Just like your grandma's kitchen but with more tables for sitting and relaxing...

We hope you will share our excitement about the changes at The Stockholm Pie Company.  Our new kitchen is completed and open.  You now have more tables for sitting and relaxing while you indulge in your favorite piece of pie, enjoy lunch, or begin the day with our new breakfast! 

Starting the first weekend in May, the same weekend as the 100 Mile Garage Sale, we will be opening at 8:00 a.m. on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays for breakfast.  Just like in your grandma’s kitchen, you have a choice of our own homemade granola, egg bakes, quiches, coffee breads, or best of all – buttery cinnamon toast made with breads from our recipes.  You may also select our apple-sausage-cheddar cheese and pear-bacon-blue cheese savory pies to kick off your day. 

Did you grow up eating hot dishes or casseroles, maybe tator tot hotdish along with a side of Jello?  We have been reading old cookbooks that have pages of hot dishes and other delights. From the cookbooks’ inspiration, we are bringing this nostalgia back to eating with a twist - gastronomical feasts that bring up memories of church basement dinners, family picnics, and family suppers.  Every weekend you will have the opportunity to take a different trip down a foody memory lane. Please check our website for these weekend specials.

You will find sandwiches delicious and fun here, too.  Start with your choice of our homemade bread for grilled or regular sandwiches.  Then order one of the specialty sandwiches below or your favorite traditional sandwich. 

• The “Janet” is a grilled sandwich with chicken, bacon, Mozzarella cheese, caramelized onions, and tomatoes. 
• The “ Alan” features a grilled cheese with sharp cheddar cheese, bacon, and blackberry/Habanaro jam.  
• The “Steve” includes Steve’s favorite lunch growing up which was Cheez Whiz on white bread, Cheetos, and a Coke.  Yes, you can get that here.  The last customer who had The “Steve” called it a hit!
• The “Amy” is a classic bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich on our homemade bread. 
• The “Tully” offers her favorite fruit – bananas with peanut butter. 

This year, try each and decide which is your favorite.  Delight in our famous pot pies, too.

If you want to make certain you get the pie of your choice, remember to place a special order.  Call 715-442-5505 to do so.

We’d love to see you again,
Janet Garretson
Stockholm Pie Company

Share the artistic experience.

Back in the late 1960's and early 1970's, several young artists and craftspeople discovered the Lake Pepin area.  Drawn to the inspiring beauty of the lake, bluffs, woods, and wildlife, many decided to stay and make their homes here.  Housing prices were cheap, especially compared to the prices in the Twin Cities.  Stunned by the prices and excited about living near fellow artists, some wrote out a check for the down payment without further thought.

To describe the houses that many of them bought as fixer-uppers would be putting it mildly.  They were the ultimate fixer-uppers.  Often the houses had not been used for many years and were in disrepair.  They had no indoor plumbing, electricity, or central heating.  One writer tells how her first night in the house she found that she was sharing the place with several wild creatures who had been living there for a while. 

These artists didn't give up.  They slowly fixed up the houses, created their works, and raised their families.  They built a community of artists who have made the area renowned.  Recently, they remodeled the Stockholm Opera Hall into Widespot Performing Arts Center and are offering opportunities for you to share in the artistic experience.  This Saturday Widespot with the Great Shakespeare Festival is conducting Shakespeare Language workshop at 2:30, a Stage Combat workshop at 1:00, and a “Shakes on the Lake,” an evening performance celebrating Shakespeare’s birthday, at 7:00 p.m.  Find out more about these at widespotperformingarts.org.

New visitors are arriving at Stockholm Park everyday.

The phoebes are singing their hearts out, and tree swallows are swooping over Stockholm Pond.  Red Admirals, the first migrant butterflies, have arrived, and, astonishingly, tiger swallowtail butterflies are darting about, freshly emerged from their chrysalises.  Since the swallowtails are highly vulnerable to frost, we are hoping that others wait to come out and that the frost does not return.  The woods are filling with the flowers of late April:  Dutchman's breeches, large-flowered bellwort, and rue anemone.  Trilliums, which usually open in May, are ready to blossom, too. 

Stop by and see these and other visitors to the Park.  Watch turtles sunning in Stockholm Pond. Harvest as much watercress as you like from the creek that runs through Stockholm Park. Look for tortoiseshell butterflies feeding on spring flowers and sunning on the buildings. Track honey bees gathering nectar from Siberian squill. 

Relax next to a sunny sidewalk table at one of our eateries, order a tasty treat, and enjoy these new visitors.  Drop by the shops and check out the new items for spring. 

You will find my experiences at the Jokkmokk Market in Sweden interesting.

No matter the temperature, I love my annual trek to the Jokkmokk Market in Sweden, north of the Arctic Circle.  I had several learning experiences this year that I think you will find interesting. First, I learned that the point at where the Celsius and Fahrenheit temperature scales meet is 40 degrees below zero. At that temperature, I found it difficult to take off reindeer-skin mittens in order to take pictures.  I also learned that food purchased at an open-air market at 40 below, even pastries and doughnuts, will very quickly freeze.

The market was established 407 years ago so that the King of Sweden could collect taxes from his nomadic Saami citizens. During the first week of February each year, the Saami met in the town of Jokkmokk, traded goods with one another, and paid their taxes. Trading goods grew into a market, and now Jokkmokk is a collection of artists and craftspeople that keep the Saami culture alive.

Check out the photos that I snapped and learn more about the market here.

The Historic Market opened first. Held on the site of the first market, participants wear furs and leather clothing true to the Saami styles of the 1600s. As you can see by this photo, I walked past piles of tanned reindeer hides available for sale, much as they would have been four centuries ago. There were tables of tree burls that had been put to good use; the Saami use them to start fires, make drinking cups, and store food. A woodcarver demonstrated how to hollow out a massive burl with a small hatchet. The big burl would have been wonderful for storing food for the winter, but I contented myself with buying a selection of burl cups and bowls.  Stop by and see the beautiful workmanship up close.

On Wednesday, the Historic Market closed, and a torchlight procession moved from the small, original market and to the opening ceremonies of the more spacious new market. Here jewelers abounded. They create Saami jewelry by using all of nature as their inspiration and source of materials. Birch roots are woven into floral earrings, salmon skin is embroidered onto reindeer leather bracelets, and ornate brooches are carved out of reindeer horn. I brought home not only Saami art but also pieces of the dramatic landscape in which the Sammi live.

Each noon a parade punctuated the day, and reindeer in brilliantly- colored harnesses pulled sleighs through the center of the market. This year the grand marshall was Per Kuhmunen, a lifelong advocate for Saami arts and culture. Following Per were Saami in colorful costumes, all with a personal touch.

Now, at the end of March, the boxes of my purchases have begun to arrive.  As I eagerly unpack them, the warm aromas of tanned leather and the feel of reindeer fur take me back to Jokkmokk. In the next few months, I will be bringing these wonderful items to the Stockholm store. You are invited to visit the store and experience their feel and aroma.  I hope that they will transport you, too, to a world of Arctic beauty and a culture that expresses that beauty in their handcraft and art.

We’d love to see you again,
Diane, Carstens, and staff
Ingebretsen’s