PAST GUEST LINE UPS
May 15
Mary Maguire Lerman of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society knows everything there is to know about Minnesota growing. Mary has a B.S. in Horticultural Science from the University of Minnesota. She has served as an Education Officer at the Como Park Conservatory and worked with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board for many years. Mary was the designer of Park Gardens, including Longfellow Garden and was the community organizer for the St. Anthony Park Neighborhood Buckthorn roundup. Mary is a contributing writer to the Northern Gardener Magazine and a current Board Member of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.
Pat Nelson grows beautiful plants and flowers at Gepp Gardens in Corcoran.
Shelley Holl is a writer and visual artist who is a former travel columnist for the award-winning New Orleans’ Times-Picayune newspaper and has written travel features for the Minneapolis Star Tribune Newspaper. She is the author of Louisiana Dayride: 52 Short Trips from New Orleans, University Press of Mississippi, 1995 and Waterbourne Witness: Elegies for My New Orleans, Lulu Press, 2008. She works in many media, from watercolor to digital imagery, and produces giftware and fashion accessories. Her paintings are exhibited widely. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
B. J. Carpenter developed the recipes for The Minnesota Table and is a professionally trained chef; cooking instructor; certified dietary manager; and freelance food writer. She grew up on Minnesota’s food-rich Iron Range where she spent many hours in the kitchens of her immigrant grandparents. She presently lives in Roseville, Minnesota, and The Minnesota Table, with Shelley Holl, is her first book.
May 22 LIVE - Mayor R. T. Rybak
R.T. Rybak was first elected Mayor of Minneapolis in 2001 in his first run for public office and was overwhelmingly re-elected in 2005 to serve another term for the people of Minneapolis. Mayor Rybak took office facing a post-9/11 budget crisis and deep state and federal budget cuts. He responded by implementing innovative fiscal reforms that saved taxpayers millions by reducing $80 million of inherited debt, reigning in government spending and producing six balanced budgets in four years.
Rybak’s other accomplishments include recruiting Allina and the Global Market to the Midtown Exchange, closing the City’s employment gap, creating 2,500 new housing units in three years with the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, growing the police department by 100 officers in the last two years and launching the innovative Minneapolis 311 phone system.
Mayor Rybak is now leading efforts to revitalize north Minneapolis, attack juvenile crime, make Minneapolis a wireless city, end homelessness in ten years, and significantly reduce the City’s energy consumption to combat global climate change. He is a long-time fan of the Minneapolis Farmers Market.
May 29
Writer and pro-food advocate, Barth Anderson, blogs as El Dragón at Fair Food Fight, a website dedicated to small farmers, ethical shoppers, real food, the politics of agriculture, and Mexican wrestling.
Food blogger Amy Boland, lives under this logic "Cook 'em if you got 'em," which is also the name of her blog. She is a great fan of the Market and is going to share some wonderful foodie experiences.
Warren Anderson of Anderson Acres will be on the show to talk about what he grows.
June 5
Jenny Breen is an active part of the Twin Cities sustainable food movement. From 1996-2001 she was chef and co-owner of the Mpls based Good Life Cafe, and since then has run Good Life Catering. She is also a chef/educator at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum and serves as an instructor for the U or M's college of continuing education. A 2009 Bush Leadership Fellow, she is pursuing a Masters degree in public Health Nutrition at the U of M's school of Public Health. Her natural foods cookbook, Cooking up the Good Life is under review for publication by the University of Minnesota Press. Web site: www.goodlifecatering.com
Tim Jenkins is an environmental health supervisor for the City of Minneapolis Department of Regulatory Services & Emergency Preparedness. He works in partnership with the State Health and Agriculture departments to protect the City's food supply. He is also a Homegrown Minneapolis Task Force member, working closely with the community on improving the regulatory environment for local foods. Prior to working with the City, Tim has experience in agriculture ranging from helping his grandparents on their farm, picking apples and blueberries as a migrant farm worker, and with University of Minnesota Extension as a public health graduate student. Tim has also enjoyed volunteering as an English as a Second Language over the last several years.
