Just Desserts
January 2, 2008 2:37 PM   Subscribe

Massachusetts has Boston Creme Pie. South Dakota has Kuchen. Oklahoma claims Bizcochito as it's own. But should Maryland have an official state dessert? The debate rages on!
posted by grateful (75 comments total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
Hmmm. Speaking as a native Marylander, it looks pretty dang tasty. So I'm going to say YES. As long as I get some for free.
posted by brain cloud at 2:46 PM on January 2, 2008


ABSOLUTELY NOT.
Wait, the debate is over whether or not they should have a dessert, not what the dessert should be?

Peculiar.
posted by CitrusFreak12 at 2:53 PM on January 2, 2008


I would just like to say I am pretty good at baking boston cream pies.

Also that those "debate rages on" links are pretty weak.
posted by aubilenon at 2:56 PM on January 2, 2008


I'm not sure about this, but I think that Kuchen never actually passed, as hard as the baker-lobbyists tried. They pretty much spent the entire legislative session giving out free kuchen to anyone even vaguely associated with the lawmaking process.
posted by roll truck roll at 2:58 PM on January 2, 2008


Now why would Oklahoma claim a traditional New Mexican cookie as its own? That's just silly. [NOT OKLAHOMIST]
posted by ewagoner at 2:58 PM on January 2, 2008


...but I remember Boston, and that victory was as sweet as the creme pie for which the town is named.
posted by allkindsoftime at 3:02 PM on January 2, 2008


Now why would Oklahoma claim a traditional New Mexican cookie as its own? That's just silly.

As silly as South Dakota claiming a German dessert?
posted by piratebowling at 3:03 PM on January 2, 2008


Weak. Also, in response to that first Daily Times link, milk is the state beverage of most states. More state lists.

(Also, it would perhaps help consensus if Maryland wasn't culturally at least three states.)
posted by desuetude at 3:05 PM on January 2, 2008


The first versions might have been baked in pie tins. Boston Cream Pie is a remake of the early American "Pudding-cake pie."

I would never classify it as a cake: I've only seen them baked as pies. However--and I'm from the area--the only time I've really had Boston Creme Pies was in the 50-cent single-serving preservative-laden form that you get at Stah Mahket.

It makes me wonder why Boston's associated with beans as well. It's not like there are baked-bean stands lining the streets here.

(Disclaimer: I know next to nothing about food, except that it goes in the mouth that chews.)
posted by not_on_display at 3:06 PM on January 2, 2008


When they came for the flans,
I remained silent;
I was not a flan eater.

When they locked up the fruit salads,
I remained silent;
I was not a fruit saladist.

When they came for the pudding,
I did not speak out;
I was not a pudding appreciator.

When they came for the doughnuts,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a donught lover.

When they came for my pie,
there was no one left to speak out.
posted by blue_beetle at 3:09 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


Okay. South Dakota. 2008 Democratic Primary. Wait for it--
"A kuchen is a kuchen, but a Kucinich is a meal." Sweet, lightly glazed, sometimes stuffed with cheese. Like America. Like You.

Dennis? Wait! I gotta million of 'em! Wait!
posted by maryh at 3:11 PM on January 2, 2008 [2 favorites]


(Disclaimer: I know next to nothing about food, except that it goes in the mouth that chews.)
posted by not_on_display at 3:06 PM on January 2 [+] [!]


And you have a mouth that doesn't chew?

Do I want to ask more?
posted by mrzarquon at 3:19 PM on January 2, 2008


hey c'mon, bizcochito is the new mexican cookie. Oklahoma?
posted by kylefreund at 3:19 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


Maryland dessert? Hmm...something kitschy like a Jello mold as an homage to John Waters sounds about right to me.
posted by bonobo at 3:22 PM on January 2, 2008


As a native Marylander, I find the idea of a state dessert ridiculous. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be in the corner with my crab chips.
posted by dhammond at 3:23 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


It's Oklahoma's cookie now, ya 47-th admitted, horny-toad-worshipping, Gadsen-purchasing noobs. Whadda you gonna do, huh? New Mexico gonna cry?
posted by ormondsacker at 3:24 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


I grew up in South Dakota and I've never even heard of kuchen. Whatever it is, it has a bad PR department.
posted by 0xFCAF at 3:30 PM on January 2, 2008


I'd support a state dessert that can top the state sport.
posted by zennie at 3:31 PM on January 2, 2008


Now why would Oklahoma claim a traditional New Mexican cookie as its own? That's just silly

This is a state that was originally set aside as "Indian Territory" and then given away in a land grab, and you're wondering how they can go about usurping other state's things?
posted by LionIndex at 3:36 PM on January 2, 2008


I don't believe Oklahoma has a state dessert. But this year, Oklahoma lawmakers designated the watermelon as (wait for it) the state vegetable!

