Winter came early to Georgia the first weekend of November, so I headed out to the Appalachian Trail with a few of my hiking buddies to enjoy the snowy wonderland. I have been hiking with this crew, shown on the cover and several not shown, for 14 years. On Friday, they will be back for the annual "Walk off the turkey hike." Beats shopping.

On this blustery day, we stopped for lunch at a sun-warmed rocky outcrop with a view of white-dusted mountains across the valley from our perch. I had packed a turkey sandwich and peeled carrots, but later, as the chill of late afternoon blew in and snow bombs fell from tree branches above our heads, I thought about how I would have enjoyed a hot lunch.

Later in the week, I experimented with rehydrating and cooking dried meals in a Thermos 24-ounce food jar that I found in the sporting goods department at Target. The first meal I “cooked” was World Peas Bark Stew – an assembly of pea bark, chicken, rice and assorted vegetables. I preheated the Thermos with hot water per the instructions and then returned the water to the pot to bring back to a boil. I poured the boiling water into the Thermos with the food, screwed the top on, and shook the Thermos several times. This was in the morning and I waited until lunch time to open up the Thermos. The food rehydrated well and was hot and tasty.

If you have invested in a dehydrator, Thermos Cooking gives you more opportunities to make and enjoy dehydrated meals beyond your backpacking trips. Load your Thermos in the morning before day hikes in the winter, take hot lunches to work with you, or pack hot meals for road trips. You’ll save money while eating healthy, homemade “fast food.” The 24-ounce food jar is large enough to hold a hot meal for two people.

Theoretically, you could eat a meal right out of the Thermos food jar with a long spoon, although it’s not so easy because the mouth of the jar is not very wide. An easier way is to transfer a little of the meal at a time into the cup which screws over the cap. Or, you could transfer the whole meal to a larger container such as a Glad brand Lockware Container. To clean in the field, add some water, shake vigorously, pour out or drink the rinse water as appropriate, and push a paper towel around the inside of the jar with your spoon.

View the Thermos Stainless King 24-Ounce Food Jar at Amazon.com

How about some hot soup in your Thermos? Here’s a new recipe that rehydrated beautifully and stayed hot from morning until lunch time.

Curry Carrot Soup

Vegetarian Backpacking Meals: Curry Carrot Soup

The recipe shows how to make the soup, dehydrate it, and reconstitute it back into soup.

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours. May you be blessed with the comfort of good friends and loved ones around your table.

Warmest regards,

• Recipes for Adventure II
• Recipes for Adventure
• Menu Planning & Food Drying Workbook
• Action Guide: Dehydrating 31 Meals
• 1001 Miles on the Appalachian Trail

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