This hot dog variety is a street food staple in Washington D. C., made with a mildly smoked beef and pork sausage in a natural casing as the key ingredient. This sausage is thicker than the average hot dog sausage, the meat is ground more coarsely, and it has a spicy kick due to red pepper flakes that are dispersed throughout the meat.
The sausage is placed on a split roll, then topped with chili, or sometimes with mustard and diced onions. There are numerous theories regarding the name of this hot dog – many people say that it's smoked halfway, some claim that it's cut in half when grilled, while others claim that the name is derived from the fact that the sausage is made with equal amounts of pork and beef.
MOST ICONIC Half-Smoke Hot Dog
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Chili cheese fries is an American dish with elusive origins. The dish consists of french fries that are topped with chili and grated cheese. There are many origin stories connected with chili cheese fries, although none of them can be 100% confirmed.
Texans claim that a 16-year-old Don A. Jenkins invented the dish when he was eating lunch at the local Dairy Queen in Tomball, Texas. In Michigan, it is believed that the dish was invented by two local waitresses who simply combined the ingredients.
MOST ICONIC Chili Cheese Fries
A chicken sandwich consists of chicken, either a fillet or patty, various toppings, and bread. The meat can be white or dark meat (usually thigh meat is used when it's dark meat) and be shredded, deep-fried, roasted, or grilled; even cold cuts can be used.
On the other hand, bread can be any bread, either bread slices cut from a loaf, a bun, or a roll. The chicken sandwich can be served hot or cold. Numerous variations exist, so there are also chicken wraps and open-faced versions of the chicken sandwich. Regarding origin, although Truett Cathy (the founder of the fast food chain Chick-fil-A) has proclaimed himself as the inventor, that is not true — the chicken sandwich is much older than the 1940s, and the truth is we do not know when and by who it was created.
VARIATIONS OF Chicken Sandwich
MOST ICONIC Chicken Sandwich
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Chili burger is a variety of hamburger consisting of a bun and a meat patty that is topped with chili con carne, although the chili might also be served on the side. The hamburger is served open-faced in some places, and it is often topped with cheese and onions, while fries are usually served as an accompaniment.
It is believed that chili burger was invented in the 1920s by Thomas M. DeForest in Los Angeles.
MOST ICONIC Chili Burger
A cupcake is a tiny cake that is baked in a thin paper mold or an aluminum cup. One cupcake should typically serve one person. The first mention of a cupcake can be traced back to a 1796 cookbook called American Cookery, written by Amelia Simmons.
Her recipe stated that a cake is to be baked in small cups. The term cupcake has first been used in 1828 in Eliza Leslie's Receipts cookbook. Over the years, cupcakes have become a huge industry, and the name cupcake is now given to any small cake that is about the size of a cup.
MOST ICONIC Cupcake
Deliciously chewy, dense and fudgy with a rich chocolate flavor, the beloved brownies are one of the most popular American desserts. Some claim that Bertha Palmer, wife of the owner of Palmer House Hotel, asked the chef to invent a new chocolate dessert to serve at the 1893 Colombian Exposition.
Others say that it was an accident, when Brownie Schrumpf, a librarian, excluded baking powder from a chocolate cake and was left with a thick, black cake bar. Regardless of the origins, what really popularized the brownies were instant, boxed mixes from the 1950s made by two brands - Duncan Hines and Betty Crocker.
MOST ICONIC Brownies
Traditionally associated with the American South (and Virginia in particular), the sweet chess pie consists of a thin pastry crust that is topped with a mixture of eggs, butter, vanilla, cornmeal, and various sweeteners. When baked, the filling turns into a thick, velvety custard, which is best complemented with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream.
Among numerous theories of the origin and the name of chess pies, the most reasonable one says that it evolved from the British cheese pie, a term formerly used to denote various pies with similar fillings as this Southern classic.
MOST ICONIC Chess Pie
Milkshakes are usually described as flavored milk and ice cream beverages, usually lavishly decorated and served cold. The first written mention, dating from 1885, was somewhat different, and the word was used to refer to a whiskey drink, similar to eggnog, which was used as a health remedy.
At the end of the 19th century, milkshakes were already prepared as milk-based drinks made with flavored syrups. The invention of malted milk powders which contained dried milk, malted barley, and wheat flour, along with the popularization of electric blenders, inspired the creation of a more familiar milkshake version.
MOST ICONIC Milkshake
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Along with Banana Split, sundae is one of the most served ice cream-based desserts in the United States of America. A sundae is ice cream topped with a sauce or syrup, typically served in a bowl. The most popular varieties of sundae are chocolate caramel, butterscotch, and strawberry.
Cherries, dairy cream, and nuts are the most common additions to the popular treat. Food historians still argue about the origin of the ice cream sundae, but there are three theories which remain the most popular. The first one says it was created in Illinois, where the law prohibited the selling of soda water on a Sunday.
VARIATIONS OF Sundae
MOST ICONIC Sundae
Although archaeologists had found some petrified remains of fried cakes with holes in the center, it is still unclear how could the early Native Americans prepare these delicious fried dough desserts that we know today as doughnuts. In the past, doughnuts were known as olykoeks (oily cakes), and the pilgrims from Holland are credited for bringing them to the United States.
Those early doughnuts were often made with prunes, raisins, or apples in the middle. During World War I, the doughnut was already an American favorite, consumed by soldiers that were fighting overseas as a reminder of home. In the 1950s and the 1960s, the popularity of these treats was so big that new doughnut chains started appearing on the market, such as Krispy Kreme and Dunkin' Donuts, helping in the perception of doughnuts as breakfast food.
MOST ICONIC Doughnut
