Wednesday With Stephanie

The Really Late Edition - Dads Day and Stone Arch Bridge Festival

Hello Subscribers:

I apologize for missing Sunday’s Subscriber email. I finished working at the Stone Arch Bridge Festival and started working on the newsletter at 9 pm. When I went to hit send at 10 pm, it disappeared. I spent 30 minutes trying to recover it to no avail, and by that time, I was too tired and too frustrated to start over, so here we are. I will add a bonus email for subscribers in the future.

Thank you to the 50 new subscribers who signed up for free recipes at the event. I am happy to have you here. This email is a departure from my typically easy breezy Wednesday email, so hang with me.

📸 VimLabPR

The Stone Arch Bridge Festival has been one of the first Summer Art Festivals in Minneapolis for over 31 years. I started working on the festival about 25 years ago, when I was involved through my job at City Pages. I also started a Culinary Market there about 7 years ago. The festival is like family to many of my friends and their kids, who all work together at soda booths, assemble tents, and lug water and beer.

Friday, during setup, was cold and rainy. Saturday was misty in the morning and then became dry, but it was still cold. We persevered through frigid weather, a primary highway closure, a large-scale protest, and a political assassination and shelter-in-place order to provide a safe, diverse community art event that showcased over 350 small businesses, musicians, and artists.

It's incredible to me that an event like this can happen, not on a dedicated fairground, but on West River Parkway, a city street in the heart of the city. This art festival embodies everything great about Minneapolis when diverse people come together to create something special. Besides the artists, guests, families, musicians, food vendors, emerging artists, and culinary artists, there are also the park board, food inspectors, police, residents, security, and tent vendors who all make this event happen.

At the same time, I am grappling with the horrific events of a politically motivated assassination happening in Minneapolis while this was all going on. America is messy, and there is a history of political violence in our country, and the incidents of political violence, racism, and anti-semitism are way up statistically. Is it because of the anonymity of social media ratcheting up the temperature of our words? Are we so disconnected from our words? There is culpability on both sides of the aisle, and I hope this type of event has a silver lining, making people more mindful of their words and actions.

While I was talking with a group of religious protesters at our event who were with a group of individuals carrying signs with what I would say contained hateful religious rhetoric, I was also aware of their right to have free speech in a public place. I talked with Paul, the protester, who was a Physics professor at a local high school. I tried to meet him where he was as he walked with his sign. Similarly, I watched a man work an LGBTQ booth who was wearing a shirt advertising “Free Dad Hugs.” He bear-hugged a young woman who looked to be about 16 as tears streamed down her face. What was happening in that young woman’s life that hugging a stranger was bringing her to tears? Why does Paul think his sign is the way to engage, and why does he commit to show up at multiple public events year after year, and summer after summer?

The facts are that America is messy. Our words matter. How we treat people matters. We are a diverse community of individuals, and we all share the responsibility for our words and actions. At the festival, as in life, we make space for diverse groups to coexist in the same space. How can we personalize this and carry light into our own spaces, even when we have varied and differing opinions? This is what I want to think about as I grieve and think about the weekend’s events.

Now, onto highlights from the Culinary Market this year - here are some of my favorite new products.

1. Hepps Salts are really welcome in any chef’s kitchen. The Habanero Salt is a favorite of mine but their truffle salt is a local hit

2. Hobby Farmer Foods Turmeric Switchel was a HUGE seller at the festival. People were loading up on this prebiotic, n/a, and gluten-free favorite.

3. “Here’s The Deal Spice Co” 112 Seasoning is my go-to steak seasoning, but their cinnamon is also fantastic and has the most beautiful cinnamon flavor when added to my fruit buckle.

   

   4.LoveJoys Bloody Mary Mix is a go to at our house. Their Thai Basil mix is my go to Bloody Mary and Oprah picked their mix as a favorite last year.

   5-6. Zambezi Billtong is a way of making jerky with no sugar that is naturally dried and their herb and jerk seasonings are also delicious.

7.MinneOats - After Gustola Granola stopped producing I was on the hunt for a new granola and MinneOats is it! I love that it has larger clusters and a mix of sweet and salty.

8.PT & Y Granola bites are delicious, easy to throw in your bag and are clean

9.Akis Breadhouse pretzels kept me fed throughout the weekend. Piled with spicy mustard I loved them. Check out their location in NE Mpls and get some bread, pretzels or a glass of German wine at the Wunder Bar Wine Bar.

10.Summer Lakes Beverage is a Summer mainstay for me. Their pre-made Jalapeno Margarita Mix made with fresh juice is my FAVORITE and their Bootleg is a Minnesota staple! Just add vodka and fresh mint

11.We are Nuts Turmeric and Toffee Nuts are great. Pick up a nut sack at the Minnesota State Fair. This family owned company has a cheeky sense of humor too!

12. Ken Velkys Dueling Grandmas Shortbread is fantsatic and they freeze beautifully. The Raspberry or Millionaires chocolate caramel are my faves.

Now onto the Free Recipes

For the weekend how about these Honey Garlic Chcken Thighs with Strawberry Salsa?

Looking for a Summer Potluck Salad? Here are 35 to choose from:

Here is a YouTube Reminder that I have recipe videos there every week! Subscribe!

Here is the Greek Salad from the “True North Cabin Cookbook” that I released as a Subscriber Exclusive Recipe a few weeks back:

Here is my Pork Rub for Ribs, Chops or Pork Butt

A quick note about my husband,

Kurt Johnson

as tomorrow is my 32 Wedding Anniversary and i worked on Fathers Day - He reads my email each week and is a writer himself that you can follow on Substack.

I love you Kurt. You are what allows me to keep all my tops spinning. Thanks for being my North Star.