Campfire Macaroni & Cheese

Comfort foods are always something people think of when it comes to camping meals, at least for tent camping anyway.  Believe it or not, it’s completely possible to make a delicious homemade macaroni and cheese that you cook right over your campfire—all it takes is a little pre-planning and pre-cooking.

Photo Source: Nellie Bellie

You’ll need either a regular size aluminum disposable pie pan or for individual servings 6 mini disposable pie pans, aluminum foil, nonstick cooking spray and a marker to label everything.

There are a variety of macaroni and cheese recipes out there, but this one is a quick and easy version that tastes fantastic too.

Campfire Macaroni and Cheese

6 cups cooked macaroni

1 jar alfredo sauce

1 cup half and half

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, divided for topping each pie tin

1 cup crushed cheese crackers, divided for topping each pie tin

In a large bowl mix the first 4 ingredients until well combined.  Pour into pie pan(s) and top with extra cheese and crushed cheese crackers.  Spray tin foil that will touch the macaroni and cheese with nonstick spray.  This will prevent the cheesy topping from sticking and makes eating hassle free.  Label and store in a Ziploc bag to keep them away from any melted ice/water in your cooler.

To cook, make a fire and let it burn down to hot coals; place your grill over the coals.  Set the pie tins on the grill, taking care not to let the bottoms of the tins come directly in contact with the coals.  The macaroni and cheese is precooked, so you’ll only need to heat it up and you’ll be eating creamy, cheesy heaven in about 10 minutes.

Tip:  If you’ll be camping for a period of time longer than a weekend, you can freeze this meal and it will slowly thaw in your cooler and be ready for when you want to serve it. Be sure to keep it in a Ziploc bag even if you freeze it to avoid water getting into it as aluminum foil doesn’t provide an airtight seal.