together. I’ve seen a lot of kids cook, especially Scouts. I saw no one sitting on his hands. Nobody was arguing. Every patrol member, in all three patrols, had been given an assignment, and everyone was doing what they knew they were to do. Even in the patrols where differences of age and experience were obvious, the Scouts trusted each other to do their jobs. They were generous in sharing ingredients among the patrols, too, though it was obvious they all had very different ideas of what to make. Finally, we counted down the last fifteen seconds, and every patrol stood behind their three plated meals.
Grilling
Timekeeper and helpers watch from behind the much-depleted pantry ingredients
Plating
Judging
Then came the time for judgment. The three Patrol Leaders did Rock, Paper, Scissors to choose the order of presentation. They then presented their food in turn to the judges, explaining what was before them and answering questions. The judges gave live feedback about the dishes, though the actual scoring would come after. After the last patrol had presented, I dismissed the audience. The finalists had to clean up their mess (the one part of the contest which I gave a score for), and the judges had to write up their scores for me to tabulate.
All three patrols did an outstanding job. Interestingly, all three elected to cut down the chops into bite-sized pieces. The Bass Atomic and Fire Ducks cut it raw and cooked it that way, while the Spartans grilled theirs whole and then cut it apart. The Spartans put their seasoned meat along with their asparagus into a grilled green pepper. The Bass Atomic cooked their pork in a thick sauce, like an orange-colored fricassee, while they grilled their asparagus with bacon and other veggies and made a vegetable stack for a side dish. The Fire Ducks made a ragout of pork and asparagus. They were the only patrol which truly embraced the caraway, boldly seasoning their ragout with it (but not too much). Other side dishes of the three patrols were much of a muchness – two patrols made rice, and there was one side dish that was simply cut up orange bell pepper. The desserts were all memorable. The Bass Atomic made a pudding with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, Greek yogurt, and raspberries. It didn’t look like much, but it tasted great. When asked what they called it, the Scout in charge of making it – probably one of their youngest patrol members, stammered a bit and then said it was called a Jacob Special; I assume his name was, well, you know. The Spartans actually baked a small cake for their dessert (probably the most difficult dish attempted that afternoon) and made an icing of yogurt mixed with honey – with sprinkles on top. The Fire Ducks made gorgeous little peach tarts with graham cracker tart shells, fresh peaches, Greek yogurt, and other stuff. I saw them making a simple syrup, which I think went into the tarts, too. Lacking fresh mint, they decorated the tops with a bit of fresh parsley.
At the campfire that evening, the winning patrol was announced: the Fire Ducks of Troop 2064. It was a unanimous decision of the judges. Their dessert was the best, though not by a huge margin, but their handling of the entrée was more confident than the other two, who downplayed the asparagus and didn’t know what to really do with the caraway. The surprise of the event is that it was the youngest patrol – most of whom hadn’t really had much camping (or cooking) experience at all, who walked away with the prize.
Everyone attending had good things to share about the camporee. It wasn’t overprogrammed: there were interesting things to take part in, but also time to just play while camping in the autumn woods. The adults were really into their chili and coffee competitions, and everybody thought the cookoff was well-organized and praised all the Scouts for their efforts. Judge Rick Gaither was heard to say that he had waited 36 years (his whole Scouting career) to come to a camporee and have nothing to do but eat. And so endeth the Ultimate Patrol Cookoff. Congratulations to all the Scouts for a job well done!
At the Friday evening cracker barrel, I had patrols wishing to compete in the Patrol Cookoff fill out a patrol roster, whereupon they received a Styrofoam clamshell with a number on it. They were to bring a portion of breakfast back at 8:30 the next morning in that clamshell. Their breakfast was to contain a meat, two eggs, some kind of starch (cereal, pancakes, biscuits, potatoes . . . ) and fruit. Fifteen patrols completed the first challenge, returning with some mighty fine looking eats. Our three judges then had to nibble their way through all four elements in fifteen breakfasts to score their chow. Judging was blind: the judges had only food in a container, without any knowledge of who had prepared it.
