Md state fair

I took the family to the Maryland State Fair, just outside of Baltimore Monday. We had a great trip, saw some interesting handmade crafts and got to see all the usual farm animals. My 3 yr old and I got to milk a cow, a first for both of us :)

Now for the important info; The Food!

I started off with a pulled lamb sandwich, think pulled BBQ pork but with leg of lamb. It was different and quite good, they had seasoned it up nicely and had sauce on the side. Next was a lamb sausage sandwich with peppers and onions a bit of tomato sauce. Again, very tasty. Picky Peggy had a crab cake and clam strips, these were very good too.

Next was the cow milking followed by a pint of milk that had been just extracted, pasturized and packaged right there about 3 hours before. Can't get much fresher then that!

We wandered around for a bit then had a corn dog. Unfortunately these weren't any where near as good as I'm used to. Dissapointed I must say.

We next found some people making carmel, or is it caramel? Which ever they were making it from scratch right in front of us in a copper pot. The wife bought some cut up into squares and I bought an apple dipped in it and rolled in nuts. These were very tasty! We wound up going back and buying two lbs to take home and share.

I tried another corn dog and this was one was even worse.

Didn't find anyone making cinnamon rolls, or peanut brittle.

Found someone doing fried Twinkies and such. Tried one and it was OK but I'll naver have to try another. Didn't impress me.

On the way out the wife got her cotton candy fix taken care of and I bought 2 lbs of lamb sausage to go.

The 3 year old, Ava, rode the merry go round with me as well as the Ferris wheel. These were her first rides and she had a ball. She did Dumbo (Jr. Dumbo) by herself and didn't much care for that.

MikeS.

Mike, I can't believe you didn't feed that cow a couple pounds of butter before the milking. Think of all the buttermilk you could've had.

Signman, not sure but I don't think it works that away... I think the cow makes the milk then we get the buttermilk?

I've had those caramel apples before and they are fantastic!! I'm not going to get up there this year. I'll just have to live vicariously through you!!

So are you and your wife going to make anything with the cut up squares of caramel?

We didn't make it to the Alaska State Fair this year, we wanted to go camping and fishing instead. The winner in the cabbage category weighed in at 90.7 pounds and the winning pumpkin weighed 707 pounds! That's a lotta pie!

quote:

Originally posted by lleechef

We didn't make it to the Alaska State Fair this year, we wanted to go camping and fishing instead. The winner in the cabbage category weighed in at 90.7 pounds and the winning pumpkin weighed 707 pounds! That's a lotta pie!

Lleechef: how much slaw and kraut could you make with a 91 pound cabbage. Sounds like something that could have come the the Mananuska Valley?

A pumpkin that weights 700+ pounds sounds like a chefs delight as it eliminates the amount of fruit for pies necessary, however I would like to see the little lady moving that fruit around.

The Knoxville fair starts today however it is not a motivational event.

My six greatest fairs the Sundancer has attended is the Ohio State Fair, Indiana State Fair, Iowa State Fair, Kentucky State Fair, Tennessee State Fair and the Texas State Fair.

I am sure there are others that are just as great but what I listed are the ones that I attended

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

quote:

Originally posted by meowzart

I've had those caramel apples before and they are fantastic!! I'm not going to get up there this year. I'll just have to live vicariously through you!!

So are you and your wife going to make anything with the cut up squares of caramel?

Funny you should ask, we made some more caramel apples today.

quote:

Originally posted by Sundancer7

quote:

Originally posted by lleechef

We didn't make it to the Alaska State Fair this year, we wanted to go camping and fishing instead. The winner in the cabbage category weighed in at 90.7 pounds and the winning pumpkin weighed 707 pounds! That's a lotta pie!

Lleechef: how much slaw and kraut could you make with a 91 pound cabbage. Sounds like something that could have come the the Mananuska Valley?

A pumpkin that weights 700+ pounds sounds like a chefs delight as it eliminates the amount of fruit for pies necessary, however I would like to see the little lady moving that fruit around.

The Knoxville fair starts today however it is not a motivational event.

My six greatest fairs the Sundancer has attended is the Ohio State Fair, Indiana State Fair, Iowa State Fair, Kentucky State Fair, Tennessee State Fair and the Texas State Fair.

I am sure there are others that are just as great but what I listed are the ones that I attended

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

That cabbage was grown in the Matanuska-Susitna valley, indeed. It's not the largest grown for the Fair. The largest was in 2000, weighed in at 105.6 lbs. And yes, that would certainly make a lot of slaw or kraut!! The giant pumpkin was grown in Nikiski, on the Kenai Peninsula and had to be specially transported and weighed on a special sling/scale. This is not the largest pumpkin grown, as some folks in Oregon grew a 1,385 pounder last year. According to the AK Fair statistics, a Guiness Record was broken this year for the largest turnip ever grown.......weighing in at 39.2 pounds. ONE turnip! Soup, anybody???

We went to the Montgomery County Fair in Gaithersburg (MD) in August and the best thing we ate was some rockin' Kettle Corn fresh out of the kettle - we inhaled one large bag almost instantly and got another to take home

I'm trying to wrap my mind around a pumpkin that weighs more than my late Mother's upright piano, which I am in the process of moving from my sister's house to mine.

Would I get away with spending less if I told the movers it was a giant pumpkin and then said, surprise, it's just a piano???