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From Food Alliance Midwest:

A Farm to Table Tour
6th Annual Minnesota Cooks Event at State Fair

SAINT PAUL, Minn.– Food Alliance Certified growers, extraordinary Minnesota chefs, and hungry fair-goers will all come together on Tuesday, August 26th at the 6th annual Minnesota Cooks program at the State Fair. Minnesota Cooks is a unique event that celebrates the fabulous foods produced right here in Minnesota and educates consumers about the importance of supporting locally grown food and sustainable agriculture through discussions and demonstrations with area chefs, farmers, and celebrities. The program will begin at 8:30 AM with a special, first-time breakfast show and will continue with a show at the top of each hour from 10:00 AM until 5:00 PM on the Minnesota Cooks Stage in Carousel Park, just west of the Grandstand Ramp.

The Minnesota Cooks event features 16 of Minnesota’s premier chefs who will present 45-minute demonstrations using ingredients supplied by sustainable Minnesota farms. During their presentations, chefs will interact with charismatic emcee Scott Pampuch, chef and owner of Corner Table Restaurant in Minneapolis, about their award-winning recipes and will engage in rich discussions about the sustainable philosophies they hold for their restaurants. During the last 10 minutes of each 45-minute demo, local celebrities as well as audience members will have the opportunity to sample the delicious dishes created. Between each show, Light of the Moon, an eclectic, bubbly string quartet from Saint Paul, will serenade the audience with their wide variety of songs, serving up blues, gospel, and bluegrass.

“The Great Minnesota Get-Together is the perfect venue for the Minnesota Cooks program because it brings farmers, consumers, and chefs together to showcase the great food we have to choose from right here in our state,” said Doug Peterson, Minnesota Farmers Union President. “With the growing energy costs and concerns, Minnesota Cooks also highlights ways you can use local resources to reduce those costs while also contributing to our local communities.”

Available for complimentary distribution at the event will be the beautiful and informative Minnesota Cooks 16-month calendar, produced by Renewing the Countryside. The calendar is packed with stunning photography and enticing recipes and will weave the meaningful stories characteristic of chef/grower relationships.

Participating chefs, many of who will be available for greetings and calendar signings during the event include:

Judi Barsness, Chez Jude, Grand Marais
Anna Christoforides, Gardens of Salonica, Minneapolis
JD Fratzke, The Strip Club, St. Paul
Jorge Guzman, Tejas Restaurant, Edina
Brian Hauke, Red Stag Supper Club, Minneapolis
Nathalie Johnson, Signature Cafe, Minneapolis
Jeff Klemetsrud, Savories Bistro, Stillwater
Donna Lovett, Marriott City Center, Minneapolis
Mike Phillips, The Craftsman, Minneapolis
Alex Roberts, Restaurant Alma, Minneapolis
JP Samuelson, jP American Bistro, Minneapolis
Nick Schneider, Cafe Brenda, Minneapolis
Tracy Singleton & Marshall Paulsen, Birchwood Cafe, Minneapolis
Carla Blumberg, Chester Creek Cafe, Duluth
Dick Trotter, Trotter’s Cafe, St. Paul
Lucia Watson, Lucia’s Restaurant, Minneapolis

Minnesota Cooks is sponsored in part by AURI and is co-presented by Minnesota Farmers Union, Food Alliance Midwest, and Renewing the Countryside.
For more information about Minnesota Cooks, please visit the website at www.minnesotacooks.org or contact Jill McLaughlin of Food Alliance Midwest at 651-209-3382 or e-mail info@minnesotacooks.org.

Minnesota Farmers Union (www.mfu.org) is a nonprofit membership-based organization
working to protect and enhance the economic interests and quality of life of family farmers and ranchers, as well as rural communities.

Food Alliance Midwest (www.foodalliance.org) is a nonprofit, third-party certification program for environmentally friendly and socially responsible agricultural practices, and is dedicated to promoting the expanded use of sustainable farming systems in the Midwest. Food Alliance Midwest, a joint project of Cooperative Development Services and the Land Stewardship Project, is an affiliate of Food Alliance, based in Portland, OR.

AURI (www.auri.org), created and supported by the Minnesota state legislature, is a unique and innovative nonprofit corporation working to enhance Minnesota’s economy through the development of new uses and new markets for the state’s agricultural products.

Renewing the Countryside (www.renewingthecountryside.org) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide inspiration, ideas, and assistance to individuals and communities looking for sustainable ways to strengthen their rural communities and reduce poverty.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008 at 12:01 pm and is filed under Feeling Minnesota, Food and Drink. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.