Rural Foodies
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Foodies seek a peak culinary experience close to home
by Phil Soreide, Betty Sayers and Pam Soreide
It really comes down to the food.
That we style ourselves as the “Rural Foodies” may be a conceit we don’t deserve, but why not? The three of us revel in the infinite variety of food from sturdy tubers to delicate berries; from exotic fruits to hot peppers. Nothing gets our endorphins multiplying like a slice of vine-ripened tomato on a slice of fresh homemade sourdough bread or a steaming ear of fresh sweet corn, dripping with butter and salt. We love some restaurants because they serve interesting dishes, well prepared. We love others because they do one thing, really, really well. We like the sight of food: a cutting board of fresh vegetables, a slab of chocolate cake, a Thanksgiving turkey being lifted steaming from the oven. And we like the taste, the texture and the smell of food. Some of us, incomprehensibly, even like liver.
We wanted a picnic
We were thinking about how to achieve another peak Foodie experience in rural Nebraska. We have covered most of the noteworthy restaurants in a hundred-mile radius at least once (although click here if you have a favorite restaurant you think we’ve missed) and none of us were feeling up for a three or four hour drive just to eat dinner.
Then someone commented on the wonderful goat cheese Chane Bidwell was making; and someone else mentioned that the high tunnel at Schwarz’ organic farm was producing greens and baby turnips and all manner of delectable things for early spring; and someone else noted that a locally-popular potato bologna – a Swedish Christmas tradition – was still available at Bertrand’s Countryside Market.
And so a menu began to take shape.
Because it’s spring, we wanted a barbecue and porch picnic, but looking at the weather calendar, the only sunny day with temperatures near 70 was a Thursday, which happened to conflict with our monthly book club meeting. Only momentarily deterred, we decided to merge the Foodies’ fresh-and-local adventure in with a lively discussion of Wallace Stegner’s novel, Angle of Repose.
The Foodies go shopping
You can get a lot of fresh and local food in rural Nebraska, but until the farmer’s market starts up again, not without effort. Our first stop on shopping day took us to Schwarz Farms, near Bertrand in south central Nebraska, where we found Becky Schwartz tending a variety of early spring crops in one of two high tunnels, essentially Quonset hut frames stretched with a durable translucent plastic, under which plants can be protected.
She took us on a tour of their operation, pointing out a new vegetable washer and other production equipment and the beds where vegetable crops will be once the high tunnel is no longer necessary. From her, for the menu, we purchased baby turnips, spinach, mixed lettuce greens and a bunch of arugula.
Our next stop was on the main street of Bertrand itself, at the Countryside Market, where we happened to meet owner Brenda Johnson on the street. A friendly, vivacious woman, she showed us around her well-stocked store and told us a little about the potato bologna she and her husband make. It’s a relatively simple recipe of ground pork and beef, potatoes and onions along with some spices, but it’s become more popular for the grill, so now in addition to a ring bologna, the Johnsons make a patty version. For the menu, however, we bought two of the traditional ring style.
We meet the goats
A common lament among many who care about the rural lifestyle is that a big percentage of urban youth have no idea where food comes from. They should come out and meet Chane and Michelle Bidwell’s goats. They are totally charming, about 200 in all, and Michelle names and remembers each one. It’s only right, she says, because each has a distinct personality. Over here are the milking goats, over there are the pregnant goats, here the kids, there the bucks — the farmyard is separated into numerous pens and shelters and a not-unpleasant continuous “maaaa.”
But enough about the goats (although you can click here to learn more), we’re here about the cheese. Chane took us to his cheese-making room where he let us taste a selection of his feta, mozzarella, fresh soft chevre and some chipotle-flavored feta. They were all sublime. When Chane offered to let us try some goat milk, we both approached it with some apprehension but emerged a sip or two later as true believers. It was fabulous; I believe I could switch to goat milk in a second. For the menu, however, we bought feta and some of the chipotle feta for an appetizer.
Last minute preparations
We scheduled the book club for 6:30 and began our preparations in earnest about 5:00. As directed, we simmered the potato bologna and fired up the charcoal grill. We peeled and sliced the turnips and decided to serve them just that way – they were prefect: mild, sweet, tender and crispy, needing nothing more than a sprinkle of salt. The cooks each had several slices.
The Greek salad was unbelievably fresh and delectable with the finest spring greens set off by a light vinaigrette – proof one needs no more than succulent ingredients for a culinary success. By coincidence, we had been in a Whole Foods Market the weekend before, which was thronged with shoppers snatching up the $3 cucumbers and $7 tomatoes. Everything among Whole Foods produce is first rate, if pricey, but we saw nothing that equaled our greens.
The centerpiece of the meal was Betty’s spinach, artichoke heart and goat cheese pasta (click here to get the recipe) which involves boiling the pasta, wilting the spinach, then throwing the whole thing together and melting the goat cheese in the hot drained pasta. The potato bologna we cut into smallish pieces (since people were going to have to eat off their knees) grilled it until lightly charred and served it with spicy mustard.
A good time was had by all
None of us is Martha Stewart, but I do believe the book club enjoyed their Rural Foodies experience. Keeping with the fresh and local theme, someone brought a bottle of Frontenac wine from the Three Brothers Vineyard near Farnam and the wine and conversation flowed freely. The sun was shining, birds were singing, the porch was suffused with congeniality, earnest discussion and good spirits. The book club is always a little reluctant to break up, but seemed doubly so this evening.
Everyone agreed the pasta was creamy and delicious, the salad light and crisp, the grilled sausages a tasty departure from the ordinary. So, a peak gustatory experience destined to last the rest of our lives? Possibly not, but who cares? It was more than close enough.
Who to Contact
Schwarz Farms
Tom and Linda Schwarz
311 Medina Ave.
Bertrand, NE 68927
308-472-5309
tlschwarz@charter.netBidwell Goat Farm & Flatwater Creamery
75040 Rd. 446
Overton, NE 68863
ph: 308-987-2208
alt: 970-420-2884
chanebidwell@yahoo.com
www.bidwellboernubiangoats.comCountryside Market
Brenda and Jerry Johnson
522 Minor Avenue
Bertrand, NE 68927-3840
308-472-3311
Bjjohnson5342@hotmail.com
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