Master of the Market
Who will earn the title of Master of the Market this year? Chefs Todd MacDonald of Red Rabbit and Laura Bonicelli of Bonicelli Kitchen will compete Saturday at the seventh annual Chef Challenge at the Minneapolis Farmers Market (312 E. Lyndale Av., Mpls., mplsfarmersmarket.com). The competition begins at 10 a.m. as the chefs race through the market to buy ingredients they need to prepare for the cooking competition, followed by up to 30 minutes of recipe preparation. Country Financial, which sponsors the events, will hand out free reusable farmers market cloth bags to visitors. The bags have artwork designed by Blaine High School student Abarna Anandaraj. Watch the event live on Facebook: @countryfinancial.
Weekend festivities
You don't need to be Irish to join in the fun at the 39th annual Irish Fair of Minnesota, a three-day outdoor celebration of Irish heritage and culture, to be held this weekend at Harriet Island Regional Park in St. Paul. There will be Irish dancers, storytellers, rugby and fish-and-chips (and more) in the Celtic Kitchen. Hours are Friday (3-11 p.m.), Saturday (10 a.m. -11 p.m.) and Sunday (10 a.m.-7 p.m.). The festival is free but $2 wristbands are required for the purchase of alcoholic beverages. For more information, go to irishfair.com or e-mail info@irishfair.com, or call 651-645-0221 .
Your own pizza farm
Farmers interested in hosting pizza farms, farm dinners or other culinary events can learn more about the process — and the regulations — on Aug. 13 and 23 as part of "Come & Get It," a project led by Renewing the Countryside, which provides low-cost training and resources for farmers to launch farm-based food businesses.
Each day includes a farm and food-operation tour, as well as a session on business startups. The Aug. 13 field day takes place at Squash Blossom Farm in Oronoco, Minn., a vegetable farm that offers Sunday afternoon pizza. The Aug. 23 event takes place at Campo di Bella, a farm-based winery and restaurant that specializes in farm-to-table fare in Mount Horeb, Wis. The field days run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and include lunch, a full tour and printed materials. Cost is $35 and $15 per additional person from the same business. Space is limited and preregistration required. To register, see renewingthe countryside.org/on_farm_food_service. Or contact Eli Goodwell at eli@rtcinfo.org; 612-208-8354. Attendees will also receive a printed, farm- food service startup manual with specific information on Wisconsin and Minnesota regulations. For more information, see renewingthecountryside.org.
