camp meals

Honey Pepper Cheese Crisps

Goat cheese, panko, and honey worked into a pan-fried patty you can make at a car camp.

calories
330
weight
3.5 oz
cal / oz
94
protein
13 g
serves
4, scales
prep
10 min
cook
8 min
total time
18 min
water
none
cost
$$

Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.

  • Snack
  • Dinner
  • Campfire coals
  • Grill grate
  • Canister stove
  • Car camping
  • Basecamp
  • Canoe / raft
  • Vegetarian
  • Nut free
  • One pot
  • Pre-mix at home
  • Needs a cooler
  • Basic

Ingredients

Goat cheese log 8 oz keep it cold until it goes in the pan
Panko bread crumbs 1/2 cup
Egg 1 or 1 tbsp powdered egg plus 2 tbsp water
Dried basil 1 tbsp
Cracked black pepper 2 tsp split between the mix and the finish
Honey 1.5 tbsp a squeeze bottle beats a jar
Olive oil 2 tbsp for the pan

Method

  1. Mash the goat cheese with the basil, 1 tsp of the pepper, and half a tablespoon of the honey. A fork and a bowl or the bag itself both work.
  2. Pinch off tablespoon-sized lumps and press each into a flat disc about half an inch thick. Discs cook through in a pan; balls do not.
  3. Beat the egg in a cup. Dip each disc, then press both sides into the panko.
  4. Set the pan over moderate heat with the oil. Fry the discs three or four minutes a side until the crust is brown and the middle gives when pushed.
  5. Pull them off the heat and let them sit a minute or they fall apart. Drizzle the rest of the honey over and grind the remaining pepper on top.

The original was baked and frozen first, neither of which happens at a campsite. Flattening the cheese into discs and frying them in a pan does the same job in eight minutes: the panko crust sets before the inside runs, which is the whole trick. Freezing was only there to buy time in a 475-degree oven, and a pan over a grate gives you more control than that anyway.

Goat cheese needs a cooler, so this is a car-camping or paddle recipe and not a backpacking one. The honey is not decoration. It cuts the tang of the cheese and the pepper cuts the honey, and without both you have fried cheese and nothing else.

Packing

Panko, basil, and pepper premix into one bag at home. The cheese and the egg ride in the cooler; a small tub of powdered egg replaces the real one if the cooler is tight.

Variations

  • No cooler: swap the goat cheese for a shelf-stable soft cheese wedge and expect a softer patty.
  • Skip the honey and finish with hot sauce for something savory.

https://domesticsuperhero.com/honey-baked-goat-cheese