Tag: Minnesota State Fair

Blue Ribbon Triple Berry Pie

This Blue Ribbon Triple Berry Pie features a flaky butter crust and first-rate filling of blueberries, raspberries and cranberries. The combination makes for a delicious taste that’s perfectly sweet, but not overly so. Cinnamon and nutmeg give the pie tasty nuances as well.

This award-winning recipe comes from Tim Scott, a long-time lover of pies and baking-at-home. He entered his first Minnesota State Fair baking competition in 2016. His pie won best multi-berry pie out of 60 pies. He also placed 2nd and 5th with two other pies, making 2021 his best year yet. His first ribbon was in 2017, a 3rd place for a peach pie.

Cranberries for the Win?!

Given many multi-berry pies have blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, the cranberries are what helped Tim’s pie stand out. The proportions he used translated to a fantastic flavor. The tartness from the cranberries paired perfectly with the sweetness of the blueberries and raspberries. Tim shared that using the very best seasonal fruit from local growers is key. Ripeness plays a factor as well.

Tim shared that another secret to winning is being organized, enough so that the timing of baking multiple pies works out and every aspect get the attention and time it deserves. Tim’s strategy is to always make 2 pies per competition entry. He picks the more perfect one to enter. The other often goes to (very happy) neighbors.

Attention to Detail

Fun fact: Tim uses butter for all his Minnesota State Fair Pie entries, but lard for something like the Braham Pie Day Contest.

His advice to aspiring pie bakers trying his recipe: “Cranberries have a lot of pectin, so how much thickening agent you use is tricky,” Tim shared. “Pay close attention to how much liquid is in the berries after simmering to get the right consistency.”

As far as advice to first time baking contestants: practice by entering other baking contests for experience. Also, have tasters who know what good pie is (or great cake or cookie, etc.) and will give you honest feedback.

Great tips! Now give Tim’s Blue Ribbon Triple Berry Pie recipe a try! If you don’t bake, find a friend who does and request they make this! Pie lover alert: be sure to also check out our other award-winning pies on our site, like this other 2021 apple pie winner.

-Cyndi

Blue Ribbon Beer Bread

Say hello to this award winning Blue Ribbon Beer Bread. The recipe features the pilsner Wonderstuff, from Bauhaus Brew Labs in Minneapolis, along with cheddar cheese, rosemary, and honey. A thick slice of this bread solo or with a swipe of butter is pure bliss. It’s tender but hearty, and has a beautiful golden brown exterior.

The recipe comes from Cortney Carlson who won “best beer bread” with it at the 2021 Minnesota State Fair.

This was her first blue ribbon win ever! In fact, she had only competed one other time, in 2019 for a special sugar cookie competition. Cortney shared, “Nothing came of the submission, but it ignited my interest in competing.”

Her recipe is easy to follow and replicate. It also great starting point for variations. After tasting and loving Cortney’s Blue Ribbon Beer Bread, we tried a cheddar, chive, and jalapeño version. It was really good also.

Winner Q&A

We caught up with Cortney for a Q&A recently. Read on to learn about her backstory.

BRG: What can you tell us about your Blue Ribbon Beer Bread recipe and why you chose it?

Cortney: While you’d think most people just KNOW they are submitting their (insert favorite recipe here… sugar cookies, sourdough, etc.), I actually stumbled across mine. When the categories for baking categories were released, I scanned the list for something to jump out at me. I like to try new recipes, new areas of baking, new techniques… so I didn’t go into this with a plan or recipe.

Immediately beer bread jumped out at me. My experience with bread was virtually nonexistent, but all the breweries around town, especially coming from Northeast Minneapolis? Not so much a mystery to me (hehehe).

Knowing little about bread, I looked at dozens of different recipes. I looked for types of beer bread, what types of things people added to them, and then just dove in. I liked the idea of adding an herb…I tried different cheeses, different styles of beers, and went back to the drawing board the more I tried things (that’s a MN nice way of saying the first attempts were gross). Once I started researching the right things, things started clicking and here we are. I landed on the attached final recipe.

BRG: What do you think your secret to winning was?

Cortney: The only thing larger than the amount of foods on a stick at the Minnesota State Fair is the Minnesota pride that you can feel in the air the entire twelve days of the fair. My recipe included ingredients made or headquartered in Minnesota. From local beer, honey, and cheese, to Pillsbury flour and rosemary grown at home… every part of that bread was a nod to people (myself) who say “ope” several times a day.

