Campfire Pinecone Recipe

With Labor Day weekend around the corner and a full season of beautiful, crisp fall camping (and toasty campfires) on the horizon I wanted to share with you a "campfire pinecone recipe" I got from a friend's blog (that she got from another friend's blog). Her blog is called "Life on Penobscot Bay - The world of Searsport Shores Ocean Campground" and it is full of interesting and informative reads. If you love Maine like I do check it out...but caution...it make might make you want to pack up the RV and go camping there immediately!!

Water-based Pinecone Firestarters

These firestarters make colored flames when you burn them in the fireplace or campfire and make a great party trick. They also look cute in a basket until it’s time to do the burning.

Shopping List:

Pinecones
A big bucket
Tongs
A chemical (see below)

Choosing the Chemical:

Each of these chemicals make a different colored flame and different chemicals cost more than others. You should only make one color of cone at one time and should never burn different colors together, so there’s no need to buy every chemical.

Table salt – yellow flame – the grocery store - you can use the same stuff you fill your salt shaker with

Borax (sodium tetraborate) – yellow-green flame – 20 mule team borax in the laundry aisle - 5$ for much more than 1 cup

Salt substitute (potassium) – violet flame – the grocery store

Epsom salts (magnesium sulphate) – white flame – a pharmacy

Bright green flame – allum (thallium) – try the pharmacy - it’s for food processing (mostly pickle making) but natural food stores charge a ton for it - 5$ for 8oz/1 cup

Bright red flame – strontium chloride – used in aquarium keeping somehow so check a specialty aquarium store - 10$ for 8oz/1 cup

Boric acid – deep red flame – try the pharmacy - I think it’s used in soap making - 5$ for 8oz/1 cup

Fill the bucket with half of a gallon of hot water. Add a cup of your chemical of choice (ONE chemical ONLY). Soak your pinecones for about 8 hours then fish them out with the tongs and set them aside to dry (some of these chemicals will lightly stain a countertop so be sure to use lots of newspaper). The pinecones need to dry for at least 3 days before they can be burned and will need to dry for at least 1 day before you can stick them in a basket or wrap them.

Enjoy these nifty, colorful pinecones in your campfire as you enjoy one of our delicious RVCookingShow.com recipes (May I suggest a decadent hot fudge sundae. Learn how to make this amazing hot fudge - it's a snap - and pack it along on your camping trip. You won't be sorry - I guarantee it!!)

Happy fall camping,

Evanne
RVCookingShow.com