Planning a 10-day canoe trip in the Everglades: Part 2

One of my favorite things to do when preparing for a trip is meal planning. Although our 10-day trip is 2 months away, I've planned out the meals already in order to begin organizing the cargo between my solo canoe and Vivian's solo canoe. She and I share some of the gear, such as the tent and cooking equipment and fuel. There are other odds and ends that we share, but in the end, it works out that I carry most of the food in my boat. What we intend to do is carry about 3 days worth of frozen food and water in a large cooler that Vivian will carry in her canoe. The frozen food will include the first 3 dinners of the trip, none of which include meat. By bringing some frozen foods, it offers more of a variety of dinners, something to consider if you plan to eat 9 dinners out here. I'll write about food packaging later but for now, here's what I have planned:

First night - Spaghetti and tomato sauce with boca "meat" filler. The sauce will be prepared at home and frozen in a baggy. It includes a few vegetables and the Boca Burger meatless ground crumbles. I'll include a small package of parmesan cheese and some flat bread or crackers. We always have dessert that includes biscotti, pudding or some kind of cookie.

Second night - macaroni and cheese and veggie burgers. This meal will also include burger buns, slices of cheese, a tomato and 1/2 onion and condiment packages.

Third night - homemade lentil soup and bread. The soup is prepared and frozen at home. It contains Bragg's amino acid liquid for added protein, and also slices of carrots and onions. On this night, we can also include some instant rice to add to the soup for added carbohydrate to the meal.

One thing I'll mention now about the frozen foods is that I freeze the sauce or soup in freezer bags and lay them flat to freeze. This makes the package thin and easier to load into the cooler which also contains large gallon or quart size bottles of water.

Fourth night - black beans, rice and yuca, a classic Cuban-style dinner. The beans and yuca both come in a can and are quite tasty. With some olive oil and garlic, I'll sautee up some onion and add it to the yuca. The rice will be boiled in a bag and added to the mix. We could also add a small can of veggies.

Fifth night - Instant mashed potatoes and Teriyaki tuna. The mashed potatoes come in a bag that provides for 2 people. the tuna comes in a sealed package. I simply heat up the tuna slightly and then spoon the potatoes over it. I like to add some garlic, olive oil and some onion to the mashed potatoes as well. This is one of my favorite meals!

Sixth night - Packaged tortellini with parmesan cheese. And of course, there is garlic and olive oil. I'll also include some bread on the side and dehydrated veggies added to the pasta.

Seventh night - Noodle soup (sold in a cup), dehydrated veggies, Bragg's amino acid, and roasted almonds, and crackers to go with it. Might add some smoked salmon to this as well.

Eighth night - Box of couscous with almonds, olive oil and dehydrated veggies added. A box of red pepper soup on the side.

Ninth night - black bean, rice and yuca, again!