peggi

We're headed from Virginia to Keystone for a ski week, 2 families (4 preteens total) staying in a condo. We will eat out 3-4 nights, but want ideas for cooking the nights we stay in - not too difficult since we will have skiied all day, but what's good?
Also, would appreciate any Keystone restaurant suggestions other than Keystone Ranch & Alpenglow Stube (the grownups have reservations at those 2).

Sarah

tacos
cassoroles, lasagna, pasta with sauteed vegitables garlic and olive oil.
Go online for recipes. I like hearty but light in fat and salt.

cook at home

I'll give you a couple of easy ones that I make after we both get home from work.

For a very simple, yet really tasty meal, try Chicken in White Wine Sauce. (Don't worry, the alcohol burns off!)

Get several chicken breasts and season them. Brown them in butter in a frying pan about 5 to 7 minutes per side. Once browned, remove the chicken and add diced shallots (regular yellow onions are fine in a pinch.) Saute the onions for 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of white wine under keep over medium high heat until most of the liquid is evaporated. Return the chicken and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes over medium heat. (You can serve with a package of cous-cous or rice for an easy side dish.)


Firehouse Style Chicken Cordon Bleu (My bother the firmen makes this for the guys because of the easy prep time.) Get several chicken cutlets. Season and place in a roaasting pan in the oven on 400 for about 30 minutes. Remove and wrap each in a piece of ham and a piece of cheese (swiss or gruyere work well. Put back in the over for another 5 to seven minutes. For a moister piece of meat, add a small amout of chicken broth to the roasting pan when intially placing into the oven.

Sarah

Take cook at homes wine and chicken recipe only towards the end add a bottled tomato sauce (I like Barillo roasted Garlic), and some parmagano reggaino. There you have a lower fat chicken parm. You can leave the wine and just sautee in oil and onion if you like. You can use other cheese but I love the reggiano.

I would also prebake a lasange take it up with you if you are driving and then just pop it in the oven apre ski.

MMM MMM Good

You'll be outside all day - I want warm, comfort foods: mac & cheese; chili; soups; stews; grilled chicken breasts with garlic mashed potatoes; gigantic "garbage" salads (throw in pieces of chicken or steak) with hot crusty bread & warm apple pie for dessert. You could even do breakfast food: omelets, scrambled eggs, pancakes and sausages.
Damn, I'm starving, now!

me

Sarah's idea of taking some premade food along is a good one. Several years ago when we went skiing, I made some soups and casseroles ahead of time, froze them and took them with us. Then I put it out to thaw in morning and when we returned from skiing, all we had to do was warm it up. However, if you are flying to Colorado, this probably won't work too well.

coskier

Hi Peggi, we are at Keystone most weekends. Just get back this morn! In Frisco there is a place called Zuppa's, one in Breck too. We often get a couple of quarts of soup and bread from there for nights when we do not feel like cooking. I am guessing that your flying. We have taken frozen lasagna on planes before. Pack a cooler full of frozen stuff check it. Most cargo holds are cold, should stay frozen without to much trouble.

There is a Nick and Willies take and bake pizza that you will pass on your way to Keystone in Dillon, great pizza!

One thing to consider is that some have trouble sleeping at altitude. Carbs (pasta) can make this worse.

For resturants try the Great Northern in the River Run area. We have never had a good meal at Piasonos (sp) but some like it.

Dillon Damn Brewery in Dillon is good too for families. Completely non-smoking!

Keystone Ranch, yummmmm. Had our Christmas dinner there this year. Wonderful! BTW Even though it is a very nice place, it is still very casual dress.

