So I said last post that I didn't know if my tomatillos were the best ever because I hadn't had a lot of other tomatillos, but if these aren't the best I don't know how I'll react to even better ones. When I made the grilled salsa I figured there was soemthing special about the … [Read more...] about What I Didn’t Know About Tomatillos: Balsamic Braised Fennel Salad
Tomatillo (“Hog Plum”) Salsa: Beyond the Great Wall
I once made a tomatillo chicken dish with canned tomatillos...in Newfoundland, home of bland food. There was no way I could possibly find them fresh, and if by some miracle they popped up in a grocery store near me I'd have to be stupid to buy them. I think maybe once I did and I … [Read more...] about Tomatillo (“Hog Plum”) Salsa: Beyond the Great Wall
Another birthday: Pink-Iced Biscotti
Put these two pictures together and this is what I made:Appetizing, I know. Frosting freezes just fine and I'm not one to throw out a cup of butter. So when I had tons of leftover frosting from my roommate's birthday cupcake-cake I put it in the freezer until another birthday … [Read more...] about Another birthday: Pink-Iced Biscotti
Hero Worship and Birthday Cake: Chestnut Meringue Cupcakes with Beet Buttercream Frosting
I went to a BBQ yesterday and discovered Joy the Baker. No, she was not at the BBQ, but her pretzels were. When someone I know whose baking I respect tells me there's a great baking blog I should check out, I'm no fool. I check it out. This is not her recipe. Her recipes all … [Read more...] about Hero Worship and Birthday Cake: Chestnut Meringue Cupcakes with Beet Buttercream Frosting
100% Successful Pouding Chomeur
I love pudding cakes. You take all the wonderful things about cake, heat it up and let the icing soak through the cake, giving a higher icing:cake ratio. You can't mess up the consistency of the icing since it's liquid, but it can turn into a gooey, caramel-y sauce when all you … [Read more...] about 100% Successful Pouding Chomeur
“It’s a Jambalaya-laya”: Spicy Lamb Sausage and Chicken
When I lived in Newfoundland my family billeted a choir from Louisiana. Two girls came to stay with us for a few weeks and as a thank-you, the choir threw a big Mardi Gras party for all the host families. That meant tons and tons of food that I'd never seen before. I'd heard of … [Read more...] about “It’s a Jambalaya-laya”: Spicy Lamb Sausage and Chicken
Candy Garlic and Salt-Roasted Zucchini With Deep-Fried Onions: Tiau
What the heck is a tiau? Nobody seems to know. I googled and googled, and then gave up and asked people, and still I have no satisfactory response. Chefs are always coming up with elaborate names for dishes, but I'm sure this one has a history. It's from Josée di Stasio's "A la … [Read more...] about Candy Garlic and Salt-Roasted Zucchini With Deep-Fried Onions: Tiau
One-Ingredient Ice Cream
Know those cookbooks that are called "5-Ingredient Dinners!"? It's the exclamation market that really does it for me - I don't get how people can get so excited by cream of mushroom soup, because inevitably Campbell's is called in to play in these poor excuses for well-rounded … [Read more...] about One-Ingredient Ice Cream
A New Farmers’ Market: Almost “Raw” Banana Cream Pie
You might think I'd be getting farmers' market-ed out by this point. How can I keep up my frenetic pace of purchasing fresh produce? Well, it's not like I buy a week's worth of groceries everywhere I go. I buy one or two items, and only what I need for specific recipes I have … [Read more...] about A New Farmers’ Market: Almost “Raw” Banana Cream Pie
The Peppermaster: Blueberry Miso Vinaigrette
I sampled every single maple- and dairy-free vinegar and sauce at the Peppermaster tent in the Plateau Farmers' Market. That's about 20 different condiments. Afterward, everything burned, and I hadn't liked any of the hot sauces at all, "peppermaster" though he self-proclaimedly … [Read more...] about The Peppermaster: Blueberry Miso Vinaigrette