It's my final semester of college, and I'm taking Literature of the Great Depression to finish my English major. I think that my professor often feels badly, though, about assigning texts that are just so darn depressing, so she often opens class with a cheerful question like, "What's your favorite type of pie?" or "What's your favorite breakfast?" Recently, she asked us what our favorite thing about Spring is, and I knew instantly that mine is the delicious new food and produce that Spring brings. Clearly, there's no better way to celebrate these bright new ingredients than with entire festivals dedicated to them! This weekend, we have homages to asparagus, seafood, beer, more seafood, seafood and (my favorite) maple.

Read on after the jump to see where to go for the party, and meanwhile check out these lovely photos from last week's Great American Pie Festival.



St. Michaels Food and Wine Festival (April 24-27) - If you've never been to this beautiful town on the Chesapeake Bay, there's no better time to visit than this weekend. The festival attracted thousands of people last year, and given the line-up of events, I'm sure they'll be no shortage of foodies looking for cooking demonstrations, mixology classes and alcohol seminars, just to name a few. And of course, don't forget to eat crabs -- many of the events focus on this local gem of a food.

Stockton Asparagus Festival (April 25-27) - I wouldn't visit the portable toilets there, but don't miss the Asparagus Festival in Stockton, CA this weekend. In addition to food-related events, you can visit a crafts fair, listen to local music, and attend a home and garden expo. Tickets are only $10 for adults, and the festival boasts "the best deep fried asparagus found anywhere." That's something special.

Pompano Beach Seafood Festival (April 25-27) - If St. Michaels is too far to go for crabs this weekend, consider heading to Florida instead! While you're scarfing your seafood, visit vendors and listen to tribute bands -- the festival features tribute singers to Bob Marley, The Doors Daily, Southern Rock and The Ladies of R&B. Admission is $10, but if you're hardcore you can buy a 3-day pass for only $20.

Astoria Warrenton Crab and Seafood Festival (April 25-27) - But say you live on the West Coast, and St. Michaels and Pompano Beach are both out of reach! No worries, just head to Oregon for your seafood fix. It's all about the flavors of the Northwest, and for $5-10 (depending on the day) you can get a pretty good sampling of them.

Vermont Maple Festival (April 25-27) - Oh how I wish I could attend! Maple syrup and maple sugar candy both probably rank highly among my favorite foods ever, and both are featured prominently at the festival. And to make matters even worse/better, cotton candy ranks tops my list as well, and the festival is serving MAPLE COTTON CANDY! It's practically torture for me to write it without being able to taste it. Go for the parade, go for the face painting, or go for the many other awesome events, but be sure to taste the maple cotton candy -- for me.

Tap New York Craft Beer and Fine Food Festival (April 25-27) - Leave the kids at home (no one under 21 allowed) and taste fine craft beers at this annual festival in the Catskill Mountains. There will be over 90 beers to try, and breweries compete for "Best Beer" and "Best Brewery" in the state. Once you are full of beer, you can attend other events like cooking demonstrations and collect stamps at the brewery booths to bring home free stuff -- woohoo!