Hardtack Is Easy to Make, Hard to Eat

I made a batch to see how bad is bad. I used what I had on hand: Gold Medal all-purpose flour, Food Lion iodized salt and well water. Mixing was the easy part. The kneading took about 20 minutes, with repeated folding and pressing until it all clung together.

Lacking a bread board, I used a counter top sprinkled with flour.

I didn't have a rolling pin, so a bottle of California cabernet sauvignon was substituted.

I cut the oddly shaped, rolled dough into a square and then cut that into three-inch pieces. Each got pricked with a fork several times.

Thirty minutes was about right. Fresh from the oven, it was easily broken and tasted warm and bland.

An hour later, I couldn't break it, and the taste was cold and bland.

As tasters, dogs are usually a good panel. The German shepherd in my household sniffed a cracker, quickly turned her head away and moved toward the door. The Newfoundland tried to look interested. He gummed it and then spat it on the floor.

However, I am inspired and plan to make up several more batches as a special Christmas gift, concealed in colorful holiday cookie tins, for friends who share my enthusiasm for the Civil War.

Linda Wheeler can be reached at 540-465-8934 or cwwheel@shentel.net.