I have great memories of going to the County Fair as a child. Growing up in a small town, the annual fair was the closet thing I new to an amusement park. It was pure heaven. Rides everywhere, bright lights, games to play and stuffed animals to be won, and dont forget about the food. I always had a corndog and a funnel cake at the fair and I was so excited to eat standing up in front of a food vendor trailer. But that was then and this is now. As an adult I see the fair a little bit differently. I see rides that arent as safe as I remember, ride operators that dont look as safe as I remember and food that is definitely not a safe as I remember. The summer months are the height of fair and carnival season and while eating out this summer you may want to choose your menu wisely for you and your children.

First of all, the deep fryer has been brought to new levels of use with the current list of items that you can find deep fried at the fair. I believe that my southern momma must have told them a little secret that we all know down here, everything tastes good battered and fried. There is a whole new category of desserts that have taken a great tasting and already fattening item, cover it with batter and deep fry it. We have the Deep Fried Oreo (490 calories and 28.5 grams of fat for a basket of five), the Deep Fried Twinkie (420 calories and 29 grams of fat a piece), the Deep Fried Snickers Bar (444 calories and 29 grams of fat a piece). For obvious reasons these items might want to be enjoyed sparingly.

The classic fair foods should not be ignored though. My personal favorites from childhood (also deep fried) the classic corndog (375 calories and 21 grams of fat), and the funnel cake (a whopping 760 calories and 44 grams of fat). Some other always popular items at the fair are the gyro sandwich (680 calories and 40 grams of fat), and the bratwurst on a bun (a whopping 804 calories and 60.5 grams of fat).

So what can a person not wanting to fill them selves with deep fried delicacies enjoy at the fair? Well some better options might be: a frozen chocolate banana (240 calories and 4 grams of fat), the soft pretzel (340 calories and 2 grams of fat), and the classic cotton candy (171 calories and 0 grams of fat), but the cotton candy does come with the drawback of 45 grams of sugar.

I may be a little more careful at the fair this summer when choosing my snacks, but then again I may just grab my corndog and funnel cake and go along for the ride. The fair only comes to my town once a year, and somehow it doesnt feel like youve been to the fair unless your stomach is still reminding you a few days later.

* All calories according to calorieking.com