Big E 2010: Must-Eats

The Big E offers a plethora of great foods aside from the stands within the Avenue of the States. When Sam and I went last Tuesday, the primary reason for our going was for the food. I made a list of the things I wanted us to get, and managed to eat most of them without noticing the things we missed because we were too full and satisfied from everything else we'd consumed.

The fair has a few staple foods, things it's famous for. The stands for these foods typically have the longest lines, and for good reason -- the food's amazing, and we sampled a lot of them. It also has a lot of non-staple, but still must-try, foods. This is a summary of the foods you absolutely must try if you're going to the Big E for the food. You would be seriously remiss if you didn't try at least a few of these. In no particular order...

Pickles

Sup, pickle.

The first food we purchased after entering the park -- after I got an iced latte and Sam, recently turning 21, got a beer -- was from this pickle stand. We wandered through the craft area and when we came out on the other side, Sam saw the stand, gasped, and exclaimed, "PICKLES!" The craving for a giant, fresh pickle came on suddenly, and the need for one was implanted. There was no turning back. And, since we came on a weekday, there was no line.

The pickle itself was giant, crunchy, and by all accounts perfect. It was crisp, firm (there's nothing worse than a soggy pickle), and the presence of the garlic taste was subtle and not overpowering. At about $1.75 per pickle, this pickle is well worth the price.

Kettle Corn

Moments after leaving the pickle stand, after walking through a small tavern area filled with older Big E-goers drinking beer and watching sports on large television sets, we came across Henry's Kettle Corn. I've always been a fan of kettle corn -- Sam has not. We each had a free sample of the popcorn, forever converting Sam into a kettle corn eater. We decided to get a small bag of it for the road. (It's been almost a week, and the popcorn is still as fresh as it was the day we bought it.)

The best part about the Henry's Kettle Corn stand, like most of the stands at the Big E, is that you can watch them making it. The popcorn is still hot when they hand you your sample or your bag, and you can taste the freshness. This popcorn in particular has a perfect balance of sweet and salty, each flavor slamming your taste buds perfectly and unexpectedly. One moment you're just eating a piece of kettle corn as you wander the fair, the next moment you're being slapped in the jaw with flavor.

The two men at the stand were also really funny, nice guys. While one of them filled a bag of kettle corn for us, they messed around with each other and did some funny poses and faces while I took photos of them.

Fried Dough

Everybody loves fried dough. It's sold at events similar to the Big E all the time. What makes the fried dough at the Big E superior to other places is that, like with the kettle corn and cider doughnuts, you can actually watch the people in the food stands making it all from scratch. You go up to the window to place your order, and there's one person manning the cash register while another person is making dough at a counter and putting out fresh fried dough. You bite into it and it's still hot. I was excited to find that after ordering my fried dough (I got it with chocolate), there was a table in front of the stand where you could add powdered sugar. At a lot of other places, such as my summertime place of work, Six Flags, you have the option of getting confectioner's sugar as the topping on your fried dough, but nothing else. There is no sugar shaker nearby giving you the option to add it to your dough, which is a tremendous bummer.

There are a couple different options for toppings on fried dough, but I always opt for the standard chocolate sauce. The fact that I had the option of adding sugar at my own discretion made it all the better. The dough was so fresh it practically melted in my mouth. Perfection.

Turkey Legs

Sam gnaws on a giant hickory-smoked turkey leg.

Sam was most excited about getting a turkey leg, a popular Big E staple, when we were there. The only problem was that it took a long time to find it. Unlike fried dough and candy apple stands, there are only a few turkey leg stands -- there may even be only one, because when we asked for directions at an information booth they had to give us very specific directions to find it. We found it, its line full of big, buff men -- lumberjacks, perhaps -- and stared at the legs on display in the stand's window, enjoying the palpable smell emanating from the stand.
I had one bite of the turkey leg -- I wanted Sam to enjoy as much of it as he could -- and, though it was tough to break through the skin, it was quite good. The turkey wasn't dry, and the hickory flavor was incredible. The only problem? After eating an entire leg of it, Sam's breath was pretty rank; too much hickory, I suppose.

