This year, I am declaring my cooking independence to celebrate America's National Holiday! Last year, I had ambitiously set out to recreate Martha Stewart's Flag Tart which demanded considerable amount of prep time and $25 worth of raspberries. This Mixed Berry Terrine was a lot easier to make and equally patriotic! Mixed Berry Terrine Recipe courtesy of Food Everyday Ingredients for 8: 2 envelopes (1/4 ounce each) unflavored gelatin 2 cups white grape juice 1/2 cup sugar 2 pounds mixed fresh berries. Strawberries should be hulled & halved, raspberries, blackberries & blueberries In small bowl sprinkle gelatin over 1/4 cup grape juice. Let soften 2-3 minutes. In small saucepan, ...
Miam Miam
Happy Canada Day, eh!
I never really got to celebrate Canada's national holiday when I lived there. Canada Day commemorates the anniversary of the July 1, 1867 enactment of the British North America Act, which united Canada as a single country. But in Montreal, and Quebec overall, July 1st coincides, perhaps not unintentionally, with Quebec's traditional Moving Day. In Montreal, all rentals run from July 1 to June 30 of the following year, so instead of attending Canada Day festivities, Montrealers are usually driving u-haul, carrying heavy furniture up spiral staircases or (my personal fave thing to do on Moving Day) wondering the alleys behind residences for free and up-for-grabs furniture. Hey, don't judge me, ...
Pitango 1 – Vida 0
It's official! Whole Foods has a new ally in its fight against me losing any weight ever. Together with newly opened Pitango Gelato they await me as I leave my Yogalate class at Vida, taunting me with free samples of cheese and now gelato. Not cool! Luckily, unlike Whole Foods' selection of bread and pastries, Pitango's offering are of a healthier nature (sort of...) and both focus on organic ingredients. Pitango's owner, Noah Dan, is a real stickler for fresh produces, uses raw (yet pasteurized) milk and refuses to use artificial colors, flavors, or stabilizers. He opened his first shop in Baltimore's Fells Point in 2007 and seems intent on continuing his expansion in the region with a ...
Joyeuses Pacques!
Easter is a very traditional holiday in France. The French get both Good Friday and Easter Monday off and school children usually get their spring break right around that time as well so it is an eagerly anticipated time of the year. In France, as in most Catholic countries, it is the Church Bells that bring the eggs all the way from Rome. In Alsace, which holds more german traditions, rabbits bring around the eggs, but in the rest of France, they are too smart to venture out as they as would likely end up in someone's plate if they did ;-) The French love to celebrate the end of Lent with a gigot pasqual and this year I made mine with a simple rub of herbes de provence accompanied by a ...
And the Oscar Goes to… my ButterMILK Panna Cotta!
There are Oscar parties and then there are foodies Oscar parties. This year, I made all of my guests bring a dish inspired by an oscar-nominated flick to my viewing party. On the menu: Hot Slumdog Millionaires, Benjamin Button Mushrooms with Garlic and Parsley, Wall-e-nut brownies, Meryl Streeps of Meats (OK, this one was a bit of a stretch), Rachel Getting Wasteds and my Buttermilk Panna Cotta, inspired by the movie Milk. Panna Cotta are, in my opinion, one of the easiest dessert to make, though they do require some advance prep. This recipe for 6 buttermilk panna cottas is from Epicurious: Ingredients: 2 tablespoons water 1 1/2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin Nonstick vegetable oil spray 1 ...