Crostoli or Frappe du Carnaval

Crostoli or Frappe du Carnaval

It’s Shrove Tuesday and everyone’s flipping pancakes and frying fritters. Me? I’m trying my hand at crostoli — a crispy, fried dough so light it’s almost like you’re not eating. Variations appear throughout Europe with different names and different shapes, but the distinctive blistered dough 

Blood Orange and Cherry Muffins

Blood Orange and Cherry Muffins

Be careful what you wish for. Earlier I begged for sunshine, and lots of it, as I gobbled blood oranges as fast as I could peel them.  I should have specified “with warm temperatures.” Mother Nature granted my request— in letter, not spirit. For the 

Chocolate Coconut Paleo Crack

Chocolate Coconut Paleo Crack

These are for my sister. She doesn’t know it yet, but they’ll arrive at her door later today in a box with some pathetic attempt at a heart drawn on the lid. She’s in the middle of the Kitchen Reno from Hell and needs some 

Portuguese Custard Tarts

Portuguese Custard Tarts

This photo wasn’t staged. It’s a real glimpse of my chaotic kitchen table, captured via my smartphone. The spoons are washed but remain uncleared from the Herb & Spice post. The dishes at the lower right are set out for lunch, and in the midst of 

Beer Batter Orange Crepes

Beer Batter Orange Crepes

This post will come as a surprise to those who know me. I’m not a beer drinker. Yet here I am creating a recipe using ale. Samuel Adams Latitude 48 IPA to be precise. Why? Because I was asked. And they specifically wanted a dessert, 

Burnt Caramel Pudding

Burnt Caramel Pudding

This post isn’t what I intended. I had planned on doing a round-up of my favourite cold-weather soup recipes. Healthy, economical, waste-free, toe-warming soup. But after poking about the Internet for a minute or two, I realized everyone had the same idea. So instead, I’m sharing 

Zdena’s Walnut Crescent Cookies

Zdena’s Walnut Crescent Cookies

The Canadian Food Experience Project – The Christmas Edition – Walnut Crescent Cookies In our family, Christmas changes little, year to year. Once the New Year arrives and the decorations are packed away, all Christmases Past roll together into a single, hazy holiday scenario to 

Caramel Apple Icebox Trifle

Caramel Apple Icebox Trifle

The holidays are rushing in and the panicked questions have begun. With crazed eyes and shaking voices, friends ask me for easy holiday recipes to take to a party or serve their own guests. They always say “easy” with extra emphasis, pausing before and after 

Elizabeth Baird and Schnitz Pie

Elizabeth Baird and Schnitz Pie

Go to your bookshelf. Pull out your most dog-eared, battered, and beloved cookbooks. Who wrote them? If you’re Canadian, chances are at least one of them is by Elizabeth Baird and her intrepid team at the Canadian Living Test Kitchen. How many bear her name?