For the love of cuts and burns

10/21/2025

Much of my summer was consumed by the endlessly-confusing-to-outsiders and ever-intriguing-to-insiders art of the meat raffle. This was one of the more difficult articles I've had to write, not because of the lack of content (believe me, there is no lack in the state of Minnesota) but because I became so fascinated by the folks that attend and even more by the hosts that spin that the story became less about food and more about people. Writing for a food magazine, I saw this as a problem. The meat raffle represents so much more than an exercise in light gambling and day drinking and potential meat winning (though those are definite perks); I could spend a lifetime chatting up the regulars and the spinners and perhaps I will as long as I've got time to spare and dollars to contribute. Big thanks to Dustys Bar, the Knight Cap, and Jakes on the Lake for letting me warm your bar stools. Find the article at edibleminnesota.com or at the link in bio as soon as I remember how to do that.

01/07/2025

For the first time in four years, a new recipe! (Although if you read the fine print, you will in fact discover that it is quite an old recipe that I just forgot to publish back when I had time to write recipes.)

Combine tahini with garlic, honey and lemon for a delicious recipe perfect for salad greens, roasted vegetables, grains or meat.

01/01/2025

Our family doesn't yet have any established traditions for January 1st but making black eyed peas has long been one of mine. Plus, I'm pretty sure would boot you from the bean club if you didn't, and I dare not take that risk. Pictured is an off script version of the famous BEP with berbere and coconut milk from , except I used a quart container of pico de gallo left over from a cooking class last week to start the curry, with a combination of fiery berbere and a seven spice blend (allspice, cinnamon, ginger, clove, cardamom, galangal, and rose) to highlight the warm tones of the dish. Pair it with and screaming children and you've got yourself one hell of a way to start the year.

10/17/2024

My latest article in the fall issue of Edible Minnesota is, undeniably, my most personal. I got my mom and her three sisters together to reminisce about our family booya, scraping together memories that started in the 1970's when my grandfather began hosting the annual event. If you have no idea what I'm talking about (booya?!), this article is for you. If you're in the need of gathering community and a fall party idea, this article is for you. If you love soup, this article is for you.

For me, this article is dedicated to my Grandma Rybak, the matriarch of the family and the one who this wouldn't have happened so seamlessly without. She passed the day I got the green light for this story. This is for her.

"When I lived in Seattle, my Minnesotan heritage was my party trick. My friends squealed at every utterance of bag, pontoon, and a well-placed dontchyaknow; as a bartender, I leaned into the accent anytime I had to kick someone out, hoping it would soften the blow. I learned quickly that Midwestern culture is somewhat exotic to the coast and that what I once regarded as normal as Sunday football was now an anomaly for amusement.

There was no better place to illustrate this distinction than the dinner table. My potluck contributions were a delightful melange of delicacies: sherbet Jell-Os, cornflake-laden hot dishes, dairy product potpourris. The fare that best perplexed my friends, however, wasn't because of the dish itself, but rather because of the lore behind it - the Rybak family Booya."

Read on at edibleminnesota.com