Cooking Demos

Location: Exhibit Hall

FEAST! is all about engaging people around food, so we hope you ask questions and make the most of these demos!

Share pics with us using #localfeastdemo and tell us what you think!

	Thank you to our generous Cooking Demos Sponsors!

11 am	Zach Ohly Executive Chef, Mayo Clinic Harwick Morrison Healthcare Chef Zach Ohly discovered his passion for the culinary arts two decades ago while studying at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Known for his creativity and precision, he believes a chef’s adaptability and tools are key to transforming simple ingredients into memorable dishes. He favors savory cooking for its creativity and balance, taking pride in continual learning and using food as a form of storytelling. Chef Zach contributes to the Eat.Confidently. program by developing dishes that celebrate fresh, wholesome ingredients while inspiring patients, staff, and visitors to make confident, nourishing food choices. His work reflects a deep commitment to quality, collaboration, and culinary innovation. His essential tools include a chef’s knife, a well-seasoned cast iron pan and an ever-growing curiosity for food.

12 pm	Beth Dooley Beth Dooley's Kitchen Beth Dooley, James Beard Award winning food writer is a columnist for the Taste section of the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune, and appears regularly on KARE 11 (NBC) television and MPR Appetites with Tom Crann. She co-authored The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen with Sean Sherman, winner of the James Beard Award for Best American Cookbook, 2018. Other titles include: Savory Sweet: Preserves from a Northern Kitchen, In Winter's Kitchen: Growing Roots and Breaking Bread in the Northern Heartland, Minnesota's Bounty: The Farmers Market Cookbook, The Northern Heartland Kitchen and she coauthored Savoring the Seasons of the Northern Heartland with Lucia Watson, James Beard Award finalist. An Endowed Chair, Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture (MISA), Beth is often working on her next book. Her recent book, The Perennial Kitchen: a guide for climate savvy cooks, offers recipes and kitchen tips to connect home cooks to the growers and makers creating a delicious future.

1 pm	Rick Didora Houndstooth Modern Tavern Chef Rick has been working in kitchens for over twenty years, with experience in everything from fast-casual to fine dining. In recent years, with Houndstooth Modern Tavern, he has fully embraced the true spirit of farm-to-table cooking, partnering with local farms and makers to bring elevated, high-touch fine dining to people’s homes, and to small, public events. With Houndstooth, Rick utilizes relationships with local farmers and makers to showcase the breadth of local food, and instill the importance of supporting small farms and producers.

2 pm	Nicholas Kosevich CEO and co-owner, Earl Giles Distillery & Bottling Company Nick Kosevich has been a figurehead in the creative cocktail scene of the Twin Cities and across the country for 15 years. Nick spent 11 years as a Brand Ambassador for Bombay Sapphire and is a founder of Bittercube Bitters and Heirloom Liqueurs. He has traveled hundreds of thousands of miles over the last 20 years inspiring bartenders and assisting them in elevating their competition drinks throughout North America. As a beverage consultant, Nick has trained over 700 hundred bartenders and has helped open more than 85 projects across the country. More recently Nick has created Drinks Apothecary, a custom cocktail ingredient flavor house and has partnered with Earl Giles to open a new distillery, restaurant and bottling company in June of 2022 and became the CEO of Earl Giles in 2023. Nick is also a partner and the beverage director of the award winning Mr. Paul’s Supper Club. Nick currently supports beverage programs across the country including Mortar & Pestle (Bay Area, CA), Hotel Versailles (Versailles, OH), Oxford (Lodi, CA), and several projects in the Twin Cities, MN area Including Malcolm Yards, Can Can Wonderland, Getaway Motor Cafe, Francis, Gai Noi, Tii Cup and most recently Forepaugh’s. Nick will lead an engaging mocktail class at FEAST in Rochester. A nationally recognized beverage innovator and educator, Nick has trained hundreds of bartenders and developed award-winning beverage programs across North America. In this interactive session, he’ll share the art and science behind crafting elevated, non-alcoholic drinks — teaching participants how to balance flavors, layer complexity, and use handcrafted ingredients to create memorable zero-proof cocktails. Guests will leave inspired to rethink what a “mocktail” can be, with practical tips for creating sophisticated, spirit-free beverages that rival any craft cocktail experience.	Photo Credit: Erin Dahlin

3 pm	Mary Jane Miller Celebrating the simple pleasures of the table with local, seasonal, and delicious food you’ll love to cook. Mary Jane Miller is a chef, food writer, and food scientist who has spent her career exploring how to make simple dishes taste great—and teaching others how to make them. She cooks with locally produced ingredients and has long supported farmers, both in her work and at her own family table. Her career has included work with Betty Crocker Test Kitchens, Target Corporation, the Star Tribune, Better Homes and Gardens Magazine, and she has cooked for three Minnesota governors. A longtime Minnesota resident, Mary Jane now lives on her family farm in Iowa with her husband, new puppy, honeybees, chickens, and an imperfect but well-loved garden. Learn more at MaryJaneMiller.com and follow her on Facebook at Mary Jane Cooks and Instagram @maryjanecooks.