S’MORES – A CRASH COURSE

Story by Ceilidh Price

S’mores and campfires go together like, well, chocolate, graham crackers and schmelty marshmallows.

For a city that spends half the year looking for excuses to gather around a fire pit, Calgary has embraced the s’more with predictable enthusiasm. Whether it’s at a campground in Kananaskis, a backyard fire table in Mahogany, or a restaurant patio with tableside roasting, this humble dessert has become a superhero of summer.

And every superhero has an origin story.

Some are bitten by radioactive spiders. Some arrive from distant planets. And some begin life as a sticky handful of ingredients around a campfire while someone inevitably sets a marshmallow on fire and insists it was intentional.

The s’more belongs in the culinary Hall of Fame. It is messy, nostalgic, wildly impractical and somehow tastes exactly like summer. But before this humble hero earned its cape, it survived a surprisingly complicated journey involving ancient Egyptian royalty, anti-sex crusaders and a mysterious Girl Scout leader who may never have existed.

Grab a stick. We’re going in.

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AN UNEXPECTED MUTATION:
THE MARSHMALLOW

Long before marshmallows became ammunition for campfire wars, they were considered something of a luxury item.

Ancient Egyptians were enjoying an early version of marshmallow as far back as 2000 BC. Made from the sap of the marshmallow plant (Althaea officinalis), the sweet treat was reserved for royalty.

The marshmallow plant grows naturally in marshes and was prized for its medicinal properties. By the early 1800s, French confectioners had figured out how to whip the sap into a fluffy candy. It was labour-intensive, expensive and barely resembles the bag of Jet-Puffed goodness we know today.

Eventually, practicality won. Manufacturers replaced plant sap with gelatin and other ingredients, creating the soft, squishy, roastable marshmallow.

Not every mutation creates a superhero. This one did.

EVEN HEROES HAVE CRAVINGS:
THE CHASTE BIRTH OF THE GRAHAM CRACKER

Now for the weird part.

The Graham cracker was invented by Presbyterian minister Sylvester Graham, who was deeply concerned that flavourful food might lead society down a path of moral ruin.

Graham believed rich foods, spices, meat, alcohol and basically anything enjoyable encouraged impure thoughts. His solution was a diet of plain whole-grain foods designed to promote self-control and discourage physical temptation. The result was the original Graham cracker.

Fortunately, later bakers added sugar, flavour and joy. What began as a dietary punishment evolved into the sweet, crumbly foundation of one of North America’s greatest campfire creations.

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THE SWEET SQUAD ASSEMBLES

Like many superhero origin stories, the history of the s’more gets a little murky. The first-known s’mores recipe appeared as “Some Mores” in the 1927 Girl Scout handbook Tramping and Trailing with the Girl Scouts. The recipe concludes with the optimistic (if not oxymoronic) statement that “one is really enough.”

For years, the recipe was credited to a troop leader named Loretta Scott Crew. The problem? Historians can’t find evidence she ever existed. No records. No mentions. No proof. Alas, she has been removed from Wikipedia, and we think that’s modern-day proof enough.

Instead, many historians point toward Dorothy “Cookie” Moore, a real Girl Scout leader who taught outdoor cooking and encouraged simple campfire meals.

ALTERNATE STORYLINES & REBOOTS

Like every successful superhero franchise, the s’more has spawned countless spin-offs.

There are peanut butter versions, salted caramel versions, coffee-flavoured versions and vegetarian adaptations made with gelatin-free marshmallows. Some campers swear by using chocolate-covered cookies instead of graham crackers. Others skip the campfire entirely and build oven-baked sheet-pan s’mores under the broiler.

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HERO SIGHTINGS: CALGARY’S S’MORE PATROL

Whether you prefer your marshmallow perfectly golden brown or charred beyond recognition, Calgary has no shortage of places serving up their own take on this campfire classic.

  • New Camp Bar & Table serves tableside s’mores complete with all the fixings and a miniature fire for roasting while you toast. It may be the most appropriately named location on this list.
  • IBU Restaurant & Bar offers the Almost IBU Marshmallow (LEFT), a sophisticated riff featuring graham cracker cluster, chocolate pot de crème, house-made marshmallow and cereal milk ice cream.
  • Tommyfield Gastro Pub serves S’mores for Two, because sharing is caring. Or because ordering two desserts is occasionally frowned upon.
  • Oxbow takes things in a different direction with its Warm S’Mores Cake, featuring graham crumb, smoked caramel and marshmallow ice cream.
  • For those who prefer their heroes in cupcake form, Bliss & Co. Cupcakes and Desserts offers a S’Mores Chocolate Graham Cookie Cake topped with caramel buttercream and toasted marshmallow.