This past Saturday I was invited to AM 950 in Eden Prairie to do a radio interview on the Minneapolis Farmer’s Market’s radio show, Fresh & Local. The two hosts, Susan Berkson and Bonnie Dehn have been doing this for quite some time and put on an excellent show. I was really impressed with the prep work and especially the random discussions we had about local food, recipes, and especially the markets.

I was joined by world renowned South Metro food blogger Crystal Grobe who writes at her own site Cafe Cyan and also for WCCO at Bite of Minnesota. I have been a follower of Cafe Cyan for a long time and have bookmarked several of her recipes. When asked what we would do with the food available at the market on Saturday, Crystal responded beautifully with a suggestion to make some fondue. Thankfully, with some gentle prodding, we got Josh to make us his mother’s world famous Cheddar Beer Cheese Fondue recipe for the Vikings game on Sunday which really helped with the craving set in motion by Crystal. If you’re interested here’s the recipe:

Cheddar Beer Cheese Fondue
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1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
10oz extra sharp shredded cheddar cheese
12oz beer
1 tbsp Worcestershire

Melt butter and add flour, whisking until smooth
Add beer and continue whisking to keep smooth
Heat until boiling
Add cheese by the handful while whisking
Continue until all cheese is melted and then add Worcestershire to taste.

The next special guest was farmer Darryle Powers from Blue Gentian Farm who raises a variety of heritage breeds so that he may deliver some really tasty meat to all of us who like to commit tasty, tasty, murder (my words, not his). Darryle had me hooked with discussions about mild tasting St. Croix Sheep and 100% grass fed beef (no grain finishing here!) I was so enamored with his work and the fact that he freezes individual servings as well as offers 1/4 animals on up that I decided I will be in touch with him soon to stock my freezer this winter. While not as local as I like to get, I liked his attitude, philosophy, and the friendly way about him. If you’re in the market for some interesting meats grown nearby I suggest checking out his site and visiting him at the Farmer’s Market as he says they’ll be there every single day that it is open!

So please do take a listen to the entire radio show (it’s only an hour) and you can check it out online (Part 1 [this includes my ranting], Part 2 [Darryle], and Part 3 [Crystal and me again, taking up precious time from her--sorry!]) as it really was a great time and the conversation was a good one. Make sure to check out both Darryle and Crystal’s sites and let us know what you thought of the interview!

Related posts:

1. Minnesota Monthly Fresh Taste Festival
2. Book A Week: Interview with the Vampire
3. Diet Swiss Creme Soda (No Caffeine, No Sodium, No Nothing!)