Jim Topie is a Food Inspector III with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, Dairy and Food Inspection Division. Topie leads inspections at farmers’ markets, retail grocery & convenience stores, mobile food concessions, distributors and wholesale food processors. Topie states “To have an effective public health policy, we must all be proactive.” He is teaming with the City of Minneapolis on advancing their Homegrown Minneapolis Initiative. As a current fellow with the CDC Environmental Public Health Leadership Institute, Topie is addressing “Why, despite community health benefits of safe, fresh, locally grown foods, are there regulatory challenges in expanding the sale of these products at farmers markets, grocery stores and other licensed food establishments in the city of Minneapolis?”
June 12
After learning to cook at his mother’s bed and breakfast, Daniel Klein went on to work and train at many of the world’s top restaurants. His culinary education brought him to Spain, France, England, India and New York, where he has worked and trained at top Michelin starred restaurants including The Fat Duck (Heston Blumenthal), St. John (Fergus Henderson), Mugaritz (Andoni Luis Aduriz), Bouchon (Thomas Keller), Applewood (David Shea) and Craft (Tom Collichio). After graduating from NYU, Daniel also pursued a career in film. He has directed, filmed, edited and produced projects on various issues including the development industry in Africa and oil politics. Daniel’s most recent film “What are we doing here?” has aired on TV, in theaters and at numerous festivals around the world.
The Perennial Plate is an online weekly documentary series dedicated to socially responsible and adventurous eating. The episodes follow Daniel's culinary, agricultural and hunting explorations. Taking place over a calendar year in Minneapolis, Minnesota as well as the surrounding food source destinations, Daniel takes the viewer on a journey to appreciate and understand where good food comes from and how to enjoy it. Recipes, politics, long winters, urban gardens, ice fishing, blood, hunting and guts... all line the path to the perennial plate.
Theresa Miesler and her husband Jim own Shady Acres Herb Farm in Chaska, Minnesota. They began farming in 1977 with the growth and sales of Minnesota wildflowers, soon adding herbs, which were then hard to find in Minnesota. The farm started with just one plant shelter and has grown to its present size with eight greenhouses, gardens and a gift shop with a classroom. Theresa and Jim have been active in the MAST (Minnesota Agriculture Student Trainee) program at the University of Minnesota, hosting students from countries including Poland, Ukraine, Brazil, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Bulgaria. Theresa is the 2010 Award Recipient of the Nancy Putnam Howard Award for Excellence in Horticulture from the Herb Society of America.
Amy Rea is the Communications Coordinator for the Säjai˚ Foundation. She received a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Minnesota and has been writing full-time for eleven years. She has written and edited for publications as diverse as corporate newsletters, consumer publications, literary journals, website content, market research reports, custom publishing books and book reviews. Amy's first book, An Explorer’s Guide to Minnesota, was published by The Countryman Press in spring 2008, and her latest book, Backroads & Byways of Minnesota, will be published in spring 2011. As the mother of two children, Amy finds the work she’s done with the Säjai Foundation to be especially fulfilling and worthwhile.
June 19
Kim Christensen knows the true meaning of the phrase “necessity is the mother of invention”. In 2008, after being diagnosed with multiple food allergies and intolerances and suffering from a variety of symptoms, she took control of her health the only way she knew how – she changed her diet. Building on her passion for whole foods and natural health, and drawing inspiration from a variety of cuisines and traditional dietary therapies, Kim started researching how food can function as medicine. Since then, Kim has worked to heal from the inside out, coming up with innovative and delicious recipes free of gluten, sugar, and most major allergens. She shares her recipes, research, and experiences on her blog Affairs of Living, and aspires to make a cookbook someday! Desiring a way to fuse her personal passion with professional endeavors, she hopes to pursue a Master’s degree in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. She is excited to continue learning and hopes to incorporate whole foods dietary therapy in her practice.
Richard Rasmussen will be on the show.
