Civil War Recipes

Subjects

• History
• Health
• Mathematics

Grade

• Pre-K - 12

Brief Description

Students prepare foods, including hardtack, that were among the staples of a Civil War soldier's diet.

Objectives

Students follow recipes to create foods that were common foods of the Civil War era.

Keywords

Civil War, food, recipe

Materials Needed

flour, water, salt, rolling pin, knife, fork, baking sheet (for the hardtack recipe); other materials as needed

Lesson Plan

One of the staples of a Civil War soldier's diet was hardtack, a hard biscuit- or cracker-like bread. Students follow simple recipes to make hardtack and other foods that were common during Civil War times.

The recipe for hardtack is as follows:

• Mix together 2 cups of flour, cup of water, and six pinches of salt.
• Flatten dough to a uniform thickness of about inch.
• Cut the dough into 3- or 4-inch squares.
• Poke four rows of four holes (16 holes in all) in each dough square.
• Bake on a baking sheet for 30 minutes at 400 degrees F.
• Turn dough over and bake for another 30 minutes.
• Turn off the oven, but leave hardtack in the oven until it cools.
• Enjoy!

For additional Civil War recipes, see the following Web sites:

• Civil War Recipes
• Recipes of the Civil War Era
• Mason-Dixon Line's Civil War Recipes

Assessment

Observe students as they follow recipe directions.

Lesson Plan Source

Education World

National Standards

Social Sciences:
NSS-USH.K-4.1
NSS-USH.5-12.5

Math:
NM.K-4.10
NM.5-8.13

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