Bannock: A Simple Camp Bread

A traditional camp food, and one that's easy to make without a full fledged kitchen, is bannock.   I just tried my hand at making bannock for the first time and it came out good.  I used the recipe found here.  In case that link disappears, here is the recipe:

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 pinches of salt
• Sometimes people will add other ingredients like cinnamon or berries.

Mix the ingredients well then mix in enough water to make a dough.  I used regular all purpose flout but you could use whole wheat flour for a more nutritious meal.

Since I was making it for only myself I halved the measurements. 

To cook the bannock I used a new 8" cast iron skillet that I bought this morning at the local supermarket.  I first cooked a few slices of bacon in the skillet to start seasoning it, then drained most of the grease and then put in the dough.  It took up the whole pan but I was able to flip it over after about 5 minutes using a spatula.  Flip it when the bottom is golden brown.  Another five minutes or so and it was done.  Check that it's done by poking the center to make sure the dough is cooked.

I topped the bannock with some grape jelly and had it for lunch along with the bacon.  Tasted great and it's filling.

Depending on how sticky you make the dough (which depends on how much water you add), you can cook bannock by making a "rope" and wrapping it around a stick and then cooking it over a campfire.  I've also read of it being cooked on flat rocks heated in a fire.

For camping or an emergency evacuation, one could make up premixed Ziploc bags of bannock dough, sans water, then cook them up upon reaching a rest stop or campsite.  According to the link above, cooked bannock also freezes well.