In recent years, we've nurtured a tradition of planning the dinner menu for Super Bowl Sunday around the teams in the game. Some years present a bounty of options; other years, not so much. The Bills introduced us to Buffalo wings, the Bengals to Cincinnati-style chili, and the 49'ers to sourdough bread. New England has been a boon. Pittsburgh was a bit of a challenge; I can't even remember how we represented them, besides Heinz condiments. My all time favorite was definitely SB XXXV: crab cakes for the main entreé, with an authentic NY style cheesecake for dessert (the latter was nearly as good as the family recipe, though completely different in style).
But as nearly as I can tell, there is a serious dearth of signature food items for Chicago and Indianapolis -- an additional reason I was rooting for the Saints! Fortunately, I have the first of the two covered. After all, Chicago is the home of deep dish pizza, and there's a Pizzeria Uno within 6 miles of our house. Still, we've been to Chicago and, like most of the locals I know there, our definite preference is for Giordano's stuffed pizza. Oh, how I want to order from there, but the additional shipping cost may lead us to fall back on Uno's.
Preliminary research indicates that the "signature" items for Indianapolis (or, more generally, for Indiana) are breaded pork tenderloin sandwiches and sugar cream pie. The latter should be doable, I'd think. Any Hoosiers (is there another term for someone from Indiana? Indianans just doesn't seem right!), feel free to leave suggestions, especially if you have a particularly delectable recipe for sugar cream pie!
Sorry, can't help with any recipe ideas but I just wanted to say that this is a great idea. I love trying new things and what a better excuse than the Super Bowl!
ReplyDeleteOne more thought: I love pizza and would never turn one down. But when I think of Chicago I think of sausage. Never been there. Am I way off base?
You could be right. I saw a guy from Chicago claim online the city has two two signature food items. The first is deep-dish pizza, a.k.a. "Chicago-style," famously invented at Chicago's Pizzeria Uno. The second is the Chicago-style hot dog, which I've never heard of in 3 Windy City visits, but is apparently well-known. I generally tend to associate sausages more with Milwaukee, but upon further review, I think the dogs are going to be on the menu. Now, if I can only find the "sport peppers" for them.
ReplyDeleteThe dinner was great! I think I'm ruined for life concerning hot dogs, which haven't much excited me since I was about 12. And the local Uno's was running a half-priced deal on the pizzas. About a dozen folks here, all told, and we had a fine time.
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