Native Cuisine Explosion by FJBits concepts

INDIAN COUNTRY TODAY

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2010

Native cuisine EXPLOSION PHOTO COURTESY ASHLEE WETHERINGTON /WWW.VEGGIEBYSEASON.COM

TTOURISM PHOTO COURTESY CIRCLING RAVEN GOLF CLUB

Hole 6 at Idaho’s Circling Raven Golf Club is a Par 4 named “sts’u’shis hanlamqe’ which means bear paw. The hole is 317 yards from the white tee with a rating/slope of 74.8/140. Since opening for its first full season in 2004, Circling Raven has continued to climb the rankings of major golf magazines.

Success amidst the storm Tribes buck economic trends to grow business, build for the future Staff reports

he Coeur d’Alene Tribe doesn’t claim to have all the answers. But it does know one thing for sure: The procedures and strategies put in place before the recession at the Coeur d’Alene Casino Resort in Idaho have paid off handsomely. For proof, take a look at Circling Raven Golf Club, the highly acclaimed amenity of the resort whose tee sheet has been filled to near capacity all summer. Further evidence is provided in between the casino and the golf course, where crews are diligently working on an $85 million expansion project. Despite breaking ground in the middle of the country’s economic downfall, the endeavor is well ahead of

schedule with an anticipated spring 2011 opening. “We have tremendous confidence in the future here, on the reservation and across the inland Northwest,” said Coeur d’Alene Chairman Chief James Allan. “This expansion is a powerful statement to that effect. We are committed toward long-term success and sustainability in this economy.” Having a top-notch golf course to serve as a main attraction has certainly helped. Since opening for its first full season in 2004, Circling Raven has continued to climb the rankings of major golf magazines – from “Top-100 lists of Courses You Can Play,” to “Resort Courses” and “Casino Courses.” Bookings are up more than 15 percent compared to last year at the course and its success has played a vital role in the

resort’s continued development. And the Coeur d’Alenes aren’t alone. Other tribal nations across the country are using golf as a stepping stone for growth and prosperity, two words that have been practically nonexistent elsewhere in the industry. A similar development was recently completed at Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton, Wash., which is owned and operated by the Squaxin Island Tribe. The resort doubled the amount of rooms it can offer to 190, adding to the allure of its Indian-style gaming casino that features more than 1,000 slots and table games. In addition, the new Skookum Creek Event Center is an on-site 22,500-square-foot venue that attracts live concerts, comedy acts and cage-fighting bouts. And in the spring of 2011, another vital piece of the project is expected to be completed when the new Salish Cliffs Golf Club is unveiled. See SUCCESS page 13

Telling ‘our story’ through tourism By Wilhelm Murg Today correspondent LAWTON, Okla. – For decades, travel agencies and tourism boards have used local Indian tribes in their marketing without giving anything back. The Comanche Nation has found a way to turn that around so the

tribes benefit from the tourism by setting up Native Journeys, a company devoted to creating bus tours and working as booking agents for other tribes. “We are under the arm of Comanche economic development and a couple of the commissioners were really into tourism, so one of them

PHOTO COURTESY GENEVA HEDLEY

The Comanche Nation has found a way to benefit from tourism by setting up Native Journeys, a company devoted to creating bus tours and working as booking agents for other tribes. Some of the tours include “Eastern Trails,” “Lords of the Plains,” “Cultural Destinations,” and “Western Native Trails.” For more information visit http://NativeJourneys.biz.

had me draw up a plan to get the business started,” said Geneva Hadley, one of the employees who runs Native Journeys. “We got some money in our budget, they opened a bank account for us about two years ago, and it took us a year of getting our foot in the door, networking, and joining the various organizations, then we started doing our tours.” With the mission statement “Promoting cultural and traditional awareness through Native American travel and tourism,” the company offers extended tours on the Comanche Tribe’s buses. “We have many different tour packages. One is the ‘Eastern Trails,’ one is called ‘Lords of the Plains,’ which deals with our area, dealing with the Comanches. We also have ‘Cultural Destinations,’ which also deals with the Comanches down by Amarillo; and we have ‘Western Native Trails.’ Last year we did a tour called ‘Northern Exposure,’ and that was our tour to the Northwest territory, like Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota – that was a nine day tour. We have anywhere from 15 to 40 people per tour.” They offer one tour that See STORY page 13

