American food lessons?

Oh, my, having read all the suggestions, give me the Italian cooking any old day!

Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy. Biscuits and sausage gravy.

Yes, ingredients could be a problem. I'd do something like a Thansgiving dinner, only with a whole roasted chicken since you probably can't find a turkey. Roast chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, pumpkin pie for dessert.

A fruit pie. Pulled pork sandwich and some slaw. BBQ pork ribs.

Thanks for getting the ball rolling! I would love to do mashed potatoes but I think since it's a building block for Croche (fried mashed potatoes sometimes with cheese, sometimes with ham) it might be not such a lesson.

How 'bout meat loaf, scalloped potatoes, and apple pie with vanilla gelato.

King Ranch Chicken Posole Chicken Fried Steak with cream gravy and biscuits Enchilada Casserole Mrs Fields Cookies Meatloaf and some Italian American Italian food - maybe Lasagna, NYC style

Macaroni and cheese are probably very American. Also, I think peanut butter and jelly sandwiches came out of the USA. Fried catfish, tuna-noodle casserole, okra.....

It is kind of funny ... most of the things suggested as "American" are things I never eat ... However, a couple of things that my European co-workers seemed to identify as "American" were: Brownies Chocolate Chip Cookies Blueberry Muffins Fluffy Pancakes (as opposed to crepes or Swedish pancakes) Cupcakes Apple Pie Chili Southwestern or Tex Mex food Any kind of barbecue Certain cocktails like Margaritas, Mint Juleps, and Cosmopolitans

Oh, no, she didn't! I know the Canadian didn't just disrespect our food! Norma, I'd challenge you to a cage match cook-off, but I'm afraid the Canadians would fall asleep from their own boring food! They'd be poutined to death.

I think ketchup flavored potato chips are Canadian, James. Well you could be over the top American and do something so American, state fair style...........deep fried____________(fill in the blank); Oreos, coke, butter, gum, twinkies, bacon (like, butter, why not make something insanely fattening. Deep fried bacon. Have we lost our minds?)? Or just show them a picture of a Krispy Kreme donut bacon cheeseburger sandwich, for gross out giggles!

New England clam chowder, cornbread, jambalaya, beef stew...

The Canadians have some kind of delicacy called a "butter tart". I've never had one, but I took a cooking class in London a few years ago and two Canadian expats were waxing poetic about it. Kelly, if Emily were going to do the midwest state fair food, it would also have to be served on a stick. I went to my first state fair a couple of years ago and had chocolate covered bacon on a stick ... but that might be bit scary for a European. Heck, I thought it was going to be scary, but it mostly tasted like dark chocolate with crunchy bits and a slightly smoky flavor.

Listen, some of the American food is just odd, lol sorry , but what IS that white sauce you call "gravy" and put on white buns, yuck yuck yuck. And chicken fried steak, that is an abomination to meat in general, I had to have someone tell me what it is,, seriuosly,, What would be good, and can be tasty , and different from Europeon food( sorry things like scalloped pototes are really not that American in origin, they are not that unusual in France anyways) would be Tex Mex /bbq stuff. Chili, burritos, and bbq, tasty food not common at all in Europe, A butter tart is basically very similar to a raisen tart ( butter and sugar) or a pecan pie filling without the pecans, you know all gooey and bad for you, lol A VERY unique dessert bar is called a Nanaimo Bar, they originated about 100 kms from me, and they are deadly good. But of course , bad for you.. google for recipe, they are so rich and yummy they make your teeth hurt. Basically some "American " food is also "Canadian " food too, apple pie is pretty darn common here, not sure either of us invented it, but the french have been making variations of apple tarts/ pies for many many years. Macoroni and cheese the way we make it here ( with a cheddar cheese sauce ) is very North American, they have versions of cheese and pasta dishes galore in Italy but they don't use Chedder. I like the way we make it here .

Maybe you could think about where you are originally from and settle on some local specialties of that area. I'm from the South, so I think of chicken and dumplings, shrimp and grits, shrimp creole, Southern pork BBQ, banana pudding, pecan bourbon pie, etc. Perhaps those from the northeast might think of Boston cream pie or something like that. I think you can be a lot more enthusiastic and authentic about dishes that you grew up with.

