"A gourmet who thinks of calories is like a tart who looks at her watch." - James Beard
This is only very tangentially a tart. Icebox cake has a "crust" in the form of cookies and a "filling" in the form of whipped cream and fruit, so I'm calling it my tart of the month so I don't have to turn on the oven!
Icebox cake is actually really easy to make. A magic process takes place when you layer cookies with whipped cream. They take on a cake-like consistency as they moisten and become almost like solid cake when sliced.
Have you ever watched the TV show Hannibal? If not, you should! The first two seasons are available on Netflix, and the the way they film food is unbelievable. The final season is wrapping up on NBC right now. It's not a spoiler to reveal that earlier this season Hannibal, played wonderfully by Mads Mikkelsen, mixes Punch Romaine to serve to his guests.
Punch Romaine was one of the last things served to first class passengers on the Titanic before it sank.
It's an icy cocktail of rum, orange, wine, champagne and egg whites. Here's what you need to make one cocktail:
1 egg white
1 oz white rum
1 oz white wine
1/2 oz simple syrup
1/2 oz lemon juice
1 oz fresh squeezed orange juice
2 oz champagne (or sparkling wine)
twist of orange peel for garnish
You'll also need crushed ice, a cocktail shaker and a cocktail coupe to serve. I used the cocktail glass above.
I used my blender to crush the ice, which worked very well. Mound the ice in the glass just like an iceberg. My crazy husband thought staging these pictures in front of a picture of the Titanic would be fun.
Shake the egg white, rum, wine, simple syrup, lemon juice and orange juice together in a cocktail shaker with ice until frothy and chilled.
Pour the cocktail into the glass and top with champagne and orange peel. Enjoy in calm weather.
This cocktail was surprisingly light and tasty. It would be a great palate cleanser between courses at a fancy dinner, or a cooling treat on a hot night while watching your favourite TV show. Cheers!
It's too hot. We are not the biggest fans of summer around here. We prefer it when the weather's cooler.
But one of the things I look forward to every summer is my weekly CSA box.
CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. Farmers essentially sell shares in their crops in advance, then deliver the shares to customers weekly throughout the growing season.
Amazingly, the Clockwatching Tart and I had never been to
Montreal together and I hadn’t been to the city myself since the Unity Rally on October 27,
1995. My absence came down to matters of the heart, as I was heartbroken over
the departure of the Montreal
Expos while also becoming smitten with Chicago
and Lexington,
both of which are more or less equidistant to Montreal. So, with an open mind,
an empty stomach and a deep thirst, it was time to revisit Montreal.
Since it was easily accessible right off the highway, our
very first stop was the Terrasse St-Ambroise, a brand new and absolutely
beautiful patio bar. Although many St. Ambroise beers are ubiquitous in Ontario
(including their wonderful Oatmeal
Stout), I was able to try a lovely Double IPA that was a perfect start to
our trip.
Bumbleberry isn't a real berry. I thought everyone knew that but when I was searching for bumbleberry tart recipes, one of the search autofill results was "bumbleberry tree". So I guess some people think it's a magical berry!
Bumbleberry is a mix of several different berries, and it makes a wonderful combination in pie, tarts and other desserts.
For these tarts, I used raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and blueberries.
Here's what you need for these tasty tarts:
I've been reading about cheesemaking for a long time and putting off trying it because I was afraid it would be too complicated or volatile.
But this was the perfect introduction to cheesemaking. It is simple, relatively quick, an only needs a few simple ingredients.
The recipe is adapted from Serious Eats. I reduced the amounts on this first attempt. It made a small round of cheese, probably around 200 grams, which was just enough for tostada night.
Queso fresco is a very mild, crumbly Mexican cheese. It's not always available in my local stores and it's pretty expensive. Making it at home is definitely worth it!
Here's what you need:
Last week we celebrated my 40th birthday in Montreal! We wanted to go somewhere fun and, surprisingly, have never been to Montreal together, and neither of us has been since we were teenagers.
Montreal is about a 7 hour drive from home. On the way, we stopped to visit family for a couple of nights in Eastern Ontario, then headed into the city.
I'll let Matt, the Beer Baron, talk about all the beer he tried in an upcoming post, but one of our first stops was Atwater Market to check out the beer and cider selection at the Fromagerie. We collected several selections to enjoy in our hotel room.
We chose the Delta Montreal as our hotel and it was great. The Jazz Fest was on while we were there and it was right next door. It was an easy walk to Old Montreal and shopping downtown.
