The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook
Good Real Food
Here is the Birchwood Cafe’s lighthearted, innovative menu: hearty hand pies and multigrain salads, decadent pastries, and award-winning desserts. Organized by eight seasons, these dishes are inspired by the way weather affects our appetites and determines what comes from our land.
If you have ever wondered what it would be like to have Birchwood Cafe's delectable 'good real food' at home, the answer is here in this book. It will rejuvenate our commitment to healthier cooking with the best of Minnesota!
Lucia Watson
Creating a better world starts at home—in the kitchen—and for twenty years the Birchwood Cafe has guided diners to live and eat sustainably and joyfully. Now you can sample Birchwood’s recipes—adapted for home cooks—and fill your own table with some of the irresistible fare that has made the cafe one of the region’s best-loved restaurants.
In these pages, find Birchwood’s light-hearted, innovative menu: hearty hand pies and multigrain salads, decadent pastries, and award-winning desserts. Organized by eight seasons, these dishes are inspired by the way weather affects our appetites and determines what comes from our land. With Spring, we celebrate beginnings, tossing up fragrant herbs, tender greens, and tart rhubarb. Come Summer, we fire up the grill and get outside; when Scorch hits and those dog days dampen appetites, we whip up cool soups and refreshing salads. Then Autumn, with its collision of apples, pears, pumpkins, and kale; and as Dusk falls, we get cozy with bowls of savory soup. Frost tempts us back to the stove with nourishing roots. Ready for Winter, we gather close with friends near the hearth, ladling up warming stews. Come Thaw, look to the first food of the season as the maple syrup runs and we anticipate a new year. The pantry chapter features Chef Marshall Paulsen’s condiments—chutney, jam, preserves, and vinaigrettes—which can transform the simplest dish into a spectacular plate.
Owner Tracy Singleton and Chef Marshall share Birchwood stories and memories, plus practical tips and insights. Just as Birchwood Cafe is more than a restaurant, this is more than a cookbook. The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook shows you what it takes to make a sustainable kitchen and a joyful table, to prepare “good real food” that really does more than a little good.
If you have ever wondered what it would be like to have Birchwood Cafe's delectable 'good real food' at home, the answer is here in this book. It will rejuvenate our commitment to healthier cooking with the best of Minnesota!
Lucia Watson
Birchwood is more than a cafe—it is a community. For close to seventy-five years this little corner has become a vibrant gathering place where neighbors, farmers, families, and friends come together around food. The stories, recipes, and the people who make it all happen are embodied in this beautiful book, bringing the Birchwood experience into our homes and kitchens and onto our tables.
Michael Ableman, farmer and author of From the Good Earth, On Good Land, and Fields of Plenty*
Fresh organic food with purpose and right tribe; the Birchwood Cafe is the Blue Zone of Minneapolis! This gracious and simple cafe has a big presence in our lives—Marshall’s tasty food and Tracy’s social activism have led the way for many healthy and sustainable initiatives and have us all thinking about where our food comes from. Now, you can bring this delicious, conscious, and healthful way of life into your own kitchen.
Dan Buettner, National Geographic Fellow and New York Times bestselling author of Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World’s Healthiest People
I had no problem slotting the recipes into our lives. These were all foods that we wanted to eat together, as a family, after a busy day. They
Heavy Table
Clear and concise recipes for fresh and healthy foods paired with profiles of the farmers Paulsen and Singleton make this a great gift for the healthy eater or vegetarian.
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Locavores will love The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook. . . The seasonal chapters of this new tome show home cooks how to use the freshest ingredients in their cooking.
Minnesota Monthly
Contents
Introduction: An Invitation to Cook from Birchwood Cafe Owner Tracy Singleton
Chef Marshall Paulsen
What Is Good Real Food?
