renewing the countryside

I have a confession. Up until this year, I was terrible at state-fairing. I always went with grandiose plans to learn new things, experience the unknown and eat modestly. In the end, the cheese curds won, my digestion lost and I would end up in the poultry building in a sort of grease induced hallucination totally enchanted by the cacophony of bird noises.

Thoughts of revolution were in the air at the Sustainable Farming Association of Minnesota’s twentieth annual conference, The Routes of Sustainability: Food, Farming & Fellowship, held February 18 - 19 at the College of St. Benedict. SFA MN is a farmer-led organization that works to connect farmers with eaters across the state.

According to their website:

The Sustainable Farming Association of Minnesota [SFA MN] supports the development and enhancement of sustainable farming systems through innovation, demonstration, education, and farmer-to-farmer networking.

It's fair to say that the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum's Toast & Taste in the Gardens is one of my favorite annual local food events in the Twin Cities.

Wow, wow, wow! Thanks so much to everyone who came our the the Craftsman last night for one of the funnest nights I can remember.

Chef Mike Phillips won't be serving this tonight.Tonight's the night, friends. Simple, Good, and Tasty is excited to host our December event at the Craftsman Restaurant in Minneapolis from 5:00 - 7:00. Here's a quick rundown:

What a year it's been! Since April, Simple, Good, and Tasty has been asking you to participate in monthly local food events at many of the Twin Cities' best local food spots. In May we brought you to the Birchwood Cafe. In July we met at the Strip Club. In September we invited you to Boom Island Park for the biggest local food pig roast and potluck this town has ever seen.

I recently spent a day at the MN State Fair with my friend and cohort Tracy Morgan, and we did our best to eat as much local food we can could cram into our eager bellies. Here are a few of our favorites.

I started with a big ole turkey drumstick, the kind I've watched people carry around for ages at all sorts of festivals and fairs (Tracy passed on this). I had to admit to Tracy that I'm not much of a food "toucher" - I'm kind of a knife and fork guy - but the drumstick was tender and delicious, with a bit of sweet sauce on top. I didn't do too much gnawing on the bone, partly because it's not my thing, and partly beause I was saving room for more food.

The Strip Club's JD Fratzke and me

I was totally surprised by how much fun I had at Toast and Taste at the U of M Landscape Arboretum last night. My friend Jon and I were glad to have changed into clean clothes before we arrived - the place was absolutely beautiful, and everyone looked great. We were greeted by a tuba duet and the gracious Arboretum staff who sent us on our merry way, armed with a map and a couple of wine glasses.