The Pioneer Trip – Blueberry Pancakes with Maple-Blueberry Compote

Some of the happiest days of my youth were at overnight camp. Camp Onas became an integral part of my childhood, adolescence, and development. I was a camper for five years from age 9 to 14 and a staff member for five more beyond that. And I didn’t just go for a couple of weeks each summer. For most of the years that I ran in the woods, played on the fields, and walked in creeks, I was there the entire summer; eight weeks out of inner-city Philadelphia at the hottest and sweatiest time of year.

Onas seemed different to me than most other overnight camps. We basically slept outside, in platform tents rather than in cabins. While there were typical camp activities – sports, archery, arts and crafts, and swimming lessons, for example – most of them were not much more than structured hang out time. In arts and crafts, you could carve a wood sign or make a gimp keychain, but more often than not it was time spent drawing pictures and talking to friends. You could choose a creek walk, which was mostly tramping through the local creek as you laughed. I even remember an activity called Circle of Talk, that was nothing more than an excuse to gossip with your friends. It was a kid’s dream.

While these activities were relaxed and unstructured, they were not unproductive. It was all about letting kids be kids without the distraction of cell phones, computers, and video games. We passed through adolescence and matured into young adults without the obstruction of parents and with only a skeleton crew of grownups at all for that matter. Most importantly we developed relationships, some of which have lasted to this day.

In addition to regularly scheduled daily activities, four times a summer, camp would send an eager group of 10- to 14-year-olds out on a four-day “Pioneer Trip.” Fifteen campers accompanied by three counselors would spend two days backpacking on the Appalachian Trail near the Delaware Water Gap followed by two days canoeing through far too dangerous rapids down the Delaware River. It was a great, exhilarating adventure, even if the rapids were a little outside of my comfort zone.

Of course, since we were out in the wild, we had to carry all our camping equipment, water, and food. On the canoeing portion of the trip, this was simple; we packed our gear in bags and the food in coolers and placed it all on the floor of the canoe, hoping we wouldn’t tip, and proceeded to paddle down river. It was easy to bring eggs for breakfast and one of the counselors cooked a filling and delicious “pioneer stew” for dinner.

Meals during the hiking portion of the trip were not as easy as we had to carry them on our back. The first day’s lunch was always peanut butter and jelly sandwiches – premade the morning of our departure and ready to eat early during the trip so that the space and weight they occupied would be relieved and they wouldn’t get too smushed. Eating them as we enjoyed the amazing view at Wolf Rocks was a pleasure – if you didn’t run into rattlesnakes (but that’s a story for another time). Lunch the second day consisted of cans of tuna, drained, with hunks of cheese and crackers, probably accompanied by rabbit food – celery and carrot sticks. There was always plenty of GORP (good old raisins and peanuts, with added chocolate chips in our case) as a snack. And each camper was issued one apple and one orange to be eaten whenever they wanted.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s there was less of a selection of dried packaged food than there is today. Therefore, for dinner, camp purchased specially prepared dehydrated food for backpacking trips to satisfy our huge appetite after a day of scurrying over rocks and along wooded trails. I remember some sort of dried, packaged turkey tetrazzini reconstituted with water and heated over a fire, and maybe some dehydrated type of pasta akin to SpaghettiOs. Even though the food was not very good, we scarfed it down, starving after a long day of hiking.

Breakfast on the backpacking portion of the trip was pancakes one day and oatmeal the next. Both, only requiring the addition of water, were easy to prepare. They were not very exciting on their own, but depending on the time of summer, there were wild berries – blueberries and raspberries – to adorn our morning meal. I don’t recall the timing of raspberries, but the Pioneer Trip in early July was blueberry season along the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Low to the ground and shaded by the trees above, you could pick handfuls. The raspberries grew at the edge of the trail or along dirt roads, in much sunnier locations and were often even more abundant.

Counselors pointed us to the berries and campers would fill their cups to be shared by all. They would drop small handfuls of fresh-picked berries into sizzling pancakes or on top of a bowl of oatmeal, making breakfast just a little tastier, giving us an appreciation for the bounty nature can provide, and fortifying us for the day’s hike ahead.

Camp Onas provided me with some of my most important memories as a kid.

Blueberry Pancakes with Maple-Blueberry Compote

A recent harvest from the blueberry bush in my garden jogged my memory of blueberry pancakes on the Pioneer Trip. While this meal is not at all difficult to prepare, the berry filled breakfast we ate hiking on the Appalachian Trail was much simpler than these Blueberry Pancakes with Maple-Blueberry Compote. But out in the woods, the simpler version was just as satisfying.

The addition of brown sugar in place of white and browned butter in place of plain melted butter, as well as lemon zest and vanilla are not strictly necessary, but make for a fancier and tastier breakfast.

serves 2, ½ hour

For the maple-blueberry compote:

1½ cups fresh blueberries, divided

3 Tbsp. maple syrup

zest of half a lemon

1½ Tbsp. lemon juice, from about a half a lemon

½ tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. kosher salt

2 Tbsp. water

For the blueberry pancakes:

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. kosher salt

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 cup milk, plus more if needed

2 Tbsp. browned butter, cooled, plus more butter for cooking

1 tsp. vanilla extract

zest of half a lemon

1 cup fresh blueberries

1. Make the blueberry compote by adding half the blueberries and all other compote ingredients to a small pot. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes, add the remaining half of the blueberries and cook, stirring occasionally, for an additional 8 to 10 minutes adjusting heat and adding a tablespoon more water, if needed. Set aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients for the pancakes.
4. In a separate bowl, beat the egg and combine the remaining pancake ingredients.
5. Use a whisk to mix the wet ingredients into the dry, only until fully combined. Add a tablespoon or two more milk if needed to achieve a pourable batter. Do not over stir; there may be a few lumps. Allow batter to rest for 5 to 10 minutes.
6. Heat a heavy skillet over medium and add a half tablespoon of butter. Allow it to melt and spread evenly around the pan. Using a ⅓ cup measuring cup (to make about 6, 5-inch pancakes) pour batter into the skillet. Spread a couple of tablespoons of blueberries over the pancake. Allow to cook until the edges are crispy and bubbles form and pop on the surface of the pancake, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side until done, roughly an additional 2 minutes. Repeat to cook remaining pancakes.
7. Divide pancakes among two plates, top with blueberry compote, and serve hot.

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