The s'more is a culinary accident born of childhood experimentation
In short: We treat the toasted marshmallow sandwich as a camping staple, but its history is a murky trail of industrial cookies and medicinal roots. From Victorian tea cakes to 1920s Girl Scout manuals, the s'more evolved from an elite confection into a gooey masterpiece of air and gelatin.
The precise origin of the s'more remains elusive, though its components have deep historical roots. Some theories suggest it may have descended from Victorian-era sandwich cookies or sponge cakes filled with jam and cream. Early 20th-century commercial items like the MoonPie, launched in Chattanooga, Tennessee, during 1917, or Nabisco’s Mallomar, debuting in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1913, are cited by some. Both featured graham crackers, marshmallows, and chocolate.
The marshmallow itself underwent a radical transformation. For hundreds of years, people utilised the viscous sap from roots of Althaea officinalis—a European and West Asian swamp plant—to treat sore throats medicinally. Medieval 'suckets' were made by candying these roots. During the mid-1800s, French cooks developed a demanding confection resembling a mix of toffee and air by beating sugar with egg whites and sap.
By the late 1800s, gelatin replaced the plant extract, making marshmallows affordable for the masses. The modern version is over half plain air, using gelatin to provide a skeleton for those bubbles. While the recipe became a fixture of American campfire culture, it was formally documented in the 1920s in a Girl Scouts manual titled Tramping and Trailing, where it was originally designated as "some mores."
The name "s'mores" is often attributed to these early scouts or general childhood experimentation. It represents a transition from high-society sweets to accessible, messily experimental snacks that defined the American outdoor experience.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Why Are They Called S’mores
- Also: The Gooey Story of S’mores
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