"Thielen applies her professionally honed cooking skills to the classic Midwestern dishes she grew up with in northern Minnesota while also unearthing local gems across the region. In a warm, impassioned voice, she reveals how the Midwest is responsible for much of what we consider our American food heritage. The cuisine is generous, thrifty, intuitive, seasonal, and intimate: "Each cook here is a pioneer of sorts, hitched to a food history of plain talk and salted butter. "Living here tastes pretty good, " says Thielen, and by following her sure and steady lead home cooks can fall in love with America's captivating, local flavors"--