National S’mores Day on August 10th recognizes the most popular campfire treat! Millions of people of all ages love this gooey, toasted treat.
S’mores consists of a roasted marshmallow with a layer of chocolate bar sandwiched between two pieces of graham cracker.
- The origin of this tasty snack is credited to the entrepreneur Alec Barnum. However, the first recorded version of the recipe can be found in the 1927 publication of Tramping and Trailing with the Girl Scouts. Even though the Girl Scouts were not the first ones to make s’mores, Girl Scout groups describe them in their reports as early as 1925. Earlier recipes used the name “Some Mores.” It is unclear when the word “S’mores” became the more common name.
- The first S’more recipe can be found in a book of recipes published by the Campfire Marshmallows company in the early 1920s, which also tells us that the treat had already been popular with both Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts for some time.
- The Hershey Company makes more than 373 million HERSHEY’S Milk Chocolate bars a year. That’s enough to make 746 million S’mores!
- HONEY MAID Graham Crackers were introduced in 1925 and are the leading brand of Graham Crackers in the U.S.
- The Merriam-Webster dictionary suggests the first known use of the word was in 1974.
- Americans buy 90 million pounds of marshmallows every year. Additionally, during the summer it is estimated that 50 percent of marshmallows sold are used for s’mores.
- The graham cracker was invented by Presbyterian minister Sylvester Graham in 1829 in Bound Brook, New Jersey. Graham originally invented the health food as part of a diet to help suppress “unhealthy carnal urges”
- The sap from the mallow root was used in ancient Europe and West Asia for soothing sore throats. Kids would definitely like eating marshmallows instead of taking medicine!
- 31% of Americans make s’mores on a grill.
- 87% of Americans have tried a s’more.
- 31% of Americans have only had a s’more cooked over campfire, and 41% of people in metro cities haven’t even tasted a s’more before!
- In 2015 these were the top 10 S’mores loving states according to Twitter.
- # 1 Vermont
- # 2 West Virginia
- # 3 Maine
- # 4 Wyoming
- # 5 Idaho
- # 6 New Hampshire
- # 7 South Dakota
- # 8 Minnesota
- # 9 Indiana
- #10 Kentucky
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