It's Easy Being Cheesy

Recently Nathan and I have been preparing for our Lake Superior Coastal Trail trip. I took a few pictures of the dehydrating food process. 

I have blogged about dehydrating food before, in Dry Food for Thought, where I list some resources, favorite dried items, and what dehydrator we have.

We've started to hone in on some of our favorite meals and snacks which I'll share with you here. We sort of accidentally made this meal and loved it!

Taco Beef Mac (2 hearty servings)

• 1 cup macaroni noodles (cook and dehydrate)
• 1/2 cup taco beef (brown lean beef, add taco seasoning, bread crumbs, and dehydrate)
• 1/4 cup mixed bell peppers (chop and dehydrate)
• 1/4 tsp M-Salt (salt, pepper, garlic powder)
• 1/4 cup black beans (rinse and dehydrate)
• Sprinkle tomatoes (de-seed, chop, and dehydrate)
• Pinch of Jalapeños (de-seed, chop, and dehydrate)
• Keep in separate snack size ziplock bag
• 3 TBSP dry cheese from a mac & cheese box
• 1 TBSP taco seasoning
• 2 TBSP powdered milk

On the trail boil a little over 2 cups of water. Dump dehydrated mix in. Cover and wrap with a towel for insulation and wait 45 minutes. Just before serving, add cheese mix, stir, and enjoy.

Mexican Beans & Rice  (2 hearty servings)

• 1/2 cup taco beef (brown lean beef, add taco seasoning, bread crumbs, and dehydrate)
• 1 cup Zatarain's Black Beans & Rice Mix
• 1/4 tsp M-Salt (salt, pepper, garlic powder)
• 1/4 cup black beans (rinse and dehydrate)
• Sprinkle green onions (slice and dehydrate)
• Sprinkle dried tomatoes (de-seed, chop, and dehydrate)
• Pinch of Jalapeños (de-seed, chop, and dehydrate)
• 1/4 cup mixed bell peppers
• Keep in separate snack size ziplock bag
• 3 TBSP dry cheese from a mac & cheese box
• 1 TBSP taco seasoning
• 2 TBSP powdered milk

On the trail boil a little over 2 cups of water. Dump dehydrated mix in. Cover and wrap with a towel for insulation and wait 45 minutes. Just before serving, add cheese mix, stir, and enjoy.

Tortellini

• 2 cup cheese tortellini (cooked and dehydrated)
• 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce (dehydrated like fruit leather)
• 1/2 cup beef (brown lean beef, add bread crumbs or Italian croutons, and dehydrate)
• Sprinkle dried tomatoes (de-seed, chop, and dehydrate)

On the trail boil a little over 2 cups of water. Dump tortellini and sauce leather in. Cover and wrap with a towel for insulation and wait 45 minutes.  Stir, and enjoy.

Chili Mac

• 1 cup macaroni noodles (cook and dehydrate)
• 1 cup chili (make your favorite chili recipe and dehydrate, use lean beef)
• 1/4 cup mixed bell peppers (chop and dehydrate)
• Pinch jalapenos (de-seed, chop, and dehydrate)
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp salt/pepper or M-Salt (salt, pepper, garlic powder)

On the trail boil a little over 2 cups of water. Dump dehydrated chili mix in. Cover and wrap with a towel for insulation and wait 45 minutes. We think this meal might be awesome with a cheese packet too... we will try it next time.