[il-talk] Here's some of what they're serving at the State Fair.

[Bill Reif]

You have a week to try any of this.  This article is from Sunday's State 
Journal-Register.  Kathryn's wrong about the liquid nitrogen ice cream being 
new.

Bill


New, decadent foods abound at state fair

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By KATHRYN REM
THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER
Posted Aug 16, 2009 @ 12:00 AM
Last update Aug 16, 2009 @ 07:49 AM

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Take ultra-cold liquid nitrogen, blend it with dairy mix, add a little 
showmanship and you have Sub Zero ice cream, a frozen concoction made in 30 
seconds in front of the customer.

It's one of many new and unique items being offered this year at the 
Illinois State Fair.

"It freezes so fast, it doesn't allow ice crystals to form," Ron Spann said 
as he furiously stirred the mixture in a bowl until it transformed into 
chunky, orange-flavored ice cream. The nitrogen is 230 degrees below zero, 
he said.

"Put your hand in it. Do it quick and it won't burn you," he said about the 
liquid nitrogen. He was right. The crew at the stand, on Pat Henry Drive 
next to Food-A-Rama, invites customers to interact with their food.

"I let people touch it and play with it. It's a fun product," said Spann, a 
Pleasant Plains native who lives in Provo, Utah. The finished ice cream is 
somewhat chunky and very cold.
Sub Zero flavors include cheesecake, chocolate, raspberry, citrus, vanilla, 
bubble gum and mint; a bowl is $5. Mix-ins such as marshmallows, Heath bars 
and Butterfingers, are available.

The metal tanks at the stand each hold 230 liters of liquid nitrogen, Spann 
said, and he's hoping to go through 30 tanks during the 10-day run of the 
fair.

* What's not to love about a vendor who sells pork parfaits, fried macaroni 
and cheese and deep-fried Pepsi?

Porky's, in the Heartland area of the fairgrounds near Gate 2, is three 
side-by-side tents that also offers pork chops, rib tips, beef brisket, rib 
slabs, turkey legs and pork tenderloin.

New to the Illinois fair this year, the business - which has shaded 
seating - is run by Jean-Ann and Kurt Miller of Lafayette, Ind.

"If you like meat and potatoes, this will hit the spot. Some people say it 
looks like a sundae," Jean-Ann Miller said of the pork parfait.

In a clear glass, it's six layers of pulled pork, mashed potatoes and 
barbecue sauce. Eat it with a spoon; the flavors blend surprisingly well. 
Price: $5 and $7.

The fried macaroni and cheese comes in nuggets that are battered and 
deep-fried to a golden brown. An order includes several nuggets in a tray.

The deep-fried Pepsi is a phyllo dough stuffed with cream filling made with 
Pepsi syrup. The whole thing is fried and dusted with powdered sugar. (Pepsi 
has the soft drink contract for the Illinois fair; Porky's uses Coke at 
fairs where Coke has the contract.) The stand also makes fried orange soda, 
Mountain Dew and Dr Pepper.

"It's sweet, it's flaky, it's buttery, with a soda flavor," Jean-Ann said.

* The Texas proprietors of the Fried What! stand on Main Street somehow 
manage to come up with a new deep-fried goodie every year. This time around, 
it's deep-fried hot fudge sundaes.

They start with a banana on a skewer and dip it into hot fudge. Then it's 
battered and fried. The warm banana is served in a dish alongside vanilla 
ice cream, whipped cream, a drizzle of chocolate syrup and, if desired, 
chopped nuts. Price: $6. It's rich and surprisingly good.

Also at the stand are deep-fried peanuts, still in the shell.

"People are leery about the first one. By the fifth one, you're hooked," 
said vendor Norma Bowers of Dallas. "You eat the shell and all. It's the 
best fiber in the world." A bag is $5; flavors are salted and Cajun.

* Jamaican Taste is a 2 1/2-year-old restaurant in Springfield, at 2232 E. 
Cook St. This year, the owners - Jamaican natives Omege and Vanburn James, 
who have lived in Springfield six years - are taking over the Jamaican stand 
in Ethnic Village.

