Official State Foods, 1st Serving Quiz

Answer: Lane Cake

In 1898, Emma Rylander Lane entered a cake in a baking competition which went on to become the state dessert of Alabama in 2016. The cake is soaked in bourbon. The cake is mentioned in Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" where Scout eats a piece and feels the effects of the alcohol.

Answer: Saccharomyces cerevisiae (brewer's yeast)

The enabling legislation by which Oregon adopted brewer's yeast as its state microbe said, in part "Saccharomyces cerevisiae has inspired a thriving brewing culture in this state, making Oregon an internationally recognized hub of craft brewing." Oregonians are reputed to love their beer, which this designation makes all the more apparent.

Answer: artichoke

While Governor Jerry Brown was on an official visit to China, Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed the artichoke the state vegetable of California on 10 April 2013. California produces 99 percent of all the fresh artichokes sold in the U.S. Castroville, California, calls itself the artichoke capital of the world

Answer: morels (Morchella esculenta)

Also known as the sponge mushroom or the honeycomb mushroom, morels grow wild in Minnesota but can be hard to find. In 1984, Chapter 1, Section 1.149 of the Minnesota Statutes was adopted to honour the morel (and to require the Secretary of State to hang a picture of one in her office).

Answer: Fry bread

Fry bread (also known as squaw bread) is a dish of Navajo origin. It was invented in 1864 when the U.S. Government removed the Navajo from their land in Arizona and made them walk 300 miles to New Mexico. They were provided flour, sugar, salt and lard, from which the Navajo made fry bread. In 2005, South Dakota adopted it as the official state bread as a sort of link to the Native American experience.

Answer: Sweet goldenrod

Sweet goldenrod (Solidago odora) became the official herb of the State of Delaware on 24 June 1996. (Title 29, Chapter 3, Section 313 of the Delaware Code) The tall bushy herb grows wild all over the state. Its dried leaves and flowers are used to make a somewhat licorice-flavoured tea which is claimed to have medicinal properties as well as to taste good.

Answer: Kool-Aid

Since 1998, Kool-Aid has been the official state soft drink of Nebraska. The fruit-flavoured powder was invented by Edwin and Kitty Perkins of Hastings, Nebraska, in 1927. This explains why the annual Kool-Aid Days are celebrated in Hastings. Kool-Aid is now a proprietary brand of the Kraft Foods Company.

Answer: Washington

Since 2007, the Walla Walla Sweet Onion has been the state vegetable of Washington State. School classes in Eatonville, Washington, and Kirkland, Washington, promoted the adoption of this onion. Technically, the term applies only to those onions actually grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Washington. And they are very sweet.

Answer: biscochito

A biscochito is a small anise-and-cinnamon flavoured shortbread cookie, the origin of which is in Spain. Also called biscocho in some New Mexican communities, it is a popular local cookie, especially for celebrations (especially at Christmas). The cookie was adopted as New Mexico's favourite in 1989.

Answer: popcorn

Farmers in the State of Illinois provide about 20% of the popcorn (Zea mays everta) grown in the United States. At the prompting of second- and third-grade students in Cunningham Elementary School in Joliet, State Senator Larry Walsh sponsored a bill which adopted popcorn as the official state snack in 2003.