Using This Cookbook
Spring
Herby Radmann, Bullfrog Fish Farm (Menomonie, Wisconsin)
Gail and Maurice Smith, DragSmith Farms (Barron, Wisconsin)
Asparagus, Cheddar, and Quinoa Savory Waffle (GF)
Spring Egg Scramble (GF)
Smoked Trout Quiche
Basic Pastry Crust
Carrot Ginger Soup (V) (GF)
Potato Beet Salad (V) (GF)
Pesto Perfect!
Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto (GF)
Arugula Basil Pesto (GF)
Cilantro Cashew Pesto (V) (GF)
Mint Jalapeño Pesto (GF)
Watercress Mint Chermoula (Moroccan Pesto) (V) (GF)
Spring Vegetable Pizza
Turkey Salad with Avocado Puree (GF)
Millet-Crusted Trout (GF)
Red Pepper Chickpea Puree (GF)
Rhubarb Pecan Bars
Rhubarb Brown Sugar Scones
Summer
Greg and Mary Reynolds, Riverbend Farm (Delano, Minnesota)
Steven Read and Jodi Ohlsen Read, Shepherd’s Way Farms (Nerstrand, Minnesota)
Egg and Bacon Sandwich
Vive la France French Toast with Macerated Berries and Honey-Roasted Almonds
Chilled Sweet Pea and Mint Soup (V) (GF)
Strawberry Salad with Garlic Chèvre Mousse (GF)
Honey-Roasted Almonds (V) (GF)
Tour de France Turkey Burger
Sesame Green Bean and Quinoa Salad (V) (GF)
Summer Vegetable Flatbread
Grilled Pork Chop with Polenta (GF)
Strawberry and Rhubarb Cornmeal Cobbler
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Scorch
Tim Fischer, Fischer Family Farms Pork (Waseca, Minnesota)
Konstantin Berkovski (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
Sweet Corn Chipotle Coulis (GF)
Sweet Corn Wheat Berry Savory Waffle
Stone Fruit Salsa (V) (GF)
Breakfast Black Beans and Rice with Avocado Puree (GF)
Cucumber Basil Gazpacho (V) (GF)
Heirloom Tomato Plate (GF)
Spicy Peanut Penne Salad (V)
Three Bean Salad with Horseradish Vinaigrette (V) (GF)
Veggie Baba Ghanoush Pizza (V)
Black Bean Quinoa Burger (V) (GF)
Avocado Chèvre Mousse (GF)
Heirloom Tomato Sweet Corn BLT
Sweet Corn Risotto (GF)
Grilled Corn with Crème Fraîche (GF)
Seed Crackers (V)
Stone Fruit Maple Quinoa Crisp (V) (GF)
Blueberry Muffins (V)
Autumn
Peterson Limousin Farms (Osceola, Wisconsin)
Jack Hedin, Featherstone Farm (Rushford, Minnesota)
Cinnamon Apple Farro Pancakes
Seasoned Butter (GF)
Apple Cinnamon Butter
Radish Butter
Cilantro Butter
Lemon Pepita Butter
Mint Honey Butter
Autumn Vegetable Quiche
Chicken Spaetzle Soup
Maple Squash Soup (V) (GF)
Apple and Bent River Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette (GF)
Cherry Hazelnut Turkey Salad (GF)
Limousin Beef Brisket with Maple Squash Mash and Aronia Berry Coulis (GF)
Braised Beef Pizza
Limousin Beef Sandwich with Roasted Pear Mayo
Apple Walnut Scones
Carmelitas
Dusk
Jim Riddle, Blue Fruit Farm (Winona, Minnesota)
John Peterson, Ferndale Market (Cannon Falls, Minnesota)
Bacon Blueberry Black Currant Oatmeal (GF)
Squash Parsnip Tofu Scramble (V) (GF)
Chili Bean Chili! (V) (GF)
