Gourmet Restaurant in the Dark

Learning how to use a Trangia is brilliant fun and very useful. Cooking is also a great life skill, and a very good team building excersise. We try to do cooking at least once a term, not including the group camp in May, where all the scouts do their own cooking for at least two days, the Cubs on Trangias, and the Scouts over open fire.

Cooking in the dark poses some difficulties: If your carrots escape, it is very difficult to find them before someone steps on them. It can also be very difficult reading the recipe. But it is very cosy cooking by the light of parafin lanterns, especially when the result is so scrumpious!

The Cubs were proud and happy with the result of their efforts, and there were hardly any leftovers. Even the cooked vegetables got finished! And this time we let them off by not having to do any washing up, which was a smart move, as we then didn't have to rush anything, but had time for both a game and a song.

Many of the Cubs took the recipe home with them to cook for their family.The recipe for the culinary success you find here.

In the dark all Cubs are grey

This week we spent the whole meeting outdoors. Both packs met on Thursday to go for a little outing in the wood behind the hut.

We started with handing out the equipment: Trangias and storm lantern, as it soon would be dark.

Before dusk we had time to play a game, where all the sixes ran out and searched an area, aprox. 50 square meters, to find little green paper worms, the smallest only 2 cm long and the largest about 8. The tiny ones were worth 100p and the bigger ones 50 and 25p. The Cubs were only allowed to pick one at the time. They were really quick and enjoyed the game a lot.

Dusk was beginning to fall when we trooped along the path into the wood, all 50 Cubs and leaders and a couple of parent helpers. In a clearing we sat down in the sixes and everyone that wanted to could try lighting the carosene lamps, and then we set up the Trangias to cook rosehip soup. While the water came to a boil the Cubs told eachother stories, mostly ghost stories.

Soon it was very dark and we sat around our lanterns sipping the hot, sweet drink and enjoyed the company. Some people got restless and started playing in the permanent shelters that are set up in the woods, and I think the laughter and occasional screams scared all wildlife away.

Then we walked back to the hut where the parents were waiting, the Cubs merrily swinging the laterns. (They looked a bit like something out of SnowWhite).