Untitled Document Remember Ding Dongs? Even as a kid, I didn’t really like them. They sounded fun, though, and every so often I’d succumb to advertising hype or the desire to eat what my friends ate and nag my mom into buying them. The same thing happened with cereal. Tony the Tiger, Count Chocula, Lucky […]
Food Features
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Culler’s french fries
Untitled Document Lemonade shakeups. Corndogs. Saltwater taffy. Honey ice cream. Few traditions at the Illinois State Fair are more hallowed than its special foods. A day at the fair just isn’t complete without them. And at the Illinois State Fair, as well as dozens of other state and county fairs and festivals ranging from Illinois, […]
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Experimenting with fresh-picked corn
Untitled Document Are there any sights, sounds, and smells more evocative of a Midwest summer than those of fresh corn on the cob waiting to be shucked? The leaves are still crisp and green; the aroma’s corny and delicious; the husks squeak when they’re ripped away to reveal the tender kernels. For anyone who’s ever […]
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A taste of Springfield’s past
Untitled Document Hot tamales and they’re red hot, Yes, she got ’em for sale I got a girl, say she long and tall She sleeps in the kitchen Her feets in the hall Hot tamales and they’re red hot, I mean Yes, she got ’em for sale, yeah — Robert Johnson, recorded […]
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You can ratatouille, too!
Untitled Document Ratatouille got me my first new kitchen floor. I’m talking not about the movie but the classic French vegetable stew (pronounced ra-ta-TOO-ee) that gave the movie its name. We’d moved into our historic farmhouse a month before. Farm kitchens are usually envisioned as large, warm, and welcoming, but the folks who’d built our […]
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It’s a grilling good time
Untitled Document “Make-your-own-pizza night” was an almost weekly ritual in our household when our kids were little, as well as a standard birthday- or slumber-party event. All we needed were a quick and easy dough with a short rising time and bowls filled with tomato sauce, cheese, and favorite toppings. In addition to being quick […]
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Some Tastes are better than others
Untitled Document We’d wanted to do it for years, but the timing just never was right — but then one year my family and I finally took the plunge. Taste of Chicago is billed as the Midwest’s largest summer festival and the world’s largest food festival. Started in 1980 as a one-day replacement for Chicagofest, […]
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A tale of two parties
Untitled Document It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. It was the summer of 1974. The Watergate hearings were in full swing. When I wasn’t working, studying, or rehearsing, I was glued to the TV, watching the sad, sordid saga unfold. I’d been married the summer before, and we were […]
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Water, water, everywhere — and lots of drops to drink
Untitled Document “Would you like bottled water or tap water?” the server asks. That question, routine in upscale big-city restaurants these days, never fails to make me uncomfortable. If I say I just want tap water, do I seem cheap? As if I wouldn’t be able to pay the check if I ordered bottled water? […]
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What a jerk!
Untitled Document Jerk. Even the name’s fun — it could’ve been created by fast-food marketers trying to come up with a product name appealing to adolescents. Jerk originated centuries ago in Jamaica when maroons — runaway slaves — fled to the hills to escape their British masters. Wild boars were their main food source. Because […]
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Whine time is over, Springfield oenophiles
Untitled Document “Well,” says the guy across the table, breaking into the discussion, “I like Opus One.” My husband and I catch each other’s eyes with the look of complete understanding that people who’ve been married as long as we have develop. We manage to suppress our smiles and look suitably impressed. We are having dinner […]
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Hanging with a bad boy
Untitled Document I have to admit, I was nervous. For me, having a private interview with Anthony Bourdain was the equivalent of a diehard Republican’s going quail hunting with Dick Cheney or a NASCAR fan’s getting some one-on-one time with Dale Earnhardt Jr. For those who’ve never heard of Bourdain, he’s a chef and author who […]