Cream Puffs

 

Perhaps the most advertised food at the Big E is the cream puff, available in one bakery on the entire premises in the New England Center. They are being produced all day long by bakers, put together assembly line-style with giant scoops of whipped cream and two big, puffy pieces of pastry. Within the bakery are signs with tips on how to eat the cream puff without making a mess: the "twist and slide" method, as they call it. Similar to eating an Oreo cookie, you hold the cream puff, each palm grasping one of the two outer pastries, twist, and separate, effectively giving you two cream puffs. The downfall of the cream puff is that there is entirely too much cream in it; the whole thing is extremely rich, and the use of that much cream makes it almost overwhelming. When I ate my cream puff, my plate was overflowing with extra cream when I finished. I couldn't bring myself to eat all the whipped cream for fear of contracting a sugar-induced headache. Overall, though, the cream puff is perfect for anyone who goes to the Big E with a sweet tooth.

Things We Didn't Sample

 There were two other foods that we saw, but did not try. One was the Big E's famous "Craz-E Burger," a cheeseburger with bacon using a halved glazed doughnut instead of a bun. The main reason we skipped it was because we were already stuffed from a few hours worth of nonstop eating. However, we did feel like we needed to at least see it, so we found the stand that was selling them and asked a gentleman who bought one if we could take a picture. Although I was extremely full, and although I don't really eat meat, the burger seemed oddly tantalizing. I was tempted by its mound of melted cheese, bacon strips, and warm, fresh scent.

I also decided to skip the candy apples, even though they were near the top of my list of things to eat at the Big E. This was partly because my stomach was screaming for me to stop eating and partly because it's difficult to come across a stand-out candy apple. Just seeing and smelling them was enough for me. I'd had one at my first trip to the Big E in the fall of 2008 and, though it was delectable, it wasn't unlike any other candy apple I'd ever eaten.

These are by no means the only food options at the Big E Agricultural Fair. They are merely the most delicious and most popular ones. If you're headed to the Big E in the next week, check them out and at least ask for a sample. You'll regret not trying them in two weeks, when you realize it'll be another year before you get the chance.

Big E 2010: Avenue of the States

One of the biggest events in this half of Massachusetts is the Big E, an annual agricultural fair in West Springfield held during September and into October. The Big E has many highlights hidden amongst the generic food stands. You can get all of the standard "fair food" at any number of carts and stands throughout the fairground -- fried dough, candy apples, etc. However, for more unique food stands, there's one particular area of the Big E that begs to be seen and tasted: the Avenue of the States.

The houses stand one after another along a street on the Big E fairground and each one showcases what some consider to be the cultural highlights of each state. Each of the houses is a smaller-scale replica of the given state's original state house.

The best thing about the Avenue of the States is the different foods available within each house. Everything was relatively cheap; when you hear people talking about the Big E being expensive, they don't mean that the individual foods are costly. The Big E becomes an expensive because there is no possibly way to resist a lot of the foods they have. Sam and I made a point of at least tasting something from each of the state houses. Only in the Connecticut house did we not pay for something.

And now, on to the states!

New Hampshire

We started with the New Hampshire house. Inside, the first food we saw was a homemade fudge stand. The stand had a lot of different varieties, from standard chocolate to pumpkin. Because we couldn't settle on just one but didn't want to spend so much money on fudge (it was roughly $9 per pound), we decided to ask the girl behind the counter for her thoughts on the best fudge they had and buy half a pound of it. Her suggestion? Pumpkin fudge. She handed us two samples, and it was delicious -- much better than I anticipated, because honestly, how can you not be initially skeptical about pumpkin flavored fudge when the standard is chocolate? At first, I just wanted to buy out their entire stock of chocolate-with-nuts fudge. I looked at the "pumpkin" label on the glass and thought to myself, "I bet that's gross." I was seriously wrong. If you visit the New Hampshire house and decide to buy some of this fudge, do yourself a favor and at least sample the pumpkin fudge. You will not regret it.

