Heartland Table

Like many of their neighbors, Amy Thielen and her husband, Aaron, make fires in their central wood stove for atmosphere, heat and cooking. In this episode, Amy prepares a warm meal of Midwestern Fried Chicken and Gravy With Whipped Potatoes and Swiss Chard With Honey-Roasted Garlic, followed by Indoor Buttercup S'mores made bruschetta-style with roasted marshmallows and dark chocolate.

Harvesting and processing fresh horseradish root is a tradition in Amy's community. Amy invites her neighbors over for a horseradish-spiked feast: Beef Stew With Red Wine, Mushrooms and Horseradish Cream, Roasted Shrimp Wraps With Homemade Cocktail Sauce and a sprawling Bloody Mary bar.

The Midwest produces some of the most influential and commonplace cheeses in the country, and in this episode Amy Thielen celebrates the wide, comforting world of cheese dishes. Few can resist the charms of Crispy Cheese-Curd Risotto Cakes served with a side of Cherry Tomato-Arugula Salad, Best-Ever Cheese Soup and Hank's favorite Stovetop Mac and Cheese With Bacon.

In Northern Minnesota, where Amy Thielen and her family lives, locals learn to live with snow and ice from December through late spring. Today's menu combats the fierce temperatures, starting with buttery Monkfish Almondine, Chestnut-Wild Rice Pilaf, Cast Iron Curried Carrots and Vintage Toffee Bars.

Amy's cousin Matt is the fourth generation to run Thielen Meats in Pierz, Minn. Today he is paying a visit to Amy with his daughter, Addie, and joining for a rustic Pork Meatloaf With Cabbage and Prunes, a lively Lemony Parsley Salad and a pie from the recipe files of their grandmother, an old-fashioned Macerated Apple Pie With Leaf Lard Crust.

In this episode, Amy's kitchen spins out a traditional nostalgic supper club meal, with a few updates: Steakhouse Deviled Egg, Rib Eye With Teddy's Homemade Steak Sauce and Glorified Hash Brown Cake With Frying Peppers.