Chef looks to disassemble the one-size-fits-all concept By Lee Allen Today correspondent

he recent Arizona Governor’s Conference on Tourism in Tucson offered up traditional break-out sessions – seminars on such standard items as “How to Overcome a Down Market” or “Brighter Days Ahead” and “An Inside Look at International Markets.” Deviating from the routine roundtables, however, was one storyboard placard that read: “What’s the one thing that every traveler (or human being) has in common? We all have to eat.” Moderated by the president of the Arizona Restaurant Association, a panel of five foodies stood prepared to expound on “the endless ways to tell the culinary story.” One panel member, attired in a white chef’s jacket and hat, was there on a two-fold mission – not only to tell the culinary story at large, but to specifically “deconstruct current concepts of Native American cuisine and redefine its definition.”

Chef Freddie Bitsoie, a member of the Diné tribe, decided early on as a student that a career as an anthropologist was not in his future, although his studies did teach him the true meaning of culture and a new favorite word – ethnocentrism. With a lab coat and brown tweed jacket no longer waiting, personal interest propelled him to study art history and ancient cultures, a path that continued to narrow on food issues of ancient Puebloan societies. To compare and contrast his writings on pre-Hispanic American food culture, he opted for attendance at culinary school to learn accepted techniques of cooking. With a rising popularity of a concept called Native American Cuisine, he had found his calling. But it came with some consternation. “French people eat French food and Italian people eat Italian food. Does that mean that all Native Americans eat Native American food?” he asked and then answered: “It’s not that simple. See FOOD page 13

Menu inspirations from Chef Freddie Bitsoie / page 13

Indian mounds offer glimpse of Mississippi history By Jerry Mitchell The Clarion-Ledger NATCHEZ, Miss. (AP) – Want to peek into Mississippi’s distant past? Visit Indian mounds located across the state. “The mounds are a real visible reminder that there were people here before us,” said Jim Barnett, director of historic properties division of the state Department of Archives and History. A trip across the state can bring visitors face to face with a dozen Indian mounds that have been preserved by state officials or National Park Service officials. There’s no admission charge to visit any of the mounds or related museums across the state. “They’re remnants of an earlier American Indian culture before Europeans came,” Barnett said.

He operates the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians, a National Historic Landmark that is open here each day to visitors, except holidays. “Grand Village is the only site that was still being used as a ceremonial site when Europeans arrived,” he said. In 1682, the French explorer LaSalle met with the tribal chief of the Natchez Indians, but the Natchez soon found themselves caught in the conflict between France and England, Barnett said. After the French began to seize some of the Indian lands, the Natchez in 1729 attacked Fort Rosalie, killing most of the French soldiers there. In response, the French slaughtered most of the Natchez, selling a few hundred into slavery while See HISTORY page 13

Children’s Social Pow Wow By Lee Allen Today correspondent TUCSON, Ariz. – Tucson is one of those once-small Western towns that has grown up – with a current population that now exceeds one million desert dwellers who wrestle with all the attendant problems that growth brings – from water supply issues to growing crime rates. But the big town is still a small town at least when it comes to a free annual event known as the Children’s Social Pow Wow, cosponsored by Tucson Children’s Museum and the Tucson Indian Center. This is a day of food, dancing, song, arts and crafts, wellness displays, and

demonstrations at the museum. Now in its ninth year, the event was first held in 2002 shortly after the museum’s marketing director, Peggy Solis, began her job. “As with most nonprofits, you tend to wear a lot of hats and even though my job title was in public relations, I had worked on pow wows before at University of California Davis and doing graduate work at the University of Arizona, so I wasn’t unfamiliar with the concept. While the concept wasn’t unfamiliar to me, being in charge of such an event was, and Year One was quite a challenge.” With the help of family, friends, and cocoordinator Kim Traversie from the Indian Center, the first pow wow was pulled together in relatively short order. The somewhat brief presentation, limited to just a few dancers and a single drum, took place on the museum’s front lawn and drew less than 200

