State Recipes

My first taste of Chess Pie came during my days working for Senator Bob Bennett from Utah– we had a lone Tennessean working in the office who would make Chess Pie whenever our staff held a potluck. I think it was her way of winning us all over to the rich, delight that is Southern food. Tennessee Chess Pie, originally flavored with lemon, is also popular in its chocolate form. Both versions are true Southern classics. It’s rich and custard-like. Traditionally made with eggs, butter, and sugar, it’s a simple pie that was made with whatever ingredients bakers happened to have on hand. Most Chess Pie recipes call for cornmeal, vinegar or buttermilk. Anytime thickening was needed in cooking and baking, cooks used what they had– in the Tennessee mountains, it was cornmeal. You can find this delightfully sweet concoction in any Tennessee bakery– and pretty much any bakery in the South. INGREDIENTS 1 unbaked frozen pie shell* 1/2 cup butter 1 tsp vanilla 2 oz. semi-sweet chocolate 3 eggs 1 cup sugar dash of salt DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt the butter and chocolate together in a small saucepan on low heat, stirring until smooth. Stir […]

Ever heard of buckeyes? Buckeye candy is an Ohio tradition— a sweet ball traditionally made with peanut butter, butter, and powdered sugar then dipped in melted chocolate– leaving a bit of the peanut butter exposed to look like buckeye nuts. Never heard of a buckeye nut? Well, the buckeye is the state tree of Ohio– and the dark brown nuts they produce resemble the eye of a deer, which grows inside a rounded prickly fruit capsule. Actual buckeyes are not edible– so don’t think about trying them! Our version of this no-bake recipe is a bit healthier than the traditional one but tastes just as good. We swapped out the powdered sugar and butter and replaced them with almond flour and maple syrup. They’re incredibly tasty! My kids devoured them! INGREDIENTS 1 1/3 cup almond flour 1 cup natural peanut butter 1/4 tsp salt (if peanut butter isn’t salted) 1/4 cup maple syrup 1 tsp vanilla 1 cup dark chocolate chips 1 tsp coconut oil DIRECTIONS In a bowl, mix together almond flour, peanut butter, salt, maple syrup and vanilla. Roll into balls and place on parchment paper on a cookie sheet and freeze for 30 minutes. In a small bowl, melt […]

There’s a well-known saying about beans… you probably quoted it humorously as a child. We’ll spare repeating it here, but in Nebraska, there’s another famous saying (at least in the bean industry) about beans… this one from a United States Senator… “The USDA says Nebraska accounts for the majority of the U.S. Great Northern crop which means if you’re eating baked beans in Boston, Senate Bean Soup in Washington, a cassoulet in Paris, a vegetarian stew in San Francisco, or white bean chili in Dallas, and they’re made with Great Northern Beans, chances are they were grown in Nebraska,” former Senator Ben Nelson once stated. Beans are Nebraska’s thing. Nebraska is number one in Great Northern bean production, number two in Pinto bean and number three in Light Red Kidney bean production. White beans are packed with nutrients. They provide an excellent source of protein, fiber, as well as several other essential nutrients. And they make this Nebraska White Bean Puttanesca so tasty that we have it on repeat at my house. My picky six year-old even eats it. You also MUST eat it with garlic bread (recipe included below). It’s not pictured in these photos, because my kids ate it all before I could […]

What do you know about North Dakota? Bordered by Montana to the west, North Dakota is the 4th least densely populated with 11 people living in every square mile. Not lacking in North Dakota though– wheat farms. The majority of the Peace Garden State is covered in wheat farms– which includes flaxseed.

If you’re from New Orleans, there’s no question what a beignet is. For the rest of us, if you haven’t had a Louisiana beignet, you’re in for a real treat. Beignets are a Louisiana tradition– particularly in New Orleans. They’re pillowy squares of sweet dough fried until golden brown and then dusted with powdered sugar. Beignets are extremely popular at eatery’s in the French Quarter of New Orleans– often with lines winding around the block to get a taste of some. These little squares of tastiness have a history behind how they became tradition in Louisiana. When French-Catholic colonists settled close to New Orleans, they brought their religious traditions (aka Mardi Gras) and cuisine (aka beignets) along with them. Mardi Gras is French for “Fat Tuesday,” the day before Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of Christian Lent (the season leading up to Easter). During Lent, many Christians fast, so Fat Tuesday refers to the day of eating rich, “fatty” foods before their fasting begins. Part of that rich, “fatty” diet included beignets– French for fritter or doughnut. And so the tradition began of beignets in Louisiana. INGREDIENTS 3/4 cup lukewarm water 1 packet active dry yeast 1/2 cup evaporated […]

