Today is S'mores Day
and I'm dedicating this post
to my future daughter-in-law, Cindy.
That girl sure does love her some S'mores!
And who can blame her?
It's the ultimate sandwich.
Crunchy, gooey, chocolaty and sweet.
All you need is graham crackers,
Hershey bars.
marshmallows,
a long stick,
and a blazing fire.
Not to mention- plenty of napkins.
S'mores were first introduced
in the Girl Scout Handbook of 1927.
A popular campsite treat,
some say the name came from
children requesting "some more"
after indulging in the melted treat.
I'm not one to play with my food,
but I just had to do some research
on the rest of the S'more's ingredients.
Graham crackers.
Weird story.
Sylvester Graham (1794-1851)
was a health lecturer that believed that:
" intense physical desire, no matter how expressed and regardless of whether you were married or not, was guaranteed to have dire physiological consequences. "
He thought men should
remain virgins until age 30
and then should
make love only once a month.
Graham prescribed a special vegetarian diet
to control lust.
This regimen included "Graham bread,"
made from whole wheat flour.
Graham crackers, which Graham invented in 1829,
were a product of his research.
Today graham crackers
are mostly made with refined white flour
and added sweeteners.
So, I wouldn't count on them
helping with any chastity vows
you may have made.
Before the mid 1800's,
marshmallows were made
using the sap of the Marsh-Mallow plant.
Doctors once extracted medicinal juices
from the Marsh-Mallow plant's roots.
This was cooked with egg whites and sugar,
then whipped into a hardened candy
used to soothe children's sore throats.
Today marshmallows are mostly
modified corn starch
and hold no healing properties whatsoever.
Now, we all know about Hershey bars.
Introduced in 1900 by
Milton S, Hershey,
this 210 calorie,
13 fat gram treat
has consistently sent my weight
soaring wildly for thirty years.
An odd history of ingredients,
but just put them together today
and you have a quick dessert that
will make you lick your lips and fingers
and cry out for "S'more!"
Today I raise my marshmallow stick
and toast to Cindy-
May your day be as sweet as a S'more!