attendees. “But it allowed us to find our footing,” Solis said. The following year, the Tucson Indian Center decided the event would be a natural fit and came on board as an integral part of the program. “While it takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a village to prepare and present a pow wow and the extra hands made work lighter. Back then, only a very few sites, like Santa Fe Children’s Museum, were doing a social pow wow event, so this was a fresh idea and a great opportunity for us to join with TIC to invite the community to share in something the Indian Center was familiar with.” “We’re now well attended,” Solis said. See CHILDREN page 13

The 2010 pow wow is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 2, from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., at the Safford School Athletic Field directly across from the Children’s Museum, 200 S. 6th Ave., Tucson. Visit www.tucsonchildrensmuseum.org for more information.

PHOTOS COURTESY NANCY SMITH-JONES

The Children’s Social Pow Wow – now in its ninth year – is a free event co-sponsored by Tucson Children’s Museum and the Tucson Indian Center.

INDIAN COUNTRY TODAY, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2010

Success: Tribes buck economic trends, build future from page 12

SION PHOTO COURTESY NANCY SMITH-JONES

Unlike competitive pow wows – that have categories with prize money for exhibition dancing, singing, and drumming – social pow wows, like the Children’s Social Pow Wow held in Tucson, revolve more around the concept of a family gathering that invites an afternoon of dancing, singing and intertribal interaction.

Children: Social from page 12 “Somewhere between 1,000 and 1,200 spectators show up each year and as the event has grown in popularity, we’ve had to relocate it a couple of times to accommodate the larger crowds. We don’t want our reach to exceed our grasp and come to a point where we’ve lost control and can’t wrap our arms around it any more. Right now, where it’s at, we can grow it a bit more and still have it be manageable.” Grand Entry for last year’s four-hour afternoon event got underway at 1 p.m. with Master of Ceremonies Derrick Suwaima Davis (a Hopi-Choctaw champion hoop dancer) at the microphone introducing and explaining the events about to unfold. Host drum duties were performed by Comanche Red of Phoenix while Joseph “JoJo” Cooper III, Pima/Navajo, performed as Head Boy Dancer with Tohono O’odham-Navajo arena director Ryan Rumley making sure all performances ran smoothly. “Last year we affiliated with the Southwest Gourd Society and began things a bit differently by kicking off the event with a Gourd Dance honoring veterans,” Solis said. “The pow wow changes each year as new groups, different activities, new songs and dances are added. There is no master blueprint, so there’s really no one to tell us we can’t do something new.” additions have Recent included food booths and arts and crafts exhibitions and community demonstrations. The

event also serves as a Wellness Fair. “We’ve expanded our focus and activities around the theme of wellness, especially with the children, and we’ve brought in arena game events with activity-connected prizes, things like basketballs, footballs, and soccer balls to promote future exercise activity.” While competitive pow wows have categories with prize money for exhibition dancing, singing, and drumming, social pow wows revolve more around the concept of a family gathering that invites an afternoon of dancing, singing and intertribal interaction. “Visitors get to watch various types of pow wow dancers, the different regalia that accompanies each, and the distinct singing of northern and southern style songs,” Solis said. “Spectators also have the opportunity to participate in intertribal and round dances and because we put the focus on the kids, many of them join us in the dancing.” School groups are invited to staff food booths as a fundraising project and because the activities are held on a school ground, any rental cost expenditures are also to the community. The Tucson Indian Center’s central mission is “to strengthen the American Indian community by honoring and preserving Native American values and traditions” and sponsors of the Children’s Social Pow Wow feel their event does just that. “People leave with a smile,” Solis said.

