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Usually accompanied by a glass of milk or a cup of hot tea or coffee, chocolate chip cookies are well balanced between salty and sweet in flavor, tenderly chewy in texture, and filled with small melting chocolate pyramids, bringing a generation of Americans back to their childhood.
The origin story of these sweet treats is incredibly interesting, almost as the cookies themselves. The Toll House Inn was a popular bed-and-breakfast in Whitman, Massachusetts, bought by Ruth Graves Wakefield and her husband in 1930. Ruth's cooking was so good that the inn gained an excellent reputation in a short span of time.
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Regularly served at clam shacks throughout New England, fried clams are a delicious appetizer made with clams which have been dipped in milk and corn flour, then deep-fried. The appetizer is typically prepared with whole soft-shell clams, which have a fuller flavor than regular clams.
Although clams have been fried since 1840, the modern version of deep-fried, breaded clams is credited to Lawrence Henry Woodman from Massachusetts, who supposedly created the first version of the dish in 1916.
MOST ICONIC Fried Clams
View moreAlthough the name suggests otherwise, Boston cream pie is not a pie, but a cake consisting of two layers of sponge cake which are filled with a rich vanilla custard, while the whole thing is finished with a chocolate glaze, or in some cases, with sprinkled confectioners' sugar.
It was named a pie because the first versions were baked in pie tins, which were more common than cake pans in the mid-19th century. The inventor of the Boston cream pie is a French chef named Sanzian, who worked in the Parker House, a hotel that claims to have served the dessert since its opening in 1856.
MOST ICONIC Boston Cream Pie
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Roast beef sandwiches encompass a large variety of sandwiches filled with roasted and sliced beef as their main ingredient. They may be served hot or cold. The meat should be succulent, slightly pink, and thinly sliced, while the buns are typically soft and topped with sesame seeds or onion pieces.
As for the toppings, anything is possible, but in Boston, where roast beef sandwiches are one of the area's specialties, they are traditionally topped with cheese, barbecue sauce, and mayonnaise (called a three way when served together).
VARIATIONS OF Roast Beef Sandwich
MOST ICONIC Roast Beef Sandwich
View moreThis popular salad dressing usually consists of water and either lemon juice or vinegar in combination with oil, bell peppers, sugar, and various herbs and spices such as dill, fennel, and oregano. It can also be used to marinate a variety of meats and vegetables.
There is also a variety of this dressing called creamy Italian, made with the same ingredients and the addition of stabilizers and milk products. It is believed that Italian dressing dates back to 1941 in Massachusetts when it was first made by Florence Hanna, the daughter of Italian immigrants, whose husband had a restaurant called The '41 Cafe.
Even though it's hard to pinpoint the exact point in time when Fenway franks were invented, it is believed that they were first sold soon after the park's 1912 opening. Since then, these delicious hot dogs have become popular fan favorites at baseball games and a true Boston staple.
Unlike other ballpark hot dogs which are typically either grilled or steamed, Fenway franks are boiled and grilled, then placed in a split bread roll and consumed plain or topped with various relishes or mustard. This hot dog variety is characterized by its bold flavors because the meat is flavored with garlic, onion, and mustard, and the sausages are then cooled using a special process in order to preserve the juiciness.
OTHER VARIATIONS OF Hot Dog
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These starchy baked beans are enriched with syrups similar to molasses in order to tenderize and sweeten them. An iconic side dish from Boston (also known as Beantown), it started its way to stardom in the 17th century when the Natives taught the early settlers how to bake beans using bear fat.
Later on, people used to fill the pots with dry beans on Saturday and leave them to cook slowly until Sunday so the beans would be tender, falling apart, and melting. The baked beans' key ingredient is molasses, making the dish sweet and rich, but it is not yet clear who added it to the dish.
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American chop suey is a savory combination of baked pasta, ground beef, and tomato sauce. It's believed that this comfort food dish originates from New England, although many other states had similar recipes before the 1950s. It can be prepared stovetop in a pot or baked as a casserole.
Most people like to add grated cheese to the combination, making the dish perfect for cold winter days. Variations abound throughout the country, but elbow macaroni or other tubular pasta shapes are the most common, while ingredients such as Worcestershire sauce, onions, and garlic are included in most recipes.
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Marshmallow cream is an original American confectionery. It consists of whipped egg whites combined with corn syrup, sugar, and a thickening agent. The result is a fluffy, sweet, spreadable cream used in many recipes and delicious combinations.
Although marshmallow cream can be prepared at home, it is usually factory-produced and bought in jars. The homemade variety was first mentioned in a recipe dating back to 1896, but marshmallow cream as a product first started to be sold at the beginning of the 20th century.
It was invented by a local in Somerville Massachusetts, who later sold his recipe which is still produced by only three companies in the United States: Durkee-Mower with their Marshmallow Fluff, Kraft, and Solo Foods.
Boston brown bread is a dark, sweet bread that is traditionally steamed in a can. It can be made with different types of flour such as graham, whole wheat, rye, or cornmeal. Many bakers like to add maple syrup, raisins, or molasses in order to improve its flavors.
The bread is traditionally prepared during fall and winter, when it is usually accompanied by baked beans on the side.
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 21 Massachusettsan Foods” list until February 16, 2025, 1,556 ratings were recorded, of which 1,424 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.