July 25, 2013
Rice pudding is one of those universal dishes you find in almost every cuisine. Flavours may vary but the idea is the same: rice cooked in milk with sugar and various flavourings added. I have made it with anything from vanilla and cinnamon to rose water, orange peel, nutmeg and raisins. I have topped it with fruit syrups, jams, caramelized nuts and coconut. I have cooked it with or without eggs, boiled it, baked it,... View Article
July 23, 2013
My friend Anne is one of a kind. Ageless, stylish and with sense of fun like no one else I know. I first met her when she came to one of my cooking classes a long time ago, before I switched careers and became a lawyer (she still has the lentil soup recipe from that class). We quickly became friends and that friendship has endured and deepened over the years and now I think of... View Article
September 27, 2012
A fruit compote, or fruit “soup” is more common in the mediterranean than here in North America. What is it? It’s an assortment of summer stone fruits cooked in a sugar syrup (I add sweet wine and orange juice) on medium heat until the fruits break down slightly but still retain some texture. You can also make a winter fruit compