Your once-a-year chance to fill up on traditional Mennonite food is here
One of the best things produced in Kansas is traditional Mennonite fare like verenike, peppernuts, zwieback and more.
But it’s not always easy for city dwellers to track down this food, which has German, Swiss and Russian roots.
This weekend offers that chance, though. The once-a-year Kansas Mennonite Relief Sale — an event that also includes quilt, toy, car and tractor auctions — opens today and continues through Saturday at the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson, and Mennonite food is one of the main attractions.
The food will be distributed in a slightly different way than it has been in the past. Instead of a buffet, the “Feeding the Multitudes” portion of the event will be offered in a more COVID-safe manner.
From 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. tonight and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, organizers will distribute carryout meals from the fairgrounds’ Cottonwood Court. The meals will each include three verenike — which are dumplings filled with a cottage cheese mixture then steamed and fried before being topped with ham gravy — plus two sausages and a bottle of water. The cost is $15.
There will be no seating inside Cottonwood Court, though people will be able to eat their food in air conditioned comfort in the Pride of Kansas building.
Baked goods, including whole pies, zwieback, poppy seed rolls and and other breads, will be sold from the Meadowlark Building, where attendees will also be able to get burgers, slices of pie, soft serve ice cream and more.
A new food being offered this year is homemade burritos — both pork and vegan — which will be made by Casa Betania Church in Newton and sold from the Domestic Arts Building.
You can see the full schedule for the event, which opens at 4 p.m. Friday and at 8 a.m. Saturday, at kansas.mccsale.org/home/schedule/
The sale is a tradition that has been going on for more than 50 years, though it usually happens in the springtime. Last year’s sale, which was scheduled for April, was canceled amid the pandemic.
It takes 500 volunteers to put the event on — and they’re rewarded with access to early morning cinnamon rolls.
This story was originally published July 2, 2021 at 11:14 AM.
.jpg)