Best Autumn Meals to Cook Over the Campfire

Colorful leaves, crisp air, and starry skies at night—the autumn camping season is here, inviting RVers to gather around the campfire for an enticing feast over a flame. You can taste the flavors of fall with tips for cooking at your RV campsite (if your campground allows open fires for cooking), and nothing’s better for warming up you and your family and friends than hearty dishes with seasonal ingredients. Plus, many of fall foods can be conveniently prepared using a Dutch oven or cast iron skillet while you’re camping out at destinations for a quick autumn RV trip. RV Trader is sharing the best autumn meals to cook over the campfire.

Apple and Sweet Potato Hash

Recipe by Fresh Off The Grid

You’ll Need:

Camp Stove or Dutch Oven, Cast Iron Skillet

Ingredients:

• 4 slices bacon
• 1 medium sweet potato
• 1 granny smith apple
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 eggs

Instructions:

• Slice the sweet potatoes and apple into small chunks.
• Place bacon in the skillet over the flame, cooking until it’s crispy and then flip. Place on a towel-lined plate.
• Cook the sweet potato and apple, and add a pinch of salt in the skillet and sauté until soft. Chop the bacon and add it to the skillet and sprinkle with thyme.
• Push the hash together to make two wells and cook the eggs within the wells.

Brussel Sprouts in Maple Bourbon Sauce

Recipe adapted from I Am Baker

You’ll Need:

Dutch Oven or Cast Iron Skillet

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
• 4 Strips bacon, diced
• 1/2 cup candied pecans, chopped
• 2 ounces bourbon
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Instructions:

• Place Dutch oven or cast iron skillet over fire.
• Combine the Brussel sprouts, olive oil, salt, and pepper in the Dutch oven, toss, and flatten into an even layer.
• Bake until crispy, turning halfway through.
• In the skillet, add bacon and cook until crispy on both sides. Remove bacon bits and drain on a towel.
• Remove skillet from flame and add bourbon and balsamic vinegar. Place skillet over the flame, scraping up browned bits from the skillet, and stir with sauce.
• Bring the bourbon to a boil, then add maple syrup and brown sugar, stirring constantly until sauce begins to thicken.
• Remove from heat and add to cooked Brussel sprouts, bacon, and candied pecans.

Campfire Chili and Cornbread

Recipe adapted from HonestlyYUM

You’ll Need:

Dutch oven

Ingredients:

• 3 pounds ground beef
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 8 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 6-oz tomato paste
• 1 16-oz can can of kidney beans or black beans
• 5 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons ground chipotle powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 can of beer or water
• 2 8.5-oz boxes of cornbread mix
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

• Heat up Dutch oven over a flame.
• Cook the ground beef until it browns, breaking it up with a spatula.
• Add the onions, garlic, and bell pepper and continue to cook until the vegetables are soft.
• Add the chili powder, chipotle powder, cumin, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste.
• Add the can of beer and beans and continue to cook. Season with salt and pepper.
• Make the cornbread mix in a bowl and pour over top of the chili.
• Cover with lid and continue to cook. Poke the cornbread with a skewer, if it comes off clean it is done and the chili is ready to serve.

Hasselback Sweet Potato Casserole

Recipe adapted from Greens & Chocolate

You’ll Need:

Dutch oven

Ingredients:

• 4 sweet potatoes
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• Kosher salt
• 2-3 tablespoon brown sugar
• Mini marshmallows
• Chopped pecans

Directions:

• Heat up Dutch oven over a flame.
• Scrub potatoes. Slice into thin pieces, stopping 3/4 of the way through the potato.
• Whisk together melted butter and maple syrup.
• Brush butter/maple mixture onto each sweet potato.
• Sprinkle with kosher salt.
• Cover the Dutch oven and bake over the flame.
• After the potatoes have softened and slightly browned, top with brown sugar and continue to bake.
• Top with marshmallows and pecans.

Pumpkin French Toast

Recipe by Do It Yourself RV

You’ll Need:

Cast iron skillet

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice blend
• 1/2 loaf of sliced bread

Directions:

• Heat up a cast iron skillet over flame.
• Beat the eggs, milk, puree, and spices together. If it’s too thick, add more milk to thin it out.
• Dip the bread into the mixture and drop it into the cast iron skillet to toast both sides.
• Service with maple syrup, powdered sugar, fresh berries, whipped cream, or any other toppings.

Make adjustments to these recipes and ingredients based on your own tastes, remembering that cooking over a campfire can be much hotter than a conventional oven. When you get these delicious dishes down, learn how to cook Thanksgiving dinner on a campfire. If you’re ready to find your next new or used RV, be sure to check out all the listings on the nationwide marketplace at RVTrader.com.