On Nov. 7, Mill City Farmers Market opens the doors to its Winter Market inside the Mill City Museum — no admission needed!
Mill City continues to bring its curated selection of over 40 local and sustainable farmers, food makers and artists to this beautiful downtown location inside the former Washburn A Mill near the Stone Arch Bridge and Guthrie Theater. The Winter Market, which runs 10 a.m.–1 p.m. select Saturdays from November to April, is Minneapolis’ trusted year-round source for weekly groceries, handmade gifts and holiday meal essentials.
Grab a friend, your grocery list, a reusable shopping bag and see what Minnesota farmers and makers have to offer!
What you’ll find at the Mill City Winter Market:
- Winter storage and greenhouse crops, including salad greens, herbs, mushrooms, onions, garlic, squash, carrots, potatoes, radishes and other root vegetables
- Artisan cheeses, eggs, fish, meat, dried beans, pasta, fresh bread, kombucha, pickled vegetables, jam, salsa and more
- Locally grown Christmas trees, spruce tops and other winter décor
- Farm-to-table breakfast and lunch
- Power of Produce kids’ veggie tasting club
- Live acoustic music
- Handmade gifts, body products, homeware, jewelry and more from local artists
Find the local ingredients you need to make a crowd-pleasing dip at the upcoming Winter Markets (see recipe).
Intimidated by hacking up a big squash? Check out the Mill City Cooks table on Nov. 7 for live demonstrations on how to “butcher” hardy winter vegetables like squash!
More fall recipes and information about the market are available at millcityfarmersmarket.org.
Squash and cheese dip
By Beth Jones
We all love butternut squash, but why not try something new like one of the colorful varieties of winter squash available at Mill City’s winter farmers markets?
This recipe calls for red kuri squash, a round, medium-sized, reddish-orange squash with a sweet and nutty taste. Makes about 4 cups.
Ingredients
- 1 medium-large butternut, red kuri or other medium size sweet squash, washed and cut in half lengthwise, seeds scooped out
- 2 teaspoons plus 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 1 large yellow onion
- 1 cup grated Burr Oak or Fresiago cheese from Shepherd’s Way Farm
- 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1/4 cup cream (optional)
- Sliced carrots, radishes, beets, broccoli, other seasonal vegetables or fresh bread, for serving
Method
Preheat the oven to 425. Rub each half of the squash, inside and out, with a teaspoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place cut-side down on a baking sheet on top of the thyme sprigs. Roast until a fork poked into the non-hollow end of the squash slides in easily, about 45 minutes.
While the squash is roasting, heat the extra tablespoon of olive oil in a medium saute pan. Cook the onions until well caramelized and soft, and set aside.
When the squash has cooled, scoop out the flesh and mash roughly with a fork. Add the cheese, the leaves from the roasted thyme sprigs, nutmeg and salt. Stir in the cream and caramelized onions.
Scoop into a shallow oven-safe ceramic or glass dish, top with more cheese and bake for 8–10 minutes. Serve with seasonal veggies or fresh bread for dipping.
Winter Market schedule
10 a.m.–1 p.m. inside the Mill City Museum, 704 S. 2nd St.
- 10 & 17 (Thanksgiving harvest markets)
- 1, 8 & 15 (holiday markets)
- 12 & 26
- 9 & 23
- March 9 & 23
- April 13 & 27