BRG: What is the worst disaster you’ve had in the kitchen and how did you deal with it?

Cortney: I’ve experienced the most average disasters – burning things, undercooking things, messing up a recipe, missing key ingredients, etc. The thing I’ve learned about kitchen disasters is that while it’s so disappointing and frustrating that day, the greatest lessons I’ve learned in the kitchen have come from the time I did it wrong.

BRG: What advice would you give young people wanting to cook/bake more?

Cortney: Learn your staple dinners/desserts/contributions to potlucks, but don’t stay there. Try new areas of cooking. You like pie but have never made one? Try it. And know that you may not knock it out of the park the first try, but the more you try the more you will learn and can apply to the next recipe.

Great advice Cortney! Now everyone, get ready, set, and bake this bread!

-Cyndi

p.s. If you’re into breads, be sure to bake this blueberry winning recipe and this whole wheat winner.

Blue Ribbon Wheat Bread

This Blue Ribbon Wheat Bread is nothing short of perfection. We savored every slice and you will too!

Recipe credit goes to Heather Zarrett who won “best whole wheat bread” and “best overall yeast bread” with it at the 2021 Minnesota State Fair.

Heather accomplished a “perfect bake” with her Blue Ribbon Wheat Bread. The recipe is one she knows by heart. It is her go-to whenever she wants to whip up a whole wheat loaf. Also, it is based on a white bread loaf she uses as her starting point, or spring board to create new variations. We loved how perfectly it was baked. Just look at the inside texture. Wow.

The tall rectangular pan she uses gives her Blue Ribbon Wheat Bread a boxy appearance, a shape with clean lines that are squared off.

This blue ribbon baker is no stranger to winning. Heather has 50 award ribbons in her collection, all achieved at the Minnesota State Fair. The baking competitions there are referred to as the unofficial baking Olympics. With thousands of baking and cooking-related entries each year, it takes a lot of skill to stand out. We should note Heather also placed second in the “angel food cakes,” those sweet and airy sponge cakes we all love. Impressive!

Secret to Winning?!

Heather felt one of her secrets to her winning success is milling her own flour from wheat berries. It gives the bread an ideal taste, texture and aroma.

Heather gets her wheat berries from her local food co-op or from the Minnesota folks at Sunrise Flour Mill. She also noted to make sure your yeast is fresh.

Give this recipe a try. We got our first taste from a loaf still warm from the oven, smothered with butter. Our enjoyment continued by having a toasted slice with peanut butter. We even spoiled ourselves with a cubed avocado and an egg on top. Conclusion, home-baked blue ribbon bread makes everything taste better.

-Cyndi

Blue Ribbon Blueberry Bread

This Blue Ribbon Blueberry Bread has a delightful streusel topping and in its batter: poppyseeds and lemon zest. The flavors are perfectly balanced, making every bite taste fantastic. It’s a tender, yet firm bread that bakes beautifully through the entire loaf (with no part under or over baked).

Sheila Mullen won best quick bread at the 2021 Minnesota State Fair with this recipe. She won out of 49 entries. Wow!

Sheila says: This is a family and friends favorite. The original recipe came from a bed and breakfast our family stayed at in Iowa after my sister’s wedding. It’s so popular that I freeze blueberries in the summer specially so I can bake up a fresh loaf all year long. I’ve made a few changes to the recipe to make it easier to mix up.

Key Ingredients/Tools/Tips

Sheila uses a Danish whisk with this recipe.

She thinks one of her secrets to winning was choosing small, equally sized blueberries and not overmixing the batter. The Danish whisk helps with this.

The streusel is key, adding a richness with just a few ingredients.

You can make the batter in a variety of pans. Sheila favors 4 mini loaves.

For the fair though, she uses pan 7-inches x 3 1/2-inches in size. The bread bakes perfectly, making for perfect slices to enjoy.

Add this to your best recipe pile and bake it soon!

And try more Minnesota winning recipes from our collection, like this one.

-Cyndi

Cashew Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting

If you love crunchy, flavorful, and rich-tasting sweet treats, look no further than these Cashew Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting. They were a top finalist in our Blue Ribbon Drop Cookie Contest.

