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Sorghum Molasses Bread hero image coming soon
1861-1900 - Civil War military cooks and postwar frontier households
Sorghum Molasses Bread is a hearty bread sweetened by sorghum molasses, popular during and after the Civil War as a sustaining food. Its simple ingredients and dense texture made it suitable for military and frontier kitchens, reflecting practical baking in austere conditions.
Difficulty
Medium
Prep time
30 minutes
Cook time
40 minutes
Total time
1 hour 10 minutes
Servings
12 slices
Region
United States
Era introduced
1861-1900
Introduced by
Civil War military cooks and postwar frontier households
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During the Civil War and Reconstruction, sorghum molasses became an important sweetener and preservative in bread-making for soldiers and settlers. Sorghum Molasses Bread combines simple pantry ingredients to produce a dense, nourishing loaf that could be made with limited resources. Its enduring popularity highlights the adaptive foodways of military and frontier cooks responding to material scarcity and hunger.
Historic recipe inspired by Civil War and Reconstruction-era military bread using sorghum molasses.
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