As one online respondent said on the local newspaper's Web site, "I think we should designate the Legislature as the state vegetable." And, as any Okie can tell you, okra is the state's vegetable of choice.
posted by Bitstop at 3:46 PM on January 2, 2008


Native Marylander. The cake looks good, but 5th grade was hard enough as it was, having to learn the 33 counties and the state everythings: from memory, I've got checkerspot butterfly, Chesapeake Bay retriever, black-eyed Susan, Baltimore oriole, and, of course, sweet, sweet jousting. And I know there are more. We had a fish. Wide-mouthed bass? Nope, it's the rockfish.
posted by escabeche at 3:54 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


I'm torn. On the one hand I want to scream "WTF YOU INCOMPETENT TWITS, DON'T YOU HAVE SOMETHING BETTER TO BE DOING?" at the legislators. On the other hand I realize that if they were actually discussing anything of any significance, it'd be in the context of trying to figure out how to screw the average citizen even more.

Of course, then I realize that the entire thing is likely just a smokescreen to distract people from bills they've quietly voted on to make everyone's life that much more miserable. Either that or someone got a hefty bribe^H^H^H^H^H er... "campaign contribution" from a dessert maker.

Or maybe I'm just extra cynical today...
posted by sotonohito at 3:56 PM on January 2, 2008


In case you were wondering why the Maryland state dessert isn't the Lady Baltimore Cake (you weren't), tis because the Lady Baltimore Cake is actually from South Carolina and the name existed before the cake did (sorta).

I assume this Smith Island cake has Old Bay in it.
posted by Challahtronix at 4:03 PM on January 2, 2008


I would have gone with the Lady Baltimore Cake, but apparently it actually hails from Charleston.
posted by misha at 4:04 PM on January 2, 2008


jinx, Challahtronix!
posted by misha at 4:04 PM on January 2, 2008


I am in general in favor of lawmakers wasting time like this. It's a lot less harmful than a lot of the laws that do wind up getting passed!

(Plus Boston Cream Pie is totally a cake, and cheesecake is totally a pie. Anyone who tells you otherwise is probably some foreign spy trying to undermine the foundation of our society.)
posted by aubilenon at 4:04 PM on January 2, 2008


I've made Boston Cream Pie, and it is, without doubt, a cake.
posted by misha at 4:11 PM on January 2, 2008


Well, pie are squared.
(I'm shutting the mouth now that speaks.)
posted by not_on_display at 4:20 PM on January 2, 2008


I made a pumpkin cheesecake-pie thingy just last week, and never could decide how to introduce it "pumpkin pie-cheesecake", "pumpkin-cheesecake pie", ....
Does it make a difference that I didn't have a springform pan, so went with pre-crusted pie-tins? I'll never get to sleep at night now.
posted by nomisxid at 4:26 PM on January 2, 2008


I thought Maryland's official state dessert was Berger Cookies.
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:34 PM on January 2, 2008


I thought Maryland's official state dessert was crab cakes.
posted by wendell at 4:39 PM on January 2, 2008


aubi: cheesecake is a custard with graham cracker on the bottom. how does it become a pie?
posted by heeeraldo at 4:41 PM on January 2, 2008


New Mexico is crying.
posted by kylefreund at 4:46 PM on January 2, 2008


I've lived in Oklahoma all of my life and I've never even heard of bizcochito.
posted by drleary at 4:56 PM on January 2, 2008


A couple years ago, a friend of mine wrote a blog entry about how personal the politics of these pithy legislations can get.
posted by piratebowling at 5:12 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


I don't believe Oklahoma has a state dessert.

