Camping Recipes: Marshmallow Slice

Ever since I can remember, I have enjoyed marshmallows cooked over the fire. For the adults among us, it evokes strong memories of our early childhood camping trips away from the hum-drum of home life and out into the bush to learn all of the skills we now hold in readiness to pass down to the next generation of “bushies”.

But the marshmallows were usually the crowning glory on a day spent exploring, discovering, creating, foraging and being.

Mornings usually began with a cooked breakfast. Dad was a sort of urban bushy. He had a love for the bush, but lacked an affinity with it. He’d never really learned how to tame it, but he always gave it a red hot go.

One of dad’s tricks was to sit down by the fire with a cold can of wisdom, and encourage me to go and collect sticks that might be okay for toasting marshmallows.

I’d go out and bring back dozens of samples of all sizes, none of which, according to dad, would work, but once the fire was roaring he would finally declare the 40th stick appropriate and then the whittling would begin.

Only then would we be able to settle into an evening by the fire with dad becoming wiser and wiser with each can, and mum burning yet another meal on the prosperously hot barbecue that seemed to be the only form of cooking we had.

No wonder I enjoyed Scouts more.

Strawberry Marshmallow Slice

Base

• 2 cups biscuits, crumbled
• 125g butter, melted
• 1/2 cup coconut
• 1 tsp mixed spice

FILLING

• 250g cream cheese
• 300ml thickened cream
• 100g marshmallows
• 200g fresh strawberries
• 1 tbsp gelatine powder
• 1/4 cup cold water

TOPPING

• 100g white marshmallows
• 1 tbsp milk

Grease a lamington tray.

For the base, combine biscuits, butter, coconut and spice in a bowl and mix well.

Press evenly over base of tray. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

For the filling, process cream cheese until soft, add cream, marshmallows, strawberries and mix until smooth.

Add gelatine to cold water, stir over hot water until dissolved, fold into cream mixture.

Pour over base and refrigerate for several hours until firm.

For the topping, combine marshmallows and milk in pan, stir constantly over low heat until marshmallows have melted.

Cool to room temperature.

Spread topping over slice, refrigerate until topping is set

Rocky Road

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup smooth peanut butter
• 2 cups chocolate chips
• 250g marshmallows

In a large pot, melt butter over a medium-to-low heat.

Add peanut butter, stir until melted.

Add chocolate chips, stir until smooth.

Remove from heat.

Let the mix cool until you can hold your hand on the bottom of the pot, then stir in the marshmallows.

Line a small square cake tin with aluminium foil then pour in the mixture.

Chill, for 2 hours till set.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Marshmallow Squares

• 2 cups creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 250g butterscotch chips
• 500g miniature marshmallows

Heat a large pot over low heat and

add peanut butter, butter and butterscotch chips.

Constantly stir until totally melted (this will take about 10 minutes, but eventually everything will melt). Remove from heat and set aside to cool for about 10 more minutes.

Fold in marshmallows until evenly

coated and distributed. Some may melt, and that’s fine.

Spray a lamington pan with non-stick spray or line with aluminium foil and spread mixture in the pan.

Sit at room temperature for a few hours to firm up or place in the fridge.

The full feature appeared in Camper Trailer Australia #90 July 2015.