Vol. 1, Part 2: From the Table of Campfire Summers

Spruce Tip Honey Ice Cream with Candied Pine Nuts

Mild summer days are made for spending time outdoors. My summer memories are filled with crisp mountain air — hikes along icy springs, amid fragrant evergreens, evening breezes cooling burnt skin, campfire smoke, and endless starry skies. My summer dreams are filled with bike rides, afternoons on picnic blankets with a full belly and a good book, busy hands at work in the garden, in the kitchen, at the grill. Yes, I get sentimental about summer days outside.

I started work on this project about a year ago with a letter and a recipe borne of sensory memory. It flowed from recognition of how moments shared with loved ones live on in sensory memory, informing what we’re drawn to in subtle and specific ways. Volume 1 is a love letter for my Dad, for his great appreciation for nature, and for his lifetime of work spent protecting and preserving Public Lands, ensuring that they remain accessible and enjoyable for generations to come. Recently, traveling and visiting public lands has been more challenging and rare, but my Dad still spends most days working in the garden and in his workshop. On a recent visit, we spent our time together tending the garden — weeding, feeding, and building a new planter for a favorite flowering plant.

As we enter the peak season for hiking, camping, and outdoor adventures of all kinds, I wanted to revisit and add to that first volume with a no-churn ice cream recipe that captures the flavors of mountain evergreen forests in my Dad’s favorite after-dinner treat, plus some favorite resources for camping and live-fire cooking. While we have access, while we have good weather, while we can, get out there and enjoy the outdoors!