However, I had yet to try my hand at pilot crackers, also sometimes referred to as pilot bread crackers. Having already experienced cracker disappointment several times, I was trying not to be suckered again. I was hoping, you know, to produce something cracker-like and worthy of eating and serving to others.
I think we have a winner here.
Pilot crackers have been around for a couple of hundred years. According to that source of all knowledge, Wikipedia, the pilot cracker is Nabisco’s oldest recipe, one the company acquired with the purchase of a bakery in Massachusetts. John Pearson is credited with creating the recipe that he used to make the seagoing biscuits.
Hardtack was also prepared for long voyages and cross country journeying. So how do the two differ? Both have a long shelf life if properly stored and have basically the same ingredients, flour, water, and salt (the recipe for pilot crackers also includes a tablespoon of lard). And that’s where the similarities end. As I read the article I wrote on hardtack last year, I was reminded of the decision I made at the time to never make hardtack again. Eighteen months have passed since then and nothing has happened to change my mind on that issue.
Less than 24 hours has passed since I made the pilot crackers. While most are still on the cookie sheet they were baked on, we’ve all eaten a few, and I’ve been thinking about what I would change to improve them. And I’m still wondering why I didn’t bring another one back to bed with me to munch on as I write this article.
Pilot Crackers
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon lard
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup water
Cut the lard into the flour with a fork or pastry blender and then stir in the salt. Add the water and mix thoroughly.
If it’s a warm day and the dough is too soft, place it in the fridge to rest for about 10 minutes to firm up. Otherwise, roll the dough out to 1/8-1/4 inch thick and use a biscuit cutter or glass to cut crackers out. Place the crackers on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes at 400°F.
Family reviews: Ok, these are definitely edible. They’re worlds better than hardtack. They serve the purpose. They would be pretty good with some cream cheese. Maybe some chicken salad—you know, chicken, mayo, sour cream, celery, onion, cheese. (Guess what we had for dinner last night.) I like them better than the survival ration bars. (Of course, I realize that they are lacking the sugar and calories, but I’m just saying I like them much better. I think I would rather store these in the car.) I would definitely make these again. But there is no way I would buy the #10 cans of them—wow, those are just too expensive.
I think these would work really well with butter and a little jelly, or maybe some PB&J, so it would be great for small children.
These could be made in bulk in advance and then stored with an oxygen absorber and sealed in Mylar bags so they’d be ready to eat in an emergency.
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10 december 2021
if you want the retail equal - matza or matzah or mazzah -Jewish unleaven flatbread >> find it in the ethnic section of your bigger grocery concerns - on sale and selling for pennies after Passover
ReplyDeleteJennifer, I have stored quite a bit of hardtack. I expect that you followed a Civil War recipe for hardtack and, if so, that was a mistake.
ReplyDeleteThe Civil War recipes on the internet usually use the dimensions of the original hardtack crackers issued to the troops. There is no reason for that and that's where the problem is. Eating hardtack made in the dimensions issued to Civil War soldiers will likely cause dental damage sooner or later unless it is manually crumbled or soaked in water or soup and the like.
I suggest that anyone intending to make hardtack make the dough no more than 1/4 to 5/16ths inch thick, and no more than 4 inches long and 1 1/2 inch wide. (You will need to experiment to find the correct baking time if you do.) If prepared this way, the hardtack is very brittle and can be chewed easily.
When I gave a piece of hardtack prepared this way to my son when he was a teenager and asked for his opinion, his response was, "Dad, it tastes like bagel chips." It certainly tasted similar.
A word of warning: Never, ever give in to demands by Mrs. Survivormann who wants several full trays of hardtack lying on the counter put away before the hardtack has completely dried out for a couple of days. Doing this before the hardtack is dry as a bone can result in hardtack becoming moldy while in storage. (Ask me how I know.)