"Jerk chicken is the best seller," Vanburn James said. "They go for the 
steamed cabbage, too."

On the menu: Jerk chicken dinner, $7.50; curry chicken dinner, $7; steamed 
cabbage, $3.50; fried plantains, $3; rice and cabbage, $5; rice and peas, 
$3; jerk chicken only, $5. Jamaican sodas (grape, ginger beer, mango carrot, 
kola champagne, pineapple) are $3 and $3.75.

Besides Jamaican, other cuisines represented in Ethic Village are Filipino, 
Greek, German, Indian, Korean, Mexican, Dutch, French, Polish, Venezuelan 
and Italian. The Tropical Sweet Spot booth sells snow cones and shake-ups, 
and there are beer stands as well.

* It's hard to miss the Crab Shack on Main Street, with its grass awning, 
tin roof and wood siding.

Across from the entrance to Ethnic Village, the new food stand - run by Josh 
and Jessica Corcoran of Racine, Wis. - is bringing the ocean to the fair, 
with its crab cakes, shrimp and fish.

"We've done vending on the West Coast and wanted to come here because it's a 
good fair," Josh Corcoran said.

On the menu: Alaska King crab cakes, coconut crab cakes and fried shrimp: 
all $7.95 and $9.95; beer-battered cod: $6.95 and $8.95; shore lunch (2 
pieces breaded lake perch, fries, slaw): $9.95; key lime pie, $4.95; triple 
chocolate cake, $3.95.

* The Lemonade Factory on Grandstand Avenue across from the horse barns has 
nine flavors of lemon shake-ups: regular, strawberry, raspberry, orange, 
cherry, peach, tropical, passion fruit and strawberry-orange. All can be 
made in a diet version.

"It's just sugar, water, lemons and flavor. The key is to add enough sugar," 
said vendor Anthony Crifasi of Springfield. The drinks are $3, $4 and $5.

* Corn-on-the-cob is usually served with butter. Missey's Mexican Corn, in 
the Heartland area near the Sky Glider, goes a little further.

The boiled sweet corn on a stick is slathered in mayonnaise, rolled in 
grated parmesan cheese, sprinkled with chili powder and then drizzled with 
margarine.

"It's nutritious and delicious," said Janice Evans of Chicago, a first-time 
vendor, as she stood in front of the stand showing off an ear. Cost: $5.

* You can get an Indian taco at Kropp's, across from the Grandstand. It's a 
piece of Indian fry bread piled with taco meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, 
black olives, onion, salsa and sour cream. A new offering this year, it 
sells for $7.

* A single item is sold at the stand called Viva la Fajita. Can you guess 
what it is?

The fajitas, with either skirt steak or marinated chicken breast, are made 
with a flour tortilla and dressed with pico de gallo (onion, tomatoes, 
cilantro, garlic, salt), which is made fresh on site. Sour cream and fresh 
jalapenos are optional. Price: $5.75.

Owner Ward Deal, who grew up in Champaign but now lives in Miami, has been 
in the food business 25 years. He owned a restaurant in Montreal and helped 
open other restaurants in Las Vegas, California and Washington, D.C. This is 
his first year as a vendor at the Illinois State Fair.

"Everything is fresh off the grill, made to order," Deal said. "You can't 
eat just one." He sells twice as many steak fajitas as chicken.

The stand is on Grandstand Avenue, next to the horse barns.

* Looking for a treat that is not battered, fried, slathered in sour cream, 
dipped in chocolate or topped with whipped cream? Go to the Farmers Market 
tent run by the Illinois Specialty Growers Association.

In the Heartland area, it offers fresh, nutritious food and plenty of 
seating. The produce comes from farms in central Illinois.

On the menu: apple cider slush, $2 and $3; peaches, $1 each; cooked sweet 
corn, $2 each; ice cream, $2 and $3; garden salad, $5; 
hard-cooked-egg-on-a-stick, $1; popcorn, $1.50; watermelon, $2-$6; 
cantaloupe, $1.50-$5.

Kathryn Rem can be reached at 788-1520.


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