New England and its native sons and daughters have made many historic contributions to the United States of America. Along with other patriots from Pennsylvania and Virginia, New Englanders helped to found our nation. Harvard, the first American university, is located in Boston, MA. The American Industrial Revolution began in Pawtucket, RI. Many of the great minds of political and literary thought were New Englanders, including eight presidents and nine vice presidents.
One of the things most often over looked, however, when reviewing the historic contributions of New England, is its cuisine. Despite its small geographic area, New England has a rich and diverse cuisine that represents the culture and food traditions of the waves of immigrants who have settled there since Colonial times. New England cuisine also proudly incorporates the delicious regional ingredients that make it famous. Simplicity and the celebration of basic flavour define New England cuisine.
Here is a list of some our favorite New England culinary delights:
Lobster Rolls If you have a bucket list, you have to put eating a lobster roll on it. A full pound of lobster tail meat tossed with mayo on a grilled roll. That’s it! Another version includes drawn butter and diced scallions (our favorite). And when you’re looking for this foodie delight, nobody does it better than Red’s Eats in Wiscasset, ME.
Chowder Whether you prefer clam or fish, cream or clear, New England is the place to go for chowder. New York may make a claim with its famous red chowder, but you just can’t beat New England style chowder.
New England Clam Bake Held on festive occasions and best experienced on a beach in early autumn, the New England Clam Bake is the very definition of simplicity. Lobster, mussels, crabs, steamers, sausage, potatoes, corn on the cob and a generous amount of seaweed are layered in a bed of hot coals and steamed for hours. The clam bake is the hallmark of New England cuisine.
Maple Syrup Sure maple syrup is collected all over country, but nothing compares to the delicious flavour of New England maple syrup. The hills of New England are full of maple trees, and every spring the sugar houses boil the syrup from the sap collected in winter.
Apples When European immigrants settled in New England, they often carried apple seeds in their pockets. When they arrived they planted the seeds and tended to their trees. Today New England has an incredible variety of apples that make those two distinctive American delights, apple pie and apple cider.
This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Boston. Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Boston offers Le Cordon Bleu culinary education classes and culinary training programs in Boston, Massachusetts. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit for more information.
Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America provides quality culinary training with professional chefs. Le Cordon Bleu offers programs in Culinary Arts, Pâtisserie and Baking, Hospitality and Restaurant Management, and Online programs. Visit for more information. Le Cordon Bleu does not guarantee employment or salary.
The food service industry is resilient and innovative. It has to be. Maybe more so than any other industry it is affected by economic ups and downs. As a result, the industry has learned to respond quickly to consumer demand–sometimes with success; sometimes not. This year is no exception. A great Florida culinary program can help you be ahead of the curve in adapting to the trends of the cooking industry.
The National Restaurant Association’s 2009 Restaurant Industry Forecast shows that consumers are looking for restaurants to provide value and healthy choices. The industry is responding.
Let’s take a look at some of the most in-demand trends and how the food service industry is meeting them:
Greener Restaurants
Restaurant owners are moving to make their establishments more environmentally friendly by reducing energy and water usage. Restaurants are also moving to recycling and composting of waste material. The overall trend is to look for efficient and cost-effective ways to make the industry greener. This includes a turn to our next trend for 2009 …
Locally-Sourced Food
Many environmentally-focused diners understand the impact of importing food from every corner of the globe. The farther away produce is grown the more effort and fuel it takes to get it to market and to a restaurant table. Locally sourced food is helps restaurant become greener by reducing the carbon foot print of its menu items. Additionally, recent outbreaks of tainted foods have shown some of the inherent dangers of our global food supply. Locally sourced food creates a much smaller problem if there is an issue with tainted food supplies.
Bite-Sized Desserts
For years the trend was big, bigger, biggest. Serving sizes for everything from fast food French fries to desserts at fine dining establishments kept getting bigger to meet consumer demand and to differentiate restaurants from the competition. With a much higher focus on health issues, diners are no longer seeking the biggest portions the way they once did. The industry has responded with smaller desserts, many no bigger than a few spoonfuls.
