What better way to experience the Sunflower State's unique character than through its food? Kansas is among America's primary producers of beef, wheat and sunflowers. And Kansas cooks and innovators know how to make the best use of this bounty in restaurants and bakeries across the state. Melt-in-your-mouth breads and pastries are as easy to find as fork-tender steaks.

You also can take home Kansas foods (and/or order later by mail or online). The variety may surprise you. Apple orchards, u-pick produce farms and roadside markets dot the eastern half of the state, and Kansas now claims more than a dozen wineries. Taste the Sunflower State's best when you travel, and try this sampling of recipes at home.

Beef from the Range

Windy Hill Charolais Ranch seems more like a petting zoo than a working cattle spread. Barn kittens jostle for position to get petted, as Donna Hodgins leads a guest through her farm lot just south of Concordia (50 miles north of Salina).

Perched on an old swingset, a peacock rooster flashes his multicolored tail in salute, and little guinea hens strut around searching for bugs. On the hill behind the house, the family's 25 head of white Charolais cattle graze on spring grass.

Donna attends school full-time and her husband, John, works at a job in town. They also tend their 160-acre spread because they were raised on farms and love the life. Windy Hill is a classic, old-fashioned farm. The couple raise cattle naturally, butcher two or three each year and sell the meat from their house.

Beef is big in Kansas, on small acreages and giant prairie ranches. In central Kansas, nearly 1 million head fatten up on Flint Hills ranges each summer. Across the state, more than 7 million head are brought to market each year. Giant feedlots line the approaches to Dodge City and Garden City in southwestern Kansas.

You can always find a great steak in Kansas!

But cattle don't entirely own the range. Douglas Brant blends Sunflower State pork into the bologna and smoked sausages he sells at Brants Meat Market along the main street in tiny Lucas (60 miles northwest of Salina).

Linda Hubalek raises more than 60 head of buffalo on the family farm just northeast of Lindsborg (20 miles south of Salina). Her buffalo are the entertainment for visitors who take wagon rides into the pastures, and meat from the big animals is the main course at Saturday "Evenings with the Buffalo."

Recipes: 

Smoky Hill Bison Meatloaf

Windy Hill Stir-Fried Beef and Vegetables

Produce from Fields and Farms

"Now there's a beautiful piece of asparagus," says John Pendleton, reaching a big hand down into a razor-straight row of lime-green stalks as erect as soldiers on parade. It's mid-April, and in less than a week, John and his wife, Karen, will unleash a hungry horde onto 5 of their 20 acres of asparagus (three miles east of Lawrence). The Pendletons also grow spinach, greenhouse tomatoes, vegetables and flowers for their market. Pendleton's Country Market stands in the shadow of a big double silo on the family farm in the Kansas River Valley, which once produced wheat, soybeans and corn. Like many Kansas farmers, the Pendletons have diverted a portion of their fertile land to help satisfy an ever-increasing demand for fresh produce and fruit. They and other growers also sell their produce at the Farmers Market in Lawrence. You can pick up a guide to more area farms at the Lawrence Visitors Center. In north-central Kansas, Dan Kuhn moved Courtland's century-old railroad depot to US-36 about a mile north of town (80 miles northwest of Salina).

The Depot Market & Cider Mill sells 5-1/2 acres worth of apples and tomatoes. Brown's Honey Farm supplies honey for the market, and bees to pollinate the apple trees.

In the state's moist eastern half, you're never far from an orchard or farm market. Increasingly, vineyards dot the countryside.

North of Salina, the grapevines of the Smoky Hill Vineyards & Winery wrap around a hillside. Once a month in the dining room, owner Norm Jennings serves gourmet winemakers' dinners combining area produce and meat with his award-winning wines.

Brown's Honey Farm Cherry-Honey Pie

The largest honey operation in Kansas is this collection of hives near Haddam (100 miles northwest of Salina). Owned by Jerry and Donette Brown, this fourth-generation business is famous for its pure, sweet elixir that adds a special touch to a variety of foods, especially baked goods. When the mood strikes the Browns for an old-fashioned cherry pie, Jerry and Donette stir up this family recipe, which showcases their delicate honey.

1 cup honey 1/3 cup cornstarch 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup water 5 cups fresh or frozen pitted tart red cherries 2 teaspoons butter, melted 1 15-ounce package rolled refrigerated piecrust (2) Vanilla ice cream (optional) For filling: In a medium saucepan, combine honey, cornstarch and salt, stirring until mixture is smooth. Stir in water. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 1 minute more. Remove from heat. Stir in cherries. Set aside and let stand while preparing piecrust. For piecrust: Follow the package directions. Line a 9-inch pie plate with one piecrust. Brush the bottom crust with melted butter.

