Want to see something scary? Take a look at ‘People of Walmart‘

Preparation time: 15 minute plus an hour or two to set
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Skill level: easy
Makes: more than we could possibly want
Recipe: Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Ingredients

• granulated sugar – 500g
• icing sugar – 1-2 tbsp
• cornflour – 1-2 tbsp
• a little vegetable oil – for oiling
• 1 small, raw, peeled beetroot (optional)
• gelatine powder – 25g (about 2 sachets)
• 2 egg whites

Sieve the icing sugar and cornflour into a bowl. Take a 20cm x 20cm cake tin, rub with oil and shake in some of the icing sugar mix to coat.

Grate the beetroot into a bowl, pour on 125ml of near-boiling water and leave to quickly infuse for 30 seconds. Strain into another bowl and stir in the gelatine to dissolve.

Over low heat, warm the sugar and 250ml water and stir to dissolve the sugar.

Using a sugar thermometer, boil fiercely to 122C.

Remove from the heat, pour in the beetroot/gelatine mixture and stir.

Put the egg whites in a mixer bowl and beat until very stiff. With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in the sugar solution and beat until really thick but still pourable.

Pour into the tin and leave to set in a cool place (not the fridge) for an hour or two.

Thoroughly dust a board with the remaining cornflour/icing sugar mix. Coat a knife with oil, and use to ease the marshmallow out on to the board.

Cut into squares, and store in an airtight tin lined with parchment.

Verdict: Well they taste like marshmallows so if you like marshmallows you’ll like these. Personally I’m not fussed so these were made more out of curiosity than desire (I would certainly pass the marshmallow test). They are much softer and less dusty than the shop bought (or farmed) variety and tend to melt rather than toast.

Drink: You’ll need a gallon of tea to wash down these sweet sticky confections.

Entertainment: Sitting around the camp fire singing Ging Gang Goolie and telling ghost stories.

The marshmallow contact sheet

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Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: none (although you’ll need to allow a few hours for chilling)
Skill level: Easy
Serves: 2 main or 4 starter

Ingredients

• 4 large ripe avocados
• stale white bread – crust removed – 75g
• 1-2 spring onions
• 1 small green pepper
• 1/2 cucumber – peeled
• olive oil – 4 tbsp
• lemon juice – 5 tbsp
• chilled water – about 500 ml
• 1 red pepper – roasted
• s & p

Soak the stale in water for 5-10 minutes and squeeze dry.

Put the bread, avocado pulp, onion, green pepper and about 2 tsp salt in a food processor and blitz until smooth.

With the machine still running, slowly add the oil, lemon juice and some of the water.

Pour into a suitable bowl, mix in the remaining water and chill for at least 2 hours.

Roast the red pepper, peel, chop and allow to cool.

Ladle into bowls and add the red pepper garnish.

Verdict: A rich, creamy, subtle soup. There are many variations of this recipe out there, so experiment.

Drink: A delicious and tart home-made lemonade.

Entertainment: ’24′, series one, 23:00. Ridiculous and exciting in equal measures.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: none (although you’ll need to allow a few hours for chilling)
Skill level: Easy
Serves: 2 main or 4 starter

Ingredients

• ripe tomatoes – 1 kg
• stale white bread – crust removed – 75g
• olive oil – 6 tbsp
• white wine vinegar – 5 tbsp
• garlic – 3 cloves
• chilled water – about 300 ml
• cumin – pinch
• finely chopped spring onion, green pepper and cucumber for the garnish
• croutons (optional)
• salt – 2 tsp

Soak the stale bread in water for 5-10 minutes and squeeze dry.
Place the tomatoes in boiling water for a few minutes until the skin starts to split. Skin, de-seed and roughly chop.

Put the tomatoes, bread, cumin and garlic in a food processor and blitz until smooth.

With the machine still running, slowly add the oil and then the vinegar.

Switch off and add enough water for your preferred consistency.

Chill for at least 2 hours.

Ladle into bowls and add a spoonful of the garnish.

Verdict: There are few things in life better than gazpacho. Delicious beyond description.

Drink: A trio of cold lagers in a pair of local pubs.

Entertainment: ’24′, series one, 20:00 to 22:00. Everyone has been kidnapped (again). Dennis Hopper has a weird Bosnian/Welsh hybrid accent.

After pitching the tent and checking out the facilities, we ambled along the coast to Whitstable in search of a salty seaside pub and the ingredients for dinner. There is a fantastic fish market of great repute in the harbour where we picked up a handsome pair of very fresh mackerel. Down the high street a less renowned Somerfield supplied us with the other bits we needed. And then over the road to Thresher’s for the oft savoured 3 for 2 wines. Work done we retired to a breakwater on the beach outside the Whitstable Brewery Bar for a few pre-dinner sharpeners. The raspberry wheat beer was rather good being dry, yet tasting of raspberry in an appropriate way.

One of the pleasures of camping is cooking outdoors, the major challenge being to come up with something tasty (which remains hot in all its constituent parts) using only one gas stove and whatever cooking equipment you remembered to throw in the boot of the car. On this occasion we improvised a
Fish, Tomato and Potato dish which could conveniently be made in one pan.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Skill level: Easy
Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 2 fresh mackerel (filleted) – or a fish of your choice
• handful of small potatoes – thinly sliced (5mm/14 pixels)
• tin of cherry tomatoes
• 1 medium onion – finely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic – crushed
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 star anise
• ½ lemon
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Lightly fry the onion and garlic in the olive oil, then add the tomatoes, bay leaves and star anise. When simmering, season and add the potatoes and a wedge of lemon. Cover and simmer for a further 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are just cooked. You will occasionally have to add a little water to make up for any evaporation.

Now lay the mackerel fillets (skin-side down) on top of the potato, add a squeeze of lemon juice and a sprinkle of sea salt and cover. Continue to cook until the fish is ready. This should take about 5 minutes depending on the thickness of the fillets.

Serve immediately with a green salad.

Verdict: This turned out to be very tasty indeed. The fish was firm and moist and the potatoes had absorbed the flavours from the sauce. The star anise gave it a slight background flavour of aniseed which worked well with the mackerel. And we were outside so it tasted even better.

Drink: 2 bottles of Thresher’s finest red (the third was left out of arm’s reach for reasons of extreme puritanism).

Entertainment: Watching everyone else eating their dinner and later being utterly jealous when the family across from us starting toasting marshmallows. Note to self: Things to pack next camping trip – tent, duvet, marshmallows …