Petrified Bannock

Posted by: CANOEDOGS

Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 05:23 PM


if you want a survival food that will last and last,try bannock..the old trappers standby bread.the bit in the photo was made in 1991--i checked my canoeing log book just to refresh myself on the date.on the last nite of a two week solo trip i used up the last of the bannock mix and made a whopper to serve as part of the lunch for the all day paddle back to the car..too much to eat all of i found the remains in my boat bag when i got back home and rather than toss it i put it in a cup on a high shelf.when i moved a few years ago it went into a box and was found the other day when i was digging deep for gear to take on this springs trip..eat it??--incase in plastic?
toss??--send to the Smithsonian??..anyway--make bannock and never go hungry--
Posted by: dougwalkabout

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 05:50 PM

I suppose you could varnish it and mount it on a plaque. It's too big for a good-luck charm on your key ring.

I suppose its edibility depends on what fats, if any, were used to make it. Most will go rancid over time. Even the natural fats in whole-wheat flour go rancid. But if it's just white flour, baking soda and water, and there's no mould, and you're hungry enough, you might just eat it and survive.

I think the ship's biscuits of old were fat free, except for the weevils. Tap it and see if anybody has taken up residence. Sea ditty optional.

Have you done a "sniff test" yet?

Posted by: Chris Kavanaugh

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 06:00 PM

You know, I think I can see Doug's face to the right of your thumb.
We could auction if off to support the website?
Posted by: benjammin

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 06:13 PM

Chris, it looks more like Wilson from Castaway I think.

I've never got biscuits to last so long without molding up. Even when dried out excessively, they eventually acquire enough moisture to host spores.

I doubt there's much difference between how it is now and how it was 10 years ago. I also bet you could break it up into a glass of milk and eat it. Ha! I didn't say you'd enjoy it...
Posted by: dougwalkabout

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 07:00 PM

Egads, you're right!
Posted by: Art_in_FL

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 09:32 PM

Perhaps you could keep it as a defensive weapon by throwing it at an intruder. LOL.

I like things that last a long time. I wonder how much of the longevity can be attributed to your northern location with lower temperatures and humidity. I wounder how that stuff would hold up at 35C and 100% humidity.

In my experience in those conditions things you couldn't think would get moldy do. Things like books, video tapes, leather that was stored clean, and, oddly, many plastics.
Posted by: ironraven

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 11:26 PM

I say eat it.

psst... I call dibs on his cook gear.
Posted by: oldsoldier

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 11:39 PM

My mom made brownies once, that were likely as hard as those things look...
Posted by: wildman800

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/04/09 11:51 PM

Let's also hear it for the canned Pound Cake that was a part of "C Rations"! It was much more effective than throwing rocks when one ran out of ammo!
Posted by: kd7fqd

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 01:17 AM

Wildman You do know that when bored you can use "C" rats pound cake and biscuits as "skipping stones"LOL

Mike
Posted by: wildman800

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 02:50 AM

That's just not as satisfying as using them to ruin a rat's day!!!!
Posted by: erehwon

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 03:57 AM

So what's the recipe?

I used to make up what I called "pilot biscuits" when I was a scout. I somewhere lost the recipe, as I found more satisfying camp foods, and could start to afford freeze dried.

I kind of miss those pilot biscuits, though.
Posted by: cousinit

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 05:21 AM

looks like my wife cooking when we first got hitched could not eat them but made fine targets
Posted by: Nicodemus

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 06:47 AM

What a relief... When I saw the pic I thought it was a follow up to your last post... Checking something... LOL

We always called it Fry Bread, but were once goofed on quite a bit by a few of our fellow campers from Canada for not calling it Bannock.
Posted by: RobertRogers

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 01:58 PM

Bronze it.
Posted by: oldsoldier

Re: Petrified Bannock - 05/05/09 08:32 PM

That thing doesnt need bronze...it is petrified.