13 cookbooks from Minnesota authors that should be on your shelves

By Gavin Kaysen and Nick Fauchald

The award-winning chef teamed up with a local award-winning author for his debut cookbook, giving readers a look inside his home life. Born from the popular Chef GK At Home virtual cooking classes held throughout the pandemic, the book has several recipes with illustrated steps, so you won't feel alone when attempting gnocchi for the first time. Thoughtful lessons are peppered throughout (clean as you go, commandments for grocery shopping, the fridge is your frenemy) and you'll be earmarking most of the recipes, which are arranged by season. But as you're channeling your inner chef, be sure to notice the sweet touches, namely the inside-cover endorsements of his sons: "He has helped me try foods that I would have never had tried before, and now I love them."

$35, Spoon Thief Publishing, October 2022, 266 pages

Minnesota's most celebrated (albeit fictional) home cook is now 100. As her hairstyles have evolved with the times, so has her approach to cooking. There are 375 new recipes in this massive tome, which will prove useful for both experienced and new cooks. Find vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free recipes (all marked appropriately) and cooking instructions for today's methods (air fryers and multicookers). Sprinkled throughout are handy "use it up" pages, giving quick instructions on using the last of everything from berries to fish fillets. Truly a one-stop cookbook.

$32.50, Harvest Publishing, October 2022, 704 pages

By Justin Sutherland

The Handsome Hog chef has had an eclectic culinary upbringing, with his family's Japanese, Norwegian and Southern influences served at the dinner table, often together. But, he says in his first cookbook, soul food has his heart: "This is the food that resonates with me, that feeds my soul. The recipes within this book are the stories of my life." So we're treated to recipes that are served at his St. Paul restaurant — think Tennessee Hot Chicken, Biscuits and Gravy, Creamed Corn, Catfish and Grits — as well as glimpses of Sutherland's larger-than-life personality. Bring on the hush puppies.

By Stephanie Hansen

If you don't know media personality Stephanie Hansen, you will after you read her debut cookbook. Filled with stories about her life, family and beloved cabin near Ely, Minn., the book is organized by month — May through September, cabin season — to get the most out of what's fresh (she gardens, too). Recipes include family favorites like Delores's King Ranch Chicken and twists on favorites like Maple Old Fashioneds. You may not be able to angle an invitation to Hansen's dinner table, but you'll have a stable of recipes that will make you feel like you're cooking right alongside her.

$30, Minnesota Historical Society Press, September 2022, 224 pages

By Maren Ellingboe King

The Minneapolis food stylist and recipe developer wrote and photographed her debut cookbook after moving back from California. Using family recipes and traditional Midwestern dishes as a springboard, she breathes new life into traditional favorites — Lingonberry Old-Fashioned, pomegranate Jell-O salad, wild rice pancakes, Swedish meatballs. This is a cookbook you'll turn to again and again; plus, you have to admire someone who unabashedly includes a recipe for Apple Candy Bar Salad. "Preparing these recipes brought me closer to my newly re-embraced Midwestern roots in a deeper way than even moving to Minneapolis has done," she writes. You can tell.

By Molly Yeh

Fans of Yeh's TV show "Girl Meets Farm" will recognize her warm personality and delight in her adopted home's food in this cookbook, her second. Yeh began her career as a food blogger and her ability to spin narratives around family-friendly dishes is evident on every page. The newly minted mom of two said, "I hope one of their earliest memories is waking up from a nap smelling chicken noodle soup." Her adorable and approachable recipe for chicken and stars soup is a fun twist on classic cold-weather comfort.

$32.50, William Morrow Cookbooks, September 2022, 368 pages

By Aubry Walch and Kale Walch

It was a big summer for siblings Aubry and Kale Walch. In addition to earning a coveted spot as a State Fair food vendor, they released their first cookbook to spread the gospel of plant-based meat. The founders of the nation's first vegan butcher shop encourage cooks to replicate their success in home kitchens with ingredients you can find in co-ops or easily online. Meatless versions of Spam (called Sham), chicken cutlets and pepperoni are well within reach. The book gives each sibling the space to tell their story, what prompted them to become vegan and how they went from a farmers market stand to the wildly successful Herbivorous Butcher that now includes a fried chicken restaurant and nationwide shipping.

By Emily Vikre

As the follow-up to her successful "Camp Cocktails" cookbook, the co-owner of Duluth's Vikre Distillery has turned her attention to a different kind of fuel. But the book is more than recipes. Vikre calls in expert outdoorsy friends and together they outline how to set up a camping kitchen, how to use the tools once you have them, planning menus and foods to make when you're on the go. Novices will find encouragement — the "how to start a fire (when you suck at starting a fire)" was particularly enlightening — and old hats will find good recipes. And with backyard bonfires so prevalent, you don't even need to be a hard-core camper to enjoy it.

$27, Harvard Common Press, April 2022, 192 pages

By Amanda Rettke

If you're familiar with the longtime food blogger's popular I Am Baker and I Am Homesteader sites, you know that Rettke celebrates comfort food and all things sweet with a dash of humor. This book is no different. The busy mom of five with a garden and fowl-filled acreage will keep you cooking from breakfast through dessert, with chapters dedicated to the important things in life — hot dish and zucchini. She explains Midwestern-ness to the masses, from why it's a hot dish and not a casserole to the correct use of "uff da." Be sure to read the recipe notes and the chapter introductions; the book is as entertaining as it is delicious. Now, on to making Dill Pickle Chowder.

