Hot Drinks
30 Second Hot Chocolate
When hot chocolate takes 30 seconds to make, you might start drinking a lot more of it. We won't hold it against you if you buy the packets of Swiss Miss or Carnation, but here's a good recipe if you're a diehard do-it-yourselfer.
1/3 cup cocoa
1 1/3 cup instant nonfat dry milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons powdered non-dairy creamer
1/4 teaspoon salt
(instant coffee)
Mix all ingredients and store in a zip lock baggie. To one cup hot water, add 1/3 cup dry mix (about four to six heaping tablespoons) and stir well. Add a little instant coffee for mocha. Life is good.
Flavored Coffees
Flavored coffee ideas. Make up a quantity for the trail and ziplock bag it. From James Steele
TOFFEE COFFEE
1 cup instant coffee
1 cup non-dairy creamer
1 cup brown sugar
CAFE' VIENNA
1 cup instant coffee
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 1/3 cups nonfat dry milk
1 tsp. cinnamon
SWISS MOCHA
1 cup instant coffee
1 cup sugar
2 cups nonfat dry milk
4 tsp. cocoa powder
CINNAMON-N-SPICE
2/3 cup instant coffee
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. allspice
HOW TO USE: Share method…Boil 2 cups of water in Jetboil. Add 1 tablespoon of mix per cup of hot water. Pour, stir, and enjoy with a friend. Selfish method…Boil 2 cups of water. Add 2 or more tablespoons of mix to Jetboil. Stir and sip from lid on Jetboil. Hiss at anyone that comes up to you with an empty mug expecting you to share.
Ultra-lite Backpackers' Spiced Tea
Pack enough for 9 liters in about 1/3 cup Sugar Free, Carb Free, Fat Free, and weighs next to nothing. 2 tubs Crystal Light Peach Tea, 1 tub Crystal Light Pink Lemonade, 2 tubs Sugar Free Tang, ¼ tsp ground cloves, ¼ tsp ground cinnamon. Dump all the powders together, mix well making sure there are no clumps. Add about ½ tsp of powder per 8 oz. of hot water. Or, if you're not into measuring while camping, fill your Jetboil PCS with the amount of water you want to drink, heat it to the temperature you want, and add the spiced tea mix to suit your taste! I store my mix in a used spice bottle with a shaker lid, and just use the shaker rather than trying to measure it.
Pine Tree Tea
A resourceful submission from James Steele:
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (volume) or 8 tablespoons
1.5 pints or 900 ml or 3 3/4 cups of water
Sweetener or lemon (optional)
1. Gather the pine needles (the ones nearest the end of the branch).
2. You can chop up the pine needles or leave them whole.
3. Jetboil your water, of course it won't take long to bring it to a boil. Add the needles to the boiling water and reduce to a simmer for about 20 minutes. The longer you steep, the stronger the tea.
4. You can strain out the needles and enjoy. Or you can use the Coffee Press accessory and press the needles to the bottom of your Jetboil and sip from the lid.
5. Pine Tree Tea is good for scurvy which is a constant threat while backpacking. Plenty of vitamin C in Pine Tree Tea.
Candy Apple
Weary of java? Disillusioned with tea? Doc Pleasanton has the perfect remedy!
2 packages of Alpine (or your favorite brand) spiced cider mix. Caramel flavored syrup (Torani, DaVinci, Starbuck's, etc.)
Boil 2 cups of water and prepare the cider per instructions on package. Add a few splashes of caramel flavored syrup and enjoy!
Max's Irish Coffee
A delicious after-dinner drink for sitting around a campfire telling lies with old friends!
To be made with the Jetboil PCS
A spoon or spork will be handy
Ingredients
PER DRINK
3oz Jameson Irish Whisky
2os Baileys Irish Cream
2 bags Folgers Classic Decaf Singles
At home
1) Figure out how many drinks you and your friends will consume
2) Measure out appropriate amount of Whisky and Irish cream and combine in a plastic hiking-appropriate flask
3) Pack 2 Folgers Singles per drink
In Camp
1) Fill Jetboil with water to the fill line and set to boil.
2) When water boils, turn off heat and remove gas canister and burner.
3) Drop 2 Folgers Decaf Singles and let steep for 3-4 minutes with sip lid on.
4) Remove lid and give a quick stir. Remove coffee bags; add Jameson/ Bailey's mixture to taste.
5) Replace lid
6) Place another log on the fire and wonder why you don't do this more often.
(Courtesy of J. Alex Cordaro)
Russian Tea
An old Boy Scout favorite. Has little to do with Russia or tea, but it tastes great.
2 cups sugar
1 cup Tang orange powder
1/2 cup instant tea
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1 pkg lemonade mix, 1 qt size
Mix ingredients together and store in a zip lock bag. Mix 2-3 tablespoons with a cup of hot water.
Cowboy Coffee
Coffee without the filter. Instant's easier, but this is nature's best option for fresh coffee fanatics. If you're a little patient, cowboy coffee is easy. And don't believe those stories about egg shells!
2 cups water
4 heaping tablespoons fresh ground coffee
Bring the water to a boil. Turn heat to as low a boil as possible. Add coffee and stir well into boiling water. Turn off heat immediately and cover. Every minute, uncover and stir to encourage the grounds to sink. Repeat a few times, then leave it alone for another few minutes. Most of the grounds should have settled and you can pour or sip off the top.
Gayle's Toddy
Toddies abound, but a better one we have not tasted. Try this one on your mother-in-law.
3/4 cup water
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 lemon or lime
1/2 stick cinnamon
4 whole cloves
1 1/2 oz bourbon
Throw in everything but the bourbon and gently heat to near boil. At the peak of aromatic splendor, add the whiskey and turn off the heat. Swirl a bit and serve.
Tea
Explain how to make tea? Preposterous, unless you're a Brit. Next time you take a chilly fall hike or winter snowshoe, bring along your Jetboil and surprise your friends at lunchtime. You'll be the hit of the party.
Bring water or snow to a fresh boil. Turn off heat, add teabag(s), cover, and let steep for three minutes.