Spicy Tofu and Quinoa Salad (V) (GF)
Beet Chèvre Terrine (GF)
Chicken Confit (GF)
Chicken Confit Mushroom Pizza
Cranberry Gastrique (V) (GF)
Parsnip Pear Sandwich (V)
Birchwood Burger with Duxelles
Chicken Marsala
Lemon Hazelnut Sea Salt Cookies
Sweet Potato Pie with Oatmeal Walnut Crust (GF)
Tarragon Cornbread (GF)
Frost
Castle Rock Organic Farms (Osseo, Wisconsin)
Bruce Bacon, Garden Farme (Ramsey, Minnesota)
Buttermilk Sweet Waffles with Cinnamon Whipped Cream
Tofu Breakfast Scramble (V) (GF)
Coconut, Turkey, and Lime Wild Rice Soup (GF)
Chipotle and Sweet Potato Salad (GF)
Birchwood Broccoli Salad (V) (GF)
Maple Ham Pizza
Birchwood Pizza and Flatbread Dough (V)
Turkey Burgers with Creamed Kale (GF)
Sweet Potato Cakes (V) (GF)
Indonesian Chicken Stew (GF)
Pumpkin Hand Pie
Birchwood Hand Pie Dough
Sweet and Spicy Beets (V) (GF)
Grapefruit Bran Muffins
Pumpkin Cheesecake (GF)
Winter
Doug Hilgendorf, Whole Grain Milling (Welcome, Minnesota)
Eric and Lisa Klein, Hidden Stream Farm (Elgin, Minnesota)
Maple Oatmeal Crème Brûlée (GF)
Apple Turnip Quiche
Smoked Turkey and Citrus Wild Rice Salad (GF)
Blue Cheese, Walnut, Roasted Pear Puree, and Pickled Onion Pizza
French Fries! (V) (GF)
Winter Vegetable Hand Pie
Sunchoke Puree
Blood Orange Gastrique
Winter Veggie and Tofu Sauté with Gingered Garlic Sauce (V) (GF)
Mushroom Mac and Cheese
Brandied Turkey Stew with Cauliflower Sweet Potato Puree (GF)
Cream Cheese Pumpkin Brownies
Tangelo Thyme Mini Donuts (V) (GF)
Thaw
Joe and Rebecca Schwen, Heartbeet Farm (Zumbro Falls, Minnesota)
Steven and Dawn Wood, Woods Maple Orchard (Elmwood, Wisconsin)
Surly Maple Braised Pork Belly Benedict
Sweet Potato, Brown Rice, and Kale Savory Waffle
Poached Garlic and Cauliflower Soup (V) (GF)
Sausage Pizza
Tomato Fennel Ragout (V) (GF)
Birchwood Turkey Burger with Rosemary-Lemon Mascarpone
Blue Cheese Ranch Mayo (GF)
Sunny Day Sandwich (V)
Green Curry with Tofu (V) (GF) or Fish (GF)
Glazed Grapefruit Bread
Honey Almond Bars
The Birchwood Pantry
Preserves
Cranberry Tangelo Jam
Blueberry Black Currant Jam
Rhubarb Strawberry Jam
Rhubarb Jalapeño Marmalade
Kumquat Honey Preserves
Cranberry Quince Chutney
Pear Cranberry Chutney
Meyer Lemon Syrup
Vanilla Extract
Pickles, Condiments, and Oils
Pickled Radishes
Refrigerator Dill Pickles
Pickled Peppers
Pickled Red Onions
Preserved Lemons
Basil Oil
Roasted Meyer Lemon Oil
Chili Oil
Horseradish Mustard Oil
Vinaigrettes, Salad Dressings, and Sauces
Roasted Pear Vinaigrette
Horseradish Vinaigrette
Cranberry Vinaigrette
Orange Honey Vinaigrette
Green Tea Vinaigrette
Strawberry White Balsamic Vinaigrette
Sesame Tamari Vinaigrette
Poached Garlic and Honey Vinaigrette
Birchwood Aioli (with variations)
Anaheim Chili Sauce
Birchwood Ketchup
Acknowledgments
Index
GF = gluten free V = vegan