Mary Maguire Lerman of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society knows everything there is to know about Minnesota growing. Mary has a B.S. in Horticultural Science from the University of Minnesota. She has served as an Education Officer at the Como Park Conservatory and worked with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board for many years. Mary was the designer of Park Gardens, including Longfellow Garden and was the community organizer for the St. Anthony Park Neighborhood Buckthorn roundup. Mary is a contributing writer to the Northern Gardener Magazine and a current Board Member of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.
June 26
Keith Ellison has represented the Fifth Congressional District of Minnesota in the U.S. House of Representatives since taking office on January 4, 2007. The Fifth Congressional District is the most vibrant and ethnically diverse district in Minnesota with a rich history and traditions. The Fifth District includes the City of Minneapolis, the surrounding suburbs, and the Minneapolis Farmers Market. Representative Ellison's philosophy is one of "generosity and inclusiveness." His roots as a community activist and his message of inclusivity through democratic participation resonates throughout the Fifth District. His priorities in Congress are promoting peace, prosperity for working families, environmental sustainability, and civil rights.
Local grower Mia Lee will be on the show.
Craig Drehmel is co-founder of Gastro Non Grata, the Twin Cities' home of better eating, smarter drinking and a Mickey Rooney/Dirty Garage Rock feel. Based at Minneapolis' Triple Rock Social Club, Gastro Non Grata puts on four shows a year connecting indie rock and gourmet food.
July 3
Crystal Grobe is a local food writer and idea sharer. She loves the many ways that food brings people together. Her blog, Café Cyan, chronicles her journey in food whether it be cooking in the kitchen, sharing with friends, or gaining inspiration from others. Crystal also writes a food blog for WCCO called Bite of Minnesota which focuses on local foods and events. When she isn’t blogging, Crystal writes restaurant features, develops recipes for food companies, and lends her talents in social media.
Grower Terry Picha will be on the show talking about how he grows his raspberries.
Susan Powers at Rawmazing.com, is revolutionizing the world of raw food cookery with her inventive and delicious recipes and beautiful food styling and photography.
Bringing traditional food preparation methods into the raw world, and balancing, flavor, color, texture and mouth feel, Susan is introducing us to a whole new raw.
June 10
Collie Graddick, an Agricultural Consultant with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture for the past 18 years. Collie works in the Seed, Noxious Weed and Pesticide Regulatory Units. His focus is on reducing human exposure to pesticides, controlling invasive and harmful plants, and enforcing the Minnesota Seed Law. Collie is an a renaissance ag man. In addition to consulting for Minnesota Department of Agriculture, he is a farmer in his own right, and he is involved with EJAM, AfroEco, and serves on the board of the Womens Environmental Institute.
Tracey Paska is currently finishing her final semester at the University of Minnesota, where she's been working on a self-designed bachelor's degree focusing on food through anthropology, history, sociology and marketing. When she's not writing research papers and studying for exams, Tracey writes for her popular blog, Tangled Noodle as well as the local/sustainable food website Simple, Good and Tasty. Fortunately, her very patient husband, Mike, is willing to wait for his dinner while Tracey tries to set up a photograph of whatever she's cooked so that she can post it on her blog.
June17
Local food expert and Minnesota Monthly columnist, Sue Zelickson is an integral part of the food community in Minnesota. Sue is a James Beard Award Winner, partner of the Minnesota Monthly Food & Wine Experience and founder of Women Who Really Cook and Kids Café at Perspective Family Center. Her deep passion for getting the community involved in the food world is what makes it so educational, fun and meaningful for her to take part and attend the multiple food and wine events each year. You can read Sue’s column in each issue of Minnesota Monthly.
Local meat and poutry farmer Daryle Powers of Blue Gentian will be on the show.
Gardens of Salonica reflects owner Anna Christopherides' philosophy that food should be enjoyed with all the human body's senses and should nourish the soul. From the beginning, Anna and her husband Lazaros developed the Garden’s menu with an emphasis on locally sourced produce and organic spices, nuts, and meats. Anna and Lazaros with their four children continue to excel in their modest, beautifully designed and decorated diner and have been included in the Zagat America’s Best Restaurants since 1999.
