Hearty Hardtack Recipes
Overcoming childhood ambivalence, the author discovered hardtack could be a delicious snack and came up with several hardtack recipes for variety's sake.
By Gail E. Johnson
March/April 1980
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Hardtack recipes are available in plain, whole wheat, rye, millet, sunflower, and cornmeal variations.
PHOTO: MOTHER EARTH NEWS STAFF
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A childhood ration of seafaring tales—many of which
described long voyages endured on a diet of hardtack—left me with
ambivalent feelings about the long-time staple food. It was a
pleasant surprise, then, to discover an old Swedish recipe that's
both fast and easy . . . and produces delicious hardtack as well.
What's more, one batch will make eight 12 inch diameter discs
which are great served "hot from the pan" with butter and make
very convenient snacks to enjoy while camping or backpacking,
too. What follows is the original and several variations of hardtack recipes.
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Plain Ol' Hardtack
To make a basic hardtack,
mix 2 1/2 cups of old-fashioned oatmeal, 3 cups of unbleached
flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of baking soda in
a large bowl. Then, in a separate container, add 1 1/2 cups of
buttermilk (or soured powdered milk mix) and 3 tablespoons of
honey to 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of melted bacon or sausage
drippings . . . and combine this mixture with the dry
ingredients. When the dough is thoroughly mixed, form it Into
eight balls of equal size and roll each one out on a floured
board (the thickness will depend on the size of your pans). Use a
pegged rolling pin if such a (tool is available . . . if not, a
standard rolling pin, jar, or large drinking glass will do.
Transfer each circle to a lightly greased pizza pan and pat and
smooth the dough to fit. A meat tenderizing tool can be used to
stipple—or dent—a pattern in the surface at this point if a
pegged rolling pin wasn't used ... and you can mark the "pie"
into squares, diamonds, or triangles with a regular pizza cutter,
if desired.
Put the pans in the oven for 5 1/2 minutes at
450°F. Timing is crucial: The resulting "way bread" should be
dry, but browned only around the edges.
When you remove your
finished hardtack from the oven, let it stand for a moment .. .
then use a pancake turner to place the discs on wire racks to
cool, and put your next batch on the pans. (The pizza sheets will
not need to be regreased to bake subsequent discs of dough.)
