The graham cracker is a cookie of sorts, popular in the United States, which is typically sweetened with sugar, honey and/or cinnamon. It’s an American invention.

The current product is a far cry from the original recipe. Graham crackers were originally invented in the early 1800s by a Presbyterian minister, Sylvester Graham. He introduced this snack as part of his then-radical vegetarian diet as a form of suppressing any sexual desires. Many regarded Graham as a nut but he is possibly an American pioneer in fad diets. However, he did create a large following who were led to believe that mustard and ketchup caused insanity, in drinking only water and in sleeping on hard mattresses with one’s windows open regardless of the weather. All were touted as secrets to a healthy life.

Graham promoted the merits of a high-fiber diet and the use of homemade unsifted wheat flour instead of refined white flour. The 1800s were the beginning of the industrialization of food. Bread...