Desserts

Recipe: Rhubarb and Raspberry Galette

June 6, 2011

Technically this is an original recipe. But like all dishes, its initial creative spark came from a patchwork of ideas. The pivotal concept, pairing rhubarb with raspberry, came via David Lebovitz, who posted a link to Lottie and Doof, who got it from Bon Appetit. With rhubarb on hand and some of last year’s raspberries [...]

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Recipe: Triple-Chocolate Brownie Cookies

May 24, 2011

This is Mairlyn Smith. Like me, she has a frequently misspelled first name and a passion for chocolate that borders on illegal. She even has an impossibly small kitchen (like mine was until last year). I had the pleasure of interviewing her earlier this month and the longer we talked the more I realized we [...]

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Recipe: Raspberry Peach Frangipane Pie

April 28, 2011

While the daffodils have finally poked their heads through the earth, my freezer remains packed with containers of frozen fruit squirrelled away from last year’s harvest. They’re so precious to me, I save them for special occasions. Very special occasions. As along as the sooty, deathless snowdrifts maintain a Narnia-like hold on the Earth, nothing seems [...]

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Recipe: Forty Creek Pecan Pie

April 4, 2011

In our home, birthdays are about dessert. It doesn’t matter if the ingredients send me to six specialty shops, or if the results require a small team of architecture students to assemble. If you can dream it, I will make it. Providing you’re a family member. Two-recipes-in-one, Frozen Lemon Pavlova? Of course, Mom. Hazelnut Mocha [...]

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Recipe: Raspberry Pie

March 28, 2011

Raspberry pie is risky business. Jam-style diehards want theirs sweet, sweet, sweet, while people like me long for a slice that will pucker the palate. After all, the ice cream’s supposed to smooth things over. Right? If the filling isn’t stressful enough, then there’s the crust to worry about. Lattice work, a crumble topping or [...]

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Recipe: Surreal Chocolate Wontons

February 24, 2011

This is Bob Blumer, aka the Surreal Gourmet. I had the pleasure of meeting him and tasting his fun food at The Drake in Toronto recently. If he looks a bit blurry it’s because he moves too quickly for my camera. He thinks quickly too. As he sat and chatted with the group, Blumer created cocktail [...]

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Recipe: Chocolate Basil Muffins

February 14, 2011

Since I’m an unapologetic chocolate addict and flower fanatic, you’d think I’d be blogging about Valentine’s Day with all the love in my heart and passion in my fingertips. But it’s one of those “special” days I ignore in part because it’s so contrived. It doesn’t help that the media, supermarkets and florists start pushing [...]

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Recipe: Salted Caramel Apples

February 10, 2011

To help celebrate the 200th anniversary of the McIntosh apple, I’m taking part in The Ontario Apple Growers’ challenge. They’re looking for the best candy apple recipe — ever. After careful consideration, a bit of testing and a second-degree burn to my index finger, I have determined that caramel-coated apples are the Kobayashi Maru of [...]

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Recipe: Chocolate Waffles

February 1, 2011

Last Saturday, along with two double lattes, I ate waffles and raisins. As far as my food intake went, that was about it. We shall not count the wine as I consider that “medication.” Andrew was pretty steamed at me for ignoring my health — a luxury I often deny him — but I was [...]

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Recipe: Chocolate Brownies with Chocolate Mousse

January 25, 2011

I know that when I see a recipe calling for basically three desserts rolled into one, I skip it in favour of something simpler, like cookies. But if you think about it, pie is two desserts in one. The crust and then the filling. And many squares — say a classic Canadian Nanaimo — require [...]

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12 Cookbooks Picks of 2010

December 23, 2010

I know what you’re thinking. “It’s only 2 days to Christmas and you’re posting this now?” Yup. I figure, since I’m going to be making a mad dash for gifts later today, you might be a last-minute shopper, too. So, in no particular order other than this is the way the books were piled on [...]

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