Two of our three judges begin working through breakfast entries
It was obvious that the Scouts were really into the challenge. We had some amazing breakfasts turned in. All were tasty, with only a few undercooked potatoes or burnt bits here and there. One of the best had two perfectly poached eggs lying on top of asparagus, with hollandaise sauce, with bacon and a blueberry scone. Another gorgeous breakfast was accompanied by a mug of pumpkin spice latte. We saw biscuits and gravy (with scratch biscuits, mind you), as well as steak and eggs. Fruit tended to be bananas or oranges, though these were presented artistically; meanwhile, there were some fried apples that looked tasty. After the judges had finished scoring, several of us harvested our breakfast from nibbling at the fifteen platefuls before us.
A grilled breakfast sandwich, hash browns, and an orange
Note the pumpkin spice latte accompanying this entry
Easily the best breakfast on offer
At 9:30, we had an all-camp assembly, where I announced the ten patrols who would go on to the second round. As I called up the patrols for the next round, I gave them a new clamshell, with a different number on it. Once again, there would be a blind judging, this time with two elements: a one-pot meal with a bread element (N.B., anything with a crust on it would count as the required bread element). They had until 12:30 to turn these in for judging.
Tony Zizak teaching menu planning
Making backpacking meals with Tom Gregory
Tom Hobbs (R) jerking and smoking
Cook's tour with Jed Carlisle
If they had impressed the judges with their ability to cook breakfast, they outdid themselves with their lunch fare. Most of the presentations were visually stunning. We saw several stews, a soup, a chicken and noodles dish, some lasagne, a very passable pepperoni pizza, a very sophisticated mac and cheese (with a bay leaf strategically placed on top). Once again, some scratch biscuits made their appearance here and there. Both for presentation and flavor, most of these we would have been glad to pay real money for in a restaurant.
Judging was hard and close. The morning had presented a bit of a bell curve, with the bottom third being eliminated. But with lunch, we had a very narrow range. I was worried there would be ties that would have to be broken to advance the final three patrols. In the end, though, the scores came out perfectly. Out of 75 possible points, there was a three-way tie for first at 61 apiece. Then there was another three-way tie at 59, with the last four close behind. So we had a clear set of three patrols to advance.
Lunch time
Second helpings
But wait! There's more!
Interestingly, the three patrols who made the final cut were not among the early contenders we had marked out in the morning. Everybody stepped it up just that little bit. The three patrols advancing to the finals were announced at 1:30 at an all-camp assembly. Those three were the Spartans from Troop 231 (our most varied patrol, with boys from about 11 to 17), the Bass Atomic from Troop 119 (boys from about 11-14), and the Fire Ducks of Troop 2064 (younger girls, about 11 or 12, with one 10-year-old Webelos doing her exploratory campout with the Troop). None of them had been among the early favorites of the morning. In fact, when Tony Zizak (the Camporee Chair) was informed that the boys from his troop had made the finals, he did a double take that would break your neck and said, “My boys? MY boys?”
Immediately upon dismissing the assembly, I gathered the three finalists at our kitchen stadium, a set of picnic tables set in a circle before the shelter at Cheyenne Meadows. I showed them the cooking gear they would be using. I gave them a complete list of the pantry ingredients they would have available to them (though not the four mystery ingredients they would have to include), so that they could strategize. We talked about managing time in a cooking competition. They would have 45 minutes to produce a composed entrée plate (protein, starch, veg) and a separate dessert, using the four mystery ingredients and whatever else was on hand. Then I dismissed them to make their plans while I prepared kitchen stadium.
Each patrol would have a two-burner propane stove and a small backpacking stove, with a full complement of pots, pans, and utensils. In addition, we had a gas grill available to them and a firepan with some charcoal, in case they wanted either. There were Dutch ovens available. A huge array of ingredients, spices, produce, baking items, canned and boxed goods – it took four columns of print to list it all – was now spread out on a table, ready to be grabbed as soon as we started the contest.
The Fire Ducks getting their ducks in a row
The Spartans, ready for battle
Bass Atomic (that's bass as in fish, not bass as in guitar)
At 3:00, the whole camporee assembled and sat around kitchen stadium while the patrols were introduced at their cook stations. I also introduced our judges, Rick Gaither, Tom Gregory, and Jessica Hamilton, who would watch their work and evaluate what they produced. Tony Zizak was our official timekeeper. There was a caterer’s bag on each table, and the final act of preparation was having them draw out their designated mystery ingredients. Each patrol was given three pork chops (one inch thick), a pound of fresh asparagus, a tub of Greek yogurt, and a small bag of caraway seeds. Then I shouted, “Time starts NOW,” and they ran for the ingredients.