And even if it did, wouldn't it be pecan pie? I mean, come on.
posted by dw at 5:13 PM on January 2, 2008


crabs and a wooden hammer - that is a Maryland dessert, main course, and appetizer - but you need to add beer too
posted by caddis at 5:51 PM on January 2, 2008 [1 favorite]


Another native Murlinner checking in: at first I would have insisted our state dessert contain at least some scrapple, but upon reflection I recognize that Faint of Butt is dead on. It's a shame I can't find Bergers south of, say, Elkridge.
posted by BrotherFeldspar at 5:53 PM on January 2, 2008


I thought Maryland's official state dessert was Berger Cookies

Unofficially. Although it seems kind of crass to make it a commercial product. Still, they are really good.
posted by stbalbach at 6:07 PM on January 2, 2008


Smith Island Cake recipe
posted by parmanparman at 6:15 PM on January 2, 2008


In Maine the state dessert is also the state bird and the state martial arts weapon.
posted by XMLicious at 6:16 PM on January 2, 2008


Having just been introduced to the wonders of the Berger Cookie last week, I have to agree with FoB. Those are some tasty cookies. And no amount of googling can produce a copycat recipe for me. sigh.
posted by banjo_and_the_pork at 6:19 PM on January 2, 2008


sweet, sweet jousting

Heh. As much as I love me some jousting, everyone knows that Baltimore's true state sport is lacrosse heroin.
posted by dhammond at 6:26 PM on January 2, 2008


Look, I didn't work at a bakery for two long weeks during college, up to my elbows in powdered sugar from those goddamn biscochito, to have Oklahoma come in and pretend they loved the cookies all along. Back off, or I'll show you some kind of surrey with a fringe on top. With a vengeance.
posted by sugarfish at 6:33 PM on January 2, 2008


Dude, I lived in OK for eighteen years and never heard of the lovely biscochito until just now.

Wikipedia tells me it's New Mexican, and Google tells me it's New Mexican, and the three beers I've consumed this evening have me convinced that I need some more evidence before accepting biscochito as having anything to do with the Sooner State.

I totally vote Braums' German chocolate ice cream for Oklahoma's state dessert. Mmmm.
posted by weatherworn at 6:45 PM on January 2, 2008


brother feldspar: perhaps this will help?
posted by weebil at 6:49 PM on January 2, 2008


According to my family, the MD state dessert is sugar cookies from Otterbein.
posted by desuetude at 7:04 PM on January 2, 2008


*gasp* weebil, you are beautiful!
posted by zennie at 7:05 PM on January 2, 2008


As long as the Okies don't steal our state question ("Red or green?") they can have our cookies.
posted by Sixtieslibber at 7:12 PM on January 2, 2008


I thought the Crab Cake was Maryland's dessert.

Oh, wait...
posted by Eekacat at 7:30 PM on January 2, 2008


Just to prove how confusing Massachusetts is, our official state donut is the Boston Creme. Oh, yeah, we also have an official state cookie (the chocolate-chip). You can work them all off by dancing to the official state polka or by running away from the official state snake (the garter). Every last blessed official Massachusetts thing.
posted by adamg at 7:39 PM on January 2, 2008


I've lived in Oklahoma all of my life and I've never even heard of bizcochito.

He beat me to it, although I was going to say "I was born and raised in Oklahoma, lived there from 1974 to 1996, and I've never even heard of bizcochito".
posted by mrbill at 8:50 PM on January 2, 2008


All y'all are wrong - the state dessert of Maryland is a sixpack of National Bohemian followed up by licking the tears off your divorce papers.

Yum!
posted by robocop is bleeding at 3:09 AM on January 3, 2008


At least the legislature isn't considering some monstrosity made by Duff Goldman.
posted by Dreama at 3:48 AM on January 3, 2008


Dreama, my wife and I almost hired Duff Goldman to create our wedding cake, before we decided we just didn't have the budget for it. We've still got his design sketches somewhere. This was before his Food Network show, of course; I'm sure he's even more impossible to hire now.
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:20 AM on January 3, 2008


Fuck this. Sales tax just went up a percent and cigarettes are nearly $6 a pack with *that* new tax. Please to be spending your time doing something about that, Maryland General Assembly.
posted by frecklefaerie at 6:54 AM on January 3, 2008


I think if Iowa had a state dessert it would be rhubarb pie, which of course, is German.
posted by Tablecrumbs at 7:15 AM on January 3, 2008


"Oklahoma claims Bizcochito as it's own."

What? Speaking as a New Mexican, I beg to differ. So does the Wikipedia link.
posted by krinklyfig at 7:51 AM on January 3, 2008


Sixtieslibber writes "As long as the Okies don't steal our state question ('Red or green?') they can have our cookies."

No, they can't. My grandmother is spinning in her grave.
posted by krinklyfig at 7:54 AM on January 3, 2008


I've eaten Bumbleberry Pie in the Bumbleberry Restaurant in Springdale, Utah; I've eaten Nanaimo Bars in Nanaimo, BC; I've eaten Key Lime Pie at the Key Lime Bistro on Capitva Island in Florida. Now I'm just waiting for some young woman to step up and say, "Hi. I'm your hostess, Twinkie.".
posted by Mike D at 8:18 AM on January 3, 2008


C'mon, who are you people going to believe - krinklyfig's dead grandmother? Some jerk on wikipedia? I can personally confirm the delicious, Tulsa-produced bizcowhatever has been the official state cookie of Oklahoma ever since 2002, the same year we adopted the Baltimore oriole as state bird and changed the state song to "Here We Have Idaho".

