Homesick cravings of a Transplanted Western New Yorker

As I was cruising the other skirt setters writings this morning, I saw skirtSteph's blog about cravings and it got me thinking. When I miss home, my mind wanders to food. I've got family and friends in North Carolina but there are a lot of regional dishes and drinks that I haven't been able to find south of Cuba, NY.  I've developed a taste for Lexington Style BBQ, hush puppies and banana pudding. I could never go back to eating plain old Hellman's Mayonaise, it's Duke's or nothing these days. But they are no replacement for the foods that I grew up eating. Take a look at buffalofoods.com and browse my hometown favorites.  Their mail order service is awesome for any transplant like me or an adventurous eater looking to experience new tastes.

Here are 10 things that I crave, especially when I come down with a case of the dreaded homesickness:

#1 Weber's Mustard. Think French's tradtional yellow, laced with spicy horseradish. It makes an excellent substitute for Dijon in any recipe and even tastes good on french fries.

#2 Sahlen's Smokehouse Hotdogs. I like them off the outdoor chargrill abundantly coated with Weber's. Homemade dill pickle and ketchup for dipping on the side. I've found that Kermit's Hotdog House in Winston-Salem, NC has a comparable dog, but nothing could replace an honest to goodness Sahlen's Hotdog in my heart.

#3 Aunt Rosie's Loganberry. It's a non-carbonated fruit juice drink. (Loganberries are a blackberry/red raspberry hybrid.) My parents are coming to visit me in August and I've already put in my request for a case of Aunt Rosie's. You can bet I will be hoarding the stuff to make it last until their next visit.

#4 Molson Canadian Beer, draft only please. I've seen Molson in bottles at high end grocery stores around these parts, but it's not the same as getting it from straight from the tap. Visit any Western NY college town on a Thursday night and they will probably be serving Molson draft in tiny cups for a quarter each.

#5 Bison French Onion chip dip. Quite seriously, this is the only dip that should ever touch a chip. If you don't belive me buy a tub and a bag of  original Lays. You won't be able to put the stuff down.

#6 Redlinski's Cheese Pierogi. It's essentially Polish ravioli, made with Farmer's Cheese. Sautee them lightly in butter, most people serve them with saurkraut but I skip it, yum yum yum.

#7 La Nova's wings. Buffalo's Anchor Bar is the birthplace of Buffalo style chicken wings, but in my mind La Nova's are the best. They are second only to the wings at Blasdell Pizza. A good wing is not breaded, or even lightly dredged in flour before deep frying.  And good wings balance the fine line between juicy inside and extra crispy on the outside.The sauce is simple: Frank's Red Hot Louisiana Style Hot Sauce, melted margarine, a dash of granulated garlic and sometimes the slightest hint of lemon juice or vinegar for added acidity.

#8 A Beef on Weck Sandwich  It's tender slow roasted beef , I like mine medium rare, sliced thin and piled high on a Kummelweck roll (a Kaiser roll coated in kosher salt and caraway seeds.) Again slather it in Weber's, homemade dill pickle on the side.

#9 Salt Rising Bread. It's almost like sourdough, but more tender and much more mild. I like it best in the morning toasted and spread with butter and strawberry jam. When I was a little girl my Mom used to make us salt rising toast and hot chocolate after we'd been out playing in the snow. It's also makes an awesome bread, toasted of course,  for a tomato sanwich. Just spread each slice with a little bit of mayo, Duke's of course, and sprinkle a little salt on the tomatoes. I can taste it now!

And last but not least....#10 Mighty Taco. It's Mexican-style fast food restaurant which utilizes fresh local ingredients. Everything from the tomatoes to the sour cream is purchased locally.  A bunch of dudes opened up the first one on Hertel Avenue in Buffalo and since then it's expanded. These days most of the Buffalo suburb towns host a Mighty Taco franchise. I like the chicken fajitas topped with tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream their signature hot taco sauce. Mighty Taco is also one of the few restaurants that offers loganberry from the fountain. I can hear the theme song from the commercials now...