Some of the best maple syrup I have ever eaten in my entire life came from the Granite State of New Hampshire. During my Senate days, I helped the press secretary from Senator Judd Gregg’s office (the New Hampshire senator who retired in 2011) with a project. As a thank you, his office sent me an entire jug of New Hampshire maple syrup. It was beyond delicious! And I have never gone back to the fake stuff. Thank you, New Hampshire! But let’s talk about maple syrup for a quick second… did you know there are more than 350 maple producers in New Hampshire who produce 90,000 gallons of maple syrup each year? The state is so well known for it’s maple syrup that there is a celebration every year in it’s honor. Hosted by the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association, the 25th Annual NH Maple Weekend will be March 21 – 22, 2020. The festivities include meeting the maple producers of New Hampshire, seeing how their operation works, enjoying free samples of fresh syrup, maple candies and confections, coffee and doughnuts, as well as a bunch of other activities. If you’re ever in the area, the state also boasts […]

I know. It’s after the holidays and here I am posting a cranberry recipe. Is that so bad? If you try this cranberry salsa, you will be grateful I transcended the recipe-posting seasonal barriers to share this with you. Here’s what you need to know about cranberries: Wisconsin is the leading producer of cranberries in the United States, harvesting more than 60 percent of the cranberry crop in America. Not only is the cranberry Wisconsin’s top crop, but it’s also the official state fruit. Settlers of the Badger State started growing the cranberry back in 1860. Today there are more than 250 cranberry producers in the state, growing on more than 21,000 acres in central and northern Wisconsin. And lucky for you, you can still buy fresh cranberries through the end of January. So, you still have plenty of time (ahhh… okay, so a week) to run to the store and buy fresh cranberries to make this. Wisconsin Cranberry Salsa is the perfect blend of tart and sweet. Eat it with tortilla chips and you won’t be able to stop. Ingredients 12 ounces fresh cranberries 1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored and chopped 1/2 medium red onion, chopped 1 large […]

Minnesota and wild rice. Did you know it was a thing? In fact, wild rice is the official state grain–also a thing–of Minnesota. Apparently at one time all the wild rice produced in the entire world came from there. In fact, a majority of it still comes from there. It was also a staple of the Native Americans, who harvested it by hand from the northern Great Lakes. It has been “a thing” in Minnesota ever since. I don’t cook a lot with wild rice. However, one of my very favorite soups in the world just so happens to have wild rice in it. This soup is my go-to for when I have to take someone dinner. It’s creamy, hearty, and is the perfect comfort food. The addition of lemon juice in it is just enough to make it different from every other chicken and rice soup…in a very good way. Even the pickiest of eaters goes back for seconds and I’m always asked for the recipe when I take it to someone. Lemon Chicken Wild Rice Soup (serves 10-12) 1 1/2 cup shredded carrots 3/4 cup chopped celery with leaves 1 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup butter 1 clove […]

Each of these Thanksgiving recipes graced the dinner tables of some of our most famous presidents (and are also reader favorites) and will strike up some fun conversations this Thanksgiving. Sure, anyone can serve plain old stuffing or pecan pie at Thanksgiving. But what if your Thanksgiving dishes this year doubled as conversation starters! Look no further.  

Before you run, you must know that I’ve made this soup no less than four times in the last two weeks alone. It’s that good. Even my pickiest child eats it by the bowl full. Better yet, even the most wilted of celery works wonderfully in this recipe. So, let’s take a look at celery and Michigan for a moment. You probably don’t typically think of the two together. But, Michigan is the birthplace of our nation’s celery industry. Celery requires a long, cool growing season, so it only makes sense that a state like Michigan (hello long winters) would be one of the top celery producers in the United States. Dutch farmers in the Kalamazoo area of Michigan started growing and marketing celery in the 1850’s as a food delicacy– and out of curiosity. There’s even a historical marker AND A MUSEUM recognizing the early celery farmers (I would LOVE to know if anyone has been there)! Also, did you know celery is part of the parsley family? If you look closely at celery leaves, you’ll see why. Michigan, along with California, produced the majority of the U.S. celery crop. In 2017, Michigan harvested 1,600 acres of celery, worth $12.6 million. Now that you know more than you ever dreamed about […]