July 24
Micaela Preston has a practical take on green living which she applies in her popular blog, Mindful Momma (www.mindfulmomma.com). Like many parents, Micaela cares deeply about the health of her family as well as the health of the earth. Yet, she knows first-hand how hard it can be to keep on top of all the latest eco-friendly products and the most recent health scares…while still keeping the reins on the family budget.
Micaela’s book book Practically Green: Your Guide to EcoFriendly Decision-Making (Betterway Books, 2009) includes essential information to help you make smart, green choices for your family as well as over 30 DIY projects and ideas for making your own earth-friendly products. Her goal is to make green living inspiring, not intimidating!
Micaela has an MBA in Marketing and enjoys applying her knowledge and understanding of consumer behavior with her passion for safe and sustainable products. Micaela lives in Minneapolis with her husband and two boys. When she is not writing she is busy whipping up a healthy meal or the eco-craft du jour.
Rita LaDuc of Apple Berry Farms will be the featured grower. Apple Berry Farm started marketing at the Minneapolis Farmers Market in 1982, 28 years ago. They grow a variety of fresh vegetables, fruits and flowers. They also make jams from the wide assortment of fruits they grow.
July 31
JoAnne Berkenkamp is the Program Director for Local Foods at the Institute for Agriculture & Trade Policy (IATP). Headquartered in Minneapolis, IATP works locally and globally to support fair and sustainable food, farm and trade systems. JoAnne joined IATP in 2007 and leads efforts to expand markets for local food, promote sustainable agriculture, and increase community access to healthy food choices.
Prior to joining IATP, Berkenkamp led an independent consulting practice working with non-profits, food businesses and foundations across the United States. She also worked for the World Wildlife Fund in Washington, DC and with Catholic Relief Services at various locations in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
In a family of five brothers and working parents, someone other than mom has to step up to the plate and cook. For the Wood household, it was Keith, the second eldest. By age 10, Keith Wood was making meals for seven, assisted by a garden of broccoli, tomatoes, zucchini and numerous other vegetables from the backyard of the family’s California home. Some 40 years later as the chef at Big Bowl in Roseville, MN., the love of cooking seasonally with just picked produce prevails.
Wood earned a degree in economics from the University of California at Santa Cruz intending to work in business, but when an opportunity to visit France came, he decided to see if his love of cooking could be channeled into a culinary career.
He attended a cooking school in Paris to learn technique and then held a variety of positions in classic French kitchens, from garde manger to saucier. His stints took him to southwest France where he worked at the renowned Hotel Regina in Biarritz and to the famed Eiffel Tower Restaurant in Paris under Jules Verne.
After five years, a wife and two children, Wood returned to California and a position at the Ginger Club in Palo Alto where he worked with owner, Asian food expert and cookbook author Bruce Cost, and Ming Tsai before his celebrity TV chef days.
When Cost was recruited to bring Chinese and Thai authenticity to Big Bowl, Wood was also hired and then spent the next 11 years expanding the concept in Chicago and other markets, including Minneapolis.
Big Bowl’s commitment to quality and its shift to sustainability and supporting local farmers in recent years have kept Wood with the Asian concept. He is currently spearheading efforts to bring more seasonal produce to all three Big Bowl locations in the Minneapolis area. He is excited about the possibility of Hmong farmers at the market who want to grow Asian vegetables specifically for Big Bowl.
August 7
Julia Earl is the Executive Director of Preventing Harm Minnesota, a children’s environmental health organization. Preventing Harm works to improve children’s environmental health by reducing their exposure to toxins in the food they eat, air they breathe, water they drink and products they use. Julia’s career has included: children’s environmental education; adult non-formal education internationally (Peace Corps, Save the Children, CARE); preventive public health education; sustainable development; and campaign organizing. Julia has an M.S. in Environmental Advocacy from the University of Michigan, a B.A. (Honors) in Political Science and a Certificate in Environmental Studies from the University of Wisconsin.
