My stomach is just now starting to feel “normal” after four days at the Fair. I don’t go to the fair just to eat but I will say that a lot of eating gets done anyway.
YA and I always purchase two of the fair coupon books and we go through them carefully. This year YA put post-it stickers on the things she didn’t want to miss. And we both spent time on the fair website on the “New Fair Foods” page. YA takes this much more seriously than I do; on the last day we went together we had a map with all the places she wanted to make sure we got to marked in red!
Here are some of the things we consumed:
- Hawaiian Shave Ice (they took the competitor’s coupon!)
- French Toast Bites (with pop rocks – better than you’re thinking)
- Cheese & Potato Pierogies with horseradish sauce (for breakfast)
- Waffle with Ice Cream Sandwich center, kettle corn, whipped cream & sprinkles
- Siracha Cheese Funnel Cake Bites
- Sweet Martha’s Cookies (of course)
- Roasted Corn
- Mac & Cheese Bites (better the first day I had them)
- Cheese Curds (of course)
- Tipsy Pies (yummy by not very boozy)
- Sota Sandwich (almond butter & blueberry jam on toasted sourdough)
- Pretzel with Cheese Sauce
- Chocolate Malt
- Potato Cheese Crepe (this is YA’s hands’ down favorite every year)
- Mocktails (our favorite new food this year – over 4 days we tried 4 of them)
- Paneer Pakora (OK but could have been so much better)
- Cream Cheese Wontons (also could have been better)
- Mac & Cheese (absolutely could have been better)
I know this seems excessive, but remember it was over four days. And two of us. But while I love the fair, I don’t think my digestive system could handle too many more visits!
Any guilty favorites when you’re out and about?
Trail Baboon 
Beer
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I didn’t list all of the beverages. Neither of us are big drinkers although I did have one Orange Solstice Shandy while I was watching the dog dock diving. It was OK.
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In truth, I often tend to say that. But I don’t don’t drink an awful lot.
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In fact, I said don’t twice, to convince you.
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OT: this is not “out and about.” But I confessed to a guilty secret about the two chocolate napolitanas I order from our bakery, and eat in secret, every Saturday. I am about to get busted, and will wait to see how it goes down, before I decide how to handle it. Can’t really see a way out.
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No, I mean, I confessed on the Trail, not to anyone else. I was unclear, yet again. No one else knows. Yet.
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But do let us know how it goes.
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I don’t know if I’ll still be living after Friday.
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Rise and Shine Baboons,
I eat very little at the fair—I go for the gardening, craft shows and fine art show. BUT, I sometimes have an apple dumpling (booth located near engineering building with the wind mill out front) and mini-donuts. Then I eat at the Hamline Methodist restaurant where I met author William Kent Krueger who served my lunch.
My other guilty pleasure is the Byerly’s tapioca pudding.
True confession is over.
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I’m reading W.K.K. (This Tender Land) as we speak…
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So am I.
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Just pastries. Gotta have a doughnut or a muffin or a custard bismark or a cherry turnover or a chocolate-filled croissant or a caramel pecan roll or a strawberry danish or an apple fritter or . . .
Chris in Owatonna
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I haven’t experienced that much fair food, having come to this love late in life.(See “Go with a Guide”, about our Linda showing me the ropes: https://trailbaboon.com/2012/09/03/go-with-a-guide/ )
You missed the Australian Battered Potatoes – but hey, I haven’t been now for 5 years (sniff); I hope they’re still there!
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And I have to say your list made me snort coffee, VS! You must have to take out a small loan…
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YA helped some this year… now that she’s working full time!
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Actually the Aussi Potatoes were on YA’s wish list but it was a long list and not everything made the cut based on where we were when we wanted to eat!
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Yes, I understand that location is often a factor.
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I rarely go to the Fair (too many people) and when I do, it is certainly not for the food. Much of the food either doesn’t appeal to me or the quantity is too large. What does appeal is a short list – mini cream puffs, Queen’s caramel apples, fresh squeezed lemonade, and a few items in the Food Building (I only go in there is the weather is cool, otherwise the heat and humidity in there are unbearable). A couple of times I have eaten breakfast in the Hamline Methodist restaurant – that’s good. I think the last time I was at the Fair was at least 6 years ago.
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This is why YA and I are well matched. Everything we get can be shared so you get to try more things without having to get to full.
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I too would try the fresh squeezed lemonade…
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Almond Joy bars. Coconut!
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You and YA are made of better stuff than I am, vs. Just reading your list made me feel queasy. I would try those cheese & potato pierogies with horseradish sauce, though, they sound good. Looking at your list, I don’t see any food on a stick. Is that no longer a thing?
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Oh there are plenty of things on a stick. We just managed to try things without sticks this year. One of the things that appeared to be very very popular was fat bacon on a stick. I heard someone talking nearby the booth as if it were crack. And I did buy a stunt dog on a stick (toy) at the dog dock diving show. For no other reason other than it was funny.
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Reeses Peanut butter cups…
And chocolate chip cookies.
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Fresh salsa (medium hot) and good corn chips (read El Burrito’s corn chips) always tempt me. Perhaps even more tempting is an Afghani cilantro and jalapeño chutney served with flatbread and hummus.
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Do you need any hot peppers? I am overloaded with them. Including habaneros.
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Thanks for the offer, vs, but we, too, have an excess of hot peppers. Our habaneros are unbelievably potent, damn near lethal.
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My favorite fair food is onion rings, or a blooming onion, but it has to be cooked just right!
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Welcome to The Trail!
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Welcome!! The blooming onion was on harvest as well but it’s so big even for two of us.
I can’t wait to make the sweet and sour brussels sprouts.
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Yes, they are really big, and definitely a sharing dish, but if they are done right, they are the best onion ring daddy in the world! Enjoy the sprouts!
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My non-existant gall bladder makes it really impossible for me to eat deep fried anything. Sigh!
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Oh, I’m so sorry…
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It is surprising how something that hasn’t been there since 1980 has such an impact.
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Don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone…
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Well done, PJ! I can hear her in my head…
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I had the Australian Battered Potatoes this year. When they first appeared at the fair, the people at the booth were trained to speak in phony Australian accents, but they’ve since dropped that. I don’t think there’s anything particularly Australian about the potatoes, but they are very good. Bring some aluminum foil to wrap up the leftovers; an order is too much even for two people.
I tried the bacon on a stick once, but wasn’t terribly impressed. It wasn’t crisp. Bacon should be crisp.
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I’ve never brought foil to the fair but I do always bring a collapsible plastic container with a lid. This way I can dump the cookies they piled up in the cone into the plastic container so I don’t spill any and it also means that I can save some of them for a couple of hours later.
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