fried, fatty and fabulous: state fair 101

I am insanely proud of my home state and can boastfully declare that I have only missed two years of the "Great Minnesota Get Together", aka the Minnesota State Fair. Over the 20+ years I've been a state fairgoer, I have seen many changes. However, there are a few things which I have come to rely on:

1. It is always twelve days long and closes on Labor Day, signaling the official end to summer.
2. I will see at least five people that I know among the masses (and four of them I will avoid by ducking into the nearest booth or building).
3. I will eat fried, greasy food until I cannot breathe.

Yes, the key to an enjoyable state fair experience is overindulgence. But hey, the fair only

happens once a year. So bring on the hydrogenated oils. I'm downright ritualistic when it comes to foods I consume at the fair, and here's a sampling of my faves:

Cheese curds: These blazing hot, stringy and gooey cheese morsels are fresh nuggets of goodness. They are dipped in batter and fried, served in a little paper basket and best eaten immediately. Some deranged fairgoers douse these dairy delights with ketchup, but this is not a mainstream practice. Pure, unadulterated indulgence.

The wacky "new foods" of the fair: Each year I feel the need to investigate what the buzz is all about when a new food is introduced at the fair. A sampling of past years' bizzaro foods: pickle dog (pickle spear smeared with cream cheese and wrapped in pastrami), fried Oreos (friedfoodfail), and "pig-lickers"- a cone of chocolate-covered bacon.

Fresh cookies: Melty, gooey Sweet Martha's chocolate chip cookies served in a plastic pail (about 6 dozen in a bucket, but who's counting?) and all-you-can-drink milk for $1.00. Heavenly!

I could go on and on, but I'll save my other fair food musings for future posts. Happy Labor Day!