Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Beth Dooley. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Beth, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

It’s hard to choose which of the many projects I’ve worked on has the “most” meaning for me. I’ve learned from them all. My first was SAVORING THE SEASONS of the Northern Heartland, co-authored with chef, and restaurant owner, Lucia Watson. Lucia, a James Beard award winning chef, was the first in our region to focus on local food. Her seasonal menu changed weekly and she ran her restaurant with the utmost integrity. The food was awesome. Edited by the legendary Judith Jones (featured in the movie Julia and Julie), SAVORING THE SEASONS, taught me how to write cookbooks that tell stories. THE SIOUX CHEF’S INDIGENOUS KITCHEN, co-authored with chef Sean Sherman, provided insights into the Native American culinary culture and history. Sean is a transformative genius and three time James Beard Award winner (one of those awards was for our book). Finally, I co-authored CHILE CLOVE and CARDAMOM with Gary Paul Nabhan, a MacArthur Genius, whose work on desert plants shines a light into the secret potential of these plants that can help mitigate climate change. I wrote PERENNIAL KITCHEN: Simple Recipes for a Health Future, to lift up the work being done by our regenerative farmers, applying ancient growing practices and state of the art technology to grow food without destroying the planet.

Beth, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a James Beard Award-winning food writer who has authored and co-authored over a dozen books celebrating the bounty of America’s Northern Heartland. She writes for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, appears regularly on local TV and radio, and helps people connect more deeply with food through Bare Bones Cooking with her middle son Kip.

It all began in college during the Vietnam war protests and Watergate, when Rachael Carson wrote Silent Spring, and Americans began to realize the dangers in chemical farming. Having learned to cook with my grandmother as a child, and learned to bake bread and fresh pasta as an act of independence from my mom who relied on convenience food, I cooked for friends and political activists. We believed in voting with our forks, etc. I joined a CSA as soon as my husband and I moved from NYC where I was working for Harper Collins Publishing (he’s an attorney) and settled in Minneapolis. Shopping at the farmers markets was my Saturday routine. I worked at our local foods co-op when not writing about food for the big advertising firm, Campbell-Mithun. Then started writing cookbooks … and taught Junior High English, cooking classes, writing for the Minnesota Star Tribune, and Minnesota Public Radio.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

As a home cook and food writer, I believe that sourcing food from local farmers and creators has a significant impact. Doing so is the path to more than dinner. It’s the most direct means of engaging with ourselves, the natural world, the local economy, and each other. I can make lots more money than I do now working in other areas, yet this work gives me tremendous satisfaction and I know that it can be healing for others, too.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

To be honest … there isn’t one thing that helped me build my reputation … it is the confluence of persistence … of saying “yes” to projects I never thought would have “legs” but turned out to be awesome, to reach out to others in different fields that I felt drawn too (who I met in yoga classes, running, at lectures) … just being out in the world. And finally, trying to be patience, no matter what, and being kind to everyone I come across.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bethdooleyskitchen.com
• Instagram: beth_dooleys_kitchen
• Facebook: Beth Dooley