The Beer Baron - Light & Dark with Dieu du Ciel!

This post comes from Matt, the Beer Baron.  He can be found on Twitter @geekcanuck

To give craft beer fans a bracket of their own to cheer about during March Madness last month, Sun Media – with more than a little help from beer writer and sommelier Crystal Luxmore – created Beer Madness 2015: Canada’s Favourite Beer Content.

You can click the link to see how it all played out, but the Coles Notes version is that the big macro brews like Molson Canadian and Labatt Blue were decimated by craft beers from across the country. That really didn’t come as a surprise, as I didn’t really think a contest aimed at craft beer drinkers would appeal to macro drinkers. Not to generalize (too much), but if they really cared about beer, they’d drink something different.

In the end, Ontario favourites like Muskoka Brewery’s Mad Tom IPA did well and showed that IPAs are still very much en vogue,  but the final matchup came down to a pair of brilliant brews from Quebec: Le Trou Du Diable’s Saison du Tracteur,  a fruity farmhouse ale; and Dieu du Ciel’s Peche Mortel, an imperial coffee stout.

While Saison du Tracteur won and I can certainly understand why, Peche Mortel was my favourite from the outset and I voted as such and was happy to see it make the finals. Peche Mortel isn’t exactly easy to come by here in Ontario, so the Clockwatching Tart wasn’t surprised when I excitedly asked / begged her to pick me up a four-pack after checking the inventory on my trusty LCBO app. Not only did my favourite store at York & Ridout have Peche Mortel in stock, they were wonderful enough to suggest a four-pack of Dieu du Ciel’s equally fantastic Moralite IPA.

Tart of the Month - Carrot and Herb Tart

April's tart of the month is not exactly seasonal. Carrots are available year round but at their peak in late summer and fall. But the fresh herbs and ricotta make this tart light and spring-like, and the beautiful, multi-coloured carrots are striking. 

This is one of those incredibly easy puff pastry tarts that can be whipped up in 30 minutes or so. 

This beautiful tart comes from Bon Appetit magazine. Here's what you need:

Spring Pea Soup

This extremely simple soup is perfect for spring! It is served at room temperature, so you can make it a little in advance and garnish just before serving.

Of course, fresh peas are the best thing ever. But this tasted very sweet and delicious with frozen peas, so you can enjoy a taste of springtime anytime.  

This recipe is inspired by Cooking Light magazine. Here's what you need for delicious soup:

Potato & Cheese Frittata

I rarely make eggs for dinner but every time I do I wonder why I don't do it more often. 

A frittata is very simple to make. You just cook your fillings and add eggs, then bake in the oven until set.

This is a great vegetarian meal that's filling and tasty and works surprisingly well as leftovers the next day.

This recipe comes from The Kitchn, with a few changes to make it even faster. Here's what you need:

Road Trips: Winter/Spring 2015

We've taken several short trips so far this year but I realized I haven't mentioned them much here on the blog. So it's time to fix that!

Back in December we took a drive back to Lexington, Kentucky for a few days for Matt (the Beer Baron)'s birthday. He had a fantastic time at Beer School at the Beer Trappe where he tried plenty of beer and met some friendly locals. 

Short & Sweet Easter Sunday - Jello Deviled Eggs

These jello deviled eggs are super cute but weren't that easy to execute. You can buy an egg mold to make life easier, but I used these plastic eggs from the dollar store that open at the equator and it wasn't easy to get the jello out.

Bone-In Country Ham with Dr. Pepper Glaze

I haven't always been the biggest ham fan. I've always liked thinly sliced deli ham on sandwiches, but I couldn't get behind baked ham for the holidays.  

That all changed when we went on our road trip down South last spring and tried country ham. Most of the time, when you see a ham in the grocery store it is a "city ham" that has already been cooked. Country ham is dry-cured but not cooked so it needs to be fully cooked, not just warmed up, before serving. Country ham is usually much saltier as well but it tastes amazing!