Local Food

Mill City Picnic Fest: Fill Your Baskets with Local Food

During the lazy, hazy days of summer, it’s easy to find relief from the scorching sun and stifling humidity in air-conditioned shopping malls, movie theaters and restaurants. But after having coped with the real chill of winter just a few months ago, why go into an artificial deep freeze? Instead, embrace the season and enjoy a sunny picnic with a little help from the Mill City Farmers’ Market.

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Is It a Good Thing When Big-Box Retailers Sell Local Food?

A recent story on National Pubic Radio (NPR) entitled Wal-Mart Helps Small Farms Supply Local Food got me thinking. On the surface, the idea of Wal-Mart -- or any retailer, big or small -- making a public commitment to sourcing better food strikes me as a positive thing. According to the article:

The company wants to revitalize small and midsize farms in the U.S. and has begun a program to increase the amount of local produce sold in Walmart stores. The program also benefits consumers, who have access to fresher food, as well as Wal-Mart itself.

That sounds pretty good, right? The article goes on to say that:

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A Small Sampling of Spots to Get Local and Organic in Washington, D.C.

For the first time Simple, Good and Tasty is exploring the local, organic food scene in our nation's capital and the surrounding area. There’s a lot to savor in both restaurants and farmers markets; here’s just a small sampling of notable spots to get a hungry visitor started.

Washington restaurants that offer local, organic meals span the range from formal to casual. Some are good for a special celebration or date night; others are family- and budget-friendly. I’ve included one to fit every pocket and occasion. They’re located in various neighborhoods in and around Washington, and each is accessible by the city’s Metro system.

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Finding Local Food at the Twins New Target Field

Boy, do I love Target Field, the new baseball stadium for the Minnesota Twins. It's a gorgeous place, offering great views from every seat (so I've heard -- I've only sampled a few) and easy access to the rest of downtown Minneapolis. Seeing the Twins play outside makes me feel like a kid again, and I wonder if my children will look forward to trips to Target Field with the same excitement I had when my parents made the drive from Long Island, where I grew up, to Yankee Stadium.

Target Field somehow feels both entirely new and utterly, wonderfully Minnesotan. Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" blares from the speakers in between innings. The downtown skyline twinkles behind the home run fence. And the food is, in a way, Minnesotan too.

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Minnesota Cooks at the State Fair: Fair-Fresh Healthy Choices

As the coordinator for the Minnesota Cooks™ program at the Minnesota State Fair, I'm writing today's post to give you a preview of this event, which features Minnesota chefs and cooks, local farmers, and consumers with a full day of cooking demonstrations, discussions, and sampling of delicious cuisine.

The big day begins at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, August 31, (with samples of scones and French toast!) and will continue with eight hourly presentations, featuring 16 restaurants and 16 farms. The Minnesota Cooks Stage proudly sits in Carousel Park, just south of the Grandstand, and is the place to be on the Tuesday of the Great Minnesota Get Together for one of Minnesota’s most admired and longstanding sustainable foods events.

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Life with "The Girls" Provides Entertainment, Free Fertilizer and Incomparable Eggs

This year my husband and I celebrate 10 years of farming. In 2000, we transplanted ourselves from the Twin Cities to our farm in East Central Minnesota and over the past decade, have gradually expanded our agricultural output. Our primary focus has been growing produce, beekeeping and honey, and making maple syrup. But the one thing that everyone we know has asked us is why do we not have any farm animals?

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Farmers' Markets from the Other Side of the Table

I’m a morning person by nature; I’m often the first one in the office pounding out more work in the first few hours than I do later in the day. So last summer, when I ventured to Virginia to work on a farm, my tendency to wake up early helped me face the weekly, pre-dawn job of preparing for our weekly trip to the farmers’ markets.

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Wanted: Someone to Launch a Simple, Good and Tasty in Your Hometown

We talk all the time about what an active and vibrant local/organic/sustainable food movement we’ve got going on in Minneapolis and St. Paul. But we also realize a passion for this kind of food is not exclusive to the Twin Cities.

We’re also pretty sure that what SGT does is unique. Our combination of terrific, original content; a multi-faceted local-food directory; a comprehensive listing of local-food events; a thriving social network; a host of successful business partners; and a Local Food Lover program are unlike anything else out there. As a result, we're a growing presence not only in our hometown, but in food communities all over the country. Like yours.

That's where you come in.

We are planning to launch an SGT in your town and here’s what we need to make that happen:

You.

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Announcing SGT's July Local Food Event: Dinner on the Deck at The Marsh

I live in Minneapolis, and I'll admit that sometimes I can be a snob about it. When my in-laws tell me about some "fantastic" Italian restaurant they've discovered in the northern suburbs, for example, my first instinct isn't to jump in the car and drive to Anoka, but to rattle off the places in Minneapolis that are -- obviously, I assume -- both closer and tastier. As a rule, if I'm going to drive more than 20 miles from my house, it's going to be to visit a farm, enjoy a weekend away, or visit a family member I really, really love. Like I said, I'm a snob.

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Farmers' Markets Spring Forward: Picking and Choosing the Market for You

Midwestern farmers' markets are the stuff of midwinter’s – and really, even midspring’s – dreams.  When we sit down and contemplate the changing weather, the growth potential, and the veritable expansion of our own resources, we tend to imagine gardens. Farms. Food production in a variety of levels – gardener or not. We just can’t help ourselves.

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