Lawmakers Chew on Weighty Issues: ‘Whose shad fry is the best?'

Maps, flags and slogans are all well and good, but nothing more truly describes a state than its cuisine — right?

Lawmakers in several states would seem to agree, as they call time out from fierce debates on taxes, guns and abortion to seek answers to an entirely different set of questions, such as one posed this month by a Texas legislator and chronicled by The Dallas Morning News: Can you call it a pecan pie, if you put chocolate on it? (Yes, but that hardly makes it right.)

This year, at least eight states debated legislation designating official state foods, drinks, or items related to them. Here are some examples.