Cosmic Cuisine: Camp Half

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In The Sun and The Star, we again return to Camp Half-Blood. Fans of Percy Jackson know that this summer camp is the place to be if you’re a demigod. And while, yeah, not everything about the camp is exactly like a mortal summer camp (monsters and demons pop up way too often), one thing remains the same at all camps: S’MORES! It just wouldn't be camp without these gooey confections. And in The Sun and The Star, while Nico and Will are trekking through the Underworld to save their friend, thoughts of s’mores help to get them through. So I thought I would offer my own twist on these classic treats, with these S’more cookie bombs.

Admittedly messing with perfection is dangerous, but I gave it the old Camp Half-Blood try! I was very pleased with the results. I think you will be too.

Imagine if you will a warm, yummy sugar cookie. Now wrap this cookie around a s'more. Then grill it to give it that special something extra that pushes this decadent treat over the top! This delicious take on everyone's classic campfire favorite, the s'more, is so good even Mr. D might be happy for once. Perfect snack for your The Sun and the Star readthrough!

When it comes to s’mores, I’m honestly a classicist. Nothing will ever beat the taste of a perfectly golden marshmallow with melty chocolate sandwiched between two graham crackers. But I have dabbled with other combinations, and some of them were incorporated into this recipe (peanut butter cups or almonds anyone?).

I know some people who pair just about anything with a marshmallow and graham crackers and call it a s’more. So if you want a minty peppermint patty s’more bomb, or a dried cherries s’more bomb, or even a bacon s’more bomb (no judgment here) go for it! Make your s’more however you want. Approach this recipe with all the enthusiasm and contempt for rules (hehe) that any summer camp would admire! Just enjoy making them and spending time with the people helping you.

While I shared my delicious and (previously) secret family recipe for sugar cookies with you, there is no shame in using premade cookie dough for these. Especially if you’re going to try cooking these at a campout, the results will be just as yummy because the fillings are the real stars of the show here.

And if you’re baking with kids, they don't always have the patience for the extra steps involved in making and chilling the dough. They just want to get to the fun part of stuffing and eating the s’more bombs. So I give you full permission to make things easier on yourself. Like I said, just enjoy them, it's all about having fun!

In the recipe, I mentioned three different ways to cook these yummy treats. The first is to use a campfire. Kids always love throwing things in the fire and eating them later, it's a consistent hit at every Boy Scout and family campout I’ve ever been on. Even a plain potato becomes better when it's been cooked over the coals of a campfire. This way is a little harder to time and may need to be eaten out of the foil with a fork, but it's always a hit.

The second method is the one I used when taking pictures for this recipe, the grill. I like the grill because it's almost like an oven but it doesn't heat up my house, making it a great choice for summertime baking. Just make sure your grill has a thermometer so you can check the temp and lower those flames once the cookies are in.

Also, don't skip the overturned pan. It helps to distance the pan from the flames a little, allowing the cookies to bake without burning. This method will give a great, flame-grilled taste without the difficulty of baking over a fire.

The third method is the tried and true oven. If you aren't feeling adventurous enough to use a fire or a grill, there's nothing wrong with using an oven. It's the most controlled of the three methods and will give you the most consistent and even cookies. Just make sure to preheat.

I also mentioned using a muffin tin to bake these s’more cookie bombs. The cookies tend to spread a lot thanks to all their size. Freezing the dough helps to cut down on the spread (don't skip that step!) but it can still be considerable. Baking the cookies in the muffin tins helps to control that spread. You’ll end up with little balls that will really remind you of a bomb when you bite in and have the hidden treasures explode in your mouth!

However you choose to cook them, just make sure you use your parchment paper! Never, ever skip parchment paper. I know I tell you this for pretty much every recipe but it's so important. I remember my life before I learned of the wonders of parchment paper and it wasn't pretty. Obviously, if you choose to use the muffin tins use the little muffin cups and you’ll be golden.

It's true that Will and Nico spend some time dreaming of s’mores in the Underworld and it helps them push through and finish their quest. But honestly, it isn't the s’mores that save them, it's the memories attached to the s’mores. After all, s’mores are so much more than just chocolate and marshmallows smushed between graham crackers. It's about the people we make them with and the fun we have while we eat them.

Every time we make s’mores my kids get to hear about the marshmallow-stealing raccoon that swiped the bag right off the table while my friend was standing there, then had a party with his buddy eating the whole bag about 30 feet from the campfire. My kids weren't even thoughts yet when this happened but they know the story and laugh like they were there every time. It's connections like these are what s’mores represent to Nico and Will in The Sun and The Star and it's these connections that make them so important. So make some s’more bombs and even if they turn out flat and you burn them all it’ll be a great story to tell (and they’ll still taste good, I promise).

The Sun and The Star by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro is available now! Will you be making this Camp Half-Blood Campfire S’more Cookie bombs? Let us know on Twitter or in The Cosmic Circus Discord. And if you haven't already, check out our review of The Sun and The Star!

Book Review: ‘The Sun and The Star: a Nico Di Angelo Adventure’