The Classic S’more
Happy National S’mores Day everyone!!! The invention of these campfire treats are attributed to the Girl Scouts and date from publication of theirs from 1927, according to Wikipedia. In a post back in 2006 that I wrote about making s’mores when I was at my parents’ house, I mentioned that I couldn’t recall when I’d eaten my first one of these. They just seemed to be part of the fabric of camping and having bonfires.
My mother bought this – I’m not sure why
Like Red Velvet Cake, a few years ago, S’mores seemed to take on a new lease in life. Bars and restaurants had mini burners so that you could custom make s’mores as dessert or snack at your table. My mother bought a s’mores kit and a rotating marshmallow fork for toasting (really). I haven’t seen those things back again in the house, although I suspect that maybe one of the kits escaped and is lurking in the back of a refrigerator somewhere.
S’more Bakery – making s’mores
Then, when I was at Smorgasburg last year I came upon the table for S’more Bakery. They do several different combinations of marshmallows and cookies, bruléed to order if you want to feed your childhood-inspired craving on the spot or packaged up in take-away form so that you can make them at home, which in my case would mean toasting the marshmallows over the open flame of a gas stove rather than over smoldering charcoal. Each time I see them, I really, really want one, but I’ve just never been a die-hard, fanatical fan of s’mores, as many of them as I’ve had over the years.
My faith in s’more-dom was restored however, at the Pie Party Live food blogger gathering last year. Nestled among the piles of fruit pies, tarts, empanadas (hand pies), British meat pies, quiches, and other pie-like creations, was a pie that had people raving about it. Allison Kave of First Prize Pies had worked her baking wizardry on the classic campfire treat and presented to everyone the S’mores Pie. For me, it was love at first bite.
A bite of S’mores Pie
Every taste that you remember from those childhood treats is there but somehow made better. Underneath the toasted top of the pie is a layer of gooey, melted marshmallow. Breaking through that browned layer reveals a rich, velvety chocolate interior all supported by a graham cracker crust. It’s sort of like s’mores grew up but still wants to keep a bit of that same impish spirit that made you try to get the younger campers to go on snipe hunts in the dark. These new entries to the s’mores family might not make me long for days swatting off blood-thirsty mosquitoes or fearing bumping into water moccasins or copperheads, but First Prize Pies‘ or S’more Bakery‘s confections would be fantastic ways to salute National S’mores Day.
Buon appetito!
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