Even U.S. presidents have to eat. So what did our leaders have on their plates?

George Washington’s favorite food was hoecakes. Abraham Lincoln was a bacon lover. James Garfield preferred squirrel soup. Donald Trump loves fast food.

On President’s Day, we look back at favorite foods of some of the U.S. Presidents:

• George Washington: A hoecake is a kind of pancake made from cornmeal. He ate them at breakfast, covered with honey and butter, according to www.mountvernon.org. There’s a modern adaptation of the recipe on the website.
• John Adams: It’s been estimated that Adams drank about a gallon of cider every day, and even took barrels of it with him when he traveled, according to mashed.com.
• Thomas Jefferson: Jefferson grew heirloom apples, established one of the first wineries in Virginia, and helped introduce les frites to les États Unis (French Fries) after a stint as minister to France, according to the food website tastingtable.com. Jefferson also loved macaroni and cheese so much that he had a pasta machine at Monticello and had pasta shipped from Europe regularly, according to mashed.com.
• John Quincy Adams: Adams was known for his love of fruit and was responsible for planting various fruit trees at the White House while he was in office, according to mashed.com.
• Andrew Jackson: “Leather Britches,” or green beans cooked with bacon, was one of his favorites, according to mashed.com.
• William Henry Harrison: Harrison died 31 days after taking office. He was known to love squirrel stew, which he handed out to voters at his election rallies. It’s said possum may also have been part of his dinner table, according to tastingtable.com.
• James Polk:  Polk was known to be a simple, frugal man whose favorite food was corn pone, a type of cornbread. After leaving office, he and his wife traveled to New Orleans which was dealing with a cholera outbreak. There he was offered Creole food which he declined to avoid contracting the disease, according to tastingtable.com. He died shortly after of cholera, according to tastingtable.com.
• Millard Fillmore:  Fillmore is credited with installing the first iron cookstove in the White House, according to Foodtimeline.org. Before that, cooking in the White was done in an open hearth.
• James Buchanan: One of Buchanan’s favorite things to eat was cabbage, particularly sauerkraut, according to mashed.com.
• Abraham Lincoln: It’s said that Lincoln loved a corn cake made by his wife, Mary Todd, according to tastingtable.com. He also was particularly fond of bacon.
• Andrew Johnson: Johnson and his family established a dairy to supply the White House with fresh dairy products, according to foodtimeline.org. He preferred Southern home cooking, popcorn parties, Hopping John, wild turkey, and Pine Bark Stew.
• Ulysses S. Grant: Grant loved rice pudding so much that some people described his passion for the stuff as a mania, according to mashed.com.
• Rutherford B. Hayes: Hayes was very fond of corn. It rates 18 different mentions in his diary, according to tastingtable.com. Hayes did not like alcoholic drinks, and sometimes tricked his guests by serving punch flavored with rum extract instead of real rum.
• Franklin Roosevelt: According to a White House housekeeper, Roosevelt loved grilled cheese sandwiches, CB News reported in a 2017 report.
• John F. Kennedy: He loved creamy New England fish chowder, according to foodandwine.com. He also liked ice cream with hot fudge.
• Jimmy Carter:  A proud Georgia farmer, Carter said he like Southern food. He was also known to love wife Rosalynn’s peanut butter pie.
• Ronald Reagan:  Reagan used jellybeans to drop another habit, smoking. He celebrated is 1981 inauguration by treating guest to 3.5 tons of red, white, and blue jelly beans, according to tastingtable.com.
• George H.W. Bush: When Time magazine wrote about Bush’s fondness for fried pork rinds with Tabasco sauce, sales jumped 11%, according to the New York Times.
• Bill Clinton:  It was well-known that Clinton loved a good spicy hamburger. After heart surgery in 2004, Clinton became a vegan.
• George W. Bush: A White House Chef told CBS News that one of the younger Bush’s favorite breakfasts was a version of huevos rancheros made with Monterey Jack, scrambled eggs, black beans, lime crème fraiche, avocado, fresh cilantro and salsa. It’s also been reported that he loved cheeseburger pizza.

More:Jimmy Carter’s favorite dessert was peanut butter pie. Here’s how Rosalynn made it.

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