MN Makers

On a rise in southern Minnesota that Rachel Davis’ ancestors called Poverty Knob, Kalvin, Rachel and their two young children (soon to be three in January!) raise a myriad of mushrooms at their ten acre solar- powered farm. 

“I’m not that great a cook. I’m a really good shopper,” laughs Beth Dooley, James Beard award-winning food writer, author of more than a dozen cookbooks, Star Tribune columnist, and a regular contributor to MPR.

“We tried over and over and over again to write a song about climate change. It’s really hard to do that, especially for kids,” explained Joe. “In the end the song ‘Trouble in Paradise’ reflected more than just climate change. It ended up surprising us that the song was about a world that was living by the narrative of separation.”

The work that it takes to turn raw wood into a custom handwriting piece or a Montessori kitchen tool all serves as a metaphor for life’s journey at Umbrella Custom Woodworking. 

Kerry, a Certified Cheese Professional, and Mike, who works as a Global Dairy Technology Manager for Cargill Animal Nutrition, create custom events that take you on a tasty tour of the delicious world of cheese.  Both are graduates of the University of Wisconsin who grew up in our neighbor to the east. Minnesota, however, has been home for nearly 30 years, giving them lots of time to discover a plethora of favorite cheeses throughout the land of 10,000 lakes. 

That’s how Red Wing’s Sturdiwheat sources the ingredients for their beloved pancake, bread, and dessert mixes. It’s what they’ve done for more than 80 years. Today Sturdiwheat is family-owned and operated by mother-daughter team Suzanne and Missi Blue.