Tibetan Momos and 978 other ways to enjoy summer

By Phyllis Louise Harris
July 2014 

The Richfield Farmers Market offers a special treat on Saturday mornings…freshly steamed momos filled with meat or potatoes and vegetables. These treats from Tibet are among the many things to enjoy this summer in Minnesota.

Did you know that on Wednesday afternoons, noon to 4:00 pm, in July and August you can shop at a Farmers Market at the Minnesota Zoo? 

Or that there are 30 wineries in the State of Minnesota and most have tasting rooms to sample wines before buying? Some sell snacks, many have beautiful picnic grounds and some invite you to help them stomp the grapes in September.

Or that the Carmel Apple Orchard Inn in Staples is a small bed and breakfast offering overnight stays and a gourmet breakfast plus apples in the fall? (www.carmelapl@arvig.net)

Or that there is a grower in Motley with 4 acres of gladiolus offering 1400 varieties of these tall, stately flowers that bloom until the first freeze? (wwwburtsbees@brainerd.net)

You will find information on all of this plus hundreds more things to do and see (978 in all) in Minnesota this summer and fall in the 2014 Minnesota Grown Directory from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.  And, it is free! Just go to www.minnesotagrown.com and order your copy or look in the online guide for every single listing.

In Nevis visit a ranch with more than 400 emu (www.emumagic.com) where you can take a guided tour and purchase feathers, oils and leather.

In Long Prairie visit Leatherwood Vinegary and learn more about their fine-wine vinegars made from locally grown fruits. (www.leatherwoodvinegary.com)

In Battle Lake, Moll’s Berry Farm has been operating for 50 years offering strawberries and raspberries that the whole family can pick themself. (www.mollsberryfarm.com)

Garden Fresh Farms in Maplewood offers a look at the future of farming with their year-round indoor farm. (www.gardenfreshfarms.org)

In Winsted, Carlson’s Orchard Bakery and Restaurant is a destination in itself with their 120-seat restaurant in a 1930 dairy barn. Enjoy music and hayrides most weekends, a kids play area every day and a fall celebration October 12 and 19 with pork chop dinners. And, of course, lots of apples. (www.carlsonsorchardbakery.com)

In Vesta, the Holmberg Orchard offers family fun in September and October with apple pies, apple crisp, caramel apples, straw stacks and hayrides to the pick-your-own pumpkin patch. (www.holmbergorchard.com)

In Worthington, Grandpa’s Fun Farm Fall Festival includes meeting farm animals, strolling through mazes, walking along trails, enjoying carnival games, playing miniature golf and more. (www.grandpafunfarm@frontier.com)

In Glencoe the Dunlooken Farm is a CSA offering a variety of vegetables that also offers horseback riding lessons. (www.dunlookenfarm.com)

 Minnesota also has a distillery in Hallock at Far North Spirits. (www.farnorthspirits.com)

From Ada Tomato to Zumbrota Farmers Market, there are so many things to do and see the summer will not be long enough. (But then, it never is!) Get your free Minnesota Grown Directory today and start planning trips to the area’s most delicious and interesting sites. Some of them are in your own neighborhood.


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Read more about Asian food in Minnesota and try more than 160 recipes in Asian Flavors: Changing the Tastes of Minnesota since 1875, now in bookstores and on amazon.com.  

Buy online:  Asian Flavors: Changing the Tastes of Minnesota since 1875  

Watch the EMMY® award winning “Asian Flavors” television show based on the book on tpt MN. Check local TV listings for broadcast times or view the show streaming online at: http://www.mnvideovault.org/mvvPlayer/customPlaylist2.php?id=24552&select_index=0&popup=yes#0