RE: [at-l] hardtack recipe

["Beau Bushor" <mail2beau@adelphia.net>]

Jennifer,

I have been using hardtack for 30+ years while hiking.  I add wheat germ and
soy flour to mine.  The soy adds a little protein.

Beau Bushor N1MJD
    "bleeder guy"

Backpacking coming events:
There will be loads of backpacking activities including special guest
speakers, slide shows, presentations, equipment reviews, and lots of just
plain fun.
**ALDHA - East "Gathering 99", October 8, 9, 10, 11 (Columbus Day weekend)
in Hanover, NH, http://www.aldha.org
**ALDHA - West "Gathering 99", October 1 - 3, At the Mazama Lodge Mt Hood,
OR.
http://www.gorp.com/nonprof/aldhaw/


-----Original Message-----
From:	owner-at-l@backcountry.net [mailto:owner-at-l@backcountry.net] On
Behalf Of Jennifer Burton Bannister
Sent:	Monday, August 16, 1999 11:55 AM
To:	at-l-digest@backcountry.net
Subject:	[at-l] hardtack recipe

Delita's long post on food has gotten me thinking about lunch!  And,
since I've been asking questions of the list lately, I thought I'd make
a contribution for once (I'm such a taker!).

I love to take whole wheat bagels for lunch on the trail (Brownberry are
my favorite store-bought), but I'd hate to try and carry enough for more
than 3-4 days.  I've been searching for a replacement, and I figured
hardtack would be a good possibility.  I tried a recipe last week and
took it with me on a 20-mile day hike this past weekend (my longest day
ever!!), and it worked really well.  Very durable and pretty tasty with
some good peanut butter on it.  I'm hoping to include it in my maildrops
next year.

Here's the recipe (I've left in the preamble since I kind of enjoy it):

TRAIL BREAKER'S HARDTACK

Bread, in one form or another, has been a staple of human diet for more
than 10,000 years. This fact was documented when charred bits of loaves
-- baked in the Stone Age -- were unearthed in the ruins of the Swiss
Lake Dwellers. The 1936 expedition of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
discovered the remains of loaves, which, through laboratory analysis,
proved to be 35 centuries old. They were found in Egypt's Asasif Valley
on the site of the Raameses temples. Today, we enjoy nearly a zillion
varieties of bread, yet the vast majority do not travel well. The
prerequisite for a trail bread demands it be lightweight, nourishing and
impervious to mold or being sat upon. There is one bread that meets
these demands and, when properly baked, you'll swear it is some of the
leftovers from the Stone Age. Many times, that interval between
breakfast and lunch is punctuated by an ominous rumble -- and it's no
thunder from an approaching storm. It's usually coming from right behind
your belt buckle. But you can silence that grumbling with a satisfying
handful of hardtack.

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2` cup cracked wheat
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Combine flours, cornmeal, wheat, sugar and salt. Add buttermilk, mix well,
and
knead briefly. Shape dough into golf-ball-sized portions. Dust with flour
and roll very thin. Place on greased and floured baking sheet. Bake at
400 degrees,
turning several times, until lightly browned on both sides. Cool; then store
in
waterproof container. Kept from moisture, these crackers are guaranteed to
keep
for at least 10,000 years.

The only things that I did differently were to add a little more
buttermilk (really just a splash), and I rolled out larger portions of
the dough and cut them into rounds with a pastry cutter (a cup would
work too).
* From the Appalachian Trail Mailing List |  http://www.backcountry.net  *

* From the Appalachian Trail Mailing List |  http://www.backcountry.net  *

==============================================================================