Nutrition facts : 441 cal, 15 g fat, 13 mg chol, 246 mg sodium, 77 g carbo, 2 g fiber, 2 g pro.

Recipes: 

Pendleton's Spiced Rhubarb Cake


Wheat from the Breadbasket

If you were paying attention in grade school, you already know that Kansas is the nation's breadbasket. Translated into numbers, that's nearly 10 million acres producing more than 420 million bushels of wheat destined for those towering, white grain elevators you can see all over the state. The simple truth is that Kansans not only know how to grow wheat better than anyone else, they're also champs at using the harvest. In tiny Gorham (15 miles east of Hays) the cinnamon rolls at the cafe are the size of dinner plates.  Wheat growers Shirley and David Voran blend wheat nubs and sunflower seeds with caramel and chocolate to create delectable "Cow Patti's" at Kansas Wheat House in Cimarron (20 miles west of Dodge City). They also sell snacks and pancake mixes. The Kansas Wheat Commission Web site includes wheat facts, recipes and a list of shops and eateries in the state known for baked goods.

Sunflower Pumpkin Muffins

Hailing as they do from the Sunflower State, Kansas cooks have a knack for creatively including crunchy sunflower seed kernels in all sorts of delicious treats. For example, these tender pumpkin morsels were passed along to us by the American Institute of Baking (a facility dedicated to the craft and science of baking) in Manhattan. The muffins get a double dose of flavor from both sunflower oil and the seeds.

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup sunflower oil or cooking oil
2/3 cup shelled sunflower seeds
Streusel Topping (recipe follows)

Lightly grease twelve 2-1/2-inch muffin cups; set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture.

In another medium bowl, combine egg, milk, pumpkin, brown sugar and oil. Add all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in sunflower seeds.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each three-fourths full. Sprinkle batter with Streusel Topping. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in muffin cups on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove from muffin cups; serve warm. Makes 12 muffins.

Streusel Topping: In a small bowl, stir together 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour and 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon. Cut in 3 tablespoons of butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in 2 tablespoons shelled sunflower seeds.

Nutrition facts: 295 cal, 14 g fat, 27 mg chol, 159 mg sodium, 39 g carbo, 3 g fiber, 6 g pro.

Smoky Hill Vineyards & Winery Sweet Lady Scones

"This recipe is a winner for a brunch or afternoon tea," says Vickie Frost-Humphries, kitchen manager of the Smoky Hill Vineyards & Winery in Salina. Vicki uses Smoky Hill Sweet Lady, an aromatic sweet white wine produced by the winery, when baking scones. Its sweet, fruity flavor complements the cranberries and ginger.

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup dried cranberries or dried currants
1/4 cup finely snipped crystallized ginger
1 beaten egg
1/4 cup Smoky Hill Vineyards & Winery Sweet Lady wine or other sweet white wine or apple juice
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon whipping cream
2 teaspoons granulated sugar

In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cranberries and ginger. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture; set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the egg, wine and the 1/2 cup whipping cream. Add the egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Using a fork, stir just until moistened.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough by folding and gently pressing for 10 to 12 strokes or until dough is nearly smooth. Pat or lightly roll until 1/2 inch thick. Using a floured 2-1/2-inch biscuit cutter, cut into 10 scones.

Place the scones 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush with the 1 tablespoon whipping cream and sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake the scones in a 400 degree oven for 12 to 14 minutes or until golden. Remove the scones from the baking sheet and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Makes 10 scones.

Nutrition facts: 279 cal, 13 g fat, 59 mg chol, 320 mg sodium, 36 g carbo, 1 g fiber, 4 g pro.

Smoky Hill Vineyards & Winery Roast Beef, Walnut & Blue Cheese Tea Sandwiches

Mild-flavored walnuts add a surprising accent to the sharp, tangy blue cheese in this spread. Winery chefs add a touch of Smoky Hill Prairie Sunset, a sweet blush wine that adds a subtle, sweet finish.

1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese, softened 1/4 cup butter, softened 2 tablespoons Smoky Hill Prairie Sunset wine or other semi-sweet rosé wine or apple juice 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts, toasted 8 thin slices firm-texture sunflower, white and/or wheat bread 8 ounces thinly sliced cooked beef Fresh micro greens and tiny herbs, edible flowers, watercress leaves, radish slices and chive blossoms In a small bowl, stir together blue cheese, butter and wine until well mixed. Stir in the walnuts. Trim the crusts from the bread. Spread cheese mixture on 1 side of each bread slice. Top 4 slices with meat. Top with remaining bread slices, cheese side down. Cut each sandwich diagonally into quarters to form bread triangles. If you like, garnish with fresh micro greens and tiny herbs. Makes 16 tea sandwiches.

German Steam Buns