So last week I found myself at the campsite looking to start up a campfire and make some s'mores. So we went to the Curry Village store and got a box of firewood, toaster forks, and one of the packaged s'mores kits with a tray filled with marshmallows, one pack of graham crackers, and three Hershey milk chocolate bars.
Well - I had fits and starts getting the fire up and running. I asked a neighbor for tips (he recommended wadding up some newspaper under the tinder), and within a few minutes I had a nice fire up and going. The s'mores were OK, but now I remember why I don't particularly like the regular Hershey bar. It was gritty and it had a slightly bitter taste. They also took quite a bit of heat to melt. However - the standard 1.5 oz Hershey bar is just about right for the thickness and breakaway piece size. Once I broke a scored piece off, it was just about right - just fitting inside a graham cracker.
Anyone tried different types of chocolate that might work better. I was thinking maybe Lindt, but it's sort of pricey and in my experience it might melt a little bit too easily. The pieces are thin, which does seem to help. Other types of imported milk chocolate may be too expensive. I was thinking Scharffen Berger, but it's too thick and I'm still a bit peeved at Hershey's for closing down the Berkeley plant and moving all production to the Midwest. I've seen some chocolate bars at Trader Joe's but it seems sort of hit or miss.
Now Nestle does seem to have a smoother chocolate in about the same size/thickness as a regular Hershey bar. Their regular milk chocolate bars seem a bit hard to find. I was thinking maybe a Crunch bar, but would the rice be wrong for a s'more? Not to mention the bars aren't scored for easy sizing. I have seen a few s'mores recipes that call for Nestle Crunch bars.