I carry a stove for one reason and one reason only... to heat water for coffee. I ain't moving NO WHERE in the morning without my coffee. Some trips I cook more than others. Food in the US is pretty easy to come by. Just about every town has a diner or a store with something in it. Around here the Dollar General stores carry a pretty decent supply of canned and boxed stuff.

I have done expedition style trips where I carry all my food with me start to finish. For those I fall back on my backpacking experience. A couple of books that are great resources are: The Well-Fed Backbacker__June Fleming and The One Pan Gourmet__Don Jacobson. I actually enjoy cooking most of the time and camp cooking especially. I am not a huge fan of most restaurants because they seldom season foods to my tastes. Typically way too much salt.

Aaron