Dan Kaercher’s belly can attest to the power of culinary tourism in the Midwest. He gained 10 pounds touring 12 heartland states last summer, eating 500 foods during 150 meals over 44 days.

The results of Kaercher’s weight gain and newfound knowledge of Midwestern food are chronicled in “Taste of the Midwest,” a book designed to highlight how the region’s food and culture are intertwined.

But it also describes restaurants and other food venues that can help Midwestern states cash in on the latest buzzword in the travel industry.

“Right now, it’s labeled ‘culinary tourism,’ and that’s a hot topic, but it’s been around a long time,” says Kaercher, editor in chief of Midwest Living Magazine. “Food and travel go together. One of the main ways you remember a trip is by what you had to eat and whether you liked it or didn’t like it. People are always fascinated by food, and it’s a reflection of culture and community.”

Kaercher’s stops in Kansas included the Prairie Rose Chuckwagon Supper in Benton; Pinky’s in Courtland; Chicken Annie’s, Chicken Mary’s and Pichler’s Chicken Annie’s, all near Pittsburg; Gutierrez Restaurant in Salina; Taqueria El Paisa in Wichita and the Carriage Crossing in Yoder.

A silhouette scene in the Salina area.

He also went to the National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame in Bonner Springs, the Depot Market & Cider Mill in Courtland and the Stafford County Flour Mills in Hudson.

Kaercher, 57, didn’t make it to Lawrence on this trip. His first book, “Best of the Midwest,” released last summer, sung the praises of Free State Brewing Co. and the Circle S Ranch.

“Lawrence made my hit parade,” he says, “so I feel like I did Lawrence justice.”

He says the heart of traditional Kansas food – like that of much of the Midwest – is good beef, grains and fresh produce. Though that’s viewed by some Midwesterners as a stereotypical view of their food, Kaercher says the style is catching on elsewhere, as with the opening of the Heartland Brewery & Chop House in New York.

“I think as far as the Midwest getting its due, our stereotype Midwest cuisine has gotten a lot of interest,” he says. “I’m trying to build interest in it with my book, and the very fact my book is getting so much attention points to the fact we’re getting our due in the Midwest.”

New influences

But Kaercher says his trip showed him that most Midwesterners have gone beyond that meat-and-potatoes menu. On one morning in Minnesota, he ate eggs Benedict, lutefisk (a staple in Norwegian cooking) and Spam, all before lunch.

A longhorn cow stands at the Prairie Rose Chuckwagon Supper near Benton.

He also ate chitlins in Chicago. It was the only food of the 500 he tried that he won’t eat again.

Kaercher says the influx of Hispanic residents has added a new dimension to heartland food.

“It all evolves and winds up fusing together,” Kaercher says. “It’s not a static thing. Cuisine is always changing, and there are always imaginative cooks. My message is let’s hold onto our heritage and we have a wonderful heritage in Kansas and across the Midwest, but then let’s branch out.”

‘Local flavor’

Kaercher says he thinks more people are looking for the local flavor of a town when they go on vacation. That comes at a time when chain restaurants are forcing some local restaurants out of business.

The fondido de championes, a dish at Gutierrez restaurant in Salina.

“It gets tougher for the small guys to compete – what can you do?” Kaercher says. “It’s not a bad thing, just the way things are changing. People, when they’re driving down the interstate, they want to look for a sign they trust and grab their quick hamburger. But the thing is to patronize the places that help preserve your local food heritage, to keep them going as well.”

Keeping those local restaurants going has been a goal for Judy Billings, director of the Lawrence Convention & Visitors Bureau.

“That sets us apart from ‘Generica,’ as it’s usually called,” she says. “When I travel, I don’t want to eat at Applebee’s or chain restaurants. I want to experience the local flavor.”

Al Brensing, a longtime employee and president of the Stafford County Flour Mill near Hudson, in central Kansas.

Billings says she doubts many people drive to Lawrence specifically for dining, as they might for a dinner theater or the Prairie Rose Chuckwagon Supper. But food is part of a complete experience in Lawrence, when combined with shopping or nightlife, she says.

“It’s the whole package,” Billings says. “Even if they come just to eat, it’s the whole package that attracts them – window-shopping, the musician on the street or the juggler or whatever it is.”

Kansas tourism officials also are doing what they can to promote the state’s eateries.

Richard Smalley, tourism marketing manager with the Kansas Department of Commerce, says the state is trying to do more to incorporate dining options into tour guide information.

“With travelers and tourists, the main things no matter where they go is they eat and they shop,” Smalley says. “This isn’t really anything new, but there’s been a lot of research done nationally that talks about culinary travels. More and more people are interested in local cuisine and unique places. They find comfort in chains, but they want to find the local flavor.”

Fresh grains - and especially wheat - are one of the things that make Kansas food unique, writes Dan Kaercher, author of Taste

New project

Kaercher says there’s plenty of that local flavor to be found.

