Pennsylvania PRIDE - Big Y® World Class Market®

You may know Pennsylvania as the home of the Liberty Bell, the Pennsylvania Dutch, steel mills and coal mines. Chances are you’ve heard of — and enjoyed — the famous Philly cheese steak sandwich. But did you also know Pennsylvania is home to the biggest chocolate company in the world? Or that Heinz ketchup originated in Pittsburgh? Or that pretzels were popularized in Pennsylvania? Here are some little-known facts about a few of the all-stars that give this Mid-Atlantic state a reason to be proud.

The Philly Cheese Steak
This famed sandwich can be found sold by street vendors and small restaurants all over Philadelphia. It’s a delicious formula that has spawned imitators all over the country: Thinly-sliced beef, sautéed with onions on a hot grill, then piled on a crusty roll and smothered with cheese and usually peppers — sometimes, hot sauce and even pickles are added to the mix. On the streets of Philadelphia, the cheese you’ll find on your sandwich is melted Cheez Whiz®, but provolone is sometimes used instead. According to Philadelphia purists, the best beverage to drink with your cheese steak is a cherry cola.

Try this recipe to make your own Philly Cheese Steak

Hershey, PA: The Sweetest Town on Earth
Pennsylvania is home to the self-proclaimed “sweetest town on Earth,” Hershey. If the name sounds familiar, that’s because it is emblazoned on candy bars and chocolate kisses all over the world. Milton Hershey started his candy company in 1886 to make caramel; it wasn’t until the turn of the century that he perfected the creamy milk chocolate formula we all still love today.
The product that truly put Hershey on the map, though, was the famous Hershey®’s Kiss®. The tiny, foil-wrapped confection was supposedly named for the “kissing” sound made by the machine that produced the candies. Today, the kiss motif rings throughout Hershey — even the streetlights in the city are shaped like Hershey’s Kisses.
Visit Hersheys online.

Heinz® Ketchup
In American minds, the words “ketchup” and “tomatoes” are inextricably linked. But interestingly, that wasn’t always the case. Originally, the term “ketchup” meant a sauce made from any one of a number of ingredients — for example, walnuts, fish, lemons, even oysters — and tomato-based ketchup was just one option of many. Starting in the mid 1800s, Pittsburgh-based H. J. Heinz Company began perfecting and popularizing bottled tomato ketchup, transforming it into one of America’s favorite condiments. Now, tomato ketchup is the only kind of ketchup you’ll find on store shelves. Today, Heinz sells more than half of the world’s tomato ketchup.
Visit Heinz online.

Praying for Pretzels
The world’s largest pretzel factory is located in Lancaster, PA, in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country. Pennsylvania Dutch parents have been giving their children pretzels for centuries, as a reward for saying their prayers. Some sources say the open ends of pretzels symbolize that our prayers are open to heaven, and the twist in the middle represents the bond of marriage.

from Big Y American Life Magazine, May 2004