L-R: Tammi Klawitter, Marie Mergenthal, Sarah Peterson, and Staci Perry Mergenthal look at treasured family recipes on cards during Sarah Peterson’s lively recipe exchange at Lykke Books in New Ulm. Photo by Amy Zents

NEW ULM — Lykke Books hosted cookbook author Sarah Peterson Thursday for a recipe-swap and book-signing event that drew residents interested in family food traditions and regional cooking.

Lykke Books Events Coordinator Tammi Klawitter said the shop wanted to offer an event that differed from a standard author appearance.

“We just wanted to try something different,” Klawitter said. “Something fun. She was bringing something new to the community that we haven’t had at our store yet.”

Peterson’s cookbook, “Dish & Tell,” combines recipes with personal histories.

She said the project began after encouragement from her father and concern about losing family recipes as her mother’s memory declined.

“‘Sarah, this should be a book,'” she recalled him saying. “You don’t want to be in that situation where Grandma’s gone and you don’t have her bun recipe.'”

Peterson prepared every recipe in the book, often cooking with the families who contributed them. One collaboration involved Marie Mergenthal, who shared her family’s Danish pudding recipe, Flomaça.

“We made it together — me, Marie, and her daughter‒in‒law,” Peterson said. “I got to document the whole process while she learned the recipe.”

Peterson discussed several recipes that draw strong reactions from readers, including the Sandwich Loaf, a layered “ribbon sandwich” built on a Pullman loaf and covered in cream cheese.

“My friend’s husband thought it was a wedding cake,” she said. “He said, ‘This is the worst wedding cake I’ve ever had.'”

Attendee Bonnie Rabe said the dish was familiar in her family.

“That’s what my mother served for all our graduations,” Rabe said. “We called them ribbon sandwiches. She decorated them with little peppers and vegetables in our school colors.”

Peterson described her Dill Pickle Pasta Salad, a recipe used frequently at her daughter’s swim team potlucks.

“The secret is soaking the pasta in pickle juice, sometimes overnight, so it gets extra pickly,” she said.

Mergenthal added her own method.

“I use the small gherkins because they’re firmer,” she said. “I soak the shells overnight in the juice. And I add cheddar cheese, sweet onions, dill and just a tinge of cayenne.”

Attendees shared additional food traditions. JoAnne Griebel described her family’s Congo Bars, baked for Sunday fishing trips.

“When my mom made those bars on a Saturday, we knew we were going to the beach on Sunday,” she said.

Local baker, podcaster, cable TV cooking host and food blogger Staci Perry Mergenthal of Mankato commented on ingredient substitutions in vintage recipes.

“I’ve never bought or used lard in my life,” she said. “I always use butter for pie crusts.”

Others discussed the use of Crisco, fresh yeast and the declining need to sift flour.

“I don’t sift flour anymore,” Griebel said. “We don’t have the same flour we used to.”

Peterson said the purpose of the cookbook is to document recipes and recognize the family members who maintain food traditions.

“It’s so important to talk to your family now,” she said. “Ask your grandma for her recipe. Cook with your mom. Pass things down. You don’t want to lose them.”

She encouraged attendees to share their own recipes on provided cards and directed them to her social media accounts at @vintagedishestell for additional content.

Klawitter said the event aligned with the community’s interest in heritage cooking.

“New Ulm has such deep culinary roots,” she said. “This event just felt like a natural match for our local culture.”

The evening concluded with recipe exchanges, food sampling and discussion among attendees about preserving family dishes for future generations.