Kids Cuisine

This is Fair Food Part 2: Attack of the Grease!

On Tuesday, we talked about introducing your kids to produce and livestock at the fair. Today we tackle a more controversial subject, fair food — the greasy delights found along the midway at every fair.

Funnel cakes are a fair classic — cake batter drizzled into a deep fryer so that it takes on a fun, loopy shape. It’s often topped with pie filling and whipped cream or ice cream, a nutritional nightmare. I mean, where else would you take a piece of cake and drop it in a deep fryer?

The frying madness doesn’t stop there — everything from cheese curds to Twinkies to Snickers bars can be found battered and fried. Some fairs even offer fried Coke (little balls of Coke-syrup infused dough deep fried and topped with more Coke syrup). Even the vegetables get the fryer treatment: zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes, etc.

So what’s a parent to do? Eating food that is horrible for you is part of the fun of the fair, but here are a few tips to help with food options.

• Healthier food is available, if you look. Check for roasted corn or freshly made sandwiches.
• Many fairs have indoor dining halls with food provided by Lions Clubs or other service groups. The options at these tend more toward a meat main course with sides of veggies and bread. Not the most interesting option, but probably one of the healthier.
• Be on the lookout for milk and popcorn stands. My fair has huge glasses of fresh milk for a dollar. (Of course, there are usually cookies somewhere near by.) Compared to most other options available, popcorn is a light snack and will take your kid a while to finish, possibly distracting him or her from the other more flashy options.
• Finally, it’s the fair — have a little food fun! Sharing a fried treat is a good option. Some stands also offer smaller versions of their artery-clogging delights, like fried bite size Snickers instead of the whole bar. This way you get a taste without making yourself sick. Unfortunately, one taste is never enough… but that’s another story.

Photos protected under Creative Commons License — Twinkie from Flickr user Lance McCord, corn from Flickr user kevinthoule.