This article is brought to you by Grubstick whose campfire cooking sticks open up the possibilities of gourmet campfire desserts and cooking over the campfire.
Why settle for the s’mores you’ve been consuming since you were a kid when today’s campfire desserts taste so good everyone will think you cheated and bought from a bakery. With a few simple tools (think cast iron skillets, Dutch ovens and pie irons) it’s possible to re-create your favorite made-at-home desserts on your next camping trip! Read on for 30 of the most mouthwatering desserts that you won’t believe were made over the campfire.
30 Campfire Desserts You Can Make on Your Own
1. Campfire Cinnamon Roll-Ups
Image from The Dyrt camper Chris V.
Ingredients
- 1 package of crescent rolls
- ½ cup of cinnamon sugar mix
- Melted chocolate (optional)
Just like food you’d find at the fair, these campfire cinnamon roll-ups are eaten from a stick. To start, combine 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and ¼ cup of sugar in a small bowl or ziplock bag.
Open a package of crescent rolls and twist them around a skewer (or more conveniently around the Grubtube attachment on a Grubstick), then roll the skewered crescent roll in the sugar and cinnamon mixture until well coated. Warm the roll over the campfire, turning it frequently so it doesn’t burn. For added decadence, melt chocolate to use as a dipping sauce.
2. Campfire Desert or Breakfast: Campfire Monkey Bread
Ingredients
- 1 can of buttermilk biscuit dough
- ½ cup of cinnamon sugar mix
- 1 stick of salted butter
- ½ cup of brown sugar
Sweet, filled with cinnamon and perfect for little hands, campfire monkey bread is a fun dessert that everyone will enjoy. It’s easy to make, too. Line a Dutch oven with aluminum foil and lightly butter. Take one can of buttermilk biscuit dough and chop the biscuits into quarters, dropping them into a large ziplock bag containing ½ cup of cinnamon sugar mix (½ cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon).
Shake the bag until the biscuits are coated. In another pan, warm up a stick of salted butter and a half-cup of brown sugar over the campfire. Put the biscuits into the Dutch oven and pour the butter and brown sugar mix, plus any remaining sugar and cinnamon mix, over the biscuits. Put the lid on the Dutch oven and bake over the fire for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Campfire Cones
Ingredients
- Ice cream sugar cones
- Dessert toppings of your choice
Ice cream isn’t a realistic dessert option while camping, but who says you have to lose the cone completely? To make campfire cones, line a sugar cone with peanut butter and then fill the cone with your favorite toppings like mini marshmallows, chocolate chips or M&Ms, and bananas. Wrap the cone in aluminum foil and warm it up over the campfire for 5 to 10 minutes.
4. Bourbon Peach Cobbler
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon of oil
- 3 peaches (sliced)
- ½ cup bourbon
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup granola
Why should kids have all of the fun with camping desserts? This recipe is for adults only. To make bourbon peach cobbler, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a cast iron skillet and add three ripe, sliced peaches. After a few minutes, flip the peaches so that they heat on both sides, then remove them from the campfire.
Pour a half-cup of bourbon over the peaches and put them back over the fire. Add 2 tablespoons of sugar and stir the sauce until it coats the peaches and reduces over the flame, about 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the skillet and sprinkle the peaches with 1 cup of granola, then serve immediately.
5. S’mores with a Twist
Ingredients
- Graham cracker replacement (chocolate chip cookies, Oreos, etc.)
- Marshmallows
- Chocolate bar replacement (Twix, Kit Kat, etc.)
Take boring old s’mores and elevate them to a whole new level by getting creative with your ingredients. Instead of graham crackers, use chocolate chip cookies to form the outer crust of your s’mores. Replace chocolate bars with other fun candy like Kit Kat, peanut butter cups or Snickers bars.
6. Apple Pie Foil Packets
Ingredients
- 1 apple (sliced)
- 1 tablespoon of butter
- 1 ½ tablespoons of brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon of cranberries
- Chopped nuts
A fairly healthy twist on dessert, the apple pie foil packet is like eating pie filling. In a sheet of aluminum foil, place a sliced apple, 1 tablespoon of butter, 1 ½ tablespoons of brown sugar, ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of cranberries and a sprinkling of chopped nuts.
Fold the aluminum foil over the ingredients so that all of the ingredients are enclosed in a packet of foil. Place the packet on the grill over the campfire and let it cook for about 15 minutes, then remove from the flame and enjoy.