Value
It’s no secret that in bad economic times that budgets for dining out are one of the first things cut. In today’s difficult economic times consumers are looking get the most out of their dining experiences. They want to feel that they are getting high quality meals for the price they are paying. Restaurants are responding by initiating efficiency programs that seek to keep the ceiling on operational costs even as food prices continue to increase.
Healthful Kids’ Meals
Even fast food chains are getting in on this trend. As parents are eating better themselves, they want to see their children better as well. The industry has responded by providing healthier menu options for kids, including juice choices instead of sodas and fruit and vegetable choices instead of French fries.
This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Orlando. Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Orlando offers Le Cordon Bleu culinary education classes and culinary training programs in Orlando, Florida. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit for more information. The jobs mentioned are examples of certain potential jobs, not a representation that these outcomes are more probable than others. Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Orlando does not guarantee employment or salary.
Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America provides quality culinary training with professional chefs. Le Cordon Bleu offers programs in Culinary Arts, Pâtisserie and Baking, Hospitality and Restaurant Management, and Online programs. Visit for more information. Le Cordon Bleu does not guarantee employment or salary.
Texas holds a unique position as the crossroads of the American South and Southwest. With the Louisiana to the east, New Mexico to the west, and Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Texas is a melting pot of regional cuisines that come together to create the flavorful and fun palette of Texas cuisine.
Much of southern cooking is dedicated to comfort and soul food. Both are reminiscent of home cooking with recipes that are typically uncomplicated and easy to prepare. Soul food is associated with African American culture in the South. Soul food staples like rice, sorghum, and okra can trace their roots back to Western Africa Cuisines.
We’ve gathered a list of foods that are favorites throughout the southern United States, with an emphasis on Texas. Most Dallas chefs can put together their delicious versions of the delights on our list.
Barbeque
Once you get past hamburger, hot dogs, and pizza, barbeque may be the quintessential American food. Several regions and states claim to have the best. As long as they’re cooking low and slow on a smoker they’re all making great barbeque. In Texas the emphasis is on beef, with brisket and beef ribs being the favorites. Meats are typically served with savory or hot and spicy barbeque sauces.
Cajun and Creole Cuisine
At first glance it is difficult to tell the difference between these two cooking styles. Cajun cuisine is descended from French-speaking Acadian (Cajun) immigrants from Canada. They adapted provincial French cooking styles to the rustic, local ingredients found in Louisiana. Creole cooking tends to be more centered on New Orleans with a style that blends Spanish, Caribbean, French, Native American, and African influences.
Tex-Mex Cuisine
Most of the “Mexican” food eaten in the United States is actually Tex-Mex food. It is usually a simplified version of Mexican foods that are easy to prepare and typically less spicy than their Mexican counterparts. Popular Tex-Mex dishes include enchiladas, burritos, fajitas, grilled skirt steak, and chile rellenos. Most dishes are served with a generous portion of sliced jalapenos on top.
Chili
Usually counted as part of Mexican and Tex-Mex cuisines, chili is the only distinctly Texan contribution to Tex-Mex and Southern cuisines. Typical Texas chili con carne is just that: chili with meat. It’s red, hot, and delicious. But you’d better hold the beans and veggies if you want to keep authentic.
Cornbread
With a history that can be traced back hundreds of years to early Native Americans, we’ve added corn bread to our Southern delights list because, other than a frosty beverage, it goes best with all of the other items on our list. Both sweet and savory it is found in nearly all American cuisines. Varieties include corn pone, Johnnycakes, hush puppies, and hoecakes.
If you plan to be cooking in Dallas, or anywhere else in the South, you should be sure to put at least a couple of these items in your personal recipe box.
This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu Institute of Culinary Arts Dallas. Le Cordon Bleu Institute of Culinary Arts Dallas offers Le Cordon Bleu culinary education classes and culinary training programs in Dallas, Texas. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit for more information.
The jobs mentioned are examples of certain potential jobs, not a representation that these outcomes are more probable than others. Le Cordon Bleu Institute of Culinary Arts Dallas does not guarantee employment or salary.
Le Cordon Bleu Schools North America provides quality culinary training with professional chefs. Le Cordon Bleu offers programs in Culinary Arts, Pâtisserie and Baking, Hospitality and Restaurant Management, and Online programs. Visit for more information. Le Cordon Bleu does not guarantee employment or salary.