S'Mores, Anyone?

We have enjoyed our fire pit on our patio for the past couple of years. One thing that we enjoy doing there often is to make s'mores. Just in case you don't know what s'mores are, I thought that I would give you the history of them.

If you're not familiar with s'mores, they are made by sandwiching a toasted marshmallow and a piece of chocolate in between the two graham crackers. The name of the treat comes from the two words "some more", clearly combined because people often wanted to have at least a second serving after having one s'more. The treat was developed by campers in the early part of the 20th century, making use of the fairly new mass-produced marshmallows. Marshmallows were easy to transport, as were candy bars and graham crackers, and the marshmallows could be warmed easily over a fire to make a delicious treat in a situation where other types of sweets would have been difficult to come by.

The true origin of the snack is unknown, as camping recipes tended to be passed from one person to another person and family to family. The first recipe for s'mores was published in 1927 in the Girl Scout Handbook and the event marked the official introduction of the s'mores into popular culture.

The publication of the s'mores recipe was not the first pairing of chocolate, marshmallows and cookies. In 1913, the Mallomar cookie was introduced to market, followed in 1917 by the Moon Pie. Both products have a graham cracker-like base--a sandwich, in the case of the Moon Pie--and are topped with marshmallows and a layer of chocolate.

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