Commemorating The Nation's Anniversary - Day 1

Hubby Tony and I are learning a little bit about each of the States, and enjoying food from them as a way to celebrate the USA's 250th anniversary

Today Tony kicked off our project with the first five states. He came up with multiple facts for each, but his favorites were:

• Kentucky has the greatest length of navigable waterways and streams in the contiguous United States
• Pennsylvania For one season in 1943, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers merged to form the “Steagles” due to the loss of many players during WWII.
• Mississippi Still have your first teddy bear? Thank Theodore Roosevelt. On a hunting expedition in 1902 in Sharkey County, President Roosevelt refused to shoot a captured bear, an act which resulted in the creation of the teddy bear.
• Florida has the longest coastline (1,197 statute miles) in the contiguous United States, with 825 miles of accessible beaches to enjoy.
• Arkansas It is illegal to pronounce the name of the state wrong!

Tony made a complete dinner featuring fried pickles, first served in 1963 at The Duchess restaurant in Atkins, Arkansas. He paired the tasty cornmeal-coated dills with ranch dressing and a tasty chickpea salad with lots of vegetables and chopped herbs.

Ready to eat

Although the 'rules' for our project only specified one food item, Tony also came up with an Arkansas-inspired dessert. He bought a packaged Belgian Liege waffle as a substitute for a biscuit, which he covered with blackberries (native to the state) and 'chocolate gravy' (AKA heated ganache).

Tasty!