Allspice Chronicles

Entertain like a Queen, Think Lean and Live Green! A personal collection of recipes,anecdotes,and good old fashioned advice…

Fruit & Yogurt-Filled Croissants

by Danica Waters

Out of everything I’ve learned over years’ of camping with kids in tow, when it comes to cooking in the great outdoors, there are two rules that should be made into giant neon signs:

1) Keep it simple. Doing a million dishes in the wild does not make for happy times.

2) Simple doesn’t mean processed, high-sugar anything. Yep. You actually have to live with your kids. Happily.

In an effort to dodge the “Mom-We-Want-Donuts” requests prior to one of our camping excursions, I brought along some croissants and an assortment of yogurt. The kids were happy enough with it – but then my youngest daughter (the foodie) asked me to split her croissant down the middle so she could smear all of her yogurt on the inside. We all looked at her like she was crazy, but she insisted it tasted like a cream filled donut and made each of us take a bite. She was right. It was like a cream-filled bite of heaven - with no sugar crash afterwards. An instant family favorite.

Since then we have had loads of fun “perfecting” the filled croissant:

Take your croissant and hold it so that it looks like a smile (two ends facing up). Create a “pocket”; carefully split the croissant from one end to the other, being sure not to cut all the way through. Spoon in your favorite flavored yogurt and spread evenly inside the pocket. Then, add slices of your favorite fruit or berries. Grab a napkin - and enjoy!

If you like your croissants warm and crispy on those chilly mountain mornings, simply skewer your croissant lengthwise and hold over your campfire or camp stove for a minute or two to toast it.

Please note that the only dishes required for this early-morning deliciousness are a knife to split the croissants (and maybe to slice the fruit, if you didn’t pre-slice it at home) and a spoon to spread your yogurt. Now that’s a great way to start the day!

Here’s some great flavor combinations:

* Vanilla yogurt with any kind of fruit

* Peach yogurt with fresh blueberries

* Strawberry yogurt with sliced banana

* Banana yogurt with fresh sliced pineapple and shredded coconut

* Strawberry yogurt with fresh sliced mango

* Greek-style plain yogurt drizzled with honey, stuffed with fresh blueberries and walnuts

I should note that the filled croissant works beautifully for other occasions, as well. Miniature filled croissants make an unusual and very decadent add to a breakfast buffet – they’re easy to eat and never fail to wow everyone who wraps their mouth around them.

Here’s to happy camping and little foodies everywhere! Enjoy!