(New Hampshire also sold a lot of other nifty little things, such as fanny packs with cats embroidered on them.)

Connecticut

Connecticut was the one state house in which we didn't buy anything. Aside from the positively divine maple syrup and maple cream samples we had, the house didn't have much to offer. The samples, however, made the visit to the Connecticut house totally worth our time. The man running the table told us that his wife had made the syrup and the cream, both of which were almost miraculously good. The only thing that held us back from buying any of it was the fact that both Sam and I live in a dorm and would have little to no use for homemade maple products, regardless of how tasty they are.

Vermont

 What's the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of Vermont and food? Personally, I think of cheese, so the Vermont house was awesome to walk through. We didn't buy any cheese, but I did sample a piece of Green Mountain Boys cheese, a type only sold at the Big E during its few weeks in operation every year. It tasted like cheddar, but with something extra and not quite identifiable.

One of my absolute favorite things about the fall season is hot cider, so it was an exciting moment when, after sampling a bite of Green Mountain Boys cheese, we rounded the corner in the Vermont house and saw a stand selling hot cider and fresh cider doughnuts. Getting into the line for the stand, you pass by a window featuring fresh doughnuts on display. Through this window you can watch two men making the doughnuts -- mixing the dough, molding it into circles. We stepped up to the stand and ordered. I had a cup of hot spiced cider while Sam had a cup of cold cider and a hot doughnut. (Now would be an opportune time to state that Sam always insisted that I take the "inaugural bite" of each thing we ordered, which was adorable, and made the Big E experience that much better.)



 

Maine

The state of Maine is renowned for its lobster, but especially for its lobster rolls. Lobstering is a major part of the fishing industry in the state, and as a result the people there tend to know what they're doing when it comes to cooking with the crustacean. Walking into the Maine house, Sam excitedly said, "Lobster rolls!"



I would not call myself a lobster aficionado by any means, although I am very much a seafood snob because I come from northeastern Massachusetts. (Fish chowder and most clam foods are my forte, to be perfectly honest.) The taste of lobster has just never blown my skirt up. I've only ever eaten it a handful of times in my nearly 21 years of existence. My mother lives for it, though, so I had to have a bite of Sam's lobster roll if only to brag to her about it later.



The thing was delicious. The lobster was noticeably fresh, and the amount of mayonnaise wasn't overwhelming like I normally expect it to be (honestly, every time you see a lobster roll or any other roll involving seafood with mayonnaise, it looks like the fish is frowning in mayo, right?). I took the inaugural bite and Sam enjoyed the rest.





The line for the Maine Baked Potatoes starts outside and weaves through a queue line, amusement park style. During the Big E's busy weekends, people fill that line and extend around the Maine building's exterior. We came on a Tuesday, though, and didn't have any wait at all. My excitement and anticipation grew after looking at the choices of toppings: butter, sour cream, cheese, chives, and bacon bits.

I opted for sour cream, cheese, and bacon bits. I only had one qualm with the potato: the cheese was liquid cheese, the type you'd get on a hot dog at a baseball game. As a result, the taste wasn't as good as it could be. The bacon bits weren't fresh-off-the-griddle bacon bits, so they didn't look like bacon, but they tasted exactly the same. It's understandable that the stand would resort to such ingredients because they have to feed thousands and thousands of people some days. Had I been making the potato myself in my own kitchen, I would have had the time and the resources to grate my own cheese and grill my own bacon. Just saying.

