Ships biscuits... For GAoP?

[Capt. Trueblood]

A fine article with sources here: http://www.colonialbaker.net/Reproduction%20Biscuit%20article%20JOTEA%202011.pdf

[Mission]

See my quote from Cesar de Saussure, above.

If the hard tack you ate was tasteless, impervious to liquid, and too hard for someone with healthy teeth to eat, then it probably wasn't right.

Somewhere, possibly that article I cited last year, I had read that hard tack was sometimes baked three times or more to assure it would last longer. 'Right' may be too subjective a term. Perhaps 'typical' or (based on what I had) 'edible' would be better terms.

(Although I must confess I wondered when had that hard tack at the Blackbeard festival how the hell anyone ever ate the stuff. At the time I thought of all the times the sailors food was rationed and decided that must have something to do with it.)

As for taste, I can't see flour, water and salt having much more taste than the stuff I tried.

[Jib]

When I was a child my mother used to make a paste for crafts out of flour and water. We used it for everything including paper mache. I just can't image adding salt a baking that paste would make it tasty.

[William Brand]

John made ship's biscuits three years back for Fort de Chartres. I kept one in my kit. It's still edible despite being hard as a rock. I think it will outlast me.

[William Brand]

and here is a biscuit maker that Mike Ameling made

I was so very sorry to learn the Mike Ameling died a few years back. I had no idea. The man was an amazing artist when it came to blacksmithing.

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

Yes he was. Most of the strykers I make are directly from his research. I regret having lived so near and never met him.

As for the hard-tack reciept for ships bicuit vs. U.S. Civil War hard -tack, it usually is too hard to do anything with until it has soaked for a couple of hours. We use it for some of our living history encampments and I dread seeing it come out in rations. I always save every drop of bacon grease to make the stuff edible...errr, somewhat edible. There may be some difference in baking but I assure you all that it is too hard for even healthy teeth.

Bo

[Bright]

http://youtu.be/FyjcJUGuFVg