Have fun, the snow was good this weekend with more in the forecast!

yessir

Might want to take some containers plastic with you. I don't know what the lodge food is like out west. In New England the lodge food is heavy. That can become old pretty darn quick. I saw people that brought chicken ceasar salads with them to the slopes.

bly

Wow - sounds like a lot of work for vacation. We've always ran to the market - get a roast chicken in the deli, cooked and hot, and either a salad at the salad bar or potato/mac salad from the deli. Spaghetti & a loaf of good bread and a salad. Steak and baked potato. Minimal ingredients, low prep. Zuppas is a great idea by the way. They have great soups, salads and breads.

n

All the recipes sound wonderful - but after a tiring day on the slopes are you going to feel like that much preparation? My suggestion would be to simplify. Here's an idea that's simple and teens will like: Go to the store and pick up canned pizza dough (in the canned biscuit section). Then grab shredded cheese (one bag mozarella, one bag cheddar/jack); a pkg. of sliced pepperoni, a pkg. of either sandwich ham or canadian bacon; one can/jar each of pizza sauce and alfredo sauce. When you get back to the room, pre-heat the oven, press out the dough and let everyone 'build' their own pizza. If there aren't many pans, make a couple of big ones and let them 'top' their own section, marking each with their own 'decoration' (such as a ham slice cut into their initial.) Easy, delicious and fast - enjoy!

m

We just did a similar thing over Christmas. After skiing and snowshoeing each day some of the things we made for dinner were spaghetti, soup, and chili. I know for us we wanted fast, but warm food. Another thing to think about...since you will be away from home its much easier to make dishes that only require a few ingredients. Nothing like having to toss jars of stuff!

xxx

We always cook a few meals in a condo on our ski trips. My best tip is to bring the spices pre-measured in ziploc baggie. You can buy everything you need for chili, stew, soup or spaghetti at the local market. Buying each little jar of spices for a recipe makes it expensive and not worth it. The other tip is that at high altitude water takes longer to boil so plan for it. Our condo had a crock pot so sometimes I made something in the morning and simmered it all day. It was so nice to come back after skiing and go to the hot tub with the family then just have to make a quick salad to eat. Most pizza places will deliver to you also. Have fun!

Mom

We seem to crave carbs and protein after a day on the slopes. First relax with a glass of wine and unkink those aching muscles in the hot tub, then cook simple, hearty suppers (you will be STARVING). Spaghetti, garlic bread and salad is always on our after-ski menu for one night. Another night we have steak and mushrooms, baked potatoes and a veggie. Soup and sloppy joes on another night...all very easy and 'team-cooking' oriented...don't fall into the habit of "Mom does the cooking." If we go with several families, each family takes a night to cook and clean up. Finish the night with some board games and bed at 10. Have a great trip!

snow

Soup, Soup and more Soup!

a) it's easy, just open the canm, you can get tasty tinned soups these days
b) --the real reason-- Altitude! you're going to be going from sea level to the mountains. You might not feel any altitude sickness, but you need the extra fluids to acclimate. If you notice anyone being particularly grumpy it's probably altitude sickness. Try to get your whole family to drink more fluids.

Grilled cheese sandwiches go well with soup. So do the Salad in a bag kits.

you can do ham & cheese croissants by buying the premade cresent rolls in a tube, and adding sliced ham & cheese to the rolls when you bake them, you just have to cook them a little longer.

gc

I've not tried this, but a friend described it to me last week and it sounded great.
You need to think about breakfast, also...and rice crispies just don't cut it in the mountains.

For make ahead french toast....line a baking dish with PAM, butter, whatever. Put a layer of bread in the bottom of the pan. Pour a bunch of raw scrambled eggs over the top, cover and refrigerate. In the morning, bake while everyones looking for their socks and mittens.

It sounds good...when I have a crowd at the condo...I'll give you the results.

PS...No Aunt Jemima...pure maple syrup only please.

DidThat

XXX commented on the problem with altitude and boiling water. This is a bigger issue than it sounds. It can be a real pain in the neck! You may even want to boil up a double batch and then just keep it on hand for the second night if you are doing the pasta thing. And certainly get the thinest pasta you can find. Skip the lasagna, etc. or you will be boiling for forever. We always ate a cereal/toast type breakfast, packed a good lunch for the slope and then ate out for dinner or got delivery. And then, when we were 21 we went to the bars, however, when we got old and 40, we just went to bed! : ) Have fun - but I would skip the boiling routine!

John

The problem with boiling water at altitude is not that it takes longer to boil, but that it boils at a lower temperature so cooks food more slowly. In fact, all things being equal, it will reach a boil sooner, though the difference will likely not be noticeable.