What American recipes would interest you?

[Thipu1]

How about Chess Pie?

I learned about this about a decade ago when I helped some Civil War buffs plan a fund-raising dinner.  I gave them a reproduction of an 1860 cookbook.  Chess Pie was something they especially wanted to serve.

The dish is very tasty and has an interesting story.  Chess Pie is a sort of economy custard pie.  It has only a bottom crust and is rather heavy.  However, it goes quite well with a cup of coffee or tea after dinner.  It's similar to an Italian Grain Pie. 

The name probably evolved when soldiers in the Civil War were welcomed at farms in both the North and South.  The farm couldn't provide much but they could provide pie and coffee. 

When the soldiers asked what kind of pie it was, they usually got the answer, 'It's just pie'. 

Given the differences in pronunciation at the time, ' just pie' could be heard as 'jess pie'.  It isn't a great stretch to see 'Jess pie' becoming 'Chess Pie'.   

[Library Dragon]

A very late reply.....

Key Lime Pie is popular with European friends.

[WillyNilly]

Isn't peanut butter an American food invention? Therefore Elvis' fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches would be an American food (and oh so very very good!)

Chocolate chip (toll house) cookies were 'invented' in America. I think whoopie pies are American as well.

Anything using corn (maize) as its main is American, so a roasted corn salad, or popcorn, or corn pudding would fit the bill.

[PastryGoddess]

A very late reply.....

Key Lime Pie is popular with European friends.

Can you get Key Lime juice in Europe?

[mechtilde]

A very late reply.....

Key Lime Pie is popular with European friends.

Can you get Key Lime juice in Europe?

Not very easily in Britain. Ordinary lime juice is becoming increasingly available, but not key lime juice.

[Library Dragon]

Sometimes is can be found frozen.  You can cheat and use regular lime juice though my oldest DS would shout sacrilege. 

My DH just left for his semi-annual trip trip to Belgium and I sent chocolate chip cookies as a gift for the program coordinator.  I'm thinking I will send peanut butter cookies next time. 

Peanut butter and maple syrup are always things American friends ask us to bring them in Italy.

[Katana_Geldar]

Anyone got agile recipe for slow cooked jambalaya? I love Creole Cajun food.

[doodlemor]

Here is a recipe for Seneca ghost bread.  The Seneca are the westernmost tribe of the Iroquois - the Keepers of the Western Door.  They called this ghost bread because it is made from white flour which was provided by the government.

http://www.food.com/recipe/seneca-ghost-bread-95915

I have read on the BBC forums that Europeans like recipes for "soft" American cookies. 

An Amish treat available locally are thresher sized raised[yeast] doughnuts with a maple glaze.  Here is a link to a video taken in an Amish bakery in a rural area.  You can see the cinnamon coffee cakes with a maple frosting on the video, also.  I generally stop here if I am in the neighborhood.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3HvQL-KlFE

[Venus193]

My jambalaya recipe is in the Cookbook Folder, but it doesn't use a crockpot.

[SamiHami]

Hash & rice is an exclusively South Carolina recipe. It was originally developed by slaves from Barbados, who brought spices with them. It is absolutely delicious. I can send you a link to a page explaining the history and an excelent recipe if you like.

[katycoo]

Wouldn't have thought of this myself until an Aussie friend mentioned it during a conversation about pies, but Key Lime Pie apparently is very difficult to find/make outside of the US Shame, because it's so wonderful!

The difficulty comes from not being easy to get key limes.  I'd warrant most use regular limes.

[ladyknight1]

I live in Florida, and use bottled Key lime juice for my pies. When DH was stationed in Germany, his parents sent peanut butter and peach preserves in the care packages from Georgia, USA.

[PastryGoddess]

Wouldn't have thought of this myself until an Aussie friend mentioned it during a conversation about pies, but Key Lime Pie apparently is very difficult to find/make outside of the US Shame, because it's so wonderful!

The difficulty comes from not being easy to get key limes.  I'd warrant most use regular limes.

I also use bottled Key Lime juice.  They are a bit sweeter than regular limes so you may have to add sugar to any lime juice you use.

[amandaelizabeth]

That is really interesting a out key lime pie is called after Key Limes.

Never having come across it apart from books, I thought it was called that because it was "key" to ending a meal well.

[Thipu1]

Until we visited Florida with MIL and FIL, they were mystified by Key Lime Pie.  English isn't their first language and they thought that the proper name was 'Key Lion Pie'.