Susan Whetzel - The Smores Cookbook: From Smores Stuffed French Toast to a Smores Cheesecake Recipe, Treat Yourself to Smore of Everything

The
Smores
Cookbook

From SMORES STUFFED FRENCH TOAST to a SMORES CHEESECAKE RECIPE,
Treat Yourself to Smore of Everything

SUSAN WHETZEL

Foreword by CHEF DUFF GOLDMAN, CHARM CITY CAKES

For Seven, my lucky charm.

The single most defining characteristic of the thought process of American cuisine is that we love to take that which is awesome and combine it with something that is also awesome and be left with a re-imagined something that is more awesome than the sum of its awesome parts. In the more than half-century history of the American classic treat, the smore, progress has come in fits and starts. A little innovation here, an added layer there, resulting in a few scattered ideas in just how to combine graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows in new and exciting ways. But as it occurs with all evolutionary processes, mammoth progress happens in short, violent bursts. This book is a fine example of a culinary evolutionary eruption.

It is only in the last few years that we have taken the smore indoors. This was a treat that for most of its existence was only available to the initiates of that most American summer pastime, camping. Somehow, it just felt wrong to stack chocolate and marshmallows on a graham cracker and roast it in your fireplace or, heaven forbid, your electric oven. But as tales emerged from young and old alike about the delights of this particular combination of carbohydrates, the lay-abouts and indoorsy folk brought down the walls of smore propriety and, voil, smores became a fixture in our homes.

This transition, from campsite to kitchen, is what I believe paved the woodland path for the culinary innovation that follows in Susans cookbook. Smores Coffee Cake, for example, could only happen where there was the what-for for making a coffee cake in the first place, much more readily made in the kitchens of our nations bakers than in the deep woods where food is carried in (measured in grams) and no unnecessary weight is tolerated. Nobody shook up a Smore-tini after a ten-hour hike. Im almost positive nobody strapped a bain-marie to her back and made mountain-top Smores Crme Brle.

So, rejoice! Give thanks to our innovators who reclaimed the smore from the province of open flame and bark-covered cooking utensils. The smore has been tamed, but not too much. All of Susans recipes and delicious ideas are crafted to be enjoyed anywhere polite society gathers. But every bite, every whiff, will stir in each and every one of us a not-too-dormant and less-evolved version of ourselves where melty bars of chocolate adhered not only to twice-toasted graham crackers, but the textural symphony of blackened charred ooey-gooey sticky hot goopy marshmallows meant perfection. And dont be shy; after whipping up a batch of Smores Puff Pastry Mini Tarts, gather everyone around, put the TV on mute, turn the track lights down, and tell a scary story.

Duff Goldman

Just the mention of the word smore conjures up the feeling of cool night air, a star-filled sky, and the feel of a log-filled fire warming our noses. Smores are, in essence, a memory maker. Chocolate, graham crackers, and marshmallows, transformed magically into happiness; a time machine to our youth and nights spent with family and friends.

Many of us have memories of smores from our own childhoodbe it camping with our parents or friends by the lake, or with a Girl Scout or Boy Scout troopthere was a night spent by the fire, marshmallows in hand, chocolate smudged on our chins. Smores evoke such fond memories for so many, and that fondness is what led me to the writing of this unusual cookbook.

Some of my favorite things about living where I do are our spacious backyard, raised garden beds, covered grilling area, and most recently, an in-ground fire pit. My husband is an avid outdoorsman as well as overall handyman, and one weekend he surprised me with an impressive stone fire pit built from native rock and topped with a custom grill grate. Surrounded by large stepping-stones and comfortable chairs, on nice evenings we can build a roaring fire to cook our dinner over, and of course, later on, roast marshmallows. My son has become quite the expert marshmallow roaster, and even has his own special skewera gift from a blogging friend. Many nights are spent building gooey, chocolaty smores in the moonlighta memory I hope he will one day look back upon with a smile.

The recipes found throughout this book are all inspired by the original smore. Marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate are featured on every page, and all with different results. Youll find numerous breakfast smore recipes, a chapter on pies and cakes, another on frozen smores inspirations, and even a chapter on smores that are perfect for gift giving. Ive also included a chapter on gourmet smores, in flavor combinations you may have never considered (but should!). One thing youll find for sure about the recipes in this book, whether its the Smores Danish, the Smores Frappuccino, the crowd-pleasing Smores Coffee Cake, or the Smores Stuffed French Toastthey are all delicious, and hopefully each one will take you back to that night by the fire, stick in hand, eagerly awaiting that first bite of heaven. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, partiesevery occasion is covered here, so head into the kitchen, experiment, play, and most of all enjoy!

Welcome to the wonderful world of smores! Smores are one of the most quintessentially American of all sweet treats, and, youll be happy to find out, theyre one of the most adaptable as well! There are endless varieties of gooey, sweet confections derived from smoreseverything from refined cakes to quirky drinks! Before you skip to the recipes, take a minute to peruse this chapter and learn about the history and basics of smores. Youll learn where the treat came from, how to buy and store all sorts of ingredients, and how to use different appliances to get the results that you want for your smores. Itll be one sweet read!

Most of us began our love affair with the smore as children, huddled around a blazing campfire, eager to have our perfectly toasted marshmallow sandwiched between two graham crackers and a mouthful of chocolate. But where did the idea originally come from?

Like many things we know and love as a culture, the smore has no real known origin. What is known is that the smore was certainly not the first treat made featuring the three simple ingredients of graham cracker, marshmallow, and chocolate. Early in the twentieth century, Mallomars, followed by the MoonPie, both combined the ingredients to create widely popular treats.

With the development of mass-produced marshmallows in the late teens and early 1920s, the smore became a favorite of campers.