“I can never be a boy again standing barefoot in a garden on a sunny day and holding a ripe tomato in my hand—don’t really want to be him anyway—but this lovely book gives me hope that something beautiful that I thought had passed away has actually come full circle and that other people in Minnesota share this same longing for fresh food.”

—Garrison Keillor, from the Foreword

Minnesotans live close to the land and love good food, so we expect the best—tasty dishes with the freshest ingredients, locally grown and true to our roots. And this is the kind of culinary regionalism celebrated in The Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook.

            Here are 100 recipes from 38 of Minnesota’s outstanding chefs and restaurants with a special commitment to locally grown, organic, sustainable cookery.

            Recipes come from Lucia’s, Café Brenda, Spoonriver, Heartland, New Scenic Café, Angry Trout Café, Restaurant Alma, Brasa, Bryant Lake Bowl, Barbette, Red Stag, Bayport Cookery, Birchwood Café, Hell’s Kitchen, Nosh, and many more bistros and world-class bed & breakfasts from across Minnesota.

            Mixing the familiar comfort food traditions of Minnesota’s roots with flavorful innovations, these recipes comprise a travel guide through our state, with illustrated profiles of each restaurant, chef, farmer, and uniquely appetizing locale.

This photography rich book is a love song for local food. Through narrating the stories of 31 Minnesota chefs and restaurants, the Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook offers 100 recipes that celebrate cooking with local, sustainably grown food. The passion of these chefs, and the farmers they work with, sings throughout the pages.

This cookbook combines rich traditions and delightful innovations. The mouth-watering fare of world-class bed-and-breakfasts is here, alongside the saucy mix of cultural cuisines from kitchens at the Twin Cities’ Café Brenda, Spoon River, Lucia’s, Heartland, and the delectable slow cooking of eateries like the New Scenic Café in Two Harbors and Minwanjige Café in Strawberry Lake. Mixing the familiar comfort food of Minnesota’s roots in the culture of Northern Europe with the fine new flavors of world cuisine, these recipes comprise a travel guide through Minnesota, with illustrated profiles of chefs and farmers, of food and farms.

The Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook is the newest release from Renewing the Countryside (RTC), a Minnesota-based non-profit organization that champions the positive stories of rural revitalization.  In additional to developing books, RTC produces educational programming around local foods and sustainable agriculture including the Local Food Hero radio show, the Healthy Local Foods exhibit at the State Fair’s EcoExperience and Green Routes, a sustainable tourism initiative.

“I grew up a few steps from a half-acre vegetable garden and it pretty much ruined me for fine dining forever after. When you’ve eaten sweet corn ten minutes removed from the stalk, you’ve experienced intense sensual pleasure at a young age and what can the great chefs of New York and Paris offer to compete with it?”

—Garrison Keillor, from the Foreword

Good food is locally grown food. Many of Minnesota’s finest restaurants use locally grown produce and meats to create their finest dishes. The Minnesota Homegrown Cookbook celebrates the best of our state with 100 local recipes from 38 local chefs and restaurants, cafés, and bed & breakfasts using incredibly fresh ingredients from regional farmers, markets, and organic producers. Inspired by these growers and chefs, now you too can be spoiled forever!

Tim King is a Minnesota organic vegetable farmer and agricultural journalist. He's grown everything from organic garlic to strawberries, apples, bell peppers, and herbs. As a journalist he has written hundreds of articles on organic farming and the workings of the organics industry. Tim is also a cofounder of two Twin Cities farmer's markets, past program manager for the Sustainable Farming Association of Minnesota, a founding board member of the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, and a cofounder of the Whole Farm Cooperative.  Alice Tanghe is a food writer with more than 20 years experience. She was the publisher of Minnesota Palate magazine, and is now creating an online version supporting the spirit of “Creating Community Through Local Food.” An avid cook, she’s has more than 500 rare cookbooks in her kitchen.

