Tuesday was my third and final day at the Minnesota State Fair and it was an important one for foodies.  Minnesota Cooks hosted its 7th annual Farm to Table event which brought consumers, foodies, farmers and chefs together in Carousel Park.  There was a full day of food demonstrations by local chefs accompanied by dialogue from panelists who included farmers, politicians, media members and athletes.  I'll be posting more about it over on Café Cyan later today. 

As to my progress in completing my fair foods list?  I have to say I did quite well.  Although I nixed a few items, they were quickly replaced by other foods.

For example, I nixed the Spam Breakfast Sandwich.  Why?  Because I tried the Spam Curds on day two and figured that was enough Spam for one person.  Instead, I went to French Meadow and tried their Breakfast Pretzel. 

   

I was expecting a browned pretzel cut in half with egg, cheese and bacon layered in between.  Instead I got pretzel dough wrapped around scrambled egg, cheese and bacon bits.  The whole thing was a bit flavorless, but easily transported through the fair without a mess.  It was a clever idea, but I wasn't overly impressed.  That is okay because French Meadow remains one of my favorite restaurants outside the fair.

Next up, cheese curds from the food building.  I ate these for breakfast and they were just as I had always remembered, soft and squeaky with the perfect light batter coating the outside.  Lately I have been involved in a few debates over if cheese curds should be eaten plain or with a dipping sauce.  My vote is obvious, with ketchup:

 

For a mid-morning treat, I sought out the Arctic Slushies booth in the Midway.  Once I caught sight of the Technicolor slushy machines, I thought, "oh no, this is going to be flavorless sugar water". 

 

However, I was pleasantly surprised.  Of course I made a "suicide" and mixed multiple flavors and each one was very distinct.  I could first taste the sweet cherry, then the grape, and so on, all ending with the tropical pineapple and orange mixed at the top. 

For lunch I tried Harry Singh's Trinidadian Doubles (listed as Fritters Doubles on their menu) and this was absolutely my favorite item at the fair next to cheese curds, of course. 

   

Not necessarily the most photogenic of foods, but definitely delicious.  The curried chickpeas on the inside were coated in two spicy sauces and placed between very soft Caribbean split pea fritter dough which was not greasy at all.  The doubles served as a prime example of a vegetarian dish done well with plenty of flavor and substance.  I almost went back for seconds!

Also for lunch, I visited Vescio's for fried ravioli.  Throughout high school I enjoyed many meals from Vescio's as their kids went to school with me, but fried ravioli is something I enjoy only at the fair.

 

The sauce was piping hot and I had to let it cool down just a bit before digging into the spinach and artichoke filled raviolis.  Lightly breaded and fried perfectly, these hit the spot.  The cool thing about Vescio's is they have school desks along the side of their booth so you can sit and enjoy their food all while relaxing with a table and chair. 

There were three other items from my list that I nixed.  Although I wanted a cream puff, they were huge and I couldn't fit more food into my belly!  The Peg muffins were simply a breakfast sandwich that I could do without and I found that a Veggie Pie was something I'll save for family potlucks, just a pre-baked crust smeared with cream cheese and ranch topped with raw veggies.  Not exciting enough food for the fair.

I just had to try one more thing before leaving the fair because I had heard so much about them from readers and friends:

 

Yep, the Aussie Fries smothered in ranch and cheese sauce.  Disgustingly gluttonous, these are not for one person to enjoy.  Bring a few friends to polish off the plate of battered and fried potatoes.  I swear I had heart palpitations while eating these.

After spending ten hours at the fair yesterday, I am ready to move on and live vicariously through all you other fair-goers.  Trying my best to get healthy fruits, veggies and whole grains in me to make up for all the fried food I've consumed over the past few days.  I will be back next week to shift gears and talk about healthy cooking again.