Food: Native cuisine from page 12 “Food is a product of culture and all Native American cultures are different, so how can all Native foods be the same? Within my own Navajo culture, food preferences and preparation differ and the differences of food culture between various tribes throughout the Americas become even more pronounced.” Bitsoie wants to disassemble the one-size-fits-all concept and by combining aspects of history and anthropology, reassemble ancient foodways, similarities and differences, to honor the old and adapt past ingredients and techniques into modern kitchens. “It’s through the old stories that we learn how to respect food, respect culture, and con-

tinue to preserve our way of life,” said Bitsoie, who directs the Native American Program at the Classic Cooking Academy in Scottsdale. “Native tribes throughout the Americas need to be respected for their culturally-specific foods and unique dishes they gave to the world without being placed into one generic category of Native American Food.” Once he warms to his subject, it’s like taking a slow boil and turning it up to a flaming sauté. “Nowadays, the trend is to hang Native American rugs and baskets and other types of Native art on a restaurant wall, serve salmon with a butter sauce and bison with blue cheese, tomato tart, and a cake dessert and call

Menu inspirations

hef Freddie Bitsoie prepares his authentic Native American menus customized to the region and specific to the cultures in that region. This is a Four Corners menu to be prepared in a professional setting. “I feel that dishes like these have substance to where elders can taste them and know these are versions of dishes they have had most of their lives.” Salads and Starters v Green chili relleno with New Mexican-style sweet red chile sauce v Hominy salad, micro greens with white wine vinaigrette on prosciutto

Entrees v Ute style breaded venison over mashed potatoes with sage sauce and julienne vegetables v Navajo herb-rubbed roasted Colorado lamb with juniper sauce, blue corn cake with pine nuts, caramelized onion and fennel v Chimayo style red chile rubbed port, spicy corn and green chile salsa and pureed root vegetables with sautéed squash v Braised Bison short ribs with mashed butternut squash and sautéed haricots verts with garlic and shallot Desserts v Pumpkin bread pudding with pine nuts and vanilla ice cream

Industry pundits who have previewed the Gene Bates design are touting it as a shoo-in for “best-in-class” honors. Then there’s Island Resort & Casino, tucked away on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Two hours north of Green Bay, the resort is owned and operated by the Hannahville Indian Community, a band of the Potawatomi Nation. The property has more than survived tough economic times, adding Sweetgrass Golf Club last year. The newest amenity of the resort immediately garnered national accolades, including a spot on Golf Digest’s list of “America’s Best New Courses.” The par-72, 7,300yard Paul Albanese championship design also rose to No. 14 on Golfweek’s bestto-play-in-state list, six spots higher than 2009. “The course really opened up a new market for us,” said Island Resort & Casino General Manager Tom McChesney of Sweetgrass, which also made Golfweek’s Top 10 list of new public courses in 2009 and had the second lowest greens fee of all the courses on the list. “When we started building Sweetgrass almost five years ago we had no idea what was going to happen to the economy. The addition of Sweetgrass allows us to add another outstanding offering for our customers while providing a much needed growth

opportunity for the complex.” The solid footing will also give way to a newly expanded conference center, which broke ground at the end of July. While being able to offer a topnotch golf course as an amenity has certainly benefited these two resorts, the manner in which the management teams planned ahead and made adjustments well before the economy tailed off is the primary reason both not only survived, but continue to flourish. “Customers demand more value,” explained Circling Raven Director of Golf Tom Davidson, who was named Merchandiser of the Year in the PGA Northwest Section for a second straight year, the fourth time since the course’s first full season in 2004. “One saving grace is that we were already well-positioned in the value category, thanks to the golf course, which made it a little easier to keep the integrity of our rates intact.” The expansion project at the CDA Casino Resort will add to the property’s opulence with nearly 100 new hotel rooms, including two wings overlooking the golf course. Other elements of the project include more casino space, a fitness center, a gourmet steakhouse, a centerpiece bar, a 15,000square-foot spa and a vast “front yard” that will offer a natural amphitheater for concerts and other outdoor events. The Coeur d’Alene Tribe – which is already one of