By Beatrice Ojakangas

Some of the best things in life are worth repeating, and this reprint of Ojakangas' 2011 classic is proof. With more than 500 recipes, from make-ahead stratas and dips for holiday entertaining to rib-sticking main dishes that will take the chill off winters, the prolific cookbook writer (and James Beard Hall of Fame author) gives even the most seasoned cooks new ideas. Perhaps the most valuable lessons come in the first chapter; learning to prepare the basic sauces, stocks and seasonings that will set cooks up for success. If this isn't on your kitchen shelf, it should be.

$30, University of Minnesota Press, March 2022, 624 pages

By Will Steger and Rita Mae Steger with Beth Dooley

The Arctic explorer wrote this cookbook with his niece (and local author Beth Dooley), with an emphasis on simplicity and sustainability. It's heavy on riveting nostalgia, with Will recalling his youth, expeditions and life on the homestead. You'd think that the recipes would be secondary, but they aren't; they are woven together seamlessly. There's the beef stew he'd serve friends helping him at the homestead, granola bars packed for Outward Bound expeditions, recipes from his mother's spiral-bound cookbook and others that Rita Mae tweaks to add the influences of her Vietnamese mother. Think of it as a book that fuels both your appetite and sense of adventure.

By Emily Maxson

The trained chef chronicles her battle with Crohn's disease, but more importantly the way she used food (primarily the Specific Carbohydrate Diet) to subdue her symptoms and regain her health. She shines the spotlight on clean food using real ingredients in simple recipes; most of them are gluten-, grain- and dairy-free. Think of it as smart eating: Trade standard rice bowls in for lentil and cauliflower bowls; peanut butter molten cakes satisfy a sweet tooth; and almond flour and coconut milk can be worth their weight in gold. A handy list of pantry staples shows that healthful eating doesn't have to require a lot of effort.

$35, Publish Her, January 2022, 284 pages

By Jennifer A. Welper

As a wellness executive chef for Mayo Clinic, Welper's goal is to "create a book that provides a solid foundation to healthy cooking and eating." She naturally accomplishes this with recipes, but also tricks and techniques meant to make healthful eating easier. (And, being a Mayo educator, there are lessons on the food pyramid, healthy cooking essentials, selecting ingredients, meal prep and more.) Recipes are arranged by meal type, and show how slight adjustments can make favorite recipes — like macaroni and cheese or pancakes — better for you. And the healthful proof is in the lemon pudding cakes: there's a nutritional analysis for each recipe, too.

Serves 8.

From "Betty Crocker Cookbook: Everything You Need to Know to Cook Today," which offers several variations on this pie. When grinding coffee, select a coarse grind for this recipe, as it makes it easier to strain and less bitter. This recipe must be prepared in advance.

For the filling:

• 1 1/3 c. coarsely ground regular or decaffeinated coffee beans

• 4 c. milk

• 2/3 c. sugar

• 1/4 c. cornstarch

• 1/4 tsp. salt

• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

For the cookie crust:

• 3 tbsp. butter, melted

For the topping:

• 2 c. whipping cream

• 2 tbsp. sugar

• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions

In medium bowl or large jar, place coffee. Add milk and gently stir; cover. Let stand in refrigerator at least 12 hours, but no longer than 18 hours. Pour coffee and grounds through a fine-mesh strainer into pitcher (do not stir). Discard solids.

In medium bowl, beat egg yolks with fork. In 2-quart saucepan, mix 2/3 cup sugar, cornstarch and salt. Gradually stir in milk mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils and thickens. Boil and stir 1 minute. Immediately stir about half of the hot mixture gradually into egg yolks; then stir back into hot mixture in pan. Boil and stir 1 minute; remove from heat. Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla; cool 15 minutes.

Reserve 1/2 cup crushed cookies; set aside. In medium bowl, mix remaining cookies and melted butter. Press mixture in bottom and up the side of 9-inch glass pie plate. Pour filling into crust. Refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Sprinkle reserved cookies over filling. To make whipped cream, in chilled medium-deep bowl, beat whipping cream, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla with electric mixer on low speed until mixture begins to thicken. Gradually increase speed to high until soft peaks form. Spread whipped cream over the cookie crumbs. Chill at least 3 hours. Garnish with additional cookie crumbs. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie no longer than 24 hours.

Substituting 2 cups of pumpkin purée for the carrots in this recipe makes for a wonderful fall breakfast, too. From "Cook Smart, Eat Well," by Jennifer A. Welper.

• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

• ¹⁄₂ c. ground flaxseed

• 2 tbsp. baking powder

• 1 tsp. salt

• ¹⁄₄ tsp. nutmeg

• 2 tsp. cinnamon

• ¹⁄₄ tsp. ground cloves

• 1 ³⁄₄ c. skim milk

• 2 large eggs

• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

• 3 c. shredded carrots

Directions

In a medium bowl, combine flour, flaxseed, baking powder, salt, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves. Mix well.

In a separate bowl, combine skim milk, eggs and canola oil. Mix well.