$45/dinner
Special Dinner #97

The surplus of the harvest is preserved.  Tomatoes are roasted and peppers are wood-fired, vegetables are pickled, fruits are cooked and preserved.  In the field, greens are left for the frost to sweeten them and garlic is strung into braids and dried.  Potatoes and squash are kept dry and cool in cellars.  Preserving our local harvest means that we find traditional ways to keep the full, bright flavors of the summer and fall for use through the winter.

James Beard-nominated Chef Alex Young began a garden 5 years ago now as a way to spend more time with his family and also make really great food. What began as a plot of heirloom tomatoes has doubled in size each year and now includes livestock such as pigs and cattle.  This month, he’s cooking a flavorful dinner reflecting the flavors of the autumn fields.

$126/dinner
Proceeds from this event are donated to Food Gatherers

The Vampire’s Ball is now its 5^th year. It was begun by Elizabeth Kostova, bestselling author of The Historian, as a way to give back to her community.  Every year, we’ve collaborated with Kostova on a “spooky” theme and a corresponding menu. With lots of help from Food Gatherer’s we make this one fun fundraiser. We typically raise about $10,000 for Food Gatherers each year, which translates to about 26,000 meals that can be provided to hungry individuals. Please help us fight hunger where we live!

This year the theme is Day of the Dead with a traditional menu reflecting the Latin American holiday. Elizabeth Kostova will be reading from traditional Mexican literature and James Beard nominated Chef Alex Young will create the menu.

Costumes are encouraged. (But not required, of course.)

Menu:
Appetizer Grilled Shrimp & Pork Rib Chicharron Gordita Oaxaca Mole
Soup Tomatillo & Avocado Soup with Smoked Snapper and Radishes
Entrée Lamb Shank Pozole with Guajillo Chili Salsa
Bread Hand Made Flour Tortillas
Dessert Tres Leches Cake

With Special Guest, author Jim Northrup
$45/dinner
Special Dinner #96

Jim Northrup, Native American storyteller and author lives on the Fond du Lac reservation in Minnesota.  His writing is imbued with day-to-day reflections of life on the reservations and suffused with humor and political allusion. Jim writes the syndicated column Fond du Lac Follies and his books include Walking the Rez Road and The Rez Road Follies.  In order to give Jim adequate time to share stories, poems and speak about life, we will begin this evening early, and start with a short talk.

Also present will be Margaret Noori and Howard Kimewon, both teachers of Ojibwe at U of M, will speak about traditional Native American life, which means following the seasons, preparing, collecting, storing and preserving the harvest to use across the year.  The menu for this Native American dinner, crafted by James Beard-nominated Chef Alex Young will explore two harvests that possess cultural significance for the Native American tradition, rice and corn.

MENU:

Starter:

Smoked Duck & Blueberries

Soup:

Mandaamin (Howard Kimewon’s Corn) & Bacon

Entree:

Grilled Venison

or

Grilled Perch

Sides:

Manoomin (Jim Northrup’s Hand-Picked Rice)

Roasted Sweet Squash

Dessert:

Corn & Maple Pudding

$45/dinner
Special Dinner #95

James Beard-nominated Chef Alex Young began a garden 5 years ago now as a way to spend more time with his family and also make really great food.  They way he describes it, there was an added excitement in serving a special to guests which you not only cooked, but also grew, yourself.  Today, Chef Alex’s Garden is a full-fledged farm, growing over 130 varieties of more than 27 types of vegetables.  What began as a plot of heirloom tomatoes has doubled in size each year and now includes livestock such as pigs and cattle.

Cornman Farms has a passion for full-flavor and taste plays a big part in what plants are chosen to grow. Varieties are chosen for their flavor and their ability to thrive in the midwestern climate, then they are properly cared for by us. Throughout the growing season, vegetables are prepared and served just hours after being picked.

The late summer finds the farm and our menu awash in the colors of the harvest.  Tomato plants are yielding almost a hundred pounds daily of sunny orange-yellow, brilliant red, luscious green, and deep, dark purple fruits.  Lipstick peppers are a blaze of fiery red, and green kale, squash, carrots, radishes and potatoes fill out the spectrum.

MENU:

Appetizers:

“U-Pick” Radishes

Mini BLT’s

Stuffed Cabbage

Pickled Beets & Blue Cheese

Fried Farro & Squash Ravioli’s

Alex’s Tomato Bar

Mozzarella, basil & olive oil

Salads:

Celery Salad

Dill-Garlic Pickles

Entrees:

Wood-Fired Bratwurst

Lamb Stuffed Hungarian Peppers

Turkey & Potato Dumplings

Grilled Tuna Stuffed Genovese Tomato

Sides:

Grilled Kale

Roasted Carrots

Roasted Potatoes

Breads:

Potato-Dill Bread

Roasted Pepper & Cheshire Cheese Bread

Desserts:

Blueberry Crumble

Fried Apple Pies

Upside Down Peach Cake