What do I eat?

The most common question I get asked is "What do you eat?". I am going to try an explain what I eat, how I prepare it and the tools in my camping kitchen. For a stove I use the MSR Pocket Rocket 2 stove. The stove burns Isobutane. a blended fuel that is designed to burn in a wide range of temperatures and elevations.  Fuel canisters come in several sizes and I prefer the large 15.5 oz size. My cooking pot is a MSR Titan Kettle. It is a titanium pot and lid that holds just a bit less than a litter.  A plastic teaspoon, can opener, fillet knife and a small grill grate are included in the kitchen as well. Additional I carry a spice bag that contains chicken broth cubes, red pepper flakes, sea salt, garlic powder, taco seasoning, garlic Parmesan base, olive oil, beef base and other rotating seasoning packets. I struggle to eat a good breakfast mainly because I don't have much of an appetite in the morning. My go to breakfast is Carnation instant breakfast drink. I mix two packages in a power aid bottle and try and drink it as I pack up my tent and store everything in the canoe. I will also try to force down a granola bar or a few chocolate coated mini donuts as well. When I get in the canoe to start paddling for the day I put 4 one quart power aid bottles refilled with water under my seat along with my snack bag. Having my water split into separate bottles helps me to monitor my water intake throughout the day. I also keep a bottle of Mio drink additive or sweet tea concentrate handy so drinking enough water for the day is a bit easier. I keep a snack bag under the seat as well. My snack bag contains Snickers bars, goldfish, cheez it crackers. Peanut butter crackers, granola bars, Cliff bars or other sports bars, and candy. I try to eat a snack about every hour or so while paddling. For lunch I prefer to stop at a town and grab a hot meal to help boost my calorie intake but more days than not it doesn't work out that way. A river lunch is normally a couple of flour tortillas filled with peanut butter or a couple of cans of sardines with some crackers washed down with at least a quart of liquids. For dinner I have a much wider range of options. Dinner is when I take in most of my calories and it is in general a two or three course event. I normally start with a small meal of one package of ramen noodles or a small serving of instant mashed potatoes, I will start cooking with a full quart bottle of water on hand and whatever I don't use to cook, I will drink.  For main dinner I will make a Knorr paste side with can of chicken added or a can of black beans, shredded beef,  rotel and taco seasonings rolled into a tortilla shell, or maybe mac and cheese with a slice of fried spam. Any canned item like beef stew, chili, chicken and dumplings, canned pasta, is a possible dinner item. I always drink a full quart of water with dinner. For desert I make a half quart of hot coco and eat a candy bar or  few donuts. I try and eat as much as possible in the evening and drink at least a gallon of water. The long days of paddling burn huge amounts of energy and keeping weight loss in check is a constant battle for me. I will add olive oil or butter to everything I cook so I can squeeze in a few more calories. I will check and see if a town I am passing has a store near shore so I can run in and grab a hot dog, ice cream or other snack all in the hunt for a few more calories. Before bed while I am reading or working on a blog post I will have a final snack and try and squeeze in a some more liquids.