For his first official meal as President, it’s being reported that Barack Obama will be dining on some of the favorite foods of Abraham Lincoln.
Served in Congress’ Statuary Hall, the First Family, along with the Vice President, congressional leaders, Supreme Court justices and members of the new Cabinet will eat a multi-course meal including seafood stew, duck breast with cherry chutney, whipped molasses sweet potatoes, roast pheasant and cinnamon apple spongecake.
The luncheon is set to be served on replicas of the china used by the Lincolns, as well.
Want to cook up an inaugural meal of your own? The chefs have provided recipes for each course.
As far as fresh veggies go, I think that a typical January meal in Lincoln’s time wouldn’t really have any fresh veggies or fresh greens. Root veggies would’ve been available (sweet potatoes), and the cherries and apples would’ve been preserved. Seems an apropos menu for the event — but I sure hope he doesn’t eat like this all the time. Interesting that this menu sort of typifies the “locavore” concept, which to me has its weakness in the fact that if you want something fresh, you can’t have it if it doesn’t grow near you in winter. Easy to talk “locavore” in California, but a Virginia winter would certainly have its limits in 1860.
Oh, and smoke a cigarette after your meal like Obama does. Don’t want to forget that important part of every meal…
Not a fresh vegetable or salad in the lot. Hope they don’t eat like this all the time.
This seems like it would be really fun to make.