Avoid the chaos and the crowds, but still get your curds and corn dogs.

​Only a few days left to enjoy the Minnesota State Fair ... or not.

If you're having a hankering for fried foods on a stick but can't bear traipsing through the stinky barns and stepping over the horse-plop-and-Sweet Martha's-cookie-littered sidewalks to get to them, we're here to help.

Here's our list of five favorite fair foods that are served at Minnesota restaurants.

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Fuel yourself for Fringe-watching!

​There are 168 shows in this year's Fringe Festival, which starts tomorrow, and how many you're able to watch all depends on your stamina.

To keep yourself fueled, check our our recommendations for which restaurants to hit near each venue.

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Nu Val helps shoppers trade up to more nutritious choices.

​We all know that food marketers like to stretch the truth, so we shouldn't be surprised that a cereal billed as Total nutrition scored only 29 points out of 100 on the new NuVal--nutritional value--system.

A Yale doctor, with the help of a team of nutrition experts, developed the system, which is used to grade all foods from least nutritious (1) to most nutritious (100). The score is determined by an algorithm that rates various nutritional factors, adding points for things like the item's vitamin and fiber content, and subtracting points for sodium, fat, and sugar. It basically tries to condense all the information on the item's nutritional label into one number to simplify comparisons. Tomatoes, score 96, Wonder Bread, 23. (NuVal has a game you can play to guess scores here. It's kind of like The Price Is Right, except you rank nutrition instead of price.)

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Lars Leetaru

The director of operations for Barbette/BLB/Red Stag/Gigis talks reservation policies.

​This week's Dish column talks about the various ways restaurants pair diners with seats--some take a first-come-first serve approach, while others take reservations--and the pros and cons of each system.

Amy Kelly, Director of Operations of the Barbette/Bryant Lake Bowl/Red Stag/Gigi's empire, oversees restaurants that use some combination of all those reservations strategies. The Hot Dish touched base with her to learn more about why the Red Stag recently decided to start using Open Table and why it's always important to call ahead if you've made a reservation and the size of your party changes.

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Conscionable vegging out

​Catch up with our guidelines for choosing the right Community Supported Agriculture from Friday here.

If your determination was that a full share won't fit in with your summer schedule, be it financial, time, or spatial constraints, there are still options out there for the CS-Lazy. Here are some ideas for local, sustainably grown foods that don't require a ton of commitment.

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​Choosing a summer CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share is only slightly more daunting than moving in with a new lover you've known for a week.  Sure a lease is theoretically a big commitment, but what do you plan to do with all of that kohlrabi?  While writing a fully comprehensive guide to take you directly to the perfect CSA match for you would be a bit too much like one those choose-your-own adventure books, we have put together a few helpful guidelines that should narrow the field for you.

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The way to your sweetie's heart = through the stomach.

​Whaddaya mean last minute? Valentine's Day is still almost a week away. In the Hallmark holiday universe, if you haven't planned anything yet, you're already late to the party. Tables at V-Day favorites like La Belle Vie, Manny's, and Restaurant Alma are already sold out during peak dinner times. As early as last week, OpenTable reported that about 14 percent of its Twin Cities reservations for Monday, February 14, were already completely booked.

But don't panic. The Hot Dish is here to help:

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dane brian via Flickr.com

​If you've resolved to cook more in 2011, you're in luck: The Twin Cities boasts a wealth of chefs with advice at the ready, and they have more to say than just, "Eat out." (Though they wouldn't mind if you did, of course.) The Hot Dish took chefs' tips for home cooks from our recent chef chats and put together a handy Top 10 list:More >>

Lisa Gulya

Ruby Moon chocolate truffles

​Frazzled by the holiday hubbub? A little chocolate cookery could help soothe those frayed nerves. Three chefs share their tips for cooking with chocolate, plus a recipe for mole sauce.

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"Damn, I'm hungry."

​Dear Mr. President,
Welcome to the Twin Cities. We're very much looking forward to your Northrup Mall visit. (The opening band is going to be awesome, by the way!) But surely with all that baby kissing and public speaking, you're going to work up an appetite.

Here's where we'd recommend you refuel, in spite of your tight schedule, security concerns, and penchant for healthy eating:

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