NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.
Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1063097
48 Nebraskaland • January-February 2019 and grower is dealing with a unique set of challenges depending upon where they are. Among those I've worked with is a strong willingness to collaborate to evolve our food system in Nebraska. It's a willingness that's grounded not only in the ideals of preservation but also innovation. You will find chef Chapman's recipe for Honey Creek Farm's potato soup in the following recipes. Also featured is nettle tea from Abigael Birrel, former executive chef at Lincoln's Hub Café, as well as Jenny Nguyen-Wheatley's elk stew and Jane Sparks' bread pudding. I hope you have enjoyed the recipes featured in the Nebraska Table, but even more, I hope you have discovered a new passion and developed a better understanding of Nebraska. Nebraska is full of flavors and experiences that can't be purchased at a store. You have to get outside, explore and find them. Honey Creek Farm's Potato Soup Many of us know how cold a Nebraska winter can be – some years are colder than others and some years are brutally cold. Growing up in this wonderful state, I remember my mother making potato soup every winter. The soup usually consisted of a beef broth made from the roast beef from the night before, roast beef trimmings and a ton of potatoes with carrots, onions and anything else that was in the fridge. This recipe is a homage to that soup, but in a different variation. Instead of using a broth base, the soup is buttermilk and potato-based. The blood orange adds a nice brightness of acidity, and the oxtail is a nice variation of the roast beef I remember eating as a child. Honey Creek Farm in Hancock, Iowa, produces amazing potatoes for us year-round. The recipe is suitable for a wide variety of potatoes, so please use what you have in your kitchen. Rhizosphere Farm is in Bennington, and we are fortunate that Matt and Terra are able to produce onions for us into the winter season. La Vigne Organics is a Certified Bio Dynamic and Certified Organic citrus farm in Fallbrook, California, where Helene Beck produces phenomenal citrus for us. But like with any seasonal produce, things change with the seasons. The blood orange in this recipe can be substituted with any type of orange, but blood oranges are in high season on the West Coast during our Nebraska winters. Mark and Jill Schmitz own and operate Majinola Farm or Majinola Ranch, a small wagyu cattle ranch in Panama, Iowa. We are thrilled to work with them as our only beef provider at the restaurant. Servings: 2 large servings or 8 small portions Prep Time: 1 hour Cook Time: 13 hours Potato Soup Ingredients: • 3 pounds heirloom potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces (We use Yukon gold at the restaurant.) • 2 cups Burbach's Dairy whole milk • 2 cups buttermilk • 1 yellow or white onion, julienned • 3 sprigs fresh thyme • 4 ounces spinach • 4 ounces George Paul red wine vinegar • Kosher salt, to taste • Fresh cracked pepper, to taste Place peeled, cut potatoes and onions into a pot with the milk. Add thyme sprigs and season with salt and pepper. Cook the potatoes on medium heat until they are tender and add the buttermilk. Continue to cook the potatoes until they are at a mashed-potato-like consistency. Remove the thyme sprigs and add spinach to the potato mix, then place in blender. Blend the potatoes until smooth. If you like a thicker, chunkier soup you can leave the soup as is, once partially pureed. If you would like a completely smooth soup, pass the blended soup through a fine mesh sieve to alleviate any chunks of unblended potato. Season to taste with salt and pepper and add the George Paul vinegar. Cipollini Onion Ingredients: • 4 cipollini onions, peeled and cut in half with the root end still intact • 1 ounce neutral cooking oil • 1 ounce whole unsalted butter • Kosher salt, to taste • Fresh cracked black pepper, to taste • 1 sprig fresh thyme sprig • ½ ounce George Paul red wine vinegar • ¼ ounce fresh chives or parsley, minced Heat oil in pan and add cipollini onions. Sear the onions on medium heat until they get a nice crust on one side. Strain oil out of pan and add butter, thyme sprig, salt and pepper. Continue to sauté the onions until butter foams and then add about 1 ounce of cold water. Reduce until the water evaporates and add the vinegar. Season to taste again with salt and pepper. Add chives or parsley. La Vigne Organics Blood Orange Ingredients: • 2 blood oranges, segmented and zested Zest the orange. Cut off the top and bottom of the orange so that it stands on one end without rolling. Underneath the skin (that you segmented) there will be a layer of white pith followed by the dark red color of the orange. You want to cut down to the orange. After the top and bottom are removed and the color of the orange is exposed, start cutting down the sides of the orange to expose the whole fruit. Discard the pith. You will be left with your whole fruit, zest and pith removed. Using your paring knife, cut out the individual segments of the fruit. These are the small pieces of fruit between each of the membranes. After segmenting all the fruit, set aside along with the zest for later use.