7. Campfire Strawberries
Ingredients
- Strawberries
- 1 jar of marshmallow fluff
Fast and delicious, campfire strawberries are great for breakfast or dessert. Pierce the top of a strawberry with a skewer or marshmallow poker, just like you would when roasting marshmallows for s’mores.
Dunk the bottom of the strawberry into a jar of marshmallow fluff. Toast the strawberry over the campfire until the fluff is golden brown. Consume while warm.
8. Pie Iron Angel Food Cake
Ingredients
- 1 angel food cake (pre-made)
- 1 jar of marshmallow fluff
- Fresh blueberries & strawberries
Light yet filling, pie iron angel food cake is the perfect summertime dessert. Butter the pie iron and line both sides of the iron with a piece of angel food cake.
Spread each piece of angel food cake with marshmallow fluff, then top one side with blueberries and strawberries. Close the iron and warm over the fire. When the angel food cake is done cooking, top with a heap of whipped cream.
9. Stuffed Orange Brownies
Image from scouting.org
Ingredients
- 1 box mix of brownie batter (prepare according to the directions on the box)
- Oranges
Have your cake (or brownies) and eat it too while camping. This simple and easy recipe is delicious. Bring a boxed brownie or cake mix and make it according to the recipe on the box. This citrus chocolate combo is made by pouring brownie batter into an orange peel.
Slice the lid off of an orange and remove the fruit (save this for breakfast the next morning), then fill the orange with the mix. Place the top of the orange back and wrap the stuffed fruit in aluminum foil, then place it over the campfire. Bake until the cake or brownie mix is cooked, which usually takes about half an hour.
10. Campfire Jelly Donuts
Ingredients
- 1 can of biscuit dough
- ½ cup of cinnamon sugar mix
- 1 jar of jelly
To make these delicious campfire desserts, take a can of refrigerated biscuit dough and separate the biscuits, slicing each of them to create two thinner biscuits. Roll each side of the biscuit in a cinnamon and sugar mixture of a half-cup white sugar and ¼ tablespoon cinnamon.
Place a layer of jelly on one side of the biscuit, then place the other piece of the biscuit on top like a sandwich. Butter a cast iron skillet and then fry the donut over the campfire, flipping frequently so it does not burn.
11. Pineapple Upside Down Cake Foil Packets
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoons of brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon of butter
- 1 can of pineapple rings
- 1 shortcake shell
One of the more unexpected campfire desserts, place 1 ½ tablespoons of brown sugar and 1 tablespoon of butter on a piece of foil. Lay ½-inch pineapple ring on top of the sugar and butter, then stuff the inside of the ring with a maraschino cherry. Take a shortcake shell and place it upside down over the whole concoction, then fold the foil over so that the ingredients are contained inside of the foil packet. Grill over the campfire for at least 10 minutes and enjoy.
12. Campfire Eclairs
Ingredients
- 1 package of crescent rolls
- Pre-made pudding
- Chocolate frosting for coating
To make this decadent dessert, unroll a package of crescent rolls to create a flat dough and then wrap the dough around a skewer and warm it over the campfire. Once the dough has browned, remove it from the flame and let it cool, then stuff it with pudding and cover it with chocolate frosting to create a bakery-worthy eclair.
13. Sweet Campfire Calzones
Ingredients
- 1 ball of pizza dough
- Dessert fillings of your choice
Who says calzones have to be savory? These sweet campfire calzones make the perfect camping dessert. To make them, take store bought pizza dough and cut it in half. Coat the dough in butter and then stack your favorite sweet toppings, like peanut butter cups, chocolate bars and powdered sugar, over one end of the dough.
Once you’ve settled on your filling, fold the dough over so that the ingredients are inside and crimp around the edges. Place the calzone on the grill over the campfire and cook until golden brown, usually at least 20 minutes.
14. Campfire Banana Boats
Ingredients
- 1 banana
- Chocolate chips
- Graham crackers
- Marshmallows
Healthy on the outside, sinful on the inside, campfire banana boats are a delicious way to enjoy dessert. Slice a banana (keep the peel on) down the center lengthwise and stuff with mouthwatering ingredients like chocolate chips, crumbled graham crackers, marshmallows or any sweet treat you desire. Wrap the banana in tin foil and warm over the campfire, then eat the contents of your banana with a spoon.
