Key Lime Cake!

*Recipe adapted from cuisinart.com 

Key Limes are in season and we have them at Pete's! One of my favorite recipes is for this three-layer key lime cake with cream cheese frosting.  It takes a TON of little tiny key limes to get enough juice, but it's worth the work. Make sure you have an electric juicer and a good-quality microplane, or you will have carpal tunnel before the oven is even pre-heated. The frosting alone is to die for! I made a batch and a half, which left a LOT left over, which keeps well in the fridge and is perfect for binging on with graham crackers!

Shopping list for cake:

21/2 c. flour
2 c. white sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
3 eggs
1 c. canola oil
1 cup key lime juice (freshly squeezed)
¾ cup sour cream
2 T. key lime zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray 3 nine inch round cake pans with non stick baking spray.  In a stand mixer bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. To the dry mixture add eggs, oil and lime juice. Mix on medium until creamy, about one minute and remember to scrape the sides. Lastly add sour cream and zest just mix until combined and smooth, also about a minute. 

Pour cake batter evenly into cake pans and bake for about 25 to 35 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.

When done allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes and then turn cakes out onto cooling racks let stand to cool completely about 1 hour .

Shopping list for frosting:

2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese softened
¾ c. butter, softened
2 T. milk
1 T. key lime zest
¼ c. key lime juice
1 T. vanilla extract
2 ½ lbs confectioners’ (powdered) sugar

In a mixer cream together cream cheese and butter. Then add milk mix on high for about 30 seconds then put mixer on low. Then add vanilla and key lime juice while mixing and slowly add confectioners’ sugar mix until creamy and spreadable, fold in zest and ice cake. 

This would also make darling cupcakes if a layer cake seems too putzy!

Enjoy!

Megan

Bridal bouquets and more!

Hi! I'm Judy Ivers, the manager of the Floral Department here at Pete's County Market. I've been in the floral business for over 20 years, and it seems like things are always changing- especially when it comes to trends in bridal flowers.

This week, I got to spend a day at a Bridal Designs Class at Len Bush Roses, one of our great suppliers out of the Twin Cities.  It was fun, exciting, and really interesting to learn how to create the amazing floral looks found on Pinterest and bridal magazines!

Take a peek and let me know what you think!  We can do beautiful hand-tied bouquets, elaborate cascade bouquets, boutonnieres and corsages, even arrangements for your little flower girls. No wedding is to big or  too small for  us to handle!

Brides are often surprised at everything we can do for them at Pete's- whether it's their flowers, catering, or cake. We can help you save a lot of time and a lot of money by working together under one roof for all those services.

If you want to set up a time to chat, stop in or give me a call at 320-762-1158 and we can sit down together and plan the flowers of your dreams!

Enjoy!

Judy

Zucchini, Tomatoes, and Basil! Oh my!

I will be honest. I have no idea what to call this, other than amazing.

Shopping list:

7-10 small zucchini

1 pint grape tomatoes

Garlic

Olive Oil

1 container fresh basil

1 cup (or so) walnuts

1 container reduced-fat feta cheese

*WW Points Plus value of 9 per serving. The pesky walnuts add 6 points! They really do make this good,  but you could certainly skip them if you want.

Wash the zucchini and using a vegetable peeler, slice into thin ribbons.

Wash the tomatoes and cut them all in half.

Wash the basil and chop.

In a large sautee pan, warm a tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of chopped garlic, all the zucchini, and all the tomatoes. Cook for 5-7 minutes, until the zucchini is tender. Stir in the basil, some salt and pepper.

THERE! You're mostly done-ish!

Top each serving with a handful of walnuts and a generous sprinkle of feta.

Uff da, it's good stuff. And you can feel virtuous eating something so healthy!!!

Try it  and let me know what you think!

Enjoy!

Megan

Panzanella. Sort of.

Shopping list:

1 loaf Vienna, French, or Italian bread

1 pkg. fresh basil

1/2 a purple onion

1 Tbsp (or so) minced garlic

8 tomatoes

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

Salt & pepper

So... before the red blooded Italians start sending me hate mail, I KNOW this is not really how you make Panzanella.  Traditional Panzanella is made with stale Italian bread which you tear up and soak in water before you mix up the salad.  This seems so wrong. As in, "Crime Against Humanity" wrong.

But you know what's so RIGHT?  Toasty, golden brown cubes of toast which soak up just enough juice from the tomatoes to be soft enough to stab with a fork as you shovel it into your face as fast as you can without attracting stares. Yep. THAT good.

Check this out.

