Like millions of Americans, I absolutely love fair foods. I can hear the corn dogs, turkey legs, funnel cakes and other various treats calling me like a siren song this time of year.
As the annual Alabama National Fair gets underway in Montgomery for its Oct. 3-13 run, you’d better believe I’ll be there for its Taste of the Fair on Oct. 2. For $30 admission, you get to go around and eat all kinds of samples from the fair’s food concessions — as much as you want.
Last year, I took my little buddy Malik, then 1, and we hit up all the stations at least once. We ate ice cream, elephant ears, seasoned fries, orange chicken, chicken wings, pizza and more.
The biggest hit for Malik was, without a doubt, fried Oreos. As he was slobbering all over one, I remember thinking, “He’s going to demand all his Oreos be fried from now on.”
My favorite part of Taste of the Fair, besides the chance to try out new and interesting fare, is that the funds from this go to charitable giving from the Kiwanis Club of Montgomery. According to Randy Stephenson, executive director of the Alabama National Fair, the Kiwanis Club has given more than $10.5 million back to the community over the life of the fair.
I totally encourage everyone to go, dig in on the foods at Taste of the Fair, and then come back during the regular fair — when all the rides are open — and buy some of the full-sized versions. Taste of the Fair guests get a free admission for one day of the Oct. 3-13 run. Get your $30 admission online at alnationalfair.org.
All that said, I know there are some of you who’d love to know how to cook real fair food. You’re in luck. In this week’s Lost Recipes, we’re going to show you how to make three fair food staples: funnel cakes, candy apples and corn dogs
Funnel Cakes
I’d be willing to bet that Sally Gray of Montgomery was a fair fan in 1983. That’s when she submitted her funnel cake recipe to the Montgomery Advertiser for its special cookbook edition. Here’s what you’ll need to make a batch of around 14:
- 2 cups plain flour
- Quarter cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- Half teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 and a quarter cups milk
- Powdered sugar
- Oil
Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Add sugar and stir. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and milk together, then add in the dry ingredients. Beat until smooth. Next, get a frying pan ready with about 2 inches of oil in it. Heat it to 375 degrees. For each cake, fill a funnel with a quarter cup of the batter. Start in the center of the pan, and let the batter flow into the oil in a spiral until a 5 inch diameter is made. After a few seconds, flip it. Fry until lightly browned on both sides. Drain the funnel cakes on paper towels. Sprinkle them with powdered sugar. You may also like adding a little butter and syrup.
Candy Apples
This one’s from a collection of fair food recipes the Advertiser published in 2007 — which to me seems crazy to realize was almost two decades ago. It came to us from about.com. Yes, we had the internet back then.
- 2 cups light brown sugar, packed.
- Two-thirds cup of water
- Tablespoon light corn syrup
- Half teaspoon vanilla extract
- Cinnamon-flavored candies (optional)
- 6 to 8 apples with sticks inserted
Combine the brown sugar, water and corn syrup in a small, deep saucepan. Stir with a wooden spoon to blend. Put the pan on medium heat, and stir until the sugar dissolves. Bring it to a boil and continue cooking without stirring until the mix is 290 degrees. Remove from heat, and add vanilla extract and stir. When the mixture stops bubbling, put the first apple in the saucepan, holding it by the stick. Put each apple stick side up on a buttered pan to solidify. If you want them to solidify quickly, dip each coated apple into ice water, let them drain on a damp towel, and then put them on the buttered pan.
If you want a little extra kick and color, melt in a couple of cinnamon-flavored candies. You can also add a little red food coloring. If you want to go for the whole fair effect, dip your candied apples into chocolate and roll nuts or candy pieces around that.
Corn Dogs
Freshly-made corn dogs just taste amazing, especially if all you’re used to eating are the boxes of frozen ones from the grocery store. Done right, there’s a crisp bite and burst of flavor in every freshly made corn dog that brings up the sound of fair music and crowds in my head. This is another recipe the Advertiser published in 2007, from hillbillyhousewife.com.
- Cup of milk
- 2 medium eggs
- Quarter cup oil
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- Teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 and third cups corn meal
- Two-thirds cup flour
- 2 packs of your favorite hot dogs. (I’d use jumbo ones. You can also substitute sausage or brats if you want to take them up a notch.)
- Flour for dusting (about a half cup)
- Hot oil for deep frying
- Corn dog sticks (You can use popsicle sticks, but those are often a little short. You want sticks that are long enough to skewer the hotdogs, and still have enough room for a handle. You also want them strong enough to not break while you’re eating.)
In a large bowl, combine the milk, eggs, oil, sugar, and salt. Mix it well. Sprinkle in the baking powder, corm meal and flour. Stir it to make a slightly thick batter.
Take the hot dogs and dry them off with paper towels. Then dust them with flour, and make sure they’re coated completely. The cornmeal batter won’t stick to the hot dogs without that. I’ve had that happen to me before, and now I know why. Put the sticks into the flour-coated hot dogs and set aside.
Now it’s time to preheat your oil, and you’re going to want it hot.
Holding it by the stick, dip a floured hot dog in the batter until it’s completely coated. Then put it in the hot oil to cook. You can cook two or three of them at a time. Turn them as they cook until they’re brown all over. Remove from oil, and drain them on paper towels. Just repeat that process until they’re all done.
One note about this is that while this recipe cooks the corn dogs horizontally — laying on their sides — that’s not how they do it at the fair. From watching them, I’ve noticed that they cook vertically. The sticks are clamped onto a metal device, and then they’re lowered into the deep oil. This cooks it evenly, so you don’t risk a burn mark on one side.
IF YOU TRY IT
If you decide to try one of these lost recipes please send us a photo and a note on how it went. Send it in an email titled “Lost Recipes” to Montgomery Advertiser reporter Shannon Heupel at sheupel@gannett.com. To support his work please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.