North Idaho’s largest employers – is set to hire an additional 200 workers after the expansion project is completed. Building and expanding during a recession is a dicey proposition, but McChesney points out that Sweetgrass became a reality because the resort started to plan for a recession a lot sooner than others in the industry. “We anticipated that a downturn was coming,” said McChesney, who has been with the resort for 14 years. “We took some steps to tighten our belts well over a year ago. We downsized and made it a lean operation well before we had to and that was one of the keys that has helped us sail right through the tough times.” The casino made it a point to take the employees that it retained and retrain them with a focus on customer service. It also increased its advertising efforts rather than backing off, and it marketed itself as an “entertainment venue” rather than simply a “gaming venue.” It offered concerts in a new 1,300seat showroom with fewer acts that cost less, but still drew big crowds, such as REO Speedwagon, Grand Funk Railroad and Rick Springfield. It also took full advantage of its new golf course by offering special “Stay & Play” packages, which have seen an 83 percent year-to-year increase in 2010. Equally important, according to McChesney, the casino

concentrated on keeping the customers already on its gaming floor, while still trying to attract new ones from both within and outside of its market area. “We want our existing customers to know how important they are to our success,” said McChesney, whose marketing team estimates that 57 percent of its customers come from Wisconsin-Illinois markets, a third of which stay at least one night in the 275-room hotel. “I think a mistake a lot of casinos make is to concentrate all their efforts trying to get new customers and they take their existing ones for granted. Our philosophy has always been to highly value the customers you have and to cherish each new one.” And if those customers happen to be golfers, all the better. “Circling Raven is already well-established as one of the premier golf experiences in the United States,” said CDA Casino Resort CEO David LaSarte Meeks. “Now we can complement its success and acclaim with the expansion and the added amenities, which will allow us to market nationwide and overseas. “Yes, these are difficult and uncertain times with the economy, but our expansion moves forward to complete a true destination resort, all with expectations that the economy will improve and that opportunities here will continue to grow.”

PHOTO COURTESY LITTLE CREEK CASINO RESORT

Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton, Wash., which is owned and operated by the Squaxin Island Tribe, recently doubled the amount of rooms it can offer to 190, adding to the allure of its Indian-style gaming casino that features more than 1,000 slots and table games. In addition, the new Skookum Creek Event Center is an on-site 22,500-square-foot venue that attracts live concerts, comedy acts and cage-fighting bouts.

Story: Told through tourism from page 12 is based around the Oklahoma casinos, but all of the others are site-seeing tours. “We customize tours also,” said Ruth Toahty, the other person in charge of Native Journeys. “A couple of months ago, we did a tour for the educators of the American Cancer Society. It was a cultural tour of our area the menu Native American. Why? Because all the ingredients are native to the Americas? Well, just because a dish has native ingredients doesn’t make it a true Native dish. “I’m trying to promote the concept to professionals that if they serve what they call Native foods, they need to sell the dishes based on a secular menu such as June berry pudding or corn dumplings and serve them accordingly. Just because a menu has bison tenderloin, prickly pear buds, pine nuts and blue corn polenta doesn’t make it Native American – although it comes closer to a ‘Nativeinspired’ menu.” Bitsoie recognizes the journey of 1,000 miles must start with a few halting steps and he’s hopeful that process has begun. “I’m trying to help build a formal definition for a cuisine that currently has one identity for over 500 different cultures. I know it sounds like I’m trying to change a segment of the culinary world and teach a very old dog new tricks, but simply put, foods from American Native tribes are becoming more and more popular and I want to see every tribe represented correctly. … rather than throwing all Native efforts into one grouping. “The fact that the U.S. is a melting pot of cultures and cuisines, in that process we’ve lost some respect and reverence for originality and independence with small tribes in the Western hemisphere. Saying ‘Native American cuisine’ is like saying Italian or Asian cuisine that generalizes and throws all ingredients and stereotypes into one pot. My mission is to give smaller tribes a reason to be proud of the unique food they create.”

