Bloom Where You're Planted: Pie Irons and Hot Dog Forks

Every time we prepare for a camping trip, it seems like we need just one more thing, another bit of gear that we have to have to make the adventure complete. With a group our size, that “need” quickly adds up to a lot of stuff! And then comes my biggest dilemma…How and where to store it and tote it on to the next trip? As we go along on our adventures, we’re learning what works for us and also remembering that old adage, “Necessity is the Mother of Invention!”

We use pie irons and hot dog forks a lot while we’re camping because they’re so versatile and fun. Quick pizzas are a favorite in the pie irons – with biscuit dough (either canned, a box mix, or made from scratch), a jar of pizza sauce, and some shredded mozzarella cheese we make awesome deep dish personal pizzas over the fire in minutes! Add pepperoni or bacon and onions….Mmmmm – delicious!

The only problem we found using pie irons and hot dog forks is their size and bulkiness when it comes to storage and packing them for the trip. For a while I just stood them up in a random box and shoved them in anywhere I could find – not a good option as they tangle, tip over, and generally are a pain to transport. After searching around in the camping section of a sporting goods store, I found a small bag that was labeled for storing pie irons, but it only held one or two and was $10 – which doesn’t make economic sense for us as we have 5 pie irons and 7 hot dog forks – roughly $60 is more than I was willing to spend. Plus, they were shorter than the utensils, so the irons and forks would stick out the top of the bag.

I figured I could come up with something better and cheaper on my own, so off we went to the fabric store with a glimmer of an idea. After browsing a while, the girls and I decided on a heavy-duty navy canvas fabric, and for $20 we had enough fabric to create our own storage bag – not too shabby if I do say so myself! It’s basically just a large, heavy-duty drawstring bag with a handle and plenty of room for these oversized utensils – plus it’s washable!