Massachusetts 

Since we're from Massachusetts, I wasn't expecting our state house to have anything that I'd be interested in eating. The Massachusetts house had lobster rolls, but since we'd already eaten one just minutes before, we opted to skip it (though they were cheaper there). That wasn't the only thing in our state house, though. There were also various fresh berries and milk. The berries were juicy and clearly must have been picked in the last 24 hours, and the milk was unlike any milk I've ever tasted (in a good way). It was creamy and, like the berries, lobster, doughnuts and everything else we'd tasted already, extremely fresh.





The Massachusetts house also offered Finnish pancakes and had a display of wines from a local brewer. Unfortunately for me, I'm not of the legal drinking age just yet (only six and a half more weeks!), so I couldn't try any.

Rhode Island

In doing my research of the Big E the day before going, I made a list of all the foods I knew I should try. At the top of that list was the chowder in the Rhode Island house. It was difficult to maintain patience as we wandered through all of the other houses on the Avenue of the States, especially after noticing that we'd be visiting Rhode Island last.

There are two seafood stands inside the Rhode Island house. I chose to visit the Kenyon's stand and to order a bowl of shrimp and corn chowder. I also made the tough decision to skip the bread bowl because I was so stuffed from all the other state houses. This chowder was so close to perfection that I thought I could die. The only problem I had with it was the amount of pepper in it, but that's strictly personal because I have an oddly low tolerance for anything remotely spicy. Aside from that, it was an amazing dish. The broth was creamy, the vegetable-to-shrimp ratio was spot on, and I couldn't see my face in it -- the grease factor was at a minimum.




The Big E will be a daily happening in West Springfield until October 3. If you're going strictly for the food, be sure to check out these standout foods from the Avenue of the States and enjoy a bite of each part of New England.

An interesting way to think about food

I found this interesting blog post recently about how much money 200 calories of various foods costs. The foods range from healthy greens and vegetables to junk food like potato chips and soda. I found this particularly interesting because I've been making an effort to eat healthier for a while, but particularly in the last several months. Now that I'm back at school and in a bind as far as money goes, it was fascinating to see exactly how much I'd have to spend in order to eat the way I need to in order to stay healthy.

While perusing the different foods listed, it's important to consider a few things about the foods. Obviously, certain foods can fill you up with 200 calories more than other foods can. For example, 200 calories of beans -- already a fibrous food -- will be more satisfying than, say, jelly beans, and it will cost less.

Interestingly (but not surprisingly), the foods in the most expensive category were almost entirely healthy foods -- lots of vegetables, fruits, fiber and protein -- while the cheapest category was comprised mostly of carbs. However, the higher the price per 200 calories is, the greater the serving size is. While a bowl of carrots, a couple apples, or some turkey may not be a savory to you as a small handful of Doritos, they'll fill you up more and seriously improve your health.

The point is this: eating right may seem more expensive than eating the cheap-o garbage that's on sale every week, but because fruits, vegetables, and fibrous foods provide a greater serving for their price and thus can fill your stomach with less food, it pretty much balances out. All that's left is exercising moderation in your food consumption so you don't find yourself making the trek back to the supermarket every other day.

Another similar article I found talks about buying healthy foods for under $1 a pound. I really like the writer's mantra of only ever buying food that costs $1 per pound or less. If done right, it sounds like a foolproof way to stay healthy and save money.

I'm making a list...

... of all the recipes I intend to try the next time I have access to a decent kitchen. Being back in a dorm atmosphere has been keeping me from the stove and increased my desire to cook for myself instead of eating university food for every single meal. Even going out to eat is getting a little trite (athough the weekend of my two-year anniversary with my boyfriend took us out for several completely delicious meals which I would not take back). I find myself craving new things on a daily basis and then growing more and more bummed as the day goes on because the dorm kitchen is disgusting. I long for the kitchen I knew all summer -- the faulty gas stovetop, the fully stocked refrigerator, the pantry that somehow always contained the one ingredient I needed. I dream of taco night and homemade carbonara.