Stephanie Meyer is a home cook, writer, and photographer. Motivated by the belief that all good things come from preparing meals at home, Stephanie shares recipes, cooking tips, and photographs on her accessible food blog, Fresh Tart. Stephanie also blogs each Tuesday for Minnesota Monthly magazine’s Dara & Co., where she highlights everyday cooking with local ingredients. Her goal is to convince people that cooking itself is as fun as watching television cooking shows. Follow her on Twitter @FreshTartSteph or on her Fresh Tart Facebook page.
August 21
Shaina Olmanson: Growing up in Minnesota surrounded by farms served as a daily reminder of the importance of local, seasonal food. Working from home as a freelance writer, recipe developer and photographer and raising her four young kids with her husband Ole, Shaina strives to teach them the importance of growing, preparing and eating real food. She fell in love with the art of cooking while spending countless hours hanging on her Yugoslavian-born grandmother's apron strings, watching her roast meats, simmer sauces and bake elegant treats.
Should you be lucky enough to live close by, Shaina will be happy to share those same treats with you because she believes the best kind of gift is one that fills you up. She is the home cook and photographer behind Food for My Family and Olmanson Photography, a daily contributor to Babble.com's Family Kitchen Blog and the editor of the food channel for Lifetime Moms. Shaina can usually be found in one of three places: cooking, at the computer or behind the camera. More often than not, these three things occur in the kitchen simultaneously, only now her apron strings have her own kids hanging from them.
Also Tou Yang, known among his fans as “The Garlic Guy” will be on the show. As will Mary Maguire Lerman of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society. She will reveal how to help our gardens survive this summer’s record heat, hail and rainstorms.
August 28
Get together with Fresh & Local at the Great Minnesota Get-Together! Meet Host Susan Berkson and Minnesota Herb Lady Bonnie Dehn as they broadcast live from the Minnesota State Fair. They’ll introduce Becky Swanson, winner of the Minneapolis Farmers Market #1 Fan Contest, and chat with Keith Sand, aka Sandman Sugarbush, who brings maple syrup to market.
Vernon Cardwell is Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Department of Agronomy at the University of Minnesota. He is actively involved in ag-literacy efforts with Minnesota Ag-In-The-Classroom and nationally with Food, Land and People.
As a special treat, SimpleGoodandTasty’s Lee Zukor will present a guide to fresh & local eats at the Fair. Join AM950’s broadcast of what the Star Tribune calls “the fresh and local chatfest” live at the Minnesota State Fair across from the Eco Experience on Randall Avenue between Cosgrove and Cooper.
September 4 - LIVE AT THE FAIR
Get together with Fresh & Local at the Minnesta State Fair! Join Host Susan Berkson and Minnesota Herb Lady Bonnie Dehn as they broadcast live from the Minnesota State Fair.
Meet U of M Professor Rob King who has studied the economics of farmers markets.
Robert King is a professor in the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota. He joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota in 1983 and held the E. Fred Koller Chair in Agricultural Management Information Systems from 1983 to 2004. He served as head of the Department of Applied Economics from July 2004 through June 2008.
His research focuses on local food systems, on organic agriculture, and on management issues facing food retailers, farmer cooperatives, and farmers. He teaches courses on managerial economics and cooperatives and helps advise the University’s Student Organic Farm. He is also active internationally, having lectured in Brazil, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, and Poland.
September 18
Collie Graddick is an Agricultural Consultant with the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. He has worked for the department for 17 years, Prior to MDA, Collie was an extension educator working in the areas of commercial vegetables, small grains and youth development.
