THE MIDWEST

HOT DISH

• Hot dish, or cassorole, is a classic dish
• Contains a starch, meat, vegetables, and a binding liquid
• The most common binding liquid is a cream soup or cream of mushroom soup
• It is then baked in a casserole dish and served hot
• Common hot dishes are green bean casserole, tuna with noodles, and tater tot hot dish

LOOSE MEAT SANDWICHES

• They are made with loose ground meat, served on a bun
• A common one is sloppy joe
• Sloppy joes are cooked with tomato sauce or katchup
• Cowboy food: smoked beef brisket with crusty rolls
• With a side of potatos, corn muffins, coleslaw, potato salad, and baked beans

CINCINNATI CHILI

• It has no beans, not like Texas chili, Cincinnati chili has sweet seasonings
• Some seasonings are cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and chocolate
• There are multiple ways to eat the chili, including on top of pasta
• Also served on a hot dog
• Or served on fries

CORNISH PASTY

• Otherwise known as a meat pie
• Known for a portable lunch, very common with miners
• A pastry pocket filled with meet and vegetables
• Very portable

PIEROGI

• Dumplings, similar to ravioli or pot stickers
• Filled with potato, sauerkraut, ground meat, and cheese
• Dessert pierogis are filled with fruit
• Boiled then baked or fried
• Served with butter or sour cream

GOULASH

• American goulash is derived from Hungarian goulash
• Contains beef, paprika, macaroni, tomato sauce
• With a vegetable as in corn, peppers, or beans
• Sometimes baked as a casserole topped with shredded cheese
• Most common in Cleveland, Ohio

LEFSE

• Originated in Norway
• Flat bread sometimes made of potato, like a pancake or tortilla
• Eaten with sweet and savory dishes
• Popular during the holiday season
• Rolled with sugar, butter, cinnamon, served as a side

LUTEFISK

• Dried cod cured with lye
• Traditional Norwegian dish
• Christmas is common lutefisk eating season
• Madison, Minnesota is the lutefisk capital of the world

FARMERS MARKET

• Commonly sells sweet corn, beans, tomatoes, peas
• Potatoes, onions, summer and winter squash, cantaloupe and watermelon
• And there are sweet crisp apples
• "Fresh is best"

HUNTING AND FISHING

• Many families enjoy hunting year round
• Many hunting clubs have "wild game feeds"
• Where you sample any type of wild game that exists in America
• In Alaska it is more common to eat wild game than domesticated animals

MUSHROOMS

• Wild game or fish is usually served with wild mushrooms or berries
• Minnesotans best kept secrets is wear the morel grow
• Morels are crinkle capped mushrooms that look like brown sponges
• It has a delectable, delicate, woodsy flavor

NATIVE FRUIT

• Blueberries, cranberries, and Concord grapes
• Blueberries are delicious in pies, breads, and deserts
• The blueberry muffin is Minnesota's "state muffin"

WILD RICE

• Native Americans harvested wild rice
• Nutty flavor
• Would go out in a canoe and beat the stocks so the ripe grains would fall off
• California is now the largest producer

SOURDOUGH

• The most American food
• Sourdough starter was used everyday to make breads, biscuits, and pancakes
• Until packaged yeast was invented then the sourdough became less popular

CORN

• The first thing early settlers did was plant corn
• Traveling through the Midwest now you see corn and soybean fields
• Communities have "corn on the cob" days where they eat all of the corn they want

FESTIVALS

• The Midwest was mainly settled by Germans and Scandinavians
• They proudly celebrate their culture through festivals
• There are many festivals every weekend to celebrate different cultures

THANK YOU