That being said, I am now making a list of all the things I want to try. It may not be possible to make all of them in one day off, but they will all be attempted at one point or another. I found all of the recipes on other blogs and websites. Expect more posts about cooking instead of dry posts about health and reblogging from other sites in the near future.

Carbonara Showdown

One of my absolute favorite meals of all time is carbonara. My number one favorite version of the dish is the way that my boyfriend's brother, Frank, makes it. Every couple of months I get this intense craving for it that doesn't go away until I finally coerce him into making it. (Each time I trick him into making it by saying that when I get my next paycheck I'll reimburse him for the supplies. This never happens. He keeps making it when I beg him, though.) Frank makes a heaping pot full of it. I'm unsure of the exact measurements for his recipe, but I do know a few details:

1. He uses angel hair pasta -- lots of it.
2. He uses four bell peppers, two yellow and two red, sliced and cooked in a pan with olive oil.
3. I believe he cracks four eggs into the pasta after it's been cooked. That may be the wrong number. All I know is that if he used any more or fewer eggs, it wouldn't taste the same.
4. He sometimes uses a mixture of real and fake bacon, depending on what he can find in the kitchen, and both taste great.
5. There is some garlic in there too.

Unfortunately for me, Frank recently went away to college, and so I have been without carbonara for a growing period of time. This lead me to make a rash decision at lunch today.

The time was approximately 4 p.m. My boyfriend, his brother Dominic, and their mom Lisa were going out to lunch. Olive Garden. Our wait for a table was short. Our wait for our food was great. Due to my carbonara craving, I opted for the Olive Garden version, which featured shrimp and chicken in addition to the usual ingredients. The photo on the menu looked promising, and when the plate was finally delivered to my corner of the table, the sight of the real thing had my mouth watering.

I was disappointed.

It seems that everything we had at Olive Garden for lunch today was extremely heavy -- my soup, though delicious, had the consistency of chowder and the breadsticks felt like they were sticking to the insides of my stomach. While the thickness of the soup was pleasurable, the heavy, greasy mess of carbonara was not. I found myself delivering a full-fledged comparison between Frank's carbonara and the dish in front of me to the rest of the table. Olive Garden's carbonara seemed to be loaded with some kind of sauce, which I admittedly wasn't expecting although it was clearly printed in the description on the menu. (I made the mistake of forgoing said description and choosing my meal completely on the picture and the name.) I will say one positive thing about Olive Garden's carbonara: the shrimp tasted fresh, which isn't common in chain restaurants that are not situated directly on the coast. However, the peppers looked shriveled and dead, cut into long slices; Frank always diced his peppers. There was very little bacon, and it didn't seem thoroughly cooked. The chicken was slightly fried, having been cooked with bread crumbs in oil, which only added to the weight of the meal.

Olive Garden's carbonara dish includes fresh shrimp and chicken in addition to the standard fixings for the meal. It was ultimately ruined, though, by the general heaviness in the pasta sauce. (Sorry for the camera phone picture, I neglected to bring my own camera to lunch.)

The main difference was that Frank's carbonara was so much lighter than Olive Garden's carbonara. In all my time eating Frank's version, I've never been able to see my face in it, and I've never felt as weighed down as I did after Olive Garden's dish. The latter sent me into a food coma. Even when I add a ton of cheese to Frank's recipe, I still don't feel so heavy and gross. The post-Olive Garden feeling was as if my pores were leaking that mysterious sauce that was hiding underneath my pasta.

I suppose there is a lesson to be learned from this dining experience: Always, always, always wait for Frank to come home and make his carbonara from scratch; do not settle for less than the best.

I love Amyblogschow.

Okay, I'm not 21 for another couple of weeks. But once I am, I am definitely going to try these, and write about them. Get ready

In other news, Amyblogschow is an awesome food blog/website. I love her "Stupidly Simple Snacks" videos. Check them (and her other posts) out here.