While they cooked, I added color commentary, telling the audience what they were using. I chatted with the judges about the mystery ingredients. As we talked about the applications and difficulties of each ingredient, we were subtly passing on tips (if any were needed) about how these things might be used. We wanted the patrols to succeed, and some of these things were hard to use. I was pretty sure none of them even knew what caraway seeds were, let alone what they were used for. I did some spot interviews with the Scouts about what they were making. We shared a mic for all this so the audience could hear what we were talking about. Every few minutes, I would ask for a time check, and we would let the patrols know how much time they had left.
I must say, I was impressed with how the Scouts worked together. I’ve seen a lot of kids cook, especially Scouts. I saw no one sitting on his hands. Nobody was arguing. Every patrol member, in all three patrols, had been given an assignment, and everyone was doing what they knew they were to do. Even in the patrols where differences of age and experience were obvious, the Scouts trusted each other to do their jobs. They were generous in sharing ingredients among the patrols, too, though it was obvious they all had very different ideas of what to make. Finally, we counted down the last fifteen seconds, and every patrol stood behind their three plated meals.
Grilling
Timekeeper and helpers watch from behind the much-depleted pantry ingredients
Plating
Judging
Then came the time for judgment. The three Patrol Leaders did Rock, Paper, Scissors to choose the order of presentation. They then presented their food in turn to the judges, explaining what was before them and answering questions. The judges gave live feedback about the dishes, though the actual scoring would come after. After the last patrol had presented, I dismissed the audience. The finalists had to clean up their mess (the one part of the contest which I gave a score for), and the judges had to write up their scores for me to tabulate.
All three patrols did an outstanding job. Interestingly, all three elected to cut down the chops into bite-sized pieces. The Bass Atomic and Fire Ducks cut it raw and cooked it that way, while the Spartans grilled theirs whole and then cut it apart. The Spartans put their seasoned meat along with their asparagus into a grilled green pepper. The Bass Atomic cooked their pork in a thick sauce, like an orange-colored fricassee, while they grilled their asparagus with bacon and other veggies and made a vegetable stack for a side dish. The Fire Ducks made a ragout of pork and asparagus. They were the only patrol which truly embraced the caraway, boldly seasoning their ragout with it (but not too much). Other side dishes of the three patrols were much of a muchness – two patrols made rice, and there was one side dish that was simply cut up orange bell pepper. The desserts were all memorable. The Bass Atomic made a pudding with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, Greek yogurt, and raspberries. It didn’t look like much, but it tasted great. When asked what they called it, the Scout in charge of making it – probably one of their youngest patrol members, stammered a bit and then said it was called a Jacob Special; I assume his name was, well, you know. The Spartans actually baked a small cake for their dessert (probably the most difficult dish attempted that afternoon) and made an icing of yogurt mixed with honey – with sprinkles on top. The Fire Ducks made gorgeous little peach tarts with graham cracker tart shells, fresh peaches, Greek yogurt, and other stuff. I saw them making a simple syrup, which I think went into the tarts, too. Lacking fresh mint, they decorated the tops with a bit of fresh parsley.
At the campfire that evening, the winning patrol was announced: the Fire Ducks of Troop 2064. It was a unanimous decision of the judges. Their dessert was the best, though not by a huge margin, but their handling of the entrée was more confident than the other two, who downplayed the asparagus and didn’t know what to really do with the caraway. The surprise of the event is that it was the youngest patrol – most of whom hadn’t really had much camping (or cooking) experience at all, who walked away with the prize.
Everyone attending had good things to share about the camporee. It wasn’t overprogrammed: there were interesting things to take part in, but also time to just play while camping in the autumn woods. The adults were really into their chili and coffee competitions, and everybody thought the cookoff was well-organized and praised all the Scouts for their efforts. Judge Rick Gaither was heard to say that he had waited 36 years (his whole Scouting career) to come to a camporee and have nothing to do but eat. And so endeth the Ultimate Patrol Cookoff. Congratulations to all the Scouts for a job well done!