At moments of controversy like these, I think we should all relax and take to heart the Sooner State's wise traditional motto: "Red or green?".
posted by ormondsacker at 8:38 AM on January 3, 2008


Parmanparman, thanks for posting that recipe. I was looking for one, but couldn't find anything that didn't involve two boxes of cake mix.

The best part of the recipe is:
A layer is done when you hold it near your ear and you don't hear it sizzle.
posted by bassjump at 8:45 AM on January 3, 2008


I like making things from scratch, but I also don't mind the boxed stuff. Newer recipes include boxed cake mix because the quality is pretty good these days, and the outcome is more consistent. It's just less sifting, measuring, and folding in all the dry stuff, which is where most people have gone wrong when they end up with an unpleasantly doughy cake; less guesswork.

It's the store-bought candy in the recipe that made me blink. I'd want to substitute home-made fudges.

Dang, now I'm tempted to make one of these monstrosities. Maybe for the next meetup.
posted by zennie at 10:02 AM on January 3, 2008 [1 favorite]


BTW -- The Parker House Hotel (now the Omni Parker House Hotel) in Boston is often credited with serving the first Boston cream pies. The Parker House is also where the Parker House roll was invented and (some claim) the term 'scrod' was coined. Ho Chi Minh worked there as a busboy, Malcolm X as a a waiter and Emeril Lagasse as a chef.
posted by ericb at 10:21 AM on January 3, 2008


Ho Chi Minh worked there as a busboy, Malcolm X as a a waiter and Emeril Lagasse as a chef.

They really need to work on their hiring practices there.
posted by wendell at 12:06 PM on January 3, 2008 [1 favorite]


Agreed, wendell. Seriously...who could stand to work with Emeril?! Bam, indeed.
posted by desuetude at 12:28 PM on January 3, 2008


Tulsa-produced bizcowhatever

Tulsa? With a name as weird as that, it must be a Stillwater product.

Maybe the state dessert should be the McDonald's pie. All made in Tulsa by Bama Pie.
posted by dw at 4:36 PM on January 3, 2008


dw - No offense to yer man Bama, but I'm actually pretty good with the Braum's German chocolate ice cream suggestion above.

And come on, you know Stillwater's entire industrial output for the past twenty-five years has consisted of Eskimo Joe's merchandise. They're the Midwest's largest net exporter of koozies.
posted by ormondsacker at 7:22 PM on January 3, 2008


dw - No offense to yer man Bama, but I'm actually pretty good with the Braum's German chocolate ice cream suggestion above.

German Chocolate? Heck no. Butter Brickle FTW.

Which you can barely find anymore. Sigh.

And come on, you know Stillwater's entire industrial output for the past twenty-five years has consisted of Eskimo Joe's merchandise. They're the Midwest's largest net exporter of koozies.

And they're just t-shirts now, right? Wow, Joe's food was terrible. OK, last time I ate there was 1989 or 1990, but it was just terrible.
posted by dw at 7:48 PM on January 3, 2008


And they're just t-shirts now, right?
And koozies.
posted by ormondsacker at 10:22 PM on January 3, 2008


WTF is a "koozie"?

::clicks link::

WFT is a "koozie"?
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:16 AM on January 4, 2008


As I have mentioned before, "Boston Creme" is not a kind of pie. Perhaps Maryland does need a state pie, but if so, they should do themselves a favor by choosing an actual pie. I consider this thread to be intentionally inflammatory, given that the logical choice, crab pie, will go nowhere.
posted by ewkpates at 6:43 AM on January 4, 2008


The State Dessert of the District of Columbia is the crack rock, the sweet, sweet crack rock.
posted by Pollomacho at 6:46 AM on January 4, 2008 [1 favorite]


WTF is a "koozie"?

Twenty bucks, same as in town.

Tip your waitress!
posted by ormondsacker at 8:46 AM on January 4, 2008


And koozies.

People still use them? Don't their boats on Lake Keystone have their own mini-fridges now?

Maybe I've just forgotten how oppressive Oklahoma summers are in moving to the temperate Northwest.
posted by dw at 9:40 AM on January 4, 2008


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