Pack Goat Training Camp Firebox Stove Cooking Rainbow Trout Mac & Cheese, Peach Cobbler & Lemon Cake

Going up into the cool high elevation wilderness is the perfect solution when you've been enduring a heat wave!

I've been needing to get my new pack goats out for more training so I took the opportunity to take Luke up for some father and son camping. We were both excited to hang out in the cool woods, however a series of unfortunate events caused us to cut the trip short. First, I took the scenic route, which was a very long bumpy drive especially since we had to ​explore around a bit to find a good place to camp. Then it started raining. We were prepared for wet weather so we went fishing; however, Luke had a rough time when his fishing line became terribly tangled. I got it all fixed up, but by that point he had lost interest and was starting to get cold. Once we reached the truck, one of the side doors dropped and hit Luke hard. He was tough about it, but the combination of everything made him homesick. The bad weather was forecast to continue till dark and I didn't want Luke to be miserable so we headed home. Since I was all packed up and prepared for a night in the woods, I woke up early the next morning and pushed reset on the whole trip. I let Luke sleep in and I took Ursa and the Kid Pack Goats exploring a new canyon and a very scenic lake which did have some pan size trout for the catching. However, free range sheep took over the area, so I went looking for somewhere new to spend the night and do some more pack goat training. I ended up driving up over the ridge into a more familiar canyon and hit an old favorite lake for a lovely time camping and cooking with my four-legged companions. The food on this trip was excellent! I was planning the menu around what I thought. Luke might enjoy. For dinner I made homemade mac & cheese and topped it with my fresh caught rainbow trout. I had never made mac & cheese​ from scratch, but I'm pretty good at cream sauces so I knew that adding some freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese would elevate the meal nicely. I was a bit worried that trout and mac & cheese wasn't a good pairing, but it was a very delicious combination. For dessert I ​picked up some orchard fresh peaches and had recently seen a post on how to make a delicious crumble topping. So I made a peach crumble using the 5" Firebox Stove equipped with the sumo expansion, legs and side burner brackets to form a two burner gas stove. I cooked the topping in my Firebox backpacking ​f​ry-pan and the peach filling in my Firebox​7​50ml Bus​h Pot then combined the two on the plate. I topped it off with blueberries and a light drizzle of heavy cream. Wow! What a fantastic dessert! The peaches were cooked perfectly and the crumble tasted like crunchy pralines. Very delicious! For breakfast, I made lemon cake. I was able to rationalize it as a breakfast by adding four eggs to the mix. I was able to set up the reflector oven in. It's low position to accommodate the large bread pan by using the Freestyle Stove's "Gas Burner Bracket" which worked nicely at the base of the 5 inch Firebox Stove. The cake was getting quite brown on the sides and bottom, so I scooped out the little bit of uncooked batter on top so I could sink my teeth into its deliciousness. I topped it off with cream cheese frosting, and some of my leftover peach cobbler. Oh, I almost forgot I also cooked some thick cut bacon, which I torn into small pieces and sprinkled onto this breakfast dessert masterpiece which turned out to be one of the most wonderful things I've ever eaten. The cake was moist and creamy contrasted by the ​crunchy cobbler​. ​Blueberries, bacon, and lemon zest​ took this treat over the top! Absolutely amazing! I'll probably never be able to replicate such perfection.

Thanks for joining along! Cheers, Steve