Delights Of Delaware

 Hopefully President Biden  will bring some of his state's foods with  him when he heads to Washington, Delaware may be a little state but it has some big flavors. There's a combination of seafood and produce, Philly influence and in state classics. It's a fun cornucopia of different tastes that will appeal to everyone.

Delaware is part of the Delmarva Peninsula, consisting of it , along with parts of  the Maryland and Virginia coastlines. Seafood plays an important part for this state that not only has the Atlantic Ocean but also the Delaware Bay. Blue crabs abound in the last. Delaware's coastal areas have a variety of different seafood eateries that feature everything from steamed to crab cakes. Another popular dish is crab dip served with Ritz crackers. The dip is a mix of the seafood mixed with Miracle Whip and sour cream zinged up with white wine and onions. Almonds are put on the finished dip for decoration. Peaches are another Delaware product, grown in the northern part of the state. Peach pie and cobbler are two desserts prized by Delawarians as well as the fruit itself when in season. Apples are another fruit grown by The Diamond State so there are plenty of pies and apple cider donuts come fall. Delaware also has a thriving corn farm industry as well. The state has a whopping 3500 acres set aside for growing ears and what goes better  with steamed crab than corn on the cob.

Of course there are two other strong influences in the Delawarian diet. The first is Philadelphia  which is only half an hour north of Wilmington. It's not surprising then that cheesesteak, that delicious meld of thinly sliced  steak , melted cheddar cheese and sometimes onions have made their ways into the hearts of everyone from the cities to the shore area.  There's even a hybrid that has crab meat topped with cheddar on a hoagie roll. Another Philly favorite is the breakfast meat scrapple. This is a mix of corn grits and pig offal however  it's heaven when fried and served with eggs. Soft Philly pretzels have also made their way to Joe Biden's state ( as he did. He was born in Scranton and moved to Delaware as a kid). Some seaside restaurants serve them with either cheddar or crab meat. Another great influence is the Rehoboth Boardwalk where there's all sorts of goodies to munch on. Many love Sno-Cones, those mounds of pebbly ice soaked in different syrups along with frozen custard, a yummy scoop of rich flavor and texture. There's also the Nico-Boli from the beach's' famed Nicolo Pizza. This is a stromboli filled with sauce, cheese and a wide variety of different fillings like chicken and anchovies.

Delaware is in the spotlight now. Take time to discover the amazing and varied cuisine of the state when it's safe to travel.  It's a wonderful array of land and sea, Philly and Boardwalk, all perfect for White House cuisine.

The Most Perfect Dumplings

New York City is known for it's big Chinese community. The community has given the city some of the best recipes and dishes from Beijing duck to dumplings. It's the last that making waves again. Dumplings are becoming hot again  -although they never went out of style.There are some new variations as well as traditional dumplings too.

New York Times Dining regular, Jeff Gordonier has  the lucky assignment of tasting and rating some of New York''s best dumplings.He has found traditional ones in Queens' Flushing where there is the second largest Chinese population in the world. Here dumplings are made the old fashioned way but with a spin - lamb is used. The ingredient, more suited to Mongolian tables, are a big draw at Mission Chinese Food on Manhattan's Lower East side. These were so popular that the restaurant;s chef and recipe's creator, Danny Bowien has made close to 1,000 on some days.

The dumpling takes on a funky New York neighborhood twist too. Mr . Gordonier was also fortunate to try the pretzel dumpling which has a funky inside and a chewy pretzel like outside. The inside can be made of a tasty pork a d scallion or a variation on chicken parm. There are also fillings such as pad Thai, cheesesteak and barbecued pork. Another restaurant, the trendy Brooklyn Red Farm creates dumplings that look like small golden crabs,complete with black sesame seed eyes. Dumplings are easy to make at home as well and you can try these with any number of ingredients.

Dumplings are definitely hot right now however there was never a time when they weren't popular. Go to Manhattan to sample these tasty treats. If not make them yourself, whether with the traditional or new trendy ones. Either way ,it makes for some good eating.