Table of contents

Foreword by Garrison Keillor

Introduction

North Shore

Angry Trout Cafe

Dockside Fish Market

            Wild Mushroom-Tomato Bisque

            Blueberry Cream Tart

            Smoked Herring with Cranberry Horseradish Sauce

Chez Jude

Wild Acres Game Farm

            Bistro Roasted Chicken

            Herbs de Provence Meat Rub

            Yukon Gold and Root Vegetable Mousse

            Wild Blueberry Maple Crème Brûlée

Ellery House Bed and Breakfast

Park Lake Farm

            Joan’s Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins

            Featherbed Eggs

            Jim’s Stuffed French Toast

            Minnesota Chocolate Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

            Cream Cheese Frosting

New Scenic Cafe

Bay Produce

            Northern Waters Smoked Salmon Appetizer

            Roasted Garlic Vinaigrette

            Organic Tomato and Herb Oil Appetizer

            Cilantro Oil

            Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache Fondue

Pine and Lake Country

Prairie Bay Restaurant

The Farm on St. Mathias

            Prairie Bay Pizza Margherita

            Wild Mushroom Strudel

            Backlot Bistro Sweet Corn Polenta

Brewed Awakenings Coffeehouse

Spica Farm

            Tomato Coconut Curry Soup

            Potato Spinach Soup

            German Potato Stew

Country Bed & Breakfast

Steve Anderson Sugarbush

            Budd’s Country Bed & Breakfast Omelet

            Lois’s Buttermilk Pancakes

Red River Valley

Caribou Grill

Double J Elk

            Strawberry Spinach Salad

            Corn Chowder

            Barbecue Bacon Elk Burger

Loghouse & Homestead on Spirit Lake

Jake’s Syrup and Natural Products

Muskrat Coffee Company

            Wild Rice Sausage

            Spirited Baked Apples

            Spoon Bread in a Mug

            Glazed Apple Slices

            Puff Pancake with Strawberry-Almond Butter

            Maple Pecan French Toast

Minwanjige Cafe

Native Harvest

            Oatmeal Molasses Bread

            Corn Posole Bison Stew

            Wild Rice Cranberry Stuffing

Minnesota River Valley

The Amboy Cottage Cafe

Whole Grain Milling Company

            Northern Lights Swiss Chard Quiche

            Butternut Basil Soup

            Seeded Oat and Potato Bread

Java River Cafe

Dry Weather Creek Farm

            Country Whole Wheat Bread

            Cranberry Multi-Grain Bread

St. Peter Food Coop

Shepherd’s Way Farms

            Velvety Yam Soup

            Caprese Salad

Bluff Country

Nosh Restaurant & Bar

Rochester Farmers Market

            Grilled Pork Loin with Two-Potato Hash and Elderberry Demi Glace

            Grilled Lamb Chops with Blue Cheese Bread Pudding and Tomato-Cucumber Relish

            Roasted Beet Salad

            Linzer Torte

Dancing Winds Farmstay Retreat

Callister Farm

            Chevron Meatloaf

            Asparagus with Goat Cheese and Morels on Fettuccine

            Herb Goat Cheese Quesadillas

            Callister’s Beer Can Chicken

The Backroom Deli

Whole Grain Milling Company

DreamAcres

            Back Room Deli Salsa

            Back Room Deli Hummus

Scandinavian Inn

Hilltop Pastures Family Farm

            Vegetarian Quiche

            Scandinavian Inn Herb Potatoes

            Danish Rødgrød Raspberry Pudding

            Norwegian Rommegrot Cream Pudding

Twin Cities Area

Restaurant Alma and Brasa

Otter Creek Growers

            Sweet Corn Flan

            Seasonal Greens Souffle

            Fennel Gratin

Bryant Lake Bowl, Barbette, and Red Stag

Moonstone Farm

            Bryant Lake Bowl Chicken Wings in Barbecue Sauce

            Bryant Lake Bowl Black River Blue Cheese Dressing

            Bryant Lake Bowl Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette

Bayport Cookery

Thousand Hills Cattle Company

            Wild Acres Pheasant with Wild Rice Risotto and Dried Cherry Pinot Noir Sauce

            Beef Tenderloin with Garlic Confit, Wilted Spinach, and Braised Oxtail

Birchwood Cafe

Riverbend Farm

            Farro Carrot Cakes with Fennel Kumquat Pistachio Salad and Carrot Coulis

            Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler

            Roasted Pumpkin Hand Pie

Corner Table

Southeast Food Network

            Spring Lamb with Oranges, Lemons, Green Olives, and Oven-Roasted Potatoes

El Norteño

Whole Farm Co-op

            Enchiladas Suisas

Gardens of Salonica

Hill and Vale Farm

Zweber Farm

Roger’s Farm

            Fasolakiia Arni (Lamb and Green Beans)

            Tourlou

            Rizogalo (Rice Pudding)

Heartland

Cedar Summit

            Midwestern Cassoulet

            Fresh Vegetable Slaw

            Asparagus-Barley Risotto

            Green Gazpacho with Dill Sour Cream

Hell’s Kitchen and Hell’s Kitchen Duluth

Silver Bison Ranch

            Maple-Glazed Bison Sausage

            Bison Sausage Bread

            Mahnomin Porridge

Lucia’s Restaurant, Lucia’s Wine Bar, and Lucia’s To Go

Fischer Farm

Riverbend Farms

            Porketta (Garlic-Fennel Pork Roast)

            Beer Batter Walleye Fingers with Maple-Mustard Dipping Sauce

Classic Rosewood Inn

Alexis Bailly Vineyard

            Curried Chutney Spread on Crisp Apple Slices

            Apple Cranberry Chutney

            Roasted Green Beans with Sun-dried Tomatoes, Goat Cheese, and Olives

            Wild Rice-Zucchini Pancakes

Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and Good Life Catering

            Grilled Gouda Sandwich with Roasted Beets and Arugula

            Three Sisters Salad

            Roasted Vegetable Casserole

Cafe Brenda and Spoonriver Restaurant

Mill City Farmers’ Market

            East Indian Potato and Pea Pastries

            Veggie Burgers

Trotters Café and Bakery

Northwoods Organic Produce

            Carrot Dill Soup

            Sweet Potato Oat Currant Bread

            Zesty Cornbread

            Triple Fruit Scones

Ackowledgments

Glossary

Local Food Resources

Restaurant Directory

Index