Collie grew up on a 200-acre sustainable farm in Hamilton, Georgia producing vegetables, poultry, beef and pork. He received his B.S. degree in Agronomy in 1984 from Fort Valley State University, GA and his M.S. degree in 1989 from Tuskegee University, Alabama in Commercial Fruit and Vegetable Production. Collie volunteers time on several board including the Minnesota Environmental Partnership, Alliance for Sustainability, Women’s Environmental Institute, Environmental Justice Advocates of Minnesota, Preventing Harm Minnesota, AfroEco, and George Washington Carver Urban Science Academy. Collie also spend time working with the Urban Farming and Green Jobs movements in the Twin Cities.
Marketing professional by qualification, Sabera Photographer has always had a passion for food. Whether it was spiking her mother's vegetable preparations to suit her own tastes as a child, whipping up unusual fusion food for her friends, or experimenting with cuisines in her own kitchen after her marriage, Sabera truly loves to cook. You can find her at One Life to Eat, where she blogs about simple, healthy Indian cooking. You can also find her on LinkedIn and on Twitter.
September 25
Saveur magazine has called Lee Svitak Dean one of the “unsung saviors of America’s local food scene.” Dean is the longtime editor of the Taste section at the Star Tribune in Minneapolis. Taste is an internationally acclaimed food section, with awards from the James Beard Foundation, the World Media Awards in Australia, and the Association of Food Journalists. Over the years, as Dean tested recipes and talked with readers, she realized that busy cooks would like to see recipes in menu form, to make it easier to plan for their time in the kitchen. Her new book, Come One, Come All is the result of many years of testing recipes for the Taste section. Find out more at www.leedeanbooks.com
Mary Maguire Lerman of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society knows everything there is to know about Minnesota growing. Mary has a B.S. in Horticultural Science from the University of Minnesota. She has served as an Education Officer at the Como Park Conservatory and worked with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board for many years. Mary was the designer of Park Gardens, including Longfellow Garden and was the community organizer for the St. Anthony Park Neighborhood Buckthorn roundup. Mary is a contributing writer to the Northern Gardener Magazine and a current Board Member of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.
October 2
Ana Micka from Fresh Girls Guide will be on the show. Ana Micka is the author of “The Fresh Girl’s Guide to Easy Canning,” which is a fun, easy-to-use DVD and guidebook to get you canning today. To find out more about this step-by-step guide, go to Anna's blog by clicking here.
Dunja Gulin is a Croatian cooking teacher and chef as well as a passionate traveler. With both parents artists, early on in life she started to search for a way to express her creativity- and found natural cooking!
Inspired by macrobiotic philosophy, ecology movement and “real”, natural, unprocessed foods, her teachings concentrate on how to prepare delicious dishes that feed both body and spirit using local and organic ingredients. She is a proud author of a vegan cookbook ‘Breakfast’.
October 9
Heather Jansz: in the early '70s, Heather left Sri Lanka and moved to Minneapolis with the desire to bring fresh, exotic flavors to America. She believed Minnesotans were open to experiencing all siz taste senses - sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent. She awakened taste buds by opening the award-winning Sri Lanka Curry House Restaurant followed by the Curry Leaf Deli in Saint Paul.
Heather's mission is to teach people how flavors of the East can be used to liven up Western favorites. Her menus combine cooking techniques honed from years of experience with rich, balanced flavors and a love of many cultures.
Mary Maguire Lerman of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society knows everything there is to know about Minnesota growing. Mary has a B.S. in Horticultural Science from the University of Minnesota. She has served as an Education Officer at the Como Park Conservatory and worked with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board for many years. Mary was the designer of Park Gardens, including Longfellow Garden and was the community organizer for the St. Anthony Park Neighborhood Buckthorn roundup. Mary is a contributing writer to the Northern Gardener Magazine and a current Board Member of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.
October 16
Tammy Wong, chef and owner of the Rainbow Chinese Restaurant, will be on the show. The Rainbow Chinese Restaurant is located at 2739 Nicollet Avenue, close to the intersection of 28th Street. Rainbow has been serving Minneapolis since 1987. Enjoy a nice atmosphere, surrounded by charm while your taste buds come alive with Chef Tammy Wong's delicious dishes that win awards year after year.
