Food has become a serious hobby for many people, and keeping up with the latest trends is essential to your #foodporn status.
Food festivals are the perfect place to sample the newest flavors and creations, like grasshopper or beer cheese, but they're also the scene of some of the most exotic and strange Guinness world-record holding creations.
These food festivals are perfect for the adventurous, ahead of the crowd foodie:
Whoopie Pie Festival, Pennsylvania
Sept. 5, 2015
Appropriately located at the Hershey Farm and Inn, the Whoopie Pie Festival is "The Most Delicious Day in Lancaster County." For those unfamiliar, a whoopie pie involves rich icing spread between two soft, cookie-shaped cakes.
Festival-goers can test their aim at the Whoopie Pie long launch, compete to see if they have the loudest "Whoopie!", or take part in the creation of the world's biggest Whoopie Pie.
The Roadkill Cook-Off, South Carolina
The Roadkill Cook-Off is exactly what it sounds like: cooking up recipes using roadkill as the primary ingredient. Possum, squirrel, groundhog, deer, bear and wild boar are among the critters prepared as delicacies during this one-of-a-kind food festival.
All of the meat is checked for cleanliness before it can be cooked and entered in the competition. With gourmet recipes from squirrel ratatouille to bear meatloaf, you're sure to have some surprising dishes at this festival.
Wellfleet Oysterfest, Massachusetts
Oct. 17-18, 2015
Wellfleet Oysterfest in Cape Cod is a weekend of fresh and delicious oysters celebrating the town's history of shellfishing. You can try your hand at shucking oysters against the seasoned shellfishing men and women of Wellfleet, or head to a local raw bar for some fresh New England fare.
Giant Omelette Celebration, Louisiana
Legend has it that Napoleon ordered a giant omelette to feed his army in the South of France, and after became a tradition of feeding the poor on Easter and a sign of fraternity.
The people of Abbeville, Louisiana, decided to adopt this idea and pay tribute to the town's French heritage by creating a giant omelette each year. Over 5,000 eggs are used to make the omelette, and there are never leftovers.
Abbeville's omelette festival also honors the idea of fraternity by inviting sister cites from France, Belgium, Quebec and Argentina.
Napa Truffle Festival, California
The Napa Truffle Festival is a weekend dedicated to the truffle's greatness, one of the world's most sought after delicacies. Renowned for its wine and culinary expertise, the Napa Valley also serves as a great place to grow truffles.
The festival includes meals prepared by the some of the world's best truffle chefs and seminars by leading truffles scientists about cultivation and development.
Frog Leg Festival, Florida
Jan. 21-24, 2016
Serving over 7,000 pounds of frog legs, the Fellsmere Frog Leg Festival in Fellsmere, Florida, is the biggest frog leg festival in the world. You can sample a frog pop or go for the full pound dinner; or if you're feeling really adventurous, go for the frog leg and gator tail combo dinner for an authentic taste of the marshlands.
The festival raises funds for recreational programs for children in Fellsmere like Boys and Girls Club.
World Grits Festival, South Carolina
In 1986, the people of St. George, South Carolina, became the grits-eating champions of the world, and thus, the World Grits Festival was born. A true Southern staple, grits is a ground-corn porridge eaten mainly at breakfast over biscuits or by itself.
The annual Roll in the Quaker Grits contest challenges competitors to roll in a baby pool full of grits, and after 10 seconds the person with the most grits on them wins!
Beer Cheese Festival, Kentucky
Beer cheese is a spicy and salty cheese spread made with beer, spices, and of course, cheese. The Beer Cheese Festival celebrates the tasty spread that is native to the Kentucky River region. Attendees can try a variety of different beer cheese samples, and vote for their favorite to win the People's Choice award.
Beer cheese is usually spread on crackers, veggies or pretzels, but while in town you can also head to Cairn Coffee House to try their famous Hot Mess sandwich.
Bug Festival, Texas
Austin just got a little weirder.
The annual Bug Festival introduces people to bug eating by providing tasty and exotic bug dishes, and also educates on the benefits of entomophagy (bug-eating). The event is hosted by Little Herds, a non-profit that encourages bug-eating as sustainable agriculture and as a nutrient-rich food.
According to Little Herds, about 80% of the world considers bugs a viable food source. Europe, the U.S., and Canada, where bug eating is considered weird or gross, are really the odd ones from a global standpoint.
National Cherry Festival, Michigan
July 2016
The Cherry Capital of the World, Traverse City, Michigan has hosted the National Cherry Festival for over 100 years. The nine day festival includes farmer's markets, a cherry pit spit contest, live music, races, a beer tent and a pie-eating contest.
During the festival you can visit local cherry farms to pick your own fresh cherries for your next cherry-insprired recipe.
Copper River Wild! Salmon Festival, Alaska
July 2016
The
http://copperriverwild.org/";>Copper River Wild! Salmon Festival celebrates the importance of salmon to the local economy in the small fishing town of Cordova, Alaska. You can sample specialty salmon dishes from fresh grilled salmon filets to pickled salmon. The Taste of Cordova competition gives local residents the chance to show off creative ways to cook their hometown specialty.
Salmon Jam is one of the highlights of the festival, with live performances by bands from across the country every night and a songwriting workshop. There are no roads to Cordova so you'll get to take a beautiful scenic plane or boat ride to get to the festival.
Attack of the Killer Tomato Festival, Georgia
A play on the cult comedy classic, the Attack of the Killer Tomato Festival is a delicious day of all things tomato; there are sauces, bruschetta, and even Bloody Mary's.
The festival, which takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, raises money for Georgia Organics and The Giving Kitchen, a non-profit that provides financial support in times of unforeseen crisis for people in the Atlanta restaurant community.
In 2015, the festival raised over $80,000 for The Giving Kitchen and Georgia Organics.
Goettafest, Kentucky
Pronounced get-uh, goetta is a German-style sausage made of a blend of pork, beef, steel-cut oats, onions, and spices. Glier's Goettafest is a celebration of this tasty meat in any and all of its forms.
From goetta brownies to goetta fish tacos, and goetta Ruebens to goetta pizza, the flavors are endless at Goettafest. If you have never tried goetta before, this is the place to go for your first bite.
Burger Fest, Wisconsin
Seymour, Wisconsin claims to be the home of the hamburger, tracing it back to a man named Charlie Nagreen in 1885.
The main attractions are a 200-pound burger and the famed ketchup slide. The massive burger takes about four hours to cook, and this will be the first year the burger will have a round bun thanks to a new giant pan.
An additional 2,5000 pounds of hamburgers and 1,200 pounds of fries will be cooked during the festival.
Now that your stomach is rumbling, and your brain is more than a little curious, it's time to start planning your food festival road trip.
Fuente: mashable.com
