
The sun starts to rise over the mountains. The sound of birds chirping and the leaves gently blowing in the wind wakes us from our slumber. Rested, we breath in the fresh air. Before the children wake up, we enjoy a cup of hot coffee in our camping chairs and quietly enjoy the morning. The children emerge from the camper, cheerful, after a long’s night’s rest. They happily ask us what we are making for breakfast.
Does this sound like your camping mornings? Yes? Good for you. This is a more realistic picture.
Around 3:30 a.m. our youngest starts wailing for no good reason. We take turns trying to get him back to sleep in his pack ‘n play. After an hour of this, we put him in-between us. He falls asleep instantly, and snores loudly. Around 5:00 a.m. we doze off. Then at 5:15 a.m. our four year old jolts out of bed with so much energy you would think he chugged a Red Bull. We plead with him to go back to bed, and tell him this is not a reasonable hour to wake up. “But it’s an old night,” he says. Then he starts to sing what we call an Anders’ original. We put pillows over our head until we give in, and begin to wake up for the day. We make coffee. Then after another pot, we start to make breakfast.
That’s more like it.
First, the coffee. There are a few different ways you could go about it while camping, but we like to use a French press. We store one in the camper to avoid a coffee crisis like the one I mention here. It is a pretty simple way to make coffee, and quite tasty. We just boil water on the camping stove, put coffee in the French press, top with boiling water, and wah-lah, fresh, camping coffee, perfection.
For camping breakfast, we like to make a hot, hearty breakfast to fuel us for whatever activity we are up to that day. These are our kid-approved favorites.
Pancakes
This is a kid favorite at anytime, but especially camping. I recommend the Bisquick Shake ‘n Pour mix, because it is easy to pack and makes less of a mess. To make it fancy, add in some blueberries, walnuts or chocolate chips. Of course, I always add syrup, even if I have chocolate chips on pancakes.
Oatmeal
Nutritious, filling and warm makes this meal a camping breakfast staple. Add in some brown sugar and reuse the blueberries, walnuts and chocolate chips for a tastier kid-approved meal. Strawberries, almonds and bananas make good toppings as well.
Breakfast burritos
This one is my personal favorite, because it gives me much needed energy to do whatever we have planned for the day. There are so many variations to a breakfast burrito. While camping, mine consist of eggs, beans, cheese, bacon and green chilies. I like to top it with salsa.
Camping Egg McMuffin
Fry an egg. I prefer mine over-hard. Top with a slice of cheddar cheese. Fry a sausage patty. Place the egg, cheese and sausage on an English Muffin. Just like McDonald’s, only with less preservatives. Simple and satisfying.
What are your favorite camping breakfast ideas?

Camping Pancakes
You will need a camping stove, non-stick skillet, and a spatula.
Ingredients
- 1 container Bisquick Pancake Shake 'n Pour Mix
- 2/3 cup water
- cooking oil spray or butter
- blueberries, walnuts, or chocolate chips
- syrup
Instructions
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Spray skillet with ample cooking oil spray
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Mix Bisquick and shake according to instructions
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Pour pancake batter into skillet and cook until bubbles begin to form at the top
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Place any desired toppings onto the pancake
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Flip pancake and cook until golden brown
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Serve with syrup

Camping Oatmeal
You will need a camping stove, non-stick pan, and a stirring/serving spoon.
Ingredients
- 2 cups Quaker Oats Plain Oatmeal
- 2 cups water
- 1 tbsp butter (optional)
- brown sugar (or syrup)
- blueberries, walnuts, chocolate chips, strawberries, bananas, or almonds
Instructions
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Boil water
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Add in oatmeal and stir until the water is absorbed. About 5 minutes.
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Add in butter and brown sugar or syrup to taste
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Add in any desired toppings
Camping Breakfast Burritos
You will need a camping stove, non-stick skillet, can opener, and a spatula
Ingredients
- 1 cooking oil spray
- 5 eggs
- 1 cup shredded cheese
- 1 can black or re-fried beans
- 1 package bacon or sausage
- 1 package tortillas
- 1 can green chilies
- 1 container salsa
Instructions
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Fry bacon or sausage, set aside
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Scramble eggs and put shredded on-top until it melts
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Spoon beans and green chilies into tortillas
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Fill tortillas with bacon or sausage and the egg/cheese mixure
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Serve with salsa
Camping Egg McMuffin
You will need a camping stove, non-stick skillet, and a spatula.
Ingredients
- 4 English Muffins
- 4 eggs
- 4 slices of cheddar cheese
- 4 sausage patties
Instructions
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Fry sausage patties
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Fry eggs either over-easy, over-medium or over-hard
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Place slices of cheese on top of the eggs. Cook until the cheese melts
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Place egg and cheese and sausage patties on an English Muffin