 

First, I take a big loaf of some sort of white bread from the bakery- at Pete's, I love to use the unsliced Vienna bread, but Italian and French bread all work beautifully.  This bread is fairly soft, so if you have an electric knife, this is a great time to break it out. You'll thank me.  Cut it up into roughly 3/4 inch cubes and lay them out on two big sheet pans. You can drizzle them with olive oil or, if you're lazy like myself, give them a generous spray with Pam Olive Oil spray. It really is just olive oil, and works great on stuff like this. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and stick the pans in a 350 degree oven until nice and toasty. Keep an eye on them, because they can get REALLY brown REALLY fast. When they look good to you, take our the pans and let them cool. (Protip: These are basically just croutons. Perfect for putting on salad or simply eating by the handful.)

Next, chop up a package of fresh basil leaves, half a purple onion, and as much garlic as you dare and put them in a BIG bowl.

Remember that electric knife you had out for the bread? You're going to be happy you have that out because now you're going to core and cut up EIGHT (or more) tomatoes. This is a fantastic way to use up tomatoes from your garden in August!

Throw the tomatoes in the bowl with the basil, onion, and garlic. Add about a 1/4 cup of red wine vinegar and 1/4 cup olive oil, salt and pepper.

If you can let this sit for an hour or so, that's perfect. But don't mix in the bread until right before you eat. It's no good as leftovers. If you want to have it later on, I like to put some of the tomato mixture in a Tupperware bowl, the bread in a Ziplock bag, and mix it together right before lunch.

My kids will happily polish off 2 or more plates FULL of this super duper healthy salad for supper and nothing else. I usually throw some chicken breasts or shrimp on the grill to go along with it.

Enjoy!

Megan

WW-Friendly Fish Tacos! 2 POINTS EACH!

This was really easy, fast, and yummy!

I had always eyed the Walden Farms line of "Zero Calorie" products with a wary eye. I'd pick them up, look at the ingredients, and decide I didn't need another nearly-full but forgotten bottle taking up space in my fridge. Then Judy, the Patron Saint of All That Is Natural and Organic insisted I try one. She suggested the Chipotle Ranch because it has a "little kick".

I was honestly surprised at how good it was! Not as thick as a traditional ranch, but it really has a nice tangy, spicy flavor. I had it on salad a few times, and then I decided to get creative.

"Now", she thought as she rubbed her hands together mischievously, "what shall I doooooo with it?"

The answer? Fish tacos! And just for the fun of it, lets make healthy ones. So I spent the better part of a morning comparing the nutritional value of every corn tortilla we carry at Pete's. (FYI- Corn tortillas can be found in about 4 different locations in the store. Don't be bashful about asking for help.)

The verdict? Mission Extra Thin Corn Tortillas (You'll find 'em in the Ethnic Foods Section in Aisle 3.) They come in at only ONE POINT per tortilla! (You're welcome. I know each point you can shave off is a small victory.)

Then I scoured the frozen foods department to find the best fish sticks per point. These Trident Ultimate Fish Sticks ended up being ONE POINT each!

All you have to do is bake the fish sticks, microwave the tortillas, and put those babies together! The Chipotle Ranch dressing really makes this awesome- don't skip it!

Garnish liberally with:

The cilantro adds a LOT of flavor- don't leave it out! If you want to be really fancy, serve it with a wedge of lime and grilled green onions!

Enjoy!

Megan

Pizza Margherita

I'm not sure if it's a new product or not, but I noticed these ready-made thin pizza crusts in the deli and bakery at Pete's. They're a great deal- $2.99 for three crusts!

So I had my kids help make our favorite- pizza margherita!  I sliced up some beautiful tomatoes and fresh basil, drizzled with good olive oil, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Then the best part- fresh mozzarella!!  At Pete's, you'll find this in the cheese section of the deli, and it's really best to use the real thing and not shredded.  It comes in a ball, and I cut it in half and then slice it in my egg slicer. Because I'm unapologetically lazy.

Throw it in a good hot oven for about 10 minutes, and  it is DONE, baby!

This crust is very very good- nice and crispy!  The tomatoes got a little watery, so if that bugs you, just drain the slices on paper towels for a bit before you put them on the crust. Or halved grape tomatoes would be great too!

Enjoy!

Megan

Radicchio!

These little guys aren't always in stock, and it's sometimes a puzzle what to do with them. Raw, these red cabbage-y guys are BITTER. Like, WOW bitter.

But when you grill them, they turn nutty and yummy and wonderful. Give this a shot!

Cut the radicchio through the core so they leaves stay attached- I started out cutting it in quarters, but ended up cutting it into eighths so that more surface area would be on the grill.

