We lived in Stillwater, a bedroom community east of Saint Paul, Minnesota. We have a son and his family there and we go back often.
I love St. Paul. It’s a very ethnic town, much more so than across the river in Minneapolis. There is a Hmong neighborhood here, a German there, and an Italian over there.
I went to school at The University of Minnesota. Not far away was a row of ethnic restaurants where you could sample Somalian food or Caribbean.
Now when we visit, we hop from bakery to bakery and then look for an interesting place to have lunch.
Looking through my notes from last summer, there is a margherita flatbread, a thin, almost-crisp crust with fresh basil, tomato slices, and a mixture of feta and parmesan cheeses. It was very good. We would like to share that recipe with you today.
In the collection of images here, the sidewalk café is at Five Corners, if you’re familiar with the Twin Cities. The others were taken at Café Latte which has very good food and delightful pastries.
We chatted with a waitress. Her favorite—and the most popular cake—was the Chocolate Turtle Cake. I bought a slice, critiqued it (I could find no faults), made notes and then, developed out own recipe when we got back to the test kitchen.
Margherita Flatbread
the flatbreads we had in Minnesota were close to bare expect for the cheeses. You can add veggies or even a little meat but keep them sparse. Not fully loaded like a pizza.
Use one of our pizza crusts to make your knockoff.. They are designed for one large regular crusts or two thin crusts. So divide your dough in half (the other half will keep in the refrigerator for up to five days) and use a 14-or 15-inch pan.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
- To roll thin crusts, roll them right in the pan with a Pizza Roller.
- I’ll leave out the onion dip spread on the crust and just brush the bread dough with olive oil.
- Dust the crust with Zesty Italian Pizza Spice blend.
- For cheese, use a mixture of parmesan and feta.
- Sprinkle with roasted garlic salt.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly and the crust is golden brown. Serve warm.
What you’ll need!
The Chocolate Turtle Cake
We’ll tell you how to assemble your turtle cake. You can buy what you need at the store or use our kit.
What you’ll need:
- A thick, fudgy cake mix or recipe to make three eight-inch round layers
- Two one-pound tubs of thick, fudgy frosting (you will have some left over)
- One cup of caramel frosting
- Eight ounces pecans, halves and pieces
If you get our Chocolate Turtle Kit, you will receive:
- Dad’s Favorite Fudgy Cake Mix
- One two-pound tub of Sweet Sensations Fudge Frosting)
- One nine-ounce tub of Sweet Sensations Salted Caramel Frosting
- Eight ounces pecans, halves and pieces
Directions to Make and Assemble Your Turtle Cake
- Bake the cake according to package directions in three eight-inch layers.
- Spread a generous quarter-inch of fudge frosting on the first layer. Sprinkle it with pecan pieces. (The pecans help hold up the next layer so that frosting does not squish out.) Repeat with the other layers including the top layer, stacking one layer on top of another.
- Melt about a cup of caramel frosting just to a drizzling consistency. Do not overheat. It should be thick and barely pourable. Pour the caramel frosting over the cake allowing the caramel frosting to drizzle down the sides. (The sides of the cake are not frosted but there are caramel drizzles down the sides.)
