‘New Prairie Kitchen’

A rich collection of recipes from real-life foodies all over the Midwest, this collection is a tremendous mix of stories, advice and lessons from the people who know real food best — those who grow it, cook it and obsess over it.

By Summer Miller
Agate Midway
May 12, 2015
$29.95
256 pp
Courtesy of Beaverdale Books

Farm-to-Table cooking has been a revolution in the culinary world, and it is blindingly evident throughout this book that the Midwest is truly the heart of this shift in our tastes. Speaking to farmers who lovingly tend crops out of sheer joy, Miller takes the reader into the very beginnings of the luscious farmers market fare we all scramble for on Saturday mornings. From these humble beginnings we are treated to simple, stunning recipes for homemade sausage to ricotta made with freshly drawn milk, to sweet strawberry shortcake with rhubarb.

The next step in freshness comes from the amazing chefs who pepper Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota. Mixing traditional methods with new twists, they bring out the best of these wholesome ingredients with recipes like Sunchoke Gnocchi Spicy Brussel Sprouts.

Crafting the best quality products from produce, meat and milk found in their own backyards, talented artisans create award-winning gourmet cheeses, sausage and jam. “The New Prairie Kitchen” shines an overdue spotlight on the people who carefully transform, bottle and enthusiastically sell the best of what the region has to offer.

In cozy restaurants, on acres of farmland and in homey workshops, people are taking the food we eat to a whole new level. Complete with gorgeous photographs, “The New Prairie Kitchen” is a must-have for foodies and Midwesterners alike. CV

Julie is a collector of procrastinated plans, half-finished projects and million dollar ideas that go nowhere. She lives in a charming hobbit hole made of gingerbread. She is a leaf on the wind, watch how she soars.