 

I drizzled them with a little olive oil and sprinkled generously with salt and pepper and laid those babies on the grill over medium flame.  WATCH THEM! Like, don't walk away! It only take a couple minutes and they go from raw to charred very fast! Once they look brown-ish, flip 'em on the other side until their brown-ness matches.

Bring them inside, chop them up a little, and drizzle with a good balsamic vinagrette? vignegrette? vinegrette? vinaigrette (thanks, google!) dressing and a handful of fresh parmesan.

 This is my attempt at a super-arty close-up photo. Humor me.

The radicchio loses a lot of the bitterness and takes on a nice nutty flavor. The kids may not love this, but if you feel like being a super-sophisticated grownup, this is easy enough to try out!

Enjoy!

Megan

No-Bake Lemon Curd Desserts

Are you freaking out about Easter right around the corner? Have you been so obsessed with ham and Easter eggs and chocolate bunnies, you haven't given dessert a thought?

Guess what. These two words are going to give you incredible peace of mind: LEMON CURD.

Oh... here's two more words you're going to love: NO BAKE.

Here's the formulas. You can't mess this up. Pinkie swear. In fact, print this out, give it to your kids, and put them to work!

Pssst... Lemon curd is one of those things you can't find everywhere. Save yourself a headache and find it in the baking aisle at Pete's County Market.  :)

Heavenly Lemon Ice Cream

Whip a pint of heavy whipping cream. Gently beat in half a can of sweetened condensed milk and two jars of lemon curd. Freeze. That's it. No ice cream machine. I used an ugly old cottage cheese container and put it the back of the freezer behind a big bag of peas. The family will never find it. Throw a few berries on top or a few thin crispy ginger cookies on the side and you can't go wrong!

Luscious Lemon Trifle

Find a great big pretty clear glass bowl. Got it? That was the hard part. Mix a jar of lemon curd with a container of Cool-Whip. Cut up an angel food cake from the bakery. Wash some berries. Layer to your hearts content.  Nifty, huh?

Darling Lemon Fruit Pizzas

Mix a jar of lemon curd with a block of cream cheese. Spread that lemony goodness on sugar cookies from the bakery. Top with your favorite fruit. Pat yourself on the back.

Fancy-Schmacy Lemon Cheesecake Tarts

Beat a jar of lemon curd with a block of softened cream cheese. Spoon into mini fillo shells (found in the frozen desserts section at Petes) and top with berries or fruit. They're definitely fancy, but also earned that extra "schmancy", don't you think?

Happy Easter!

Enjoy!

-Megan

Red Curry Soup

	RED CURRY SOUP

I love any and all Indian food, especially curry. Since there is a dearth of Indian restaurants in west central Minnesota, I keep my freezer stocked up on these amazing Amy’s vegetarian Indian meals. They’re SO good and addictive! (Find these in the Natural Foods section at Pete’s.)

But sometimes I just feel adventurous, so I tried my hand at improvising a great curry soup I had a few months ago.

Here’s what you need:

·         1 carton chicken stock

·         1 jar red curry sauce

Fun stuff to go in it. This is a GREAT time to use up leftovers if you got ‘em! I used:

·         A bag of prewashed spinach

·         A bunch of cilantro

·         A container of sliced mushrooms

·         A bag of julienned carrots

·         A bunch of scallions

·         A bag of bean sprouts

·         A box of rice noodles

·         A couple of limes

All I did was start the chicken stock boiling, added a handful of carrots and mushrooms, and once they were done I added a handful of rice noodles. Once the noodles were al dente, I poured in the curry. This alone was awesome! It had the lovely vibrant flavor of a great curry, but not very hot- so I knew the kiddos would eat it.

Here I’m going to segue into a blurb about tofu. I don’t eat it that often because, frankly, I don’t love it. But I know it’s really good for me and I feel pretty virtuous when I can sneak it into a dish like this.  The trick is to drain it. I got extra-firm tofu, and I drained off the water, layered it between some paper towels, and sandwiched it between a couple of plates with a can of soup on top.  After about half an hour, it had drained quite a bit so I chopped it up and sautéed it in some olive oil spray.  Here’s the evidence:

Once you have this broth ready, the fun part is deciding what you want in your bowl.

A little bit of everything, of course!

Then I just threw the hot broth and noodles on top to warm everything up!

When I make this again, I’ll use less noodles and veggies and more broth. If you don’t eat this whole batch right away, the rice noodles will keep absorbing the broth until you’re left with Indian hotdish.  Delicious, but not really what we’re after. You could skip the noodles altogether and this would be just as good. This would be a great way to use up leftovers like chicken, pork, shrimp, stir-fry veggies, or just about anything!  If you want your soup to have more kick, a sprinkle of crushed red pepper makes it divine!

Enjoy!

-Megan