Signature Dish; The Kenwood's Chef Don Saunders

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Photo courtesy of http://hilaryrobertsphoto.com
The Kenwood's chef Don Saunders presents his Moules-Frites

In the search for the Twin Cities' best culinary creations, we often come across dishes that stop us mid-bite and force us to reflect on the level of thought and artistry chefs put into their work. The efforts of the chefs are often laborious, and the end results are regularly consumed before the full concept can be appreciated. We've been tracking down some of these dishes to get the chef's side of the story; their thoughts, motivations, and processes. It's our hope that we can give you a deeper insight into the talents of Twin Cities chefs and to have a better understanding of what you're getting when you sit down to dinner.

The Kenwood, having only been open for less than a year, is already a fast favorite among south Minneapolis residents. In addition to his other south Minneapolis restaurant, In Season, Don Saunders has helped to solidify the platform for the ever-blossoming Twin Cities food scene. Having worked with some of the best chefs at some of the best restaurants, Saunders classic French cuisine has easily earned its reputation as some of the best in the city.

Focusing on only the freshest ingredients as they come available, Saunders has in part helped to define the culinary philosophy of the Twin Cities and with his recent announcement of shutting down his flagship restaurant, In Season, for the summer for a quick makeover, Saunders is looking to add a new distinctive flair to his culinary repertoire. 

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Pearson acquires Bit-O-Honey: A reaction from a local fanatic

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Wikimedia Commons
An old-time favorite candy comes to Minnesota: Bit-O-Honey's biggest fan reacts
As the unrivaled number-one fan of Bit-O-Honey in the Twin Cities--and possibly the universe--I find it hard to characterize the complex set of emotions I was confronted with Wednesday upon learning that Pearson Candy Company has acquired Bit-O-Honey. The St. Paul based confectioner famous for its Salted Nut Roll will now be making the best damn candy on earth right in our backyard.

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Minnesotans invade MasterChef season four

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Courtesy Marie Porter
Local food blogger and master of cakes Marie Porter will be a season four contestant
The time has come for another season of the Fox Network's hit reality cooking show, MasterChef. This season get ready to root for the home team as six home chefs from Minnesota will enter into the culinary battlefield along with many others from around the country in an effort to take home the much coveted title of MasterChef.

Here's the lowdown on the local contestants:

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Haute Dish makes MSN's list of top 11 restaurants redefining comfort food

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Haute Dish in North Loop makes MSN's list for its modern take on classic dishes

The national accolades keep rolling in for Twin Cities restaurants. In our latest bit of national notoriety, the local food rebels at Haute Dish have been singled out by MSN as one of the top 11 restaurants in the country that are redefining the way we think about comfort food.

The MSN article honors restaurants that are turning out ramped-up versions of classics that we know and love. Other restaurants on the list include Homeroom in Oakland, California; Harvest in Louisville, Kentucky; Becket's Table in Phoenix, Arizona; the Spence in Atlanta; (one of Top Chef Richard Blais's restaurants); and Bubby's in New York City.

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Punch, Pizzeria Lola make Food & Wine's list of 50 Best Pizza Places in the U.S.

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http://www.pizzerialola.com
Pizzeria Lola in Armatage gets national love from a top food magazine

Food & Wine magazine has called out both the local Punch Pizza chain and Pizzeria Lola in south Minneapolis's Armatage neighborhood as two of the 50 best pizza joints in the U.S. It probably didn't hurt that Andrew Zimmern is one of the magazine's contributing editors, but he surely isn't the only well-traveled foodie who thinks the Twin Cities' boutique pizzerias are among the best in the country. Here's where the two local shops ranked on the national list.

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The Wedge's Organic Field School hosts fundraiser for young farmers

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The Organic Field School is the nonprofit arm of the Wedge Co-op's Gardens of Eagan

Last weekend, the Organic Field School hosted its annual fundraiser at Kitchen in the Market, at Midtown Global Market. The organization is the nonprofit arm of the Wedge Co-op's organic farming program Gardens of Eagan. The Organic Field School offers educational programs and assistance to farmers while promoting the benefits of sustainable and organic farming methods to the public.

The event gave the public face time with several of the Twin Cities' premier organic farmers, including the ladies of Bossy Acres, Humble Pie, Fazenda Boa Terra, and Loon Organics. The fundraiser also featured a wide variety of local food products, including food from Foxy Falafel, Chow Girls Catering, and Froz Bros craft ice cream. Craft beers courtesy of local brewer Tallgrass Brewing were available, as were Joia Soda and wines from Stark Wines.


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Minneapolis Food Swappers: Creating a new food economy

Categories: Minnesota Made

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I'll trade you a kombucha for a tin of sponge candy
​What began as a few crafty souls gathered in an apartment has quickly grown to a room full of buzzing enthusiasts, swarming tables inside of Open Arms' building in South Minneapolis. The Minneapolis Food Swappers group meets once a month to share cans of pickles, jams, duck eggs, homemade breads, and more.  We caught up with one of the group's founders to discuss how they formed and where they see themselves headed. Then, we attended one of the swaps.


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Barsy's Almonds fans go nuts for local "Hotties" and "Naughties"

Categories: Minnesota Made

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www.barsys.net
Barsy's almonds share the nickname of co-owner Barbara Spenader.
As soon as they arrived in the Wedge's bulk aisle, almond "hotties"--roasted nuts coated with a sweet-hot spice--quickly became an expensive addiction (and a fun nickname). I was eating so many of them, snacking out of hand and scattering them on salads, that I considered trying to reverse engineer the recipe.

And then, one day, they were gone ... replaced by almond "smokies."

Turns out that "hotties" and "smokies" are just two of the five almonds baked and seasoned by Barsy's almonds, the brainchild of two local entrepreneurs. The Hot Dish touched base with Barsy's Jason Hendrycks and Barbara Spenader to find out more about their, ahem, nutty business:


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Killebrew sodas batting 0-2 in quality control

Categories: Minnesota Made

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Harmon Killebrew's legacy lives on in these bottles.
Who doesn't want to root for a hometown hero, especially when it's a root beer?

Old Fashioned Killebrew sodas--root beer and cream soda--are part of famed Minnesota baseball player Harmon Killebrew's legacy. When Harmon's son brought the root beer to market more than a decade ago, it was said to be made from an old family recipe. But these days the revered slugger is unfortunately no longer able to practice quality control.

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Star Thrower Farm's must-try sheep's milk cheeses

Categories: Minnesota Made

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Look for this sheep's milk yogurt at the Wedge soon.
Star Thrower Farm owners Deborah and Scott Pikovsky (if Scott's name sounds familiar that's because he owns Great Ciao, the gourmet food distributorship) started raising Icelandic sheep in Glencoe, Minnesota, in 2007, and this summer, they're offering their meat, cheeses, and fleece at the Fulton Farmers Market (49th and Chowen in south Minneapolis) on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Among the cheeses to sample on a recent visit were a soft, pungent-but-not-overwhelming raw milk Camembert-style cheese and a firmer, sharper, aged raw milk tomme. Star Thrower also makes skyr, a thick, creamy, Icelandic-style yogurt with an assertive barnyard tang that's generally lacking in its cow's milk cousins. (For some the flavor might be a little much to eat plain, though it can add a nice complexity when used to make, say, raita or topped with fruit or granola.) Soon, Star Thrower skyr will be available at the Wedge co-op.

Star Thrower's booth also sells lamb meat and some fabulous sheepskins that would be great to pile on or burrow into during the winter months. For more information on Star Thrower Farms, see its website (warning: baby lamb photos may cause cute overload!)


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