...And the last installment of SCD Camping in Yosemite blogs... It has been a busy summer, and we are gearing up for the next school year around here (already?!), so let's wrap up this SCD Camping theme!

My Mom made some great SCD dinners for us all!  We enjoyed sitting around their table each night, talking about our day over the delicious meals.

Unfortunately, with dinner coming at the end of long days, I didn't get pictures of every dinner but they were great!

The night we got there, we had Sloppy Joe's with an SCD meat sauce. I had mine over SCD Focaccia Bread (recipe coming soon in a new cookbook!). Served with veggies and watermelon.

The next night we had Taco Salad - bagged lettuce with SCD seasoned ground beef, chopped tomato, green onions, grated cheese, and SCD yogurt for me. 

Next up was spaghetti - homemade SCD meatballs with legal marinara sauce for me, along with veggies on the side.

Then it was Chicken Salad with bagged lettuce, Trader Joe's legal canned chicken mixed with legal mayonnaise, chopped grapes, green onion, and grated cheddar cheese.

And last but certainly not least was a yummy Polynesian Pile-On. This is a meal I remember having on camping trips or for group meals growing up and it's easy to make SCD-style. Mine consisted of Trader Joe's legal canned chicken, Dole Crushed Pineapple, grated cheddar cheese, chopped celery, sliced green onion, and sliced almonds.

For desserts each night Mom supplied me with SCD Peanut Butter Cookie Bars she had baked at home and put in snack-sized baggies. A fun treat!

We also discovered a nice substitute for popcorn: Salted in the shell peanuts. It was fun to crack those around the campfire and not feel at all deprived!

It was a great (and yummy) trip, and I hope these ideas spur you on to delicious SCD adventures!

~ Erin

 In between beautiful bike rides through the forest, sightseeing, and playing in the pool, each family handled their own lunches.

Sometimes we were on a hike, bike ride, or otherwise having fun when lunchtime rolled around... In that case, I had some Mariani Bars or Larabars in my purse to snack on. If I could plan ahead, I might add some legal fruit juice like the Costco 100% Mango Juice, water, Trader Joe's sunflower seeds, or fruit leather to my lunch on-the-go.

When we were at the campsite during lunch, I might put together something like the below picture: Trader Joe's Freeze Dried Mango, cheese cubes, Trader Joe's sunflower seeds, Applegate Farms Uncured Beef Hot Dogs*, and splurge on a Diet Coke.

Keeping lunches simple allowed us to have more time for fun - which is why we were camping in Yosemite, right?? :)

I hope you're having a great summer, and hopefully even getting some camping in, SCD-style!

Next up: Dinners in Yosemite

~ Erin

*I have tolerated the beef hot dogs made by Applegate Farms just fine, but did experience some symptoms from their previous recipe which contained lactic acid. Their other types of hot dogs have ingredients I wouldn't try as they're definitely illegal. Each person on the SCD needs to be careful which prepared products they try, and you can always write a letter to companies to inquire about their ingredients.

Since we were camping next door to my parents, we decided to split up the meal responsibilities. It worked great, giving each family more time to sightsee and explore or relax. Sharing mealtimes together was a nice way to spend time together and gave us time to plan the day’s activities too.

Jim enjoyed taking on the task of cooking breakfasts. At home, he put together a spread sheet with what we would have for breakfast each day, and made a corresponding shopping list as well as a list of things to buy and bring to make it all come together smoothly.

He made some non-SCD items but always included something I could have.

For example, he made sunrise sandwiches with English muffins, bacon, eggs, and cheese and made two separate eggs for me and I added bacon, fruit, and decaf black tea for a hearty meal.

When they had French toast and sausage, I had SCD yogurt with honey, and fruit.

Bear Sign donuts were a big hit for everyone else another morning and they all enjoyed eggs, Costco precooked bacon, and fruit along with me.

When everyone else had pancakes, I enjoyed the other meal components: Hatch Chili Cheesy Eggs with bacon and fruit… and it was plenty!

With a jar of SCD yogurt with honey on hand along with some fruit, eggs, bacon, and decaf black tea, you can go a long way on a camping trip!

So, where are you all vacationing this summer? Any camping plans? I hope this is a help to you as you plan your SCD menus!

Up next: Camping Lunches…

~ Erin