You can read the previous write up of Milkweed Inn from 2022 here.   It was recently featured in Art Culinaire Magazine so we thought it was time to re-visit and check out any changes.  First and foremost the food and hospitality were equally superb and I think this year’s group of guests was even more fun than the last.  Chef Regan is transitioning from Iliana to Lane but that seems to only have focused their culinary talents.  The hunting lodge in the Hiawatha Forest now offers 4 interior bedrooms to stay in, some glamping tents and the Air Stream is now a Mercedes Sprinter Camper Van.  It is definitely off-the-grid and a totally laid back weekend of eating, drinking and chatting with like minded foodies.  Regan is still an expert forager as well as gardener and incorporates that into the meals in addition to hunting donations from neighbors.   There is also a sauna which you sign up for in pairs and lots of friendly dogs, pigs and soon to be horses on the property.  Reservations are through the website <www.milkweedinn.com> and often are made a year in advance.  One tip we took advantage of is to watch for vacancies that pop up to re-sell.  Since retiring we have that flexibility and can skirt the long wait.  Last visit the weather was uncomfortably warm which was not at all usual.  This time it was nice and cool with a good breeze.  Chef Regan and her partner Eve are absolutely delightful and will make every effort to ensure you have a memorable visit.   If you are seriously into food and enjoy very casual surroundings this is an experience you should sign up for.  Chef can make some adaptations to the menu for the dozen people in attendance, but check first if you can’t eat some things.  There was no printed menu, so all descriptions are what I could jot down.

Place

Friday night

Your fee includes dinner Friday and Saturday evenings, breakfast on Sat and Sun mornings and lunch on Sat, with snacks sprinkled in.  All beverages are included which is coffee and teas in the morning and wine with lunch and dinners.  There were some aperitifs on Friday night with s’mores and a Negroni on Sat evening with snacks before dinner.  At Friday dinner most of the dishes were for the two of us, the exception being the slice of bread and profiterole.  Dinner started with zuchini and yellow squash on ricotta cheese topped with chimichurri, elderberry vinegar and borage flowers.  The thin sliced squash was piled on the housemade ricotta and lightly seasoned for a good tasty beginning.

 

Chanterelles were with wild blueberries and chopped leeks in a wild raspberry miso.  Excellent.

 

A salad contained greens and radishes dusted with Wisconsin parmesan and seasoned pepitas.  This was a refreshing and lovely combination.

 

A slice of sourdough bread was with an owl shaped butter pat.  The bread was fantastic with a totally crisp crust and a custardy doughy interior.  This was to die for.

 

Cabbage was cooked in bacon fat then seasoned with browned butter, sour cherry vinegar, milkweed flower miso and brown sugar.  This was outstanding in flavor and texture.

 

Pierogies were stuffed with Wisconsin cheddar and a combination of roasted white and sweet potatoes with a special dipping sauce.  They were great.

 

Rosemary poached Lake Superior white fish was seasoned with an herb gribiche and cooked egg.  The fish was perfectly cooked and with the garnishes had an amazing depth of flavor.

 

A profiterole was stuffed with wintergreen ice cream in a sandwich format.  Very tasty and refreshing.

 

Saturday breakfast

There was a coffee cake cut for snacking and sorry I didn’t get a photo but it was a fun snack with coffee while you waited for the main meal.

 

A quiche was topped with crispy kohlrabi and leaves.  The custardy pie was smooth and silky which made a nice contrast with the crisp kohlrabi sticks.  It was delicious.

 

A bowl of browned potatoes were on the side for my husband and I to split garnished with fish bits.  I was wary with the description but it turned out to be quite good especially with the light dusting of herbs.

 

Saturday Lunch

We started with a vegetable salad of items grown here or foraged nearby.  It was beautifully seasoned with a light dressing.  It was delicious.

 

The main plate was a bowl of ramen, the noodles for which we had watched being prepared that morning and the broth cooking in several pots that afternoon.  It was well flavored and ganished with some scallions.  The noodles were seasoned with cedar and the mushrooms in it were foraged by Chef Regan.

 

Saturday dinner

We started with negroni cocktails by the firepit on the first level.  A tray of snacks and one of crackers were out for all.   The cheeses were both soft and hard and bought near Marquette.  Chef’s fun twist was to include canned fish which this time were razor clams and mussels.   There were housemade pickles, creamed white fish and chocolate nuts too.  The crispness of the crackers varied probably due to humidity.  It was a nice selection to match with a good Negroni.

 

We started the meal with a semolina tart filled with spring peas from a local farm in a asparagus soubise sauce.  Some wild elderflowers garnished it.  The crust was very thin and crisp with the flavor of spring in the filling.   Very nice.

 

A caraway and rye bread held golden beets with a wild rose gastrique accented with wild yarrow.  The cracker bread was perfect – crisp with lots of flavor and the beets were slightly sweet yet well seasoned tender chunks.  I liked this one.

 

Chef is fond of owls so the mushroom broth was poured from this cute owl pitcher.  It was warm with onion flavors in addition to the mushrooms – an amazing depth of flavor.

 

Chicken of the woods mushrooms were fried and served with a sour cherry and strawberry ketchup.  Both parts were great on their own or combined.

 

The goat milk butter for the bread was in the shape of an owl which was sitting in some local honey.  The bread was a wild rice sourdough and different from Friday nights.  It seemed to have a more elastic interior but a similar crackly crust.  Delicious.

 

Onions and turnips were in raspberry oil dashi then seasoned with lemon thyme.  Very well flavored.

 

A potato, riccota and semolina dumpling was in ramp and chicken reduction.  The texture was more liked chunky mashed potatoes to me than a dumpling and this one was more mildly flavored.

 

Venison stew was made from a shoulder roast from a buck shot by Eve’s father.  It was topped with puffed pastry cut-outs and pickled mustard seeds.  The stew had green tomato vinegar and rutabaga.   The lovely crisp bits of pastry were a good contrast with the soft meat and vegetables.  This was excellent.

 

Forager’s broth made with cedar, balsam, turkey tail mushrooms and wintergreen was okay.

 

Strawberry sorbet was on Kojo rice and vanilla panna cotta.  The layers had some textures and lots of flavor.

 

Spruce ice cream was in a chocolate shell dotted with rice crunchies.  It was fun to eat and quite tasty.

 

The last desserts were sugar cookies accented with rhubarb and beet candy.   The cookies were thick and fun with the tart rhubarb.  The beet candy was chewy and sweet.

 

 

Sunday Brunch

The plate had several items – a poached duck egg  topped with sour cherry hollandaise on freshly made bread, a slice of pork, country ham style, and a variety of pickled foods with some fresh blueberries.   The large yolk of the duck egg was fabulous on that great bread, especially mixed with a bit of the pork.  The pickles were varied, some salty,  vinegary and some sweet.  They provided a great accent to the plate.

 

The end was a freshly made brioche donut with a whiskey glaze.  Fried in canola oil it was hot with a sweet topping.  I love donuts and this was a winner in my book.