Weekend Cooking- Best of the Best from Ohio Cookbook

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Best of the Best From Ohio Cookbook Edited by Gwen Mckee and Barbara Moseley
Published by Quail Ridge Press ISBN 978-1-893062-90-0
Softcover, $16.95, 287 pages

This past Christmas, my sister-in-law, who lives in Columbus, Ohio, gave me Best of the Best From Ohio Cookbook. Editors Gwen McKee and Barbara Moseley travel each state, looking for local cookbooks and choosing recipes from those to include in their state versions.

It's a terrific way to sample the local culinary favorites, from local restaurants, church cookbooks, 4H cookbooks, and more. In the Ohio cookbook, we get favorites from Trinity United Methodist Women, Ohio State Grange, Murphy Ridge Inn and Asthma Walk cookbooks among dozens of others.

The format follows most cookbooks- Appetizers, Breakfast, Soups, Salads, Vegetables, Meats, etc.  Also included are fun facts about the state, famous people from Ohio, and photos. The editors include information about the history of the state, and the various immigrant cultures who settled there and influenced the food found in Ohio.

Many Germans settled in Ohio, so you'll find recipes for things like Sauerkraut Balls, Spaetzle, German Apple Pancake and Lebkuchen, a type of cookie. Ohio is known as the Buckeye State, and you can find a Buckeye Pie recipe. Since the Dublin Irish Festival draws over 90,000 visitors each year, the recipe for Onion Bisque is a popular one.

I enjoyed reading how Cincinnati Chili came to be, from a Greek restaurant owner in 1922.  (There are many Greek inspired recipes.) You'll find lots of Amish recipes here, as world's largest Amish settlement is found in Ohio.

One of my favorite cookbooks are one created by parents from my sons' Catholic School, St. Joseph School in Auburn New York, because it has everyone's best recipe in there and I have used it so much the binding has come undone. This book reminds me of that; you'll find the best recipes culled from dozens of Ohio cookbooks, and at the end of the book is a catalog list of each cookbook referenced, with helpful ordering information alongside each one.

This is a fun gift, and now when I visit other states, I intend on looking for a cookbook like this. It would be a wonderful, useful memento, although it will take up more space than a refrigerator magnet.

From the Ohio Cook Book, here is a recipe for
Lake Erie Potato-Fried Fish
 1 1/2 pounds white bass, yellow perch or other fillets
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp. water
1 cup instant mashed potatoes
1 package onion or Italian salad dressing mix
Cooking oil

Sprinkle fish filets with salt and pepper. In a bowl, beat together egg and water. In another bowl, combine potato flakes and dressing mix. Dip fish into egg mixture to coat, then dredge in potato flake mixture. Heat 1/8 inch oil in skillet. Add fish and over moderate heat, fry for 4-5 minutes per side, drain on paper towels.

rating 4 of 5