Everyone who tastes these winning cookies raves about the frosting. Browning the butter was one of the winner’s secrets to success. Browned butter has a rich, nutty aroma and flavor. As a result, everything it goes into tastes divine, truly. Also, these cookies have a crispy addictive texture thanks to the whole cashews you bake in them.

Recipe credit goes to Gwen Benson who made these cookies for the 2021 Minnesota State Fair.

Gwen won the Blue Ribbon Drop Cookie Contest that we sponsored, placing third overall. She began entering her baked goods at the fair 5 years ago as something to do with her daughter Lynsay. Gwen now has four state fair award ribbons for baking and 9 for crafting. Impressive!

Gwen says this cashew cookie recipe originated with Land O Lakes, but she has seen variations on it over the years, including a version passed around in her family, which was her main inspiration.

Excellent & Effortless Recipe

With classic ingredients, these cashew cookies with brown butter frosting are a breeze to make. Seriously, you will love how easily they come together. Check it out. Follow along as we walk you through the steps. Easy peasy!

You start with brown sugar and butter, mixing until creamy, then add the egg and vanilla.

To that mixture, you add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and baking soda), alternating portions with the sour cream.

You mix in the whole cashews last, by hand, reserving a portion for garnish.

We made our batch with just over a tablespoon of dough each, so small, to total 55 cookies. You bake them at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for just 10-12 minutes.

The frosting’s star is browned butter, but it also has powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla.

Once baked, you finish the cookies with frosting and a sprinkling of finely chopped cashews.

Yum! Enjoy!

-Cyndi

State Fair Apple Raspberry Pie

This State Fair Apple Raspberry Pie is a show stopper. It won both “best creative apple pie” and “best overall pie” at the 2021 Minnesota State Fair. Carol Marsh is the star state fair baker here. Her pie is beautifully designed and absolutely delicious. The filling tastes fantastic and has a firm yet tender texture. Fresh raspberries add a splash of color. Their sweetness pairs perfectly with tart apples.

Carol has been competing at the Minnesota State Fair since 2010 and baking since she a child. This year, 2021, was a big year, with her winning four blue ribbons. They were for a 2-layer chocolate cake, a raisin bread, a classic apple pie, and this creative apple pie, which won best overall pie also. This makes her a 6 time pie sweepstakes winner (best overall pie 6x since 2010). That brings her total to 36 Minnesota State Fair ribbons for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place wins.

Carol, like a lot of us, finds much joy in baking. She knows the ideal texture of pie dough and how to have a thick filling. As a result, she finds baking pies a breeze. She has it down to a science.

Carol has won multiple times at the Minnesota State Fair with this recipe and slight variations on it. Carol recently baked her pie for me and we brought you along to experience the journey of making a perfect pie. Seeing her in action was so much fun!

Carol’s Pie Baking Tips – Step by Step

Chill your bowl and all your pie crust dough ingredients (dry, wet and shortening).

Dough mixture (with chilled shortening already cut in) should resemble cornmeal.

Carol strains her egg/vinegar mixture into the crust’s dry ingredients.

Allow enough time to also chill the dough, for at least an hour. Check out the beautiful texture Carol gets.

For the filling, Carol prefers using a combo of Granny Smith, Braeburn, and Pink Lady apples.

Layer the apples, butter, and raspberries. You’ll get a colorful look that doesn’t “bleed” much or look messy.

Let your artistic side out by cutting and etching the leaves for the top crust like Carol did.

Layer and distribute the leaves evenly, so the top crust will bake uniformly.

Brush with beaten egg white and sprinkle with sugar for some beautiful browning and sparkle.

The pie will be heaping with apples. While baking, the apples shrink, resulting in a full, lush-looking pie.

The pie cuts beautifully and has a firm yet tender filling.

This State Fair Apple Raspberry Pie is a classic. Put it on your holiday baking list. And if you want another 2021 Minnesota State Fair winning pie, check out this blue ribbon winner also.

Enjoy!

-Cyndi

Cinnamon Cookie Butter Cookies

These Cinnamon Cookie Butter Cookies won best sandwich cookie and best overall cookie at the 2021 Minnesota State Fair. Their creamy filling, phenomenal flavor, and utter deliciousness will wow you with every bite.

