It makes me sad when I'm backpacking and reach for a handful of gorp only to find the chocolate chips have melted.
Is there a solution to this? Will M&M's hold up in 8o degree heat?

M&M's will to a point but they are not exactly pure chocolate ;-)

Go as dark as you can, they hold up longer.

I've never had a problem with M&Ms melting. The chocolate softens a bit, but the sugar shell holds everything together. Note that when softened, they can be crushed easier by pressure.

I've gone to non-chocolate coated energy and/or candy bars. Balance Bar makes a Chocolate Brownie that has no coating (the Double Choc Brownie has a coating). Payday candy bars - especially the large ones - are great; peanuts and noughat.

"I've never had a problem with M&Ms melting. The chocolate softens a bit, but the sugar shell holds everything together. Note that when softened, they can be crushed easier by pressure."
We need to extend the M&M breeding program to evolve an M&M that is strong when warm.
http://current.com/1qeqi4c

That M&M crushing problem is why I'm considering adding a light colored brain to my pack. It'd only hold my food for that day. I usually keep my food for the day in my front pocket that's covered with blank mesh. The rest of my food is deep inside my pack where it stays nice & cool.

I think 80°F isn't a problem at all, otherwise it'd melt in my house...or nearly so since the A/C is set at 79°F. The problem is usually the additional heat it picks up from the sun and body heat.

Edited by leaftye on 05/25/2012 18:24:54 MDT.

Dark chocolate with 70% or 80% cocoa will work. I like to break up pieces of Lindt with Blackcurrant or Lindt Chili Pepper to put in my trail mix. I actually started using dark because it was lower in carbs and didn't mess as much with my blood sugar.

I bring chocolate, such as Snickers, on trips even in the desert. My chocolate doesn't melt because I wrap my down jacket or vest around it.

"Will M&M's hold up in 80 degree heat?"

No problem - I've carried them in 90* plus. One thing I discovered, though, was that if I packed the gorp bag tightly, the M&Ms' candy shell would crack, and then the chocolate would get melty. Packed loosely, no such problem developed. YMMV.

When I take my 5 year-old twins out on the trail we're "required" to have s'mores. I take the flat Hershey bars (Special Dark is their preference) and put them in the coozie that I use for rehydrating my meals. Seems to keep them intact and not melted.

+1 for dark chocolate, the darker (higher cocoa content) the better.

I don't consume dairy and I only like really dark chocolate. I find that it holds up in a tropical environment and it's very versitile. I'm just careful to put it in a separate ziploc and arrange it so it doesn't get crushed or smushed in my pack. I also like the heavier bars (ie > 3.5 oz) rather than thinner, lighter ones. And of course, I go for variety, ie. chilis, cherries, coffee beans, etc. so it won't be so rich. You can also melt it in hot water for yummy hot chocolate. Mint works good for this and it takes a litter rum or disaronno (almond liqueor) with it just fine as well.

You know what they say, once you go dark, you won't go back:)

As mother of four and grandmother of six, I can say conclusively that only Hershey's milk chocolate will work in s'mores. The chocolate has to be able to melt from the heat of the toasted marshmallow!
For that purpose, I put the bars in a quart ziplock bag and pack them inside my puffy jacket. At the campsite, I carefully immersed the bag in the creek (handling the package very carefully) and weighted it down with rocks. By dinner time the bars had congealed.

For myself, I far prefer dark chocolate. My favorite is Green and Black's Maya Gold. Just spotted an article reporting that long-term use of dark chocolate lowers the chance of heart disease, thus justifying my preference. Why am I suddenly starting to salivate?

Edited by hikinggranny on 06/01/2012 16:37:53 MDT.

M&Ms are good to more than 80F, but the problem is that on an 80F day (in the shade), your pack in the can go to 110F. And, no, M&Ms won't handle that. Like a lot of milk chocolate, they melt around 90-91F.

We sold Hershey's Tropical Chocolate until the mid 1980's when they stopped making it. It worked, but seemed to raise the melting point through the addition of wax rather than 70-80% cocoa solid. High-cocoa chocolate does well, as others have noted, and tastes better and is better for you due to more flavorinoids (sp?).

Hi Nick

> I bring chocolate, such as Snickers, on trips even in the desert.
You have cool deserts.

Cheers

"You have cool deserts."

Have you ever been to Death Valley National Park in California during the summer?

--B.G.--