Sweet Potato Bark
Sweet Potato Bark is a favorite hiking snack. It is delicious and chewy with a hint of cinnamon, but is also a good source of fiber, potassium, and vitamin A. It can also be turned back into mashed sweet potatoes for a hearty backpacking meal.
Peel a large sweet potato and cut into chunks.
Boil until soft and mash.
Stir in ½ cup apple juice, three tablespoons maple syrup, and a half teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Run the mashed sweet potatoes through a blender or mixer until creamy and lump-free.
Cover dehydrator trays with non-stick Paraflexx® sheets or parchment paper. If you are using an Excalibur dehydrator, Paraflexx® sheets are the way to go because they are the same size as the dehydrator trays and are reuseable. Paraflexx® sheets can be cut down to fit round dehydrators.
Pour a six inch wide puddle of blended sweet potatoes onto covered dehydrator trays and spread thinly with a spatula. Shoot for eighth inch thickness. If you spread the potatoes thicker, they will take longer to dry.
Dehydrate at 135° for eight to ten hours. The potatoes will form a sheet with cracks running through it. The bottom side will dry slower than the top. If you own an Excalibur Dehydrator, you can use the "flip trick." After about five hours of drying, place a dehydrator tray on top of the potato sheet and flip the two trays over so that the bottom side of the potato sheet is facing up. When sufficiently dry, the potato sheet will easily snap into Bark. Continue drying if the potato sheet bends rather than breaks.
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- 1 cup Sweet Potato Chips
- 1 cup Water plus 2 or 3 Tablespoons
- Optional: Raisins and/or Mini-Marshmallows
Pack potatoes in a zip lock bag. Pack raisins separately because of their high moisture content.
On the Trail:
Combine potatoes and water in pot and heat over low flame, stirring continuously. It is not necessary to boil. Add a few tablespoons more water if the potatoes get too thick.
Optional: Marshmallow Sauce. If you can’t imagine mashed sweet potatoes without marshmallows, simply garnish with mini-marshmallows or make a marshmallow sauce. To make marshmallow sauce, combine ½ cup mini-marshmallows with one tablespoon of water in your pot. Heat gently while stirring continuously. Marshmallows will melt into sauce. I tried this out of curiosity, but decided it was too sweet for me.
Mashed Sweet Potatoes & Corn
This meal is good for breakfast or supper. Use dried deli ham instead of raisins for a higher protein meal.
- ½ cup Sweet Potato Bark, tightly packed
- ½ cup Dehydrated Corn
- ¼ cup Raisins or Dried Ham
- 1¼ cup Water
Crush Sweet Potato Bark into small pieces for tighter packing. Pack raisins in a 3 x 5 plastic bag and enclose with Sweet Potato Bark and corn in a zip lock bag.
On the Trail:
Combine all ingredients with water in pot and soak for five minutes. Light stove and heat over low to medium flame for five to seven minutes. It is not necessary to boil. If the potatoes soak up most of the water, add a few spoonfuls of water to make them easier to stir and less likely to burn.
If using an alcohol stove, grasp the pot with a pot gripper and hold higher above the flame to prevent burning once the sweet potatoes have thickened.
Remove pot from heat and wait ten minutes to give the corn and ham, if you are using ham, a little more time to soften. I use a pot cozy to keep the meal hot.
Sweet Potato Apple Crunch
This meal makes a delicious, high-energy breakfast or a tasty dessert for after supper.
Ingredients for One Serving:
- ½ cup Sweet Potato Bark, tightly packed
- ½ cup Dehydrated Apples
- ¼ cup Raisins
- ¼ - ½ cup Granola
- 1¼ cup Water
Crush Sweet Potato Bark into small pieces for tighter packing. Pack raisins and granola in separate small plastic bags and enclose with Sweet Potato Bark and apples in a zip lock bag.
On the Trail:
Combine all ingredients except granola with water in pot and soak for five minutes. Light stove and heat over low to medium flame for five to seven minutes. It is not necessary to boil. If the potatoes soak up most of the water, add a few spoonfuls of water to prevent burning.
If using an alcohol stove, grasp the pot with a pot gripper and hold higher above the flame to prevent burning once the sweet potatoes have thickened.
Remove pot from heat and wait ten minutes to give the apples a little more time to rehydrate. Stir in granola just before eating.