15. Dessert Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 ball of pizza dough
- Nutella
- Dessert toppings of your choice
Another twist on a savory meal, dessert pizza is best shared with friends. Take a store bought pizza dough and slather it in Nutella, then sprinkle your favorite sweet treats on top. Place your dessert pizza inside of a buttered cast iron skillet and allow it to cook over the campfire until the crust is golden brown.
16. S’mores Nachos
Ingredients
- 1 package of graham crackers
- Marshmallows
- Chocolate
Though the name does not sound entirely appetizing, trust us when we say that this is a camping favorite. To make campfire s’mores, take a foil pie pan and line it with pieces of graham cracker. Top the graham crackers with your favorite s’mores toppings and then place the pie pan on the grill over the fire until the toppings begin to turn gooey and melt. Eat the nachos with your hands, using the graham crackers to scoop up the yummy toppings.
17. Campfire Brownies
Ingredients
- 1 box mix of brownie batter (prepare according to the directions on the box)
- Chocolate pudding or frosting (optional)
Sometimes the best choice is to just keep it simple, and that’s exactly what these campfire brownies do.
To make the brownies, take a box mix of brownie batter and prepare according to the directions on the box. Dump the mix into a cast iron skillet and bake over a campfire until the brownies are cooked all the way through. For an added dose of decadence, spread chocolate pudding or frosting over the brownies once they have cooled.
18. Campfire Churros
Ingredients
- 1 can of store bought biscuits
- 1 stick of butter
- ½ cup of cinnamon sugar mix
This sweet, south-of-the-border dessert is a perfect camping treat. To make campfire churros, open up a can of store bought biscuits and cut them in half, then wrap each biscuit around a skewer and toast them over the fire until they are done cooking. In a separate pot melt a stick of butter.
When the biscuits are ready, dip them in the butter until fully coated and then drop them into a ziplock bag filled with sugar and cinnamon mixture (half-cup cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon) and shake the bag. When the churros are covered in sugar and cinnamon it’s time to eat them.
19. No-Bake Peanut Butter Bars
Ingredients
- Butter (for pan)
- 2 cups of confectioners sugar
- 1 cup of peanut butter
- 1 ½ cups of graham cracker crumbs
- 2 ounces of semi-sweet baking chocolate
Over the campfire, melt a stick of butter. Once the butter has melted, remove it from the campfire and dump in 2 cups of confectioners sugar, 1 cup of peanut butter, and 1 ½ cups of graham cracker crumbs.
Spread the mixture in a 9 x 13 inch pan. Melt 12 ounces of semi sweet baking chocolate over the campfire and then spread it over the mixture in the pan. When the chocolate has cooled, they are ready to eat. This dessert is also great to make beforehand and bring to the campground.
20. Campfire Popcorn
Ingredients
- Popping corn
- Vegetable oil
Keep it light and simple around the campfire and pop some popcorn for dessert. All you need is a cast iron skillet drizzled in oil and some popping corn. Roast the kernels over the fire until they pop, then sprinkle with your favorite spices like salt and pepper or garlic salt.
21. Strawberry Shortcake in the Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 cup of peanut butter
- ½ cup of maple syrup
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon of vanilla
- ½ teaspoon of almond extract
- Strawberries (sliced)
Make this fancy camping dessert in a few easy steps. Melt some butter in a cast iron skillet over the campfire and then place quartered fresh strawberries at the bottom of the skillet.
In a bowl, combine 1 cup of peanut butter, a half-cup of maple syrup, 2 eggs, 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of vanilla and a half-teaspoon of almond extract. Mix everything together and then pour the mixture on top of the strawberries.
Allow everything to cook over the campfire until the shortcake has firmed up, then remove from the fire and add any leftover quartered strawberries.
22. Chocolate-Covered Pretzels
Ingredients
- Chocolate (chopped bars or chips)
- Pretzel sticks
A quick and delicious dessert, melt white or dark chocolate over the campfire in a pan. Take pretzel sticks and dip them into the chocolate, coating half of the stick. For a fun twist, add sprinkles or your favorite chopped candy to the chocolate while it is still warm, then allow the pretzel to cool before eating.
23. Sweet Campfire Quesadillas
Ingredients
- Tortillas
- Toppings (Nutella, peanut butter, marshmallows, etc.)
Turn your favorite dinner into your favorite dessert by making a campfire quesadilla. Take a flour tortilla and place it in the bottom of a greased cast iron skillet. Add your favorite fixings, like Nutella, peanut butter, marshmallows and whatever else suits your fancy on top of the tortilla. Place another tortilla on top of the whole concoction.