A Winning History

Joan Kinsley was the winning Minnesota State Fair baker. She adapted a Star Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest winning recipe that Annette Gustafson won with in 2020. Joan first entered the state fair baking competition in 2014, had a win, and was hooked on the annual tradition.

Joan’s version is a linzer look-alike with an opening on top so you see the inside filling inside, which is thick, creamy, rich, and absolutely divine.

We invite you to make them for the holidays and check out our step-by-step tips for reproducing these blue-ribbon-winning Cinnamon Cookie Butter Cookies. Did I mention that outstanding filling? =)

Special thanks to Joan fore re-baking her cookies for me. Same to the our friends at the Star Tribune for their recipe use permission and to Annette. We look forward to learning what more about this year’s Star Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest winners!

Secrets to Success

Joan estimates she made these cookies 5-6 times before entry drop-off at the fair. She spent hours tweaking ingredients and altering the thickness of the dough and the filling. She also adjusted baking times, temperature, and what kitchen tools she used. This seems to be a popular process among successful state fair blue ribbon baker, especially with recipes they’re new to. It pays off.

To achieve the “perfect bake” Joan keeps the dough chilled throughout the entire prep process: before rolling it out, afterward with the scraps she re-works, and even while the cut dough waits its turn in the oven.
Hint: Handle the dough as little as possible. It’s much easier to transfer and work with when chilled.
Joan prefers baking them on parchment that sits on a silpat baking mat with an air bake pan underneath.
You can opt to cut out the cookies an inch apart, directly on the parchment you’ll bake them on. This way the shapes stay fully intact because you’re not touching or moving them.
Joan uses an adjustable rolling pin (for an exact thickness) and a Linzer tart cookie cutter.
Joan also bakes her cookies 1 sheet at a time.

Step by Step

You make the cookies with flour, cinnamon, salt, butter, and brown sugar. Set out your butter ahead of time as you want it room temperature. Also, allow enough time to chill the dough at least 30 minutes.

When mixing the dough, it’s ready when the ingredients are just fully combined and clumps start to form. Like with pie dough, avoid over-mixing.

Pressing the dough out before chilling makes for an easier roll out. And seal it in plastic wrap. Ultimately you end up rolling it out between parchment layers.

Joan uses an adjustable rolling pin with rings to make the dough exactly 1/6th inch thick.

With the first portion of dough, you cut the cookie “bottoms.”

With the second portion of dough, you cut the cookie “tops” with the center cut out.

Tip: cut out, then chill the unbaked cookies again and they will be easy to move with an offset spatula. Bake them an inch or more apart.

You sprinkle all with a cinnamon/sugar mixture before baking, giving them some glitter and glam.

Then, simply keep a close eye on the oven. You want the bottoms to barely start to brown, which takes 12-14 minutes.

The filling features Biscoff cookie butter (available at most grocery stores in the peanut butter section), along with butter, and powdered sugar. I could eat this stuff by the spoonful.

Joan pipes hers on before spreading it even with an offset metal spatula.

All these tips and tricks were the secrets to her baking success.

The last thing you need to do is enjoy these better-than-anything blue ribbon cookies.

Happy baking!

-Cyndi

Coconut Curry Mango Cake

At the 2021 Minnesota State Fair baking competition, no one could have predicted how tasty this Coconut Curry Mango Cake was going to be, including me. With surprising ingredients and a colorful exterior, the cake stood out for its perfectly balanced flavors, rich taste, and tender yet firm texture.

Recipe credit goes to Maggie MacIntosh. She used a Cooks Illustrated coconut cake recipe as a starting point and began experimenting.

Creative Cake

Garam masala, turmeric, mango nectar, and mango crystals are among the unique ingredients Maggie features in this award winning cake. Between that creativity, how well she combined all the ingredient amounts, and how perfectly she baked the cakes, this Coconut Curry Mango Cake really stood out. Plus Maggie nailed it with the coconut aroma, in both the cake itself and the frosting. The mango filling was a colorful element that added yet another dimension to the cake. Well done!

Maggie won 1st place in our Blue Ribbon Best Coconut Cake Contest with this cake. She wins $100 in King Arthur Baking Company gift cards. Here’s a shot of Maggie and her daughter, celebrating her win and all the fun the fair has to offer. Congratulations Maggie!

Judging Criteria

If you’re curious about the winner selection process, here’s the judging criteria.

