Give Your S'mores A Giant Upgrade Using Aluminum Trays

S'mores are one of the best parts of summer. It's not just the taste that makes the iconic treat so enjoyable, although you can't go wrong with a texture trifecta of ooey gooey marshmallow, slightly melted chocolate, and crunchy graham cracker. It's also the assembly of the ingredients that adds a fun interactive component. But did you know you can give your s'mores a giant upgrade using aluminum trays?

That's right, aluminum trays are the s'mores secret to avoiding everyone's biggest complaint about the nostalgic dessert: The mess. With these, there'll be no more melty marshmallow sticking to your fingers and everything you touch like threads of a spiderweb. Simply pile all your core ingredients into a small, but deep aluminum tray, like this:

Construction is in the eye of the beholder here, and there are no right answers. You can crumble up the graham crackers and throw in the chocolate and marshmallows all willy-nilly, or stack the ingredients for a more traditional approach. Cover the tray with aluminum foil and place it on the coals of your campfire for five or 10 minutes. Grab a fork and dig in.

Besides cutting down on the mess, there are a few other perks to this method of s'more-making. For one thing, you can scale it pretty easily. The small, deep trays are perfect for a solo endeavor, but you can upgrade to sheet pan size to make a larger batch for a crowd.

The tray technique also allows you to get creative with some mix-ins, if you so choose. Toss in some raspberries, like in the Instagram post above, or drizzle your s'mores bake with caramel sauce, peanut butter, or extra chocolate. You could also add a scoop of ice cream on top once it's nice and hot for an "à la mode" take on the dessert favorite.

The s'mores tray is also incredibly versatile in terms of cooking method. If you are actually camping, then cover the tray with foil and stick it right on the campfire or coals to bake. If you're making a tray at home, you can substitute with the oven or toaster oven. That's actually another benefit of using an aluminum tray to upgrade your s'mores; the method works even during colder months, meaning you can enjoy s'mores all year 'round.

There are a couple things you may want to keep an eye out for if you opt to experiment with the aluminum tray method of making s'mores. First is the possibility that the graham crackers, or the other ingredients, might burn. It may take a bit of trial and error to figure out how best to execute on the s'more tray bake — in particular, whether baking over an open flame, over coals, or indoors in the oven works best.

Another significant drawback is the risk of aluminum melting or warping at very high temperatures. Aluminum trays are generally fine in the oven, but could potentially melt if left on a campfire for an extended period of time, especially if the trays are the thinner, more flimsy kind.

Then there's the environmental argument. Aluminum trays can usually be reused, but after baking s'mores, it's unlikely you'll be able to salvage the tray and reuse it, meaning it'll be discarded after a single use and contribute to waste generation. At least be sure to recycle those s'more trays; aluminum is a non-biodegradable material that can clog up landfills.