America ’s baking history is both diverse and toothsome . Any favorites listing ( especially if based on editorial curiosity rather than hard data ) is sure to trigger debate , and we expect this one will be no different . After all , Americans are fiercely protective and passionate about darling food and formula , and most of our okay fare is already rife with turbid story and convoluted origin .
And the fact that you may put your own twist on most scorched good shit a favorites list even more difficult . Most baking recipes are particularly sluttish to modify , whether deliberately or by accident – all it take is a different material body of pan , a pinch of spice here or an " oops ! " there . Countless numbers of these recipe variations are documented , thanks to America ’s love of cookbooks , so anyone can try his or her own personal take on a classic .
Keep reading to see how America ’s robust history continues to be shaped by innovation , tonic acculturation and good gustatory sensation .
10: Pretzels
chronicle traces the twisted rubbish of adust simoleons from Italy to Austria , Germany to the United States . Though it ’s likelypretzelslanded stateside on the Mayflower , the waves of Dutch immigrants heading to Pennsylvania in the 1800s cemented the DoS ’s reputation as America ’s pretzel capital , and the Amish have gained a repute for baking the best around .
Auntie Anne ’s , one of the gravid purveyors of soft pretzels , is of Amish origin : Its founder , Anne Beiler , grew up in an Amish home and got her pretzel - twisting start in a husbandman ’s market [ source : Kovalchik ] . The chain ’s grow to 1050 positioning since 1987 , tempt shopping center patrons across the world with a sweet , larder perfume .
Pretzels remain such a part of Pennsylvania culture that an episode of " The Office " revolved around an annual free pretzel solar day . accord to nutrient personality Alton Brown , the medium American corrode 2 pound ( 0.91 kilograms ) of pretzels a year ; in Philadelphia , that number puff up to 20 ( 9.1 kilogrames ) . Brown ’s a huge sports fan of pretzel and believes the interesting textures of the warm , diffuse version moderate tremendous advantages over the hard - baked option . The bready elasticity is thanks to the generous amount of barm , which explain why the pretzel is such a good companion forbeer . This might account for the pretzel ’s popularity in sports stadiums – it ’s essentially a tasty sponger to soak up brew .
9: Banana Bread
variance on banana sugar have been around forever , or so it seems . What food historians do it , but ca n’t explicate , is that traditional banana simoleons savor a sudden surge of popularity in the sixties , despite a plethora of newly available cake and bread intermixture . Its practicality ( enabling witting consumer to utilise up nearly moulder fruit ) , simple recipe and comforting aroma are all important factors , but they nevertheless fail to really report for banana bread ’s turn out star .
The discrimination may come down to something as simple and indefinable as gustatory perception . Like most sweet , cakey things , banana bread ’s really promiscuous to individualise – just tally more sweets . The 1962 version of " The Good Housekeeping Cook Book " included recipes that added apricot and prune in improver to the more common date and freak variations . Newer recipes let in peanut butter orchocolatechips to capitalize on the shaver - well-disposed appeal of such flavor combinations .
8: Red Velvet Cake
The first cherry-red velvet cakes were a result of better living through chemistry : When buttermilk and baking soda pop sports meeting , they cause a chemical reaction that results in a reddish mite . The first known put out recipe is date 1962 ; before artificial dyes and digital editing tweaked our optic anticipation , the quirky but innate hue was enough to trigger off imagination .
Now , most chefs heighten the colour ’s saturation to satisfy the masses . Purists prefer a adaptation tinct with beets . When that does n’t cut it , food for thought coloring is engage to make the red tint more ruby . Unfortunately , tricky bakers sometimes employ the unnatural color to overpower your Mary Jane and disguise a savorless patty .
For all the yack about red velvet bar ’s color , little is enjoin of the flavor . It should be rich with a pernicious osculation of hot chocolate ( though the actualchocolatecontent variegate wildly in recipes ) , and it ’s traditionally top off and layer with blank or cream cheese frost to emphasize its most dramatic feature and dividing line with the deep brown government note .
Nothing adds to a food for thought ’s entreaty like a sound mystery ; once the color was explained , the question of red velvet patty ’s inception remained . It ’s reputed to be southerly in source ( supported by its prominence on the rosters of southerly restaurants and bakeries all over the country ) , though foodie urban myths abound that give cite to New York ’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel .
7: Whoopie Pie
Here we have another mixture that can be hunt to the mid - Atlantic . Few dispute the treat ’s Pennsylvania Dutch beginning – the land even boasts an yearly whoopie pie eating competition held , of course , at the Whoopie Pie Festival . Throughout Maine and the rest of New England , though , whoopie pies are particularly celebrated .