Pat, I think you refer to "biscuits and gravy" as the odd American food. I tried it once and thought it was delicious. Mostly, I avoid gravy as it is traditionally full of unhealthy fats. In the Midwest, where I grew up, gravy was a staple. Some of my grandmother's dinners featured gravy on everything, including the sauerkraut. I never learned to make it without lumps. You start with a pan of hot grease (from whatever meat has been cooked), then stir in flour, add milk, cook til thick. The trick is to get the flour mixed in smoothly. Baking powder biscuits may be "American." They are tricky to make properly. I never mastered that, either. Fruit pies are typical here, but may be almost universal in some form.

Thanks for a ton of suggestions. We'll be here a few years so I'll run through a lot of them, I'm sure We did give them baked potatoes once and there was much talk about how we didn't use water to cook them. We gave them shredded cheddar to go with it. They couldn't believe it was cheese and thought I was saying the wrong words "oh, carrote!" then they watched it melt. It's great being so open you can teach others new things while they open up their world to yours!

The problem is that most of the "American" food suggested here are not "American"; they are variations on dishes from elsewhere. Scalloped potatoes, as someone pointed out, are originally French. Shrimp and grits may feel very Southern, but I've had nearly the same dish in Italy, made with polenta! I think for something truly "American" you need to look to Southwest cuisine, which is based on food that originally came from the Americas-corn, squash, beans, tomatoes, chiles, etc. Of course most of these vegetables are now widely known all over the world, including iin Italy, which makes excellent use of tomatoes and peppers in particular in the regional cuisines. But you could show them a new twist with dishes from the Southwest, using Southwest spices (cumin, chipotle pepper, chile, etc.) and new combinations of familiar ingredients. Maybe fajitas with black beans and fresh salsa? If you are ambitious you could even make corn tortillas, if someone could send you the masa harina.

When I lived in Italy, I missed yummy American breakfast foods. Maybe make her brunch with a few nods to the Italian food traditions. Make a sausage and egg casserole (if you aren't able to get cheddar, Ikea actually sells a cheese that tastes similar), roasted asparagus with Balsamic vinegar, a mimosa using prosecco maybe, and then something fruity and something sweet. The Italians I knew were very interested in how to make frosting so your sweet item could be carrot cake muffins with cream cheese frosting and then serve a fresh fruit compote. As an interesting aside, I was also told that Italians didn't use cinnamon. I don't know if it is a dislike or just not part of the food culture. Or if it is even true, just something I heard! Good luck!

Pat. I totally agree with you about chicken fried steak. Why would you want to do that to a nice piece of beef.

Exactly, James. You don't bread & fry a T-bone or filet. You use round steak, tenderize it, etc. You use the cut that is about useless for anything else. The baked potatoes gave me an idea. Look for foods that are common to both Italy and the US, but are cooked differently. Maybe vegetables that they cook, that we eat raw in a salad, or different fruit desserts. Or spices used in sweets instead of savory. Then write a book and finance your stay in Italy.

How about some Italian-American dishes? Sunday gravy- meatballs, sausage, brasciole with spaghetti, stuffed artichokes, chicken or eggplant parm, calzone, fettuccini Alfredo, Pizza rustica. Not sure if that would appeal to you. It's what I grew up with in NY. I never ate tex mex food.

Alison, if you grew up eating American Italian food, and never had Tex Mex then it seems that Tex Mex might be the best choice afterall since it would be so completely different to what they know,, whereas American Italian may be too similar to some of their dishes? PS I am not sure what American Italian is , but assume its similar to what we call Canadain Chinese,, not really Chinese food as it is served or prepared in China, but food that is derived from some styles of Chinese food but adapted to North American tastes?

Oh,, I just thought of something ,, I consider Cajun food very American because we have nothing like that even here, and we are alot more similar to States then different. How about Cajun shrimp something, yummy! They will have some of the basic ingriedients already, and you will just need to have someone send you some spices!

Don't pick on Chicken Fried Steak if you've never tried it...

