Entertaining on holiday, yes. Redesigning your kitchen, no.
A complete summer dinner, designed for a holiday home: minimal equipment and as much as possible prepared in advance.
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Campfire s’mores
Description
Introduction & a brief history
You can’t spend a few days in the Blue Ridge Mountains without making s’mores over a campfire. It’s probably one of the simplest «desserts» there is, but that’s precisely the point: the pleasure lies as much in the ritual as in the result. You skewer a marshmallow on a long stick, toast it over the embers, then sandwich it – whilst still hot – between chocolate and two graham crackers.
The name comes from «some more» – because once you’ve had the first one, you’ll want another. The exact origins are less clear-cut than the legend often repeated online: «Some-mores» are documented amongst the Girl Scouts in the 1920s, and a recipe appears in a Girl Scout publication from 1927. It has since become an absolute classic of American camping.
For our last evening in Shenandoah, I want to make them in their simplest American version. But once I’m back in Europe, there’s no reason to give them up: the Graham crackers can be replaced with plain biscuits that aren’t too sweet and are fairly firm, and the Hershey’s chocolate with a good European milk chocolate.
Ingredients
Instructions
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1. Make the sandwiches
- Place half the biscuits on a plate and put a piece of chocolate on each one. Keep the second biscuit ready to sandwich them together.
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2. Toast the marshmallows
- Skewer a marshmallow onto a long skewer. Hold it over the embers and turn it slowly until it has puffed up, is soft in the centre and golden on the outside. Avoid holding it over a strong flame: it will burn before it has melted properly.
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3. Assemble
- Immediately place the hot marshmallow on top of the chocolate, cover with the second biscuit and press down gently whilst removing the skewer. Wait a few seconds: the heat from the marshmallow will soften the chocolate.
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4. Eating
- Serve straight away. S’mores aren’t exactly elegant or very neat to eat – and that’s precisely part of their charm.
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Which biscuit should you choose in Europe?
- The American graham cracker is dry, slightly sweet and has a wholemeal flavour. A Petit Beurre will make for a more buttery, French-style s’more; a digestive biscuit is closer to the wholemeal flavour but may be more crumbly. The most important thing is to choose a biscuit that is flat and firm enough to hold the melted marshmallow in place.
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My advice
- Get all the biscuits and chocolate ready before you start toasting: the s’mores need to be put together straight away. Allow at least two s’mores per person. If there are young children present, an adult must supervise the fire and the long skewers. If a campfire isn’t possible, you can toast the marshmallows on the barbecue; it’s less romantic, but the result is still delicious.
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One last taste of America
- After the cities, the trains, the museums, baseball, Cape Cod, New York and Washington, I love the idea that one of our last culinary memories should also be the simplest: a few biscuits, some chocolate, a marshmallow and a campfire in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Back in Europe, all it will take is a packet of biscuits and a few marshmallows to take us back there for a moment.