Warm for a few minutes over the campfire and then use a spatula to flip the quesadilla so that both sides are thoroughly cooked. Remove from the pan and enjoy.
24. Lemon Blueberry Dutch Baby
Ingredients
- 1 pint of fresh blueberries
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- juice of 1 lemon
- ½ tsp of lemon zest
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup of milk
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- a pinch of nutmeg & salt
This campfire dessert takes a bit of effort but the results are worth it. In a small bowl, put 1 pint of fresh blueberries, 1 teaspoon of sugar, the juice of 1 lemon and a half-teaspoon of lemon zest. Set the small bowl aside and in a larger bowl whisk 2 eggs, a half-cup of milk, a half-cup all purpose flour, a pinch of nutmeg and a pinch of salt.
To make this easier while camping, ingredients can be measured out beforehand at home. Warm a Dutch oven over the campfire and melt some butter in it. Add the batter mixture into the Dutch oven and cover it with a lid to cook, at least 30 minutes.
When the cake has cooked all the way through, remove from heat and add the blueberry/lemon topping. Serve and enjoy.
25. Campfire Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 canister of cookie dough
- Parchment paper
This quick campfire dessert is a crowd favorite. Take a roll of store-bought cookie dough or made-from-scratch cookie dough that you bring from home. Line your pie iron with parchment paper and put a scoop of cookie dough over the paper. U
se another piece of parchment paper on top of the dough ball and press down to flatten the dough. Close the pie iron and put it over the campfire, allowing the cookie to cook for at least five minutes on each side. When the cookie is thoroughly cooked, eat and enjoy.
26. Oreo and Strawberry Sandwiches
Ingredients
- Package of Oreos
- 1 can of whipped cream
- Strawberries (sliced)
Though these sweet treats are great to eat around the campfire, a campfire isn’t necessary to make them. Simply take an Oreo cookie, slather it with whipped cream and top with a sliced strawberry. Eat it open-faced or add another Oreo on top to complete the sandwich.
27. Coconut Snowballs
Ingredients
- 1 cup of shredded coconut
- ⅓ cup of almond flour
- ¼ cup maple syrup
Another one of the most simple and delicious campfire desserts, coconut snowballs can be whipped up at camp in no time at all. All you need is 1 cup of shredded coconut, ⅓ cup of almond flour and ¼ cup maple syrup. Blend the ingredients well in a bowl and, when combined, shape the batter into balls. Roll the balls in another ¼ cup of coconut and then eat and enjoy.
28. Cracker Jacks and Pretzel Treat
Ingredients
- 1 ½ sticks of butter
- 16-ounce bag of marshmallows
- 7 cups of Cracker Jacks
- 4 cups of chopped mini pretzels
- 1 cup of salted peanuts
- ¾ tsp of salt
Otherwise known as snack crack, this cracker jack and pretzel concoction is hard to stop eating. To make it, melt 1 ½ sticks of butter in a cast iron pan and remove from the fire. Add a 16-ounce bag of marshmallows, 7 cups of cracker jack, 4 cups of chopped mini pretzels, 1 cup of salted peanuts and ¾ tsp of salt and mix it all together in the pan.
When the mixture is fully combined transfer it to a greased cookie sheet. Use a piece of parchment paper to press the mixture flat. When it has fully cooled it can be cut and served.
29. Pie Iron Apple French Toast
Ingredients
- 2 Eggs
- 1 Loaf of bread
- ½ cup of cinnamon sugar mix
- Apples (skinned & sliced)
Great for breakfast or dessert, this pie iron recipe is sweetly satisfying. To make, scramble two eggs into a bowl and dip two pieces of bread into the egg, then shake a sugar and cinnamon mix onto each slice of bread. Place the coated pieces of bread on either side of the pie iron and then place skinned apple slices inside, shutting the pie iron tightly. Bake over a campfire until the apples are soft and the bread golden.
30. Walnut Chocolate Burritos
Ingredients
- Tortillas
- Chocolate chips
- Walnuts (chopped)
- Marshmallows
To make this quick and easy campfire dessert, butter a tortilla and load it with semi sweet chocolate chips, chopped walnuts, mini-marshmallows and any other topping that suits your fancy. Wrap the tortilla around the ingredients just as you would when folding a burrito and place the burrito on a cast iron skillet over the campfire, flipping regularly until ingredients are gooey and warm.
This article was brought to you by Grubstick.
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