When I was in Italy, I wanted to have some boiled shrimp and was DYING for some old bay seasoning.....I had to make some strange concoction involving essence of Emeril from the internet recipes.....and my italian friends were BAFFLED by pumpkin pie....but those might just be things that aren't able to be found in Italy.....I don't know if you were trying to use local ingredients for them to duplicate later....

Now Nigel I am an equal opportunity picker,, whats with "mushy peas" LOL. ( those I have tried!)

Only have mushy peas with Fish and Chips. I'll have some this coming Friday.

Pat-ironically, the Cajun food you consider " uniquely American" is actually French Canadian!!! The Cajuns descend from the French-speaking Acadians who were expelled from the Maritime Provinces by the British, against whom they sided in the French and Indian War ( maybe that war has a different name in Canada; that is the US name for it). They were welcomed in Louisiana. The French origins probably explain why Cajun food is so good. It is the men who do the cooking in that culture, or so I was told by an excellent cook who is proud to be Cajun.

Except that when the Acadians made it to Louisiana, they discovered the hot pepper. Must be a border control thing-nothing spicy allowed past the border. Does Canada have sniffer dogs for that?

Do you have recipe books with you? Why not show her pictures of some "American" food and see what she is interested in having you make for her.

My family has hosted a number of foreign exchange students and they ALL wanted a Thanksgiving dinner. Stuff a chicken with the most savory bread stuffing you can make with dried bread, celery, onions and lots of sage -- a very common ingredient in Italy, and if you can't find cranberries, use some kind of jam. Make Gravy, and if possible at all a pumpkin pie! We served an entire Thanksgiving meal to a French and a Spanish exchange student who were with us in the summer, and they both loved it! We're in Atlanta, so I made corn-bread dressing, but I don't know how you would be
able to do that with local ingredients there, so a bread stuffing would be great.

Bacon and anything with bacon. Nothing is more American than bacon. For desert you can serve Lipitor.

Turkeys (tacchino) are more available in Italy than they used to be, you should be able to do a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (you can even find cranberries if you search). My friends in Italy always want an American dinner at some point, and something like fried chicken with sweet potatoes (fried or mashed), a berry cobbler, and a raw salad go over well, as does a big, juicy cheeseburger.

"Pat-ironically, the Cajun food you consider " uniquely American" is actually French Canadian!!!" That's like saying New English clam chowder is actually British, or a cheese steak is actually Italian, because people whose ancestors came from those places invented them. Although it's been over a decade since I last visited the province of Quebec, I don't remember eating anything remotely like cajun food. Or perhaps if I'm wrong, our good Canadian friends here can correct me?

I don't know why I didn't think of this before. How about Buffalo Wings? They've become very iconic. PM me if you need a recipe.

Pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread or muffins, Zucchini bread or muffins, Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, corn bread with navy bean soup, fajitas, meat loaf, BBQ ribs, Navajo fry bread, succotash, American pancakes with maple syrup, fruit pies and fruit cobblers, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, pot roast, chili, enchiladas, burritos. Your friend may be quite surprised that you can make great baked goods with pumpkin and zucchini.

Great suggestions, Jo! Muffins and cupcakes are becoming very popular in Italy - I'm sure Emily can create "authentic" versions using your suggestions. By the way, meatloaf is a home-made staple in parts of Italy and is on some restaurant menus, it's called "polpettone" (big meatball).

This is a hilarious post. I love it! American depends on which part of the country you are in. Midwest - roast beef, mashed potatoes both covered in gravy and green beans. Apple pie with cheddar cheese, cheddar cheese or potato soup with ham. Cold Beer and bar food. A really nice smoked Ham and Riesling. Trout. Corn on Cob. South - Already covered by others here. West - Steak or hamburgers. California - healthy stuff or wine related dishes. Florida - fresh seafood and citrus stuff. Key-lime pie. More Southern Stuff. Texas - tex-mex, more beef Ubiquitous - Chinese Buffet American Indian Dishes - Indian Tacos on fry bread Fried Anything! - snickers bars, french fries, catfish, twinkies Good Luck Choosing! There's always Paula Deen recipes on Foodnetwork.com
Have Fun!

Mac and Cheese.