Aug. 21 – Labor Day, Sept. 1, 2025
273 Days 3 Hours 31 Mins
Thank you for supporting our Minnesota State Fair Community Gives Together drive to collect essential kitchen tools for Bridging.
Spoon this mint jelly over soft cheese such as farmer’s or brie and serve with crackers. It is also the perfect accompaniment for lamb chops.
1 c. water
½ c. vinegar
1 ¾ c. sugar
1 ¾ c. honey
½ bottle liquid pectin
Green food coloring
½ to 1 tsp. spearmint extract
Mix together water, vinegar, sugar and honey in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add coloring. When boiling, add liquid pectin, and boil hard for 30 seconds. Remove from heat. Add spearmint. Cool and serve. To can, pour hot into sterilized glasses; pour paraffin to cover.
In 1962, at age 80, Mrs. C. Arlt of Saint Paul added 85 ribbons to her collection, bringing her 40-year total to more than 3,000 and extending her reign as the unofficial Jelly Queen of the State Fair. This winning recipe appeared in “Great State Fair Recipes: A Collection of Minnesota State Fair Sweepstakes-Winning Recipes from 1906 to 1975.”
1 c. butter
1 ½ c. sugar
4 eggs, separated
3 c. flour
3 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 c. orange juice
1 Tbsp. grated lemon rind
Mix together and set aside:
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. cocoa
½ c. sugar
½ c. coarsely chopped nuts
Cream butter and sugar; add egg yolks one at a time and beat. Add sifted flour, baking powder and salt alternately with orange juice and lemon rind. In separate bowl, beat egg whites until stiff; fold into batter. Pour batter into well-oiled Bundt pan, alternating batter in layers with cinnamon mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until done. Let cool 15 minutes; loosen sides and remove from pan. Pour hot orange syrup over top of cake slowly.
Orange syrup – combine and boil 4-5 minutes:
Juice of 2 oranges
Juice of 1 lemon
Dash of salt
¾ c. sugar
This recipe by Sally B. Pogose of Saint Paul, who exhibited at the fair for more than 25 years, was printed in “Great State Fair Recipes: A Collection of Minnesota State Fair Sweepstakes-Winning Recipes from 1906 to 1975.”
1 – 12 oz. can SPAM Lite
4 green onions, sliced
¾ tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. garlic salt
½ tsp. black pepper
1 jar con queso dip
2 packages refrigerated pie crusts; or 4 – 9-in. pie crusts at room temp.
1 beaten egg
Condiments: fat-free sour cream, salsa and extra con queso
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place SPAM Lite in a food processor and pulse until it begins to break apart. Add sliced green onion, cumin, garlic salt and black pepper. Pulse until mixture is ground. Place mixture in a nonstick frying pan and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Stir in ½ cup con queso dip and let cool. Using a 3” or 4” circle cookie cutter, cut 6 circles out of each pie crust, for a total of 24 circles. Place 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons of the SPAMpenada mixture into the center of each circle. Fold over and crimp edges into semicircles. Brush top and sides with a beaten egg. Using a fork, make several holes in the top to allow steam to escape. Place on a nonstick cookie sheet. Bake on upper rack for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 24.
This recipe is from the National Best SPAM Recipe Competition and earned Leigh Walter of Burnsville first place at the 2004 Minnesota State Fair. It was printed in “Minnesota State Fair: An Illustrated History” by Kathryn Strand Koutsky and Linda Koutsky.
2 eggs
¾ c. brown sugar
¾ c. molasses
¾ c. melted butter
2 ½ c. flour
2 tsp. soda
2 tsp. ginger
1 ½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. cloves
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. baking powder
1 c. boiling water
Butter (or use nonstick spray) and flour a 9” x 13” pan. Sift dry ingredients together. Mix in the order listed; add boiling water slowly at the end. Bake prepared pan at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until it tests done when an inserted toothpick comes out clean, or when a finger pressed on cake leaves no indentation.
(Serve topped with a dusting of powdered sugar or whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream on the side.)
This recipe by Dorothy Martinson of Center City was printed in “Great State Fair Recipes: A Collection of Minnesota State Fair Sweepstakes-Winning Recipes from 1906 to 1975.”
