A MN State Fair Adventure...

Welcome to Feeding the Freaks....a Family Fiasco!  What better way to kick off our mother-daughter food blog than a trip to the MN State Fair!  Ah yes, the land of 10,000 foods on a stick and butter head sculptures!  What do they do with those heads when the fair is over anyway?  Alyssa JoJo suggests a giant lobster fest.  Mama Lanette says a hefty profit is to be made by selling them to Paula Dean, y'all.  The MN State Fair is a grand land where bacon and chocolate can meet and become one, macaroni and cheese can be eaten on a stick, and pickles are fried to perfection.  Just when you think a food can’t POSSIBLY be made any unhealthier, lo and behold!  There it is….battered, deep fried, and oh so carefully perched upon a stick, and yet so delicious your taste buds would explode if they hadn’t already been burnt beyond recognition because you just couldn’t wait a few extra minutes for those fresh fried cheese curds to cool off a bit. 

After a quick pre-apology to our bodies for the complete disregard to diet and nutrition they were about to be subjected to, we departed the bus, stocked up on dollar bottles of water being sold outside the gate (they’re like 3 bucks inside!), and took off running like the Augustus kid in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory when he discovered the river was made out of chocolate.  Our fair food adventure started off this year with a trip to Axel’s where we indulged in macaroni and cheese on a stick, deep fried cheeseburger sliders, and a breakfast lollypop (breakfast sausage dipped in a corn meal batter, deep fried, and yes, placed on a stick).  Mama Lanette and her friend A.P. then ventured over to the Agriculture Building to visit their beloved honey ice cream stand. The honey ice cream with sunflower seeds is so delicious and simple, it transports one back to the days of childhood, laying in the grass, and staring at the clouds.   Alyssa JoJo and her friends E.H. and S.B. headed over to the Food Building, but much like Las Vegas, what happens in the Food Building STAYS in the Food Building.  The rest of our MN State Food….uh….I mean MN State Fair trip consisted of a dizzying pace of map checking, aimless wandering before we realized we were holding the map upside down, and eventual food booth finding.  The treats sampled consisted of fried green tomatoes, corn fritters with honey butter, deep fried Oreos, Big Fat Bacon drizzled with maple glaze, canoles, fried pickles, bacon ice cream, Pig Lickers (chocolate-dipped bacon), corn dogs, and cheese on a stick, which resembled a corn dog, but had cheese instead of a hotdog inside. 

Five hour later, as we sat upon a bench with our bellies full, our feet covered with dirt, and our faces smeared in grease, we decided it was time to cry uncle and head out.  The bench creaked in relief when we picked our now even bigger asses up off of it.  We headed over to the nearest sky ride, lied about our weight to the very skeptical carnies, got on our sky cab, and rode over to the other side of the fairgrounds where our exit was located.   Our carb-coma bodies trudged zombie-like to the Park & Ride bus, and we headed back to the Land of Reality…where carbs, calories and fat really DO matter.

Are there healthier choices to be had at the State Fair?  Yes, the Produce Exchange was selling fresh fruit and veggies, and there were several fruit kabob and salad stands, so it CAN be done.  And, of course, there are those people who suffer from physical ailments such as diabetes, in which case, munching on a bag of cotton candy and a deep fried Snickers bar may not be the smart choice; high blood pressure….stay away from those salty fries and pig lickers you people!; and the ever present child with ADHD…once again, AVOID the cotton candy!  All in all, however, for those of us who are fortunate enough to partake of whatever we want and not go into an insulin coma or suffer from a heart attack, part of the beauty of a once yearly trip to an event such as the MN State Fair is the throwing away of all morals and decency regarding food and nutrition and just having FUN.  Is eating a Big Fat Bacon a little disgusting?  Most definitely, but when eaten only once a year, it is a treat to look forward to and savor with every bite. 

And with this we start a new adventure in sharing the foods we love, dare to try, and change to make healthier with you. We hope that if anything through out these posts you at least find something to laugh about, love to eat, and share with others. 

- Alyssa JoJo and Mama Lanette