Dutch Oven S'more Bake
Graham crackers, chocolate chips, and mini marshmallows layered in a Dutch oven and heated until it collapses into itself.
- calories
- 420
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 120
- protein
- 3 g
- serves
- 8, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 20 min
- total time
- 25 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dessert
- Dutch oven
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Grab and go
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Graham crackers | 1 sleeve | broken into rough pieces, not crumbs |
|---|---|---|
| Semi-sweet chocolate chips | 1 1/2 cups | |
| Mini marshmallows | 3 cups | minis melt evenly, big ones scorch on top and stay cold underneath |
| Parchment paper | 1 sheet | optional, but it is the difference between wiping and scrubbing |
Method
- Burn your fire down to coals well before you want dessert. Flames scorch the bottom layer before the top melts.
- Line the Dutch oven with parchment if you brought it. Press it to the sides so it does not fold into the middle.
- Layer broken graham crackers across the bottom, scatter chocolate chips over them, then cover with mini marshmallows. Repeat until the ingredients run out or the oven is two thirds full.
- Put the lid on and set the oven over coals, with a handful of coals on the lid if you want the top to brown.
- Cook 15 to 20 minutes. Check at 15 by lifting the lid away from you so the steam does not find your face.
- Pull it off the heat when the chocolate has gone shiny and the marshmallows have slumped. Scoop it out hot with a long wooden spoon.
This is s’mores without the sticks, the queue, or the marshmallow you dropped in the dirt. Everything goes in the Dutch oven in layers and the heat does the assembly for you. It feeds eight from one pot, which is why it belongs at car camp and not in a pack.
Coals, not flames, are the whole game. The oven holds heat evenly enough to melt the top layer of marshmallows before the bottom layer of crackers burns, but only if the heat is steady and moderate. Mini marshmallows matter for the same reason: they melt in the time the chocolate needs, so nothing waits on anything else. The parchment is not about flavor. Sugar welded to cast iron is a genuinely bad end to the night.
Packing
Crackers, chips, and marshmallows each stay in their own bag until camp. Chocolate chips ride in the shade or in the cooler in summer heat, otherwise they fuse into one brick and you will be chipping at it with a knife.
Variations
- Swap the graham crackers for crushed sandwich cookies. Chocolate on chocolate, and the cookies hold their shape better under heat.
- Peanut butter chips in place of a third of the chocolate. That kills the nut-free claim, so say so if you are feeding a group.
- A pinch of flaky salt over the top before serving cuts through the sugar.
https://campfirefoodie.com/dutch-oven-smore-recipe