Unique, innovative, creative recipe……………………………………………25%
Appearance, color, presentation………………………………………………..25%
Texture, internal appearance…………………………………………………….25%
Flavor, aroma…………………………………………………………………………. 25%

Coconut Curry Mango Cake – Step by Step

Want to re-create the magic of Maggie’s coconut curry cake and its mango filling? We walk you through it with a detailed overview, including photos.

Here’s everything that goes into the batter, from the cake flour and spices, to butter, sugar, and eggs.

You starting with whipping the egg and egg whites before adding cream of coconut, water, and extracts.

Next, you mix the dry ingredients: cake flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, garam masala, and turmeric.

Then you mix in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until mixture resembles coarse meal.

Once you slowly combine everything together……you divide the batter between your prepped 8-inch pans. It makes a nice thick batter. Spread it around.

While those bake and cool, get your filling ingredients together. Whip that up.

Do the same with your buttercream frosting.

Whip it good. It should form stiff peaks. Here’s a shot when it’s reaching perfection.

Last, you slice each cake in half to get 4 equal layers, then assemble everything together. A great tip from Maggie was to pipe the frosting on the edge of each layer to help hold in the filling.

We didn’t get shots of this, but applying a crumb coat–thinly frosting top and sides of cake before fully frosting the cake–prevents a messy look.

Finishing Touches

To finish, sprinkle toasted coconut on top and press into sides of cake. This will give the cake a classic look, like this.

Or you can opt to dye the toasted coconut in one or more colors and decorate in circular patterns on top (as winner did).

These resemble the colors Maggie used: yellow, orange, and red.

And this is her stencil she used decorating the top of her cake.

Feel free to reach out to us direct if you want help re-creating the multi-color decor Maggie used. We have additional notes from our test runs and Maggie we can share.

If you love this cake’s concept but want a faster, easier version of the recipe, stay tuned. We are working on a sheet cake version of this magical Coconut Curry Mango Cake we will share later.

In the meantime though, this cake makes a fun fall baking experience. Fun fact: some of our tasters thought the curry/turmeric combo was a tastier, gingery pumpkin spice. Give it a try and see what you taste.

Enjoy!

-Cyndi

Raspberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Put these Raspberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies on your must-make baking list. Their flavor shines bright with Chambord black raspberry liqueur, along with orange zest, chocolate chunks, and fresh red raspberries.

Minnesotan Rachael Hood created the cookie for the Blue Ribbon Drop-Style Cookie Contest at the 2021 Minnesota State Fair (a Blue Ribbon Group sponsored contest). She won 1st place and $100 in King Arthur Baking Company gift cards.

I also arranged for Rachael to showcase her cookies on a TV spot with me on KARE 11 Saturday, the NBC affiliate in Minneapolis. Yay for hometown PR! We had an absolute blast.

Let’s get back to the cookie itself. If you are intrigued by this cookie, read on for some insights about it and how you can recreate the recipe.

Key Ingredients

With these Raspberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies, the Chambord liqueur is key. It plays off the other ingredients so well, making for a terrific flavor combination that subtle, but not too subtle, and so well balanced with citrus and chocolate elements.

I especially love the cookie’s scent you take in with each bite and the delicious lingering aftertaste.

Chambord – if you aren’t familiar with it – is a liqueur that combines XO Cognac and French spirits with Madagascan vanilla, honey and Moroccan citrus peel, making it an ideal flavor enhancer for these cookies. It originated in France, the Loire Valley specifically, in the 1600’s. Back then, with the many King Louis of the time, it was popular to sip cognac or liqueurs at fancy French meals.

Fast forward to today, the Chambord brand is owned by the same folks who own Jack Daniels. I was surprised to learn that in addition to black raspberries, they infuse blackberries and blackcurrants into it. You can find it in a variety of sizes. Since I had to go to a couple of stores to find it,I recommend calling ahead, especially if you want a specific size.

Bake Like a Blue Ribbon Winner

As always, before I add a recipe to this Blue Ribbon Foodies blog, there’s a baking test run. Walk through the recipe with us here and then give it a go yourself. The cookies are delicious and highly recommended.

Here’s everything that goes into the cookies (minus the food color), including the liqueur, fresh Driscoll raspberries, orange zest, and all-purpose flour from King Arthur Baking Company.

