It’s gooey, filled with sugar and fat, and is heavily promoted by one of the country’s largest chocolate manufacturers–but really, who cares? Nobody doesn’t like s’mores and campaigns have been trying for awhile to make today its national holiday.
S’mores, consisting of (you know!) grilled marshmallow and chocolate between two graham crackers, have been around since the 1920s, when legend has it that some Campfire Girls concocted the recipe and all of the campers cried out “Gimme some more!”
Still, if it’s this good using purely processed food items, how much better could it be in the hands of a brilliant pastry chef…or maybe even a bartender? We poked around and found a few answers:
Eve in Chicago offers s’mores made with chocolate ganache, housemade marshmallows and peanut butter graham cracker crumble.
Restaurant Eve in Washington DC (what’s up with the Eve thing?) has a s’more cocktail, concocted by Todd Thrasher. Liquid Campfire in a Glass is made with graham cracker liqueur, Cardenal Mendoza Spanish brandy, and housemade Mexican hot chocolate.
At N9NE in Las Vegas, diners get to char their marshmallows on a personal hibachi; plates with graham crackers and squiggles of chocolate ganache stand by.
Dip into the trinity of flavors at 50 Plates in Portland, Oregon, where the campfire treat goes fondue. Made with homemade graham crackers, molten marshmallow and Valrhona hot fudge.
At Masa’s in San Francisco, s’mores morph into an ice cream sandwich at the hands of Maggie Leung. Two chocolate cookies encase homemade graham cracker ice cream, hot fudge, toasted marshmallows, candied hazelnuts and hazelnut powder.
And on to LA, where chef Kerry Simon serves up graham cracker tuile, vanilla ice cream, and homemade toasted marshmallow at his Simon LA Restaurant.
We tried to offer a gourmet bar of s’more fixings for a big holiday party-peppermint studded chocolate, various graham crackers, homemade marshmallows in vanilla and cinammon. Everyone enjoyed the interactivity (only in LA can you have multiple bonfires going in December) but there was an outcry for the waxy taste of Hershey’s milk chocolate, processed marshmallow fluff and Honey Grahams! And this from foodies ages 30 and up!
I had a thirty year break from S’Mores, but now, with god-kidlettes in Girl Scouts, and a son newly married and planning a family, Erika’s fabulous Toque piece today, has revved up the excitement around here!
While visiting the Hyatt Regency in San Diego I was delighted to see fire pits by the poolside cabanas and S’More kits for sale in the gift shop! Way to serve up a wild idea, Hyatt! Erika, congrats on another great read from Toque!
Jesyca, it just goes to show: tradition trumps taste. Thanks for your comment!