Texture is primal to the whoopie pie . The forbidden section are dry , cakelike cooky cement together with a blockheaded layer of dense , heavy filling . Old formula of Amish origin feature a woof composed mainly ofsugar - saturate veg shortening , which leaves a greasy aftertaste .
Traditionally , the outers are a devil’s - food - likechocolate , while the middle is a super - sweet vanilla feel . Like most of the treats on our leaning , though , the recipe just begs for tinkering . Common magnetic variation include Cucurbita pepo , maple or crimson velvet cookies with ointment high mallow frosting , or the ever - popular chocolate and peanut butter combo .
6: Blueberry Muffins
Though the parole " gem " can be draw back to eighteenth century Germany ( " muffe " substance , loosely , " small patty " ) , it ’s become an American breakfast basic . After the muffin frustrate the Atlantic , it quickly gained identification for its portability and versatility , since a spacious variety of local fruits , veggies , nut case and spices could well be added to the flexible recipes [ informant : North American Blueberry Council ] .
The native blueberry bush became a profligate dearie in American muffin formula , thanks to its sweetness , wide handiness ( it often could be find dried and preserve , even out of season ) , and the upbeat , unique violet color spread throughout each morsel . When scientists set about to study nutriment and observe the anti - senescent major power ofantioxidants , the indulgence became easy to justify – blending small - kilogram calorie , notably nutritive - rich blueberry into each gem diminishes the downlike treat ’s guiltiness element .
Blueberries ' healthy hype is for existent , even if the muffins have a spate to suffice for . That might be why , according to the North American Blueberry Council , blueberry is the most democratic muffin smack in the country . Whether you ’re look to offset your muffin ’s heft or simply savour one of America ’s favorite homegrown crops , blueberries let America pretend that even the most sugary , butter - laden breakfast can be vindicate by a generous fistful of fruit .
5: Cornbread
Cornbreadis truly American , in both origin and in tradition . Thanks to the widespread availability and contrivance of corn whiskey , Native Americans depended on a diet of baked cornmeal concoctions long before Europeans stepped ashore . Today , cornbread serves the imposing purpose of quicken competition between the North and South ( though we think it ’s fair thoroughly - natured ) .
received cornbread , which follow a quick bread formula , is slap-up for a traditional Thanksgiving meal . But while Northerners are generally content with a simple interlingual rendition from a bar pan ( or in gem form , for the saki of public convenience ) , such complacency earns scorn south of the Mason - Dixon . Southerner are know to get particularly feisty , harmonize to solid food source Regina Charboneau : " Cornbread in the South is as controversial as gumbo . Everyone has a recipe and everyone has an opinion . "
The first debate : angelical or mouth-watering ? sweetened cornbread , season withsugar , molasses or maple , is well topped with love butter . savoury bread can get as hot as you care it . Try onion plant or jalapeno capsicum pepper plant for a kick , or grease the pan with Roger Bacon dripping for a smoky flavor .
Then , the cook must resolve : cake or bread ? For a cakelike grain , make a batter and use a cake pan . Often , though , cornbread connoisseur will insist on do straight from a cast Fe skillet , the capacity of which can be baked , steam or electrocute .
Assuming it ’s not Turkey Day , cornbread can be served alone , topped with butter , or alongside a solid arena of chili . It can be crumbled into a stuffing for a poultry or seafood entree , or you could just grab a handful and go .
4: Cream Puffs
woefulness unto the soul who tell steadfast Midwesterners that their darling , 100 - old tradition is a fad . Over the retiring several years , though , the soft combination of a crunchy eggshell and fluffy filling inspired intellectual nourishment advisor and restaurateur to presage a gourmet version of the pick puff would become the next upscale dessert [ source : Dougherty ] . In 2004 , two Nipponese Sir Ernst Boris Chain set out several stateside franchises , bulge out in Manhattan and expanding outward . The enfranchisement cream puff is market as a sumptuosity experience , but whether the concept can stand the test of clip stay to be see .
All of this matters little to Wisconsinites , who have view as the basic , no - frills ointment pull in a position of reverence for more than 150 years [ source : MSNBC ] . The inhabitant of the Badger State gather at the one-year Wisconsin State Fair in West Allis to watch as large pastry dough shell are piled high with pick , useable in one spirit : strap cream . These fat- and calorie - laden treats are consumed by the truckload in homage to the agricultural industry , using topically sourced Milk River , cream and ball . bread maker function around the clock to satisfy requirement , and according to the Wisconsin Bakers Association , 345,000 puff were devoured at 2009 ’s funfair .
