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street food

Of late street, or festival food is on my mind. Surely because I got a copy of Street Food (2007). I've read it, and browsed its photos and recipes. But was slightly disappointed that everything inside is so exotic. Oh, that's not bad. But it's nothing I can relate to. It's beyond my experience. Thus, it's lovely to look at, but a fair number of ingredients called for within its recipes are not readily available in my local grocery store.

At first glance, this is one of those coffee table cookbooks. The author is Tom Kine, of London, and this is not his first book. There being a large Indian population in London, Kine forwent the travel to the far east and sampled Indian food on his own streets. Isn't that cheating, a bit? Surely the Indian food one eats in England has been Anglicized? Much as Mexican and Chinese food are dumbed down for us Americans.

I took the book along to my podiatric appointment; there's some funkiness in my foot and Blogless Amy recommended her seersucker-suit wearing podiatrist. I cannot resist a seersucker suit.  When the podiatrist saw what I was reading he asked what I was making for dinner. Unfortunately, I answered "Nothing from this book," quite because of the aforementioned reason of lack of access to ingredients.

Kine's book covers India/Sri Lanka. Always loved saying Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka. Then on to Southeast Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, Southern Europe, and lastly the Middle East and North Africa. What's missing? Oh, the United States, of course. That made me wonder whether there isn't any tasty street food in our country. Having never lived in a metropolitan urban environment, I've never dined street-side from a vendor. But I saw those hot dog men pushing their Lucky Dog carts round New Orleans. Didn't get one. I mean, a hot dog pales in comparison to a po boy or a beignet.

Street food, in my experience, is associated with fairs and festivals. Of late, the turkey leg makes an ominous appearance at my local fair. They've always appeared at the more historic fairs, like the eighteenth century trade faire at Ft. Loudon. But the local fair has regular food: Hamburgers, fries, hot dogs, corndogs, and an assortment of deep-fried sugary things like Oreos, Twinkies, and other snack foods. Can't say I've dipped into that. And yet, my favorite festival food is one that I don't often indulge in anymore. The funnel cake. Funny that it's associated with the PA Dutch when I've always considered it the ultimate southern treat.

Over the weekend I spent two days hanging out at the Sycamore Shoals Celtic Festival where the fare leaned toward the Scottish. One of the vendors offered Scottish Eggs, which I didn't try. Fish and chips was another menu item.

Yet I went whole hog and tried the Haggis and chips. They cannot legally sell traditionally prepared haggis in the sheep intestine. So my haggis was a blend of meat with grain. I didn't ask for the specifics.

Next day Ian and I indulged in one of our most favorite things: The Corndog. These weren't footlong Fannie Farkles, but they were hot out of the deep fryer and easy to polish off.

Besides the emphasis on deep-fried, there were other vendors at the festival. Barbecue was on hand. Another tent offered wraps, gyros, taco salads. And there was a baker. I bought Eccles buns for my in-laws and had a scone with strawberries and cream for breakfast. It was good, but I'd rather not have strawberries swimming in sauce. There was no choice in the matter. Must say the scones were not as good as the ones that I make. But none of the baking was done on site. It was bagged up and ready to go home with a buyer.

But back to the book. One of the Latin American/Caribbean recipes is for Pudim de abobora or,  pumpkin pudding. It's almost pumpkin time. We love pumpkin here. And the recipe is super easy. I have the ingredients on hand, except for the light cream/half & half. It's baked in a ramekin which makes it super easy for portion control. I know what I'm making for tonight's dessert.

The photos and food styling in this book are awesome. Mouth-watering, even. And I love an index. It's a necessity in a cookbook. Instead of leaving you with just a bunch of recipes, Kine finds common threads among disparate cuisines and pulls them together in a series of menus compiled in the last few pages.  His anecdotes are fine, as well. The sensory descriptions are just enough to make you feel as though you're making a personal connection with the food and its people.

someone want my cheese paper?

What I've come to relish, foodwise, is what is readily available and what was readily available when I was young. Give me diner food and I'm fine. I grew up practically on top of a grill anyway. Oh, I love gourmet, organic, nouveau southern, whatever. But it's just not here.

