Recipe Weekend:/ Cookbook Review: Fair Foods: The Most Popular and Offbeat Recipes from America's State & County Fairs by George Geary

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this book, free of charge,from Santa Monica Press, for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about .them, all opinions are my own.

So you can't make it to the big Fair for Summer vacation.

SIGH

what's a mom to do?

Why get this book and cook all those family favorites at HOME, 

and make your own Fair Event in your own backyard, to keep the kids occupied!

Fair Foods is an illustrated cookbook featuring the recipes of the most popular and offbeat food served at county fairs across the USA.

Packed with 120 original recipes created by award-winning chef, best-selling author, and renowned educator George Geary, Fair Foods includes such county fair classics as Texas Maple Bacon Donuts, The World’s Gooiest Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Frosting, Aztec Hot Chocolate, Witch’s Brew, Caramel Kettle Corn, Fried Sweet Potato Sticks, Ten-Pound Cheesebuns, Cheesecake on a Stick, Chocolate-Encased Bacon, Fried Coca-Cola, Fried Guacamole, Fried Oreo Cookies, BBQ Turkey Legs, Bacon-Wrapped Chicken and Waffles, Blue Ribbon Chili, Pork Chop on a Stick, and Spicy Peanut Butter and Jelly Burgers.

Each page in Fair Foods is lavishly illustrated with both vintage and contemporary photographs of America’s most beloved fair foods, as well as fun and lively images of rides and attractions and nostalgic ephemera. Fair Foods is not only mouthwateringly addictive, it also captures the joy and spirit of America’s greatest county fairs.

Review:

OH MY! ALL your fair favorites are here! And many are SO SO SO easy to make, you'll wonder why you hadn't figured it out before!

Your family, especially the kids, will ADORE this book and may even take it over for their own cooking and Summer fun! A little supervision might be necessary (such as for the fried food), but generally, the recipes are not hard at all! You might even find yourselves wondering about using some of the recipes for History units, like the fried turkey legs and kettle corn! the photos alone will make you gain 15 pounds, but it's Summer, live a little!

This is a great book for Summer fun, fair styled parties and even simple cooking lessons, and we LOVE it and your family will too!

Recipe:

Now how about one of the FUN recipes from the book?

from Fair Foods: The Most Popular and Offbeat Recipes from America's State & County Fairs by George Geary,
Santa Monica Press

Deep Fried Twinkies!

The Texas State Fair was the first to offer this sinful treat. 

Makes 6 Twinkies® 

Ingredients:

6 Twinkies® 

3 cups all-purpose flour 

3 tbsp. granulated sugar 

3 tsp. baking powder 

1 tsp. baking soda 

¾ tsp. sea salt 1 cup buttermilk 

½ cup whole milk 

3 large eggs 

3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted canola oil confectioners sugar 

Directions:

1. Skewer each Twinkie® and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Freeze for 2 hours. 

2. Meanwhile, prepare the batter: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk, whole milk, eggs, and melted butter. Pour into flour mixture and blend just until smooth. 

4. In a Dutch oven, heat 2 inches of canola oil over medium heat to 375°F. 

5. Working with 2 at a time, dip the Twinkies® into the batter until fully coated. Place in the hot oil, turning after a few seconds until all sides have reached a light brown color, about 4 to 6 minutes. 

6. Drain on paper towels, then dust with confectioners sugar

ENJOY!!!!

**Recipe courtesy of  Fair Foods: The Most Popular and Offbeat Recipes from America's State & County Fairs 

by George Geary, Santa Monica Press **

About the Author:

George Geary is an award-winning chef, best-selling author, and renowned educator. A former pastry chef for the Walt Disney Company, Geary is a Certified Culinary Professional, and was recently chosen as the Culinary Educator of the Year by the International Association of Culinary Professionals. He is perhaps best known for creating all of the cheesecakes for The Golden Girls and other top-rated television programs. Geary has worked as a critic and/or judge for ABC’s The Taste with Anthony Bourdain, The American Baking Competition with Jeff Foxworthy, Hell's Kitchen, Supermarket Superstar, and many other popular television shows. He also teaches cooking classes aboard Holland America Lines.

For over thirty years, Geary has been a culinary contest judge for major food manufacturers such as Canola Producers, Veg-All, Hormel Foods, the Hershey Company, Knott’s Berry Farm Foods, Ghirardelli Chocolate, Fleischmann’s Yeast, the San Diego Union Tribune, ABC News, and many more. From 1982 to 2010, George was the culinary coordinator of the Los Angeles County Fair.

Besides writing, George owns a culinary tour company where he takes students on culinary adventures of France and major cities of the country. George teaches in over 120 schools world wide. George can be seen on local and national morning news programs. Currently George is the Resident Chef on San Diego Living on the CW Network.