When traveling, he suggests eating the types of foods a city is known for – ribs in Kansas City, steaks in Omaha, pizza in Chicago or bratwurst in Sheboygan, Wis.

Then, he suggests, branch out and try something new.

“There are a lot of innovative things being done in the Midwest,” he says.

As for Kaercher, he’s spending this summer on a tour of Midwestern parks, for a book due out next year.

He’s still trying to lose those 10 pounds he gained on his tour last summer.

“I’m hoping this parks trip will help me, but actually everybody is out to stuff me on this trip, too,” he says. “I’ve been hiking and mountain biking and canoeing. It’s going to be about seven weeks on the road this summer doing healthier things than sitting there eating all day. Maybe I’ll lose a couple of pounds. I hope.”

‘Taste of the Midwest’ recipes

Recipes from Kansas featured in “Taste of the Midwest” by Dan Kaercher:

Sour cream raisin pie

4 cups water

1 1/2 cups raisins

1 16-ounce dairy sour cream

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup cornstarch

4 egg yolks, lightly beaten

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Pastry for 10-inch pie

1 8-ounce carton frozen whipped dessert topping, thawed

In a medium saucepan, bring water to boiling. Remove from heat; stir in raisins. Set aside.

For filling: In a heavy large saucepan or Dutch oven, stir together sour cream, sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks and salt; mix well. Stir in water and raisin mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in vanilla. Pour the filling into a large bowl. Cover surface of filling with plastic wrap. Chill for at least 4 to 6 hours.

For pie crust: In a medium bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in 1/2 cup shortening until mixture resembles crumbs that are pea-sized. Add 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water and stir until dough is just moistened. Form dough into a ball; cover with plastic wrap and let stand for one hour. On a lightly floured surface, slightly flatten dough. Roll dough from center to edges into a circle 13 inches in diameter. Ease pastry into pie plate without stretching it. Trim pastry to 1/2 inch beyond edge of pie plate. Fold under the extra pastry. Crimp edge as desired. Line pastry with a double thickness of foil. Bake in a 450-degree oven for 8 minutes. Remove foil. Bake about 7 minutes more or until golden. Cool on wire rack.

To serve, pour filling into pastry. Spread dessert topping over filling; seat to edge of crust. Serve immediately.

– Carriage Crossing Restaurant in Yoder

Creamy peaches and cream coffee cake

1/2 cup butter or margarine

2 eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup cold butter or margarine

1/4 cup sliced almonds

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup dairy sour cream

1 egg yolk, slightly beaten

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup peach preserves

Allow the 1/2 cup butter and the 2 eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, grease and lightly flour a 9-inch springform pan; set aside.

For topping: In a small bowl, combine the 1/2 cup flour and the 1/2 cup sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut the 1/4 cup cold butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in almonds. Set aside.

For cake: In a medium bowl, stir together the 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon salt. In a large mixing bowl, beat the 1/2 cup softened butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the 1 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla; beat until well-combined. Add room-temperature eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Alternately add flour mixture and sour cream to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Set aside.

For filling: In another mixing bowl, beat the egg yolk, cream cheese and the remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla until light and fluffy. Gradually add the 1/2 cup sugar, beating well. Set aside.

Spread half of the cake batter into prepared pan. Spread filling over cake batter. Spread peach preserves over the filling. Spread the remaining cake batter over the preserves. Sprinkle with topping. Place cake pan on baking rack with a baking sheet positioned on a lower rack to catch any spills.

Bake at 325 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool coffee cake on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Remove sides of the pan. Serve warm.

– Stafford County Flour Mills Co. in Hudson

Chicken fried steak

1 pound boneless beef top round steak, cut 1/2-inch thick

3/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon dried basil or oregano, crushed

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 beaten egg

1 tablespoon milk

2 tablespoons cooking oil

1 small onion, sliced and separated into rings

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 1/3 cups milk

Salt and ground black pepper (optional)

Trim fat from meat, Cut meat into four serving-sized pieces. Place each piece of beef between 2 sheets of plastic wrap. Working from center to edges, pound meat lightly with the flat side of a meat mallet to 1/4-inch thickness. Remove plastic wrap.

In a shallow dish or on waxed paper, combine bread crumbs, the 1/2 teaspoon salt, basil and the 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. In another shallow dish, combine egg and the 1 tablespoon milk. Dip meat pieces into egg mixture, then coat with the bread crumb mixture.

In a 12-inch skillet, cook meat, half at a time, in hot oil over medium heat about 6 minutes or until brown, turning once. Add more oil, if necessary. Return all meat to skillet. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and cook for 45 to 60 minutes more or until meat is tender. Transfer meat to a serving platter, reserving drippings in skillet. Keep meat warm.

For gravy: Cook onion in the reserved drippings until tender but not brown. Add more oil, if necessary. Stir in flour. Gradually stir in the 1 1/3 cups milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more. If you like, season to taste with additional salt and black pepper. Serve gravy with meat.

– Pinky’s Bar and Grill in Courtland