Oakland Feather River Camp needs cooks and dishwashers for 2015 summer season

Oakland Feather River Camp posted this job advertisement for summer food service staff yesterday. To apply, follow the link to the SF Bay Area Craigslist post and click the 'reply' button in the upper left corner of the page. An application can be found on the camp website. A companion ad has been posted to the American Camp Association job board.

I am returning to the camp in April as the chef and food service manager.


Oakland Feather River Camp is looking for skilled, flexible, friendly, accountable and mature summer staff for our Family Camp. The staff of Oakland Feather River Camp creates the atmosphere in which campers develop memories that will be treasured for a lifetime.

We will be hiring the following positions: Head Cook, Prep Cooks, Vegan/Vegetarian Cook, and Dishwashers. Ideal candidates are energetic and enthusiastic people who like to connect with others in an authentic way have experience camping or living out of doors, are friendly, helpful, organized and safety focused. All camp staff must have a desire to serve people while living in a rustic, natural environment.

Under the direction of the Food Service Manager these staff will prepare food for to ensure the timely service of quality meals with ample selection and nutrition for 250 - 300 campers daily. All cooks must be safety oriented, friendly, helpful, organized, knowledgeable about food and cooking and have experience working in a commercial kitchen.

Kitchen staff must be considerate of individuals with special diets and/or food allergies and will participate cooperatively as part of a supportive and cohesive team. Knowledge of a commercial kitchen and the health and safety procedures and regulations associated with food preparation is a priority.

Oakland Feather River Camp is located in Quincy, California, approximately 250 miles from the San Francisco Bay Area. The camp is located at 3,500 feet in elevation on 65 acres in the beautiful Plumas National Forest. In this pristine environment we provide family and youth campers with exciting and fun activities as well as opportunities for laid back relaxation. We offer rustic cabins and tent-cabins on platforms with nearby restrooms and hot showers, and three healthy meals a day. Campers come for as short or long as they like.

All camp positions require a combination of education and relevant experience that would likely provide the required knowledge, skills, certifications and abilities to successfully perform the duties required. Applicants shall be at least 18 years of age, have a valid drivers license and submit to required background checks.

All staff work six days per week. Salary is $325-$340 per week. Room and board are provided for duration of the summer season. The season for the cooks is May 7-August 15, 2015. Dishwashers work June 6-August 9, 2015.

German red cabbage video

While Chef Brett Hoffman's recipe for German red cabbage looks interesting, I'm partial to my family version. Red cabbage is know as blaukraut, or blue cabbage, in parts of Germany, the birth country of my great grandmother Ella.

I limit my seasonings to whole cloves, salt and pepper. The chef adds bay leaves and cinnamon sticks. The key to Karoly red cabbage has to be the bacon, along with quality apple cider vinegar. I rely on the apples and apple juice to impart a bit of sweetness into the cabbage.



Chef Hoffmann's Red cabbage

1 or 2 heads of purple cabbage, quartered and chopped
1 large yellow onion chopped
2-3 Washington apples thinly sliced (applesauce is used in the video)
2 mandarin or navel oranges peeled
1 tablespoon whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
3/4 cup bacon fat
1-2 cups white wine vinegar
1 cup water
Sugar
1/4 cup red wine

Combine all ingredients except cabbage in a pot and cook down. Add ¾ cup bacon fat and cabbage to the pot with 1- 2 cups white wine vinegar and 1 cup water. Cook cabbage until tender but firm and then add sugar to taste and ¼ cup red wine.

Recipe credit: ABC15 Arizona

Chef Hoffmann's restaurant, Haus Murphy's (Glendale, Ariz.) website

Dutch oven meatloaf

Though meatloaf reaches back to Roman times, the invention of the hand-cranked meat grinder hastened its acceptance as classic comfort food. Topped a tangy ketchup glaze, meatloaf is the perfect centerpiece for the traditional American meal. For many, it brings back memories of one or two fat slices, served with a heap of mashed potatoes.

I prefer a traditional loaf, one made with sauteed aromatics, finely ground bread crumbs, ketchup or milk, eggs and two or three ground meats. Baking the meatloaf in a camp-style Dutch oven lets you enjoy a good meal in camp. If desired, you can mix the meat in the home kitchen, shape it into a round loaf and place in the ice chest for the trip to the campground.

Enjoy ...

Mold the meat mixture into a seven- to eight-inch round inside the 12-inch camp-style Dutch oven. If desired, shape it into a traditional rectangular loaf.

Many meatloaf recipes instruct you to brush the glaze on in the last 20 to 30 minutes of baking to avoid burning. I find that the moist environment in the Dutch renders this step unnecessary. Brush the glaze on the uncooked meatloaf.

Asparagus sauteed in butter and garlic and mashed Klondike Rose potatoes were served alongside Dutch oven meatloaf.

DUTCH OVEN MEATLOAF

Most recipes (including this one) instruct you to avoid over-mixing the meatloaf. While giving the loaf a thorough mix is essential, mixing it longer than needed will yield a tough loaf. Mix the loaf just to the point where each ingredient is developed into a smooth texture. This will help the load hold together.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup carrot, finely grated
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1/3 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup ketchup
2 large eggs, lightly whipped
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pinch cayenne pepper (optional)

Glaze:
1/4 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Pinch nutmeg

Pre-heat a 12-inch camp-style Dutch oven over a bed of charcoal briquettes or camp burner. Pour in olive oil. Add onion, carrot and garlic. Saute until onions are translucent. Do not brown vegetables. Place vegetables in a medium bowl and cool slightly. Wipe Dutch oven with paper towel.

Add beef, pork, bread crumbs, ketchup, eggs, salt, pepper and cayenne to bowl with vegetables. Mix with your hands, until thoroughly blended. Do not over mix. Mold meat mixture into a round, about 7 to 8 inches in diameter. Place into a 12-inch camp-style Dutch oven.

Combine glaze ingredients in a small bowl. Brush glaze over meat loaf. Place lid on oven. Bake with coals for 350 degrees (approximately 8 charcoal briquettes under oven and 16 to 20 on lid) about 60 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. Rest 10 minutes before slicing.

Bacon roses for your sweetheart

I thought this video appropriate with Valentine's Day around the corner. Like edible arrangements made from seasonal fruits and chocolate, nothing says "I love you" like bacon! My only advise: please share.


Video description: "Last minute gift for your Valentine? Give them a bouquet of bacon!"

Dessert time

ATLANTIC OCEAN (Jan. 27, 2015) -- Culinary Specialist Seaman Apprentice Robert Metcalfe, from Baltimore, plates cake aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Laboon (DDG 58). Laboon is underway conducting a composite training unit exercise with the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group in preparation for an upcoming scheduled deployment.

U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Michael J. Lieberknecht.