3: Bagels
The bagel is directly recognisable , omnipresent in our breakfast - obsessed culture , undisputedly Jewish in lineage , but hardly the first round - shaped bread . The first rolls - with - a - hole , find in the Mediterranean , were unlike the bagels we know and love ; they were n’t boiled before they were bake . Bakers in Poland are credited with educate the method that develops a authoritative , glossy encrustation . This hard outer bed drastically increased thebread’sshelf life [ origin : Nathan ] .
This made bagels a pragmatic choice to pack for a transatlantic sail . Soon , more bagels were spy on American shores , and their popularity mature . Eastern European immigrant make it in U.S. cities were comforted by the pile of a conversant food . Judaic bakers modified their recipes to comply with kosher laws , provide to a fundamental demographic while further increasing the unique bread ’s prevalence . The International Beigel Bakers ' Union was produce in 1907 in New York City , cement its repute as America ’s beigel majuscule .
Over a hundred later on , sales are still increasing as Americans snap up more breakfast on the fly sheet . fit in to breakfast gross revenue data from 2008 , bagel ( 13.3 percent of sales ) trail doughnuts and muffins ( 34.3 and 20 percentage , respectively ) . However , overall bagel sales had increased more than 10 percent from a well-nigh identical time frame in 2007 , even though they commonly be more than sinker and muffins .
2: Chocolate Chip Cookies
The exact year of the firstchocolatechip cookie is up for debate . Different sources date its Book of Genesis to 1930 , 1933 and 1937 . Regardless , it ’s earn its true place as America ’s favorite cookie , and like many awe-inspiring innovations , it arrived somewhat by accident . According to dessert traditional knowledge , Ruth Wakefield , proprietor of the Toll House Inn in Massachusetts , was bake a batch of " Butter Drop Do " cooky and adjudicate to blend in a chop chocolate legal profession , expect it to melt and season the whole stack of dough .
or else , the bits stayed solid . Mrs. Wakefield liked the haphazard marriage of grain and sapidity , and the method quickly earned space in the pages of a Boston newspaper and heavy rotation in recipe repertoires across New England . Nestle , whose semi - sweet chocolate bar were sport in the Toll House Cookie ( and who by and by negotiate with Mrs. Wakefield for the rights to the Toll House name ) , run into a spike in sales in areas where the formula had been publish , prompting the company to create the product we came to know as the chocolate chipping .
Now , the beloved umber chip cooky is useable nearly everywhere in America . The cabbage can be enhance with cocoa , umber , mellow out chocolate , peanut vine butter , oatmeal or canned pumpkin ; the chips can be dark or snowy and coupled with crackpot , butterscotch or candy - coat varieties ; they can be baked chewy or crisp . Often , the gelt is corrode raw before it even makes it to the oven . Faced with these distraction , it ’s easy to draw a blank that you’re able to enjoy a chocolate microchip cookie in virginal form , home - baked and overbold off the sheet , falling apart as it ’s dipped in a looking glass of Milk River .
1: Apple Pie
You might have noticed that many of the classics we ’ve take have European origins , which is something that ’s inevitable . Not to disappoint you , but the belovedapplepie , born in Great Britain , is no exclusion . No worries , though , since we ’ve thoroughly and wholeheartedly espouse it as our own . What ’s not to love ? It ’s sweet , sharp , reasonably easy to make and extremely rewarding . The formula can be as complicated as the chef , but even the simplest method can give intricate results by experimenting with the change of orchard apple tree . And in the United States , we have apple selection aplenty , all over the country .
Once you ’ve mastered the basics – the orchard apple tree , filling and pastry dough – why stop there ? By now , it ’s pretty clear that a originative chef can give to intuition . well-nigh anything arouse into a bequest formula gets reasonably tasty results . Apple pie ’s no elision . The top Earth’s crust can be give vent or latticed , or , as they do in Pennsylvania , removed in favour of crumb . The filling can be highlighted with nuts , raisin or booze . In Vermont , a slice of Proto-Indo European ( sweetened with a dash of maple , if you ’re favourable ) is come with by a fade of sharp cheddar cheese .
Few things have so powerfully captured our national corporate resourcefulness , despite the British pedigree , so it ’s only meet we bend to the Cambridge Dictionary of Idioms for an account of the omnipresent catchphrase , " As American as Malus pumila pie . " They say , simply , it mean , " To be typically American . "
