Florida’s Best Winter Recipe Is A Bowl Of Comfort Food
The transition into a winter season on the East Coast can be jarring. From warmer clothes to earlier sundowns, you often seek comfort in the winter months. Taste of Home recognized this at the end of last year, publishing the best winter recipe in each state, and in Florida, it is undoubtedly a comfort food.
Scrolling through the winter dish of choice in all 50 states, the one common theme is that each item selected is a warm food. In fact, many of them are unique twists on stove-top favorites or classics that are baked in a pan. Regardless if you are in the warmer climate or up north in the frigid cold, the winter season is synonymous with the holiday season. That means more home cooking.
In addition, the Super Bowl is always in the winter, as is New Year’s Eve. These are two of the most anticipated get-together days of the year. It is hard not to find a table full of hot food on either occasion.
Considering where you are in the country and what your local cuisine seems to favor, it is interesting to see how the recipes of choice differ depending on which region you live in. For Florida, the best winter recipe is one that perhaps is best served in your own kitchen.
Florida’s Best Winter Food Is Creamy Italian Chicken
This dish just screams home cooking. This is a gather around the table with friends or family meal that features a secret recipe that Grandma came up with long ago. Taste of Home gives away one of the tricks, saying, “Italian salad dressing mix is like a secret weapon for adding flavor to this creamy chicken dish.” In addition, you get the creamy base by adding a package of cream cheese and a can of cream of chicken soup to make the sauce. Taste of Home also suggests adding rice or pasta to the mix to complete the meal.
Two Florida Restaurants Named Among The Best For French Fries
Do you want fries with that? Tasting Table recently published a list of restaurants with the best French Fries in the country and two New Florida establishments were named.
“From high-end steakhouses and neighborhood brasseries’ to fast food restaurants and even grocery store freezer aisles, fried spuds can be found in just about every type of restaurant or shop across the country,” Tasting Table explains. Their feature is specific to non-fast food restaurants.
French Fries are always a fan-favorite whether a side dish, an appetizer, or just a snack. They come in all shapes and sizes. Shoe strings crispy versions, thick-cut steak fries, seasoned curly fries, waffle fries, and even tater tots (are those considered fries, though?).
French Fry Fun Facts
In a 2019 story published by the Daily Meal, they discussed unique facts on French Fries in America. Two of the most fascinating have to do with McDonald’s. “Approximately 7 percent of the potatoes grown in the U.S. meet the same fate: they become McDonald’s french fries,” they said. They later stated that this fast food chain sells one-third of the French Fries consumed in the United States.
French Fries are like music. They are a common bond, and they are subjective. What one person prefers may be completely different from another. Better yet, both choices are correct.
For example, Best Things Florida released their list of best French Fries in the Sunshine State. It is completely different from Tasting Table’s. However, Tasting Table went and explored all corners of the country to crown their French Fry kings.
The two restaurants in Florida that were recognized for having some of the best French Fries in the country serve two very different styles. One of them is part of a restaurant that has expanded to other markets. The other is served in a restaurant where fries compliment BBQ.
Jeff Gorra is a Boston-based writer who has been with Beasley Media Group since the beginning of 2023. He writes about restaurants and food, as well as sports and rock music. His experience also includes show hosting and in-depth creative writing in rock and reggae dub music. Jeff’s an avid surfer, New York Giants, and Pearl Jam fan, however, if you make unforgettable pizza, he is sure to find you.