I love it. It's honest. It's cheap. It's mostly made with fresh ingredients. I prefer it to chain restaurant food of any ilk from McD's all the was up to Cheesecake Factory.

Last night Ian and I had a touch of it at the Betsy Dairy Cream in Elizabethton, Tenn. Cheeseburgers, an order of fries, and we split a swirled frozen custard. What a treat. 

We both dreamed of having a small diner to call our own. BDC reminds Ian of the ice cream shop across the street from his grandmother's house in Canton, Ohio. He and his brother spent a few summer weeks staying with both grandmothers, but it was Elsie's house that was across the street from the ice cream shop. He said it looked almost identical inside to the BDC. Walking across the street at dusk was part of the Cantonese routine and one he recalls with great fondness.

Ian thinks that setting up one of those trailers, like they have outside Lowe's (the home improvement store, not the grocery), is a no-brainer. Selling corn dogs, hot dogs, apple pie and whatever else seems like an easy thing to do. And starting out on a small scale such as trailer-sized wouldn't require much financial outlay. And then he talked about driving the festival circuit. Maybe when we retire. I reminded him that my friend Anna, and her boyfriend, now husband, followed the Dead and sold mongo burritos from their VW bus. Surely they would be a great resource for that type of endeavor.

cheesepaper. yummmm.

vidalia onion fest

It's a shame that I won't make this year's Vidalia Onion Festival held in Vidalia, Georgia. It's their 29th annual, if you can believe that. Their website is filled with useful information. First, there's the list of onion growers; some have websites. Guess that's so you can bypass the supermarket/middle-person and buy direct. Next, there's the history of the Onion Festival. Moses Coleman started it all in 1931. Here are other interesting bits taken directly from their history page:

In 1986, Georgia's state legislature passed legislation giving the Vidalia Onion legal status and defining the 20-county production area. The Vidalia Onion was named Georgia's Official State Vegetable by the state legislature in 1990. More than fifty years after its humble beginning, the Vidalia Sweet Onion is a valuable industry for the state. In 1990 it was named Georgia's official vegetable. Onions contribute over $90 million to Georgia’s economy annually.

(photo from http://www.visit-statesboro.com/one_tank_trips.html)

What else? The merchandise is pretty standard: hats, aprons, t-shirts and tote bags.

There is an arts & crafts festival where I hope one could buy all manner of onion-themed wreaths, quilts, flower arrangements, soaps, and pottery; if it's like most arts & crafts festivals affiliated with harvest festivals like I've attended closer to home.

But mostly I was looking at all the events. There's the softball tournament, the Little Miss Vidalia Onion Pageant, Music, Culinary extravaganzas, street dancing, a rodeo, an air show, a dutch oven demonstration. Even the library is in on the action. Surely the Vidalia Onion Cook-Off & Tasting is the main event. That, or the World Famous Onion Eating Contest.

cornbread coming soon

The 10th Annual National Cornbread Festival convenes in South Pittsburgh, Tennessee next month. The dates are April 29 & 30. One of the events is the Tennessee 4H Cornbread Cook-Off; that's Saturday. Sunday features the Celebrity Cook-Off. Besides the cornbread cook-offs, there are lots of activitites unrealted to food. But the food-realted attractions interest me most. Southern Cooking & Dishes from across the USA make up the festival foods. There's a Cornbread Alley where folks can, and should, sample "Cornbread Recipes Galore." And we can't forget the eating contests: Cornbread Eatin’, Buttermilk Chuggin’, and Ice Cream Eatin’ . I say, we're in for a treat. I'm making a point of getting down to S. Pitt this year for the festival.

FYI: Jiffy comes from the Midwest. But I like the box's design. And, in  a pinch, those jiffy corn muffins aren't bad at all. Plus, you can request their  recipe book at the website. I should be touting Martha White given their close relltionship to Nashville, the Opry, and country music. Southern cooks have relied upon MW products since 1899.