Sylvester Graham, an ordained Presbyterian minister born in West Suffield, Connecticut in 1794, donated his name to the popular cracker we call "graham." Mr. Graham, in his mid-thirties, declared war on meats, fats, and white bread. He became a strict vegetarian and a self-appointed doctor of medicine. He refused any food that wasn't "natural", as he believed God intended men to only eat food in its natural state. His war on white bread led him and his followers to refuse white flour, preferring instead to grind wheat without the bran layer removed from the kernel and use the resulting flour for bread, crackers, etc. When the bran is ground with the kernel, a brown meal results-nicknamed "graham" flour. It is no other than whole-wheat flour used today, but is just a bit coarser. Most of the graham crackers you buy in the store are simply made from whole-wheat flour.
This Graham Crackers recipe is from the Food Facts and History Cookbook. Download this Cookbook today.
