What's cooking: Betty's Pies cookbook, farm tour, arboretum garden party

The latest entry in the icons-do-a-cookbook category is "Betty's Pies Favorite Recipes," a second edition with even more recipes. (Wisconsin's Norske Nook also has just published a book of pie recipes.) Betty's Pies, of course, is a travelers' icon in Minnesota, offering slabs of pie just beyond Two Harbors. Betty Lessard, who passed away in May, had added a few more options to the basic recipes, and also included some of the popular side dishes in the full-service restaurant, such as frozen cranberry salad with pineapple dressing, rutabaga pudding and spinach Swiss pie. The book includes a history of the restaurant, which also provides North Shore history. The cookbook, published by Lake Superior Port Cities Inc., costs $18.95 and is available in bookstores or online at www.LakeSuperior.com.

Eleven Twin Cities co-ops again are hosting tours of 20 local farms that are opening their barn doors and fields to let consumers experience their food directly from the source. The free event on July 18 is designed to showcase local growers who supply the co-ops and their customers. The tour is self-guided, and participants can pick up a tour handbook at their local food co-op that includes descriptions and operating hours of participating farms, maps of suggested farm clusters, useful tips for tourgoers, and local restaurant recommendations. Participants can enjoy hands-on activities at each farm stop, including Japanese fish painting and cooking demonstrations at Star Prairie Trout Farm, "flower child" wreath-making for kids at Humble Pie Farm, and bike tours, honey samples and bee education at the Beez Kneez. Get more details and follow updates on the Eat Local Farm Tour's Facebook page.

"Garden & Farm to Table" is a new twist for Taste & Toast on July 15 in the gardens of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, with samples from 21 top local restaurants and several regional wineries and breweries. This year's Patron Reception will feature Gavin Kaysen, chef/owner of Spoon & Stable restaurant, recently named by Food & Wine Magazine as one of the country's best new restaurants. Kaysen will provide samples and share food insights for guests at 6 p.m., before the main event. Cost of the Patron Reception is $125 per person ($80 tax-deductible). General admission for Taste & Toast, from 7-9 p.m., is $75 per person (including a $30 tax-deductible donation). For reservations, call 612-625-9875 or visit www.arboretum.umn.edu/TasteAndToast.aspx.

Got questions about grilling? LongHorn Steakhouse, a national chain, will offer its LongHorn Grill Us Hotline from Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m., which will operate either by phone or by text. Call with your questions to 1-855-544-7455 to talk with a grill master. Or text LHGRILL to 40679, wait for a response and follow the prompts to get expert grilling tips and live grilling advice. (Up to two messages per request; standard texting rates apply.)

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