called ‘Crossing the Tribal Paths,’ which was very interesting, as it dealt a lot with Fort Sill. “We are also offering customized tours for other tribes. We have been to Eastern Oklahoma to try to partner with the Chickasaws, the Choteaus, and the Cherokees, and we have also been trying to get the tribes around here to get involved, because there doesn’t seem to be that much

tourism in our area. Not that many people seem to understand how to go about starting tourism. We have had to learn that path ourselves, which is why it took us a year to get our foot in the door. “We are in the Great Plains area and we’re trying to work with them to get a package going that is not just Native culture, it’s all types of tourism; but when it comes to Native culture, that’s

when we come in. Right now with the summer months, we also work on travel accommodations. We’re working directly with the tribes to make travel arrangements for their conferences and personal vacations, so we do all of that too, like a travel agent.” “Our ultimate goal is international travel, to bring international travelers to Oklahoma,” Hadley said. “We’re just starting to get our foot in the door, but with budget cuts, it’s been really hard to move forward, but we‘ll get there.” For more information visit http://NativeJourneys.biz.

History: Glimpsed in mounds from page 12 others fled to live with the Cherokee and Creek tribes. “There still are Natchez descendants,” Barnett said. A dozen miles northeast, just off the Natchez Trace Parkway, is the Emerald Mound, believed to have been built some time before 1600 A.D. It is the second largest temple mound in the U.S., with the first largest being Monks Mound in Cahokia, Ill. When visitors arrive at the Emerald Mound, they’ll notice what looks like a huge levee in the middle of the woods. Excavations have shown this was once a tall hill that the ancestors of the Natchez Indians, the Mississippians, flattened into an area almost as large as two football fields. The largest mound at one end is 30 feet high, prompting the National Park Service to add a ladder for visitors to climb. Barnett recommends visualizing structures on top of each of the mounds. Unlike mounds built thousands of years earlier strictly for burial purposes, these mounds probably had structures on top of them, including sacred buildings or homes of high-ranking officials, he said. In the modern day, Emerald Mound still serves a useful purpose, he said. “It’s a good place to watch a lunar eclipse.” Emerald Mound is one of a number of Indian mounds that can be found along the Natchez Trace Parkway. The Pharr

Mounds is a group of eight burial mounds, believed to have been built before 200 A.D., that can be seen from the parkway 23 miles north of Tupelo. Just off U.S. 49 at Pocahantas is the Pocahantas Mound, which was believed to have been built before 1300 A.D. A former village surrounded the site that is now part of the roadside park. North of Philadelphia is Nanih Waiya Mound; for Choctaws, legend holds that the tribe was born there, making it sacred ground. Six miles north of Greenville on Mississippi 1 is another National Historic Site, the Winterville Mounds Park and Museum, which features 11 mounds. “It’s the biggest mound group in Mississippi,” said branch director Mark Howell. “The tallest is 55 feet, and the average height is larger than any group.” Recent excavations by the University of Southern Mississippi show Indians brought in six feet of dirt to level the area before building the mounds sometime in the 13th century, he said. The building of the mound appears to have been influenced by the tribe that lived in Cahokia, across the river from modernday St. Louis, he said. Apparently the Indians came down the river and influenced a building boom, he said. The Winterville museum features pottery, stone tools and ornaments from that era.

From Nov. 3 – 6, the museum is hosting Native American Days that will include dancing, stickball, and activities for children, Howell said. The dozen mounds that people can visit publicly are just a fraction of the 1,200 or so mounds across Mississippi, said David Abbott, staff archaeologist for the Department of Archives and History. Mississippi officials have been working to create an Indian mounds trail for some years, but they’ve lacked the funding to do so, he said. The sad part is a number of the mounds that once existed are no more, he said. For instance, the Blaine Mound in Byram was recently destroyed to build a neighborhood. John Connaway, an archaeologist with Archives and History, said an 1890 Smithsonian map of the Carson Mounds in Coahoma County showed 89 mounds. Only six are left today. “If it had been preserved, it might be the second largest mound group in North America,” he said. In the past, there may have been twice as many Indian mounds as there are today, said Jessica Crawford of Marks, southeastern regional director for the Archaeological Conservancy, which has bought 13 pieces of property in Mississippi to preserve mounds. “Mississippi may have a higher concentration of mounds than any other state.”