PART-TIMING IN THE JAMBOREE
Yep, I did it. I’m 55 and reinventing myself, so why not? I accepted an assignment as a teaching assistant at the National RV Training Academy in
Athens, Texas this summer….the first 5-week cycle was on the calendar! I have never stayed in the RV longer than a week. Since becoming a solo
RVer, I typically only do 4-5 day stretches with the Girls. I knew this was going to be a whole new adventure in many aspects, food and cooking
being one of them.
On shorter trips, I kind of go crazy with the meal planning, simply because I can and I don’t have to think about pantry/frig space. However, my typical go-to camping weekend meals were not going to be practical on this trip. Long before summer, I decided that I would do some serious meal prepping for the occasion.
Why would I want to tackle a five week meal prep?
1. I enjoy cooking – I love looking at recipes, planning the ingredients lists, thinking about what I can batch or do differently.
2. It’s cheaper than eating out every meal.
3. I have a decent sized RV absorption frig and freezer. And, with it being only me in the camper, I knew I could get plenty packed in there.
4. I prefer real food and try to keep processed or packaged items to a minimum.
5. I love a challenge!
First, let’s talk about the menu. I scoured my recipe books, my Pinterest pins, and narrowed down some of my faves.
NOTE: Although I am dairy free, gluten free, egg free, you can make this entire meal plan list happen with either full throttle ingredients or DF, GF and EF – no problems! I shop at a local grocery store chain called Reasors, plus Sprouts, and Trader Joe’s.
Breakfast selections: Yogurt + granola, Suja Cold Pressed Green juice + coconut water, overnight oats, Applegate Chicken and Apple Breakfast Sausage patties, various fruits like strawberries, blueberries, bananas.
Lunch selections: GF pasta salad with veggies and protein, Rotisserie chicken + chopped salad, Turkey+avocado+bacon+lettuce wraps, Mediterranean Chickpea salad.
Dinner selections: Pork tenderloin + chopped salad, Turkey/beef burgers+salad, Pulled pork street tacos+veggie slaw and guacamole, Greek salad+protein, Mexican chicken lime cilantro soup+rice or quinoa.
Snacks, condiments, spices: Zoe’s Kitchen greek dressing, Kind bars, pistachios, walnuts, Simple Mills Almond Flour crackers, Trader Joe’s nut/trail mixes, green olives, salsa, hot sauce, different salts, pepper grinder, Trader Joes’ Everything but the bagel seasoning, coconut water, hummus, plantain chips. NOTE: I kept all of my pantry items in a Rubbermaid tub in the front passenger seat. I just couldn’t deal with the skinny pantry and shuffling things around all month. Worked great!
Bunny trail: My Dad and I did Dr Kellyann 21 Day Bone Broth diet a few years back which is basically paleo-meets-intermittent fasting. Her recipes are great and I am giving you the link here because that’s where I got the Mexican chicken lime soup and the Turkey/beef burgers recipes. There are a ton of free recipes on her website! I loosely follow this plan to this day.
Things that went well and will be repeaters:
1. Had the hubbs grill the pork tenderloin that I cut into thick chops and froze after grilling. Also had him do the turkey/beef burgers (made with red onion, cilantro, and dijon, they are so delightful) at the same time and froze. Popped these out one at a time to reheat and had a taste of home (Mr. QBRV used pecan wood from our property when grilling and it made the camper smell delish).
2. Did the pork carnitas for the street tacos in the crock pot/oven at home and froze in smaller freezer bags so I could pull out one at a time and that would last for a few meals. I had frozen cassava flour and almond flour tortillas to thaw quickly and topped them with a fresh veggie slaw, guac, salsa.
3. Made the Mexican chicken lime cilantro soup on stove top at home and also froze in smaller portions. Served that over brown rice.
4. Made several small freezer bags with brown rice and quinoa for quick side dishes or protein as needed – even for breakfast.
5. I usually grab a rotisserie chicken or two every time I shop. Debone, then place in a freezer bag. You can use these any time for a quick dinner and I love them on pizza! I took these with me for salad toppers at lunch.
5. Picked one lunch/fresh meal item per week and when I made my weekend trip to the grocery store, would snag the items that I needed for the next 5-7 days including bagged chopped salad, sliced turkey, fruit, salad veggies, yogurt, green juice.
6. I like leftovers and don’t get burned out easily so I would have one or two dinner selections each week and usually the same lunch just about every day.
What I will change next time:
1. Bring real flatware, knives, and plates! I had plasticware, paper, and my bushcrafting plates/utensils which are just not really fun when you are using your camper to “live” in. Especially, when you are slicing into some delicious previously grilled protein.
2. And on that note, MUST have real wine glasses and water glasses. I was over it quickly with plastic. I don’t mind washing dishes.
3. The Medi Chickpea salad……so fresh, so delish. Just. Don’t. Not if you need to work in public and your gastro system does not do well with legumes. You have been warned.
4. I usually make protein smoothies at home and missed these. Might gather all of the ingredients in individual freezer bags to pop in the Nutribullet each morning with almond/coco milk.
How long did this take to prep?
Probably 8 hours stretched over two days. I forgot to pay close attention and will next time. That included prep and clean up. This does not include the slow cooker or grilling times. I am lucky to be a “part-timer” and have a sticks-and-bricks kitchen to prep all of this in prior to hitting the road. I am also lucky that I was only cooking for ME. Did not have to consider portion sizes or palettes for the masses.
Conclusion: I used up almost everything by the end of the first 5-week cycle and was pretty darn proud of myself. Looking at the recipe pins again to see what I want to tackle next round. Hope these ideas help you plan a future trip and please sound off below with your RV meal prep ideas – especially any of you full-timers that prep while you are on the road!
