Table of Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction xiii
Midwestern Staples
In the Midwest, It's Meatloaf Elizabeth Berg 3
Field Trips Stuart Dybek 9
Easter Island Almondine Thom Jones 15
The Sandwich That Is Chicago Michael Stern 23
Cincinnati Five-Way Chili: Still Legal Robert Olmstead 33
Corn in Heaven Jacquelyn Mitchard 39
Let Them Eat Pâté Peter Sagal 45
High on the Hog Jon Yates 49
The Chef and the Farmer Gale Gand 57
Recipe: Goat Cheese Panna Cotta with Caramelized Figs 62
Distant Cultures
Art's Lunch Harry Mark Petrakis 65
A Tale of Two Tamales Carol Mighton Haddix 77
Recipe: Beef Brisket, Savory Cherry Compote, and Jalapeño Cheese Tamales 83
Le Dog, Ann Arbor, Michigan Jules Van Dyck-Dobos 87
The Night of the Rhubarb Kuchen Anne Dimock 93
Recipes: Rhubarb Kram; Rhubarb Kuchen with Almond Meringue 98
The Black Migration Donna Pierce 103
Eat Now Phyllis Florin 111
The Door County Fish Boil Peggy Wolff 119
Recipes: White Gull Inn Door County Cherry Pie; White Gull Inn Fish Boil Recipe for Home Cooks 128
Holidays, Fairs, and Events
Thrill Food John Markus 133
Under the Checkered Flag Melanie Benjamin 137
Bicentennial Pie Timothy Bascom 147
So You'll Diet Tomorrow Lorna Landvik 155
Thanksgiving Dinner Mary Kay Shanley 163
Recipe: Thanksgiving Stuffing with Cast-Iron Skillet Corn Bread 173
A Full Belly
The Tam-O-Shanter, Lincoln, Nebraska Sherrie Flick 177
What Was Served Douglas Bauer 185
Tomorrowland Peter Meehan 195
I'll Eat Columbus Molly O'Neill 201
On Cider, Cornmeal, and Comfort Robin Mather 209
Recipe: Buttermilk Doughnuts with Cider Glaze 217
The Midwestern Sweet Tooth
The Great American Pie Expedition Sue Hubbell 221
The Old Sweetness Bonnie Jo Campbell 227
Recipe: Fudge 231
The Little Cake Pan That Could Bonny Wolf 239
Recipes: Chocolate Pistachio Cake; Ella Helfrich's Tunnel of Fudge Cake 243
When a Pie Is More Than a Pie Jeremy Jackson 247
Recipe: Mildred Jackson's Lemon-y Cream Pie 255
Source Acknowledgments 257