You first sift together the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

Next you cream the butter and sugars before adding in the remaining wet ingredients and mixing until smooth. Sorry, no pic. I was too excited to get these into the oven! Finally, add the pre-mixed dry ingredients, and stir just until combined.

Then all that remains prep-wise is to chop the raspberries and gently mix everything together.

Put both the fruit and juice in the dough.

Your dough should come out a bit like this.

Scoop the dough by heaping tablespoons onto a parchment lined baking sheet. You’ll bake these 12-14 minutes at 350 degrees F.

To experiment and to use ingredients already on hand, I varied from Rachael’s recipe just a bit. I used all semi-sweet chocolate chunks instead a combo of dark and milk chocolate and did not chop them fine, opting for larger chocolate pieces. I also used a different red food coloring. Here’s how mine came out!

Rachael chopped her chocolate by hand and smaller. She also used McCormick’s red food coloring. Do both those things and you’ll match the color of Rachael’s cookie dough and end product.

What a delight these were to bake and eat. We invite you to bake and share these cookies, or anything from our recipe collection. If you do, be sure to post a pic on Instagram or Facebook. Be sure we can follow along, by tagging:

@blueribbonfoodies
@mnstatefair
#blueribbonbaking2021
#kingarthurbaking

Hey Hey! You never know when we might do a giveaway!

-Cyndi

Swedish Meatball Sandwich

Inspired by our love of the Minnesota State Fair’s Blue Barn food vendor and their former menu item, the Swedish Meatball Smörgås, we created this Swedish Meatball Sandwich. We don’t generally feature state fair foods here but we simply couldn’t resist making a homemade version of this one.

Served on pretzel rolls, this creation features juicy meatballs topped with a warm, delicious gravy. Diced dill pickles and lingonberry preserves on top give a delightful punch of sour and sweet. It is a perfect meal when the temperatures are cooler, you are missing the state fair, or you want your food to give you a hug =) It is comfort food at its finest.

Smörgås means open sandwich. Some consider the Italian hoagie and the Southern Po Boy as its counterparts. Key with this creation is using a hard roll or bun that’s firm enough to carry the weight of the meatballs and toppings. Then simply serve it open-face style. This ends up a knife-and-fork type sandwich. It generally doesn’t work as a hand-held meal. Using utensils helps create the “perfect bite” each time: meatball, gravy, bread, pickles, and preserves.

Preparations Tips

Once the meatballs are in motion, I like prepping everything for quick assembly once they are fully heated. The gravy takes some time to thicken and you wan to keep that warm. Then it’s just a matter of assembling. Wedge the meatballs in the roll, then layer on the gravy, pickles, and preserves.

Tailor to Your Taste Preferences

When we made this Swedish Meatball Sandwich for the first time, we used frozen meatballs, pretzel rolls and a simple homemade gravy.

That said, feel free to use variations to tailor this Swedish Meatball Sandwich to your own tastes. A few examples:

Headed to Ikea? Pick up their frozen Huvudroll meatballs.
Want some heat and extra zing? Put hot sauce and extra ground black pepper in the gravy, which amps up the flavor.
Can’t find lingonberry preserves? Try cranberry or another tart fruit or flavor.
Use chicken, ground turkey, or all-beef meatballs, such as the Cooked Perfect brand. Simek’s and Good & Gather are also available locally (in Minnesota).
Morph this into a classic meatball hoagie with an all-beef meatball, spaghetti sauce, and shredded mozzarella.
If you prefer making your own meatballs, go for it: go with a plant-based meat, or any type of meatball you enjoy making. The world is your oyster, err…meatball.
Also, if you can’t find a pretzel roll, try a baguette or ciabatta roll. I prefer anything sturdy that won’t get soggy.

Note, the gravy portion of this Swedish Meatball Sandwich recipe is from Nedra–who tested recipes with me for many years. We use her traditional Swedish meatball gravy from her church’s annual Swedish meatball and lutefisk fundraiser. So, in other words, it’s a tried and true gravy recipe.

By the way, if you don’t recall the Blue Barn’s Swedish Meatball Smörgås, maybe this will refresh your memory.

We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did making and noshing on it. And if you want a perfect dessert pairing, make ahead this delightful Cookies & Cream Ice Cream. You’ll love that too!

Cyndi