Foods to try while waiting on Election Day results to roll in

JFK responded to a letter sharing his recipe for New England fish chowder. FILE

JFK responded to a letter sharing his recipe for New England fish chowder. FILE

As the 2024 presidential election draws near, one topic has appeared numerous times across both candidate’s campaign trails: food.

Vice President Kamala Harris has made her culinary skills a part of her political identity for years, even hosting a short-lived cooking series on her Youtube channel during her first presidential bid in 2019. Journalist Bettina Makalintal wrote about this technique in an article for Eater, saying “The takeaway is an image of Harris as not only a successful politician but also a working mother.”

Harris has also told stories of working a a McDonalds restaurant during college, as nearly one-in-eight Americans have. Her opponent, former President Donald Trump, has claimed Harris’ story is a lie. There is no evidence to prove his accusation, with the McDonald’s corporation saying “we and our franchisees don’t have records for all positions dating back to the early ‘80s.”

After making these claims, Trump himself visited a McDonalds in Bucks County, Pa., just north of Philadelphia. While the location was closed to the public during his visit, the former president served fries to select patrons. Trump then took questions from the media while leaning out the drive-thru window.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks from a drive-thru window during a campaign stop at a McDonald's, Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, in Feasterville-Trevose, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Credit: AP

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Credit: AP

While this may be one of the first times food has played such a direct role in an election, what presidents enjoy eating has been a common question for decades. Many former politicians even release recipes for their favorite meals.

For those looking for something special to make on Election Day, here are some presidential dishes:

🦅Dwight D. Eisenhower’s vegetable soup

The 34th president, Dwight D. Eisenhower, had a variety of dishes he regularly ate. Eisenhower’s staff released a list of his favorites, including turnips, corn pudding, veal, quail and even apple pie. The list also includes a recipe for “Ike’s Vegetable Soup.”

This meal calls for a quart of canned tomatoes, celery, onions and other vegetables. Eisenhower also recommends making the soup “a day or so after you have fried chicken and out of which you have saved the necks, ribs [and] backs uncooked.”

🦅Richard Nixon’s final meal as president

In an image provided by the National Archives, cottage cheese and pineapple, President Richard Nixon'€™s last lunch at the White House in Washington, Aug. 8, 1974. After languishing in yogurt'€™s shadow for decades, cottage cheese is back, sporting new flavors and small-batch appeal. (U.S. National Archives/The New York Times) -- FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY --

Credit: U.S. NATIONAL ARCHIVES

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Credit: U.S. NATIONAL ARCHIVES

On a warm August morning in 1974, Richard Nixon woke up for what would be his last day as the leader of the free world. In the afternoon, he would announce his resignation as president of the United States live on national tv. Before changing U.S. history, Nixon would end his presidency with a meal consisting of pineapple slices, topped with cottage cheese, served alongside a glass of milk.

Before being served to the disgraced president, photographer Robert Knudsen would capture the unusual meal in a picture described by NPR photographer Ryan Kellman as “so sad, austere, stately, funny.”

🦅John F. Kennedy’s clam chowder

In an article for bonappetit.com, Dan Piepenbring tells the story of Lynn Jennings, a young girl with disabilities who asked JFK what he liked to eat in a 1961 letter.

Upon receiving the note, one of JFK’s secretaries told him to “please reply to her, she will be extremely happy.”

Fulfilling her request, JFK responded to the girl, sending along his recipe for New England fish chowder.

John F. Kennedy and New England Fish Chowder, 03/10/1961 - 03/18/1961 (page 4 of 4)

Filled with haddock, pork and onions, this recipe creates enough food to serve six people.

🦅Jimmy Carter’s favorite southern dish

While Jimmy Carter is hailed by many as a hero to the American peanut industry, a 1976 New York Times article featured Amy Carter discussing her father’s love of the southern staple grits. “Daddy makes grits for breakfast, then breaks a couple of eggs into it and adds some cheese, and it’s yummy,” she said.

To celebrate his 98th birthday in 2022, The White House Historical Association released Carter’s recipe for the meal.

🦅Barack Obama’s famous chili


                        Former President Barack Obama speaks at a campaign rally for Vice President Kamala Harris at the Fitzgerald Field House in Pittsburgh on Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. Obama traveled to Pittsburgh on Thursday to urge voters there to choose Vice President Kamala Harris in November, aiming a message at one group in particular: Black men. (Maddie McGarvey/The New York Times)

Credit: NYT

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Credit: NYT

Former president Barack Obama is known for his active and healthy lifestyle. For example, instead of coffee, the 44th president often opts instead for orange juice or tea. His dedication to personal health also applies to his favorite meal, a classic homemade chili.

PBS published a recipe for the dish in 2013, which takes 30 minutes to prepare and features red-wine vinegar, cumin, oregano and more.

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