Campfire Recipe: The Duke’s Soufflé

There are many stories as to whether the “Duke” gave this recipe out but regardless it is a delicious addition to your camping cookbook that is perfect for breakfast, lunch and/or dinner. But…..as you know me, I have to change it up a bit. Before I get to this though, let me tell you a brief story.

You see, my husband had requested this dish on a camp outing that we were planning. As luck would have it, I thought I had green chilies in the camp supplies. I also thought I had picked up plain Monterey Jack cheese. Boy was I wrong on both accounts. We I got to camp, I did not have any green chilies but I had fresh green peppers. When I pulled out the cheese, to my surprise, I had pepper jack. Since I did not want to go to the store nor did I want to delay the dish, I decided to use what I had. The hotness of the pepper jack was just enough and I really did not miss the green chilies. On the other hand, the thinly sliced green peppers added a sweetness that the original recipe seemed to lack. All in all, both approaches to this recipe produce a hardy and delicious dish that your camping family will ask for again and again.

Campfire Recipe:  The Duke’s Soufflé

Ingredients

Spray or liquid oil

1 pound of Monterey Jack cheese

1 pound of Extra Sharp Cheddar cheese

2 4 ounce cans of green chilies

4 eggs

1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour

2/3 cup of evaporated milk

½ teaspoon of salt

1/8 teaspoon of black pepper

2 fresh tomatoes

Steps

1. Build a fire to prepare the coals.
2. Lightly grease a 12 inch Dutch oven with liquid or spray oil.
3. Grate the Monterey Jack cheese and set aside. Repeat with the extra sharp cheddar cheese.
4. Drain the green chilies. Remove the seeds and dice.
5. Add the grated Monterey Jack cheese first to the 12 inch Dutch oven.
6. Top the grated Monterey Jack cheese with the extra sharp cheddar cheese.
7. On top of the extra sharp cheddar cheese add green chilies.
8. In two separate bowls, separate the yolks from the whites of the four eggs.
9. Slightly beat the egg yolks. Add the flour, evaporated milk, salt and black pepper. Mix completely.
10. Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form and then lightly mix into the egg yolks.
11. Gently pour the egg mixture over the cheese layers in the Dutch oven.
12. Thinly slice the tomatoes and lay them down around the edge of the Dutch oven. Make sure that they overlap some along with the edges pushed down into the batter.
13. Place the lid on the Dutch oven and move to a heat resistant surface.
14. Arrange 10 prepared coals in a circle. Put the Dutch oven on the circle of coals.
15. Put 16 to 18 coals on the lid.
16. In 40 minutes, gently knock off the coals from the lid. Move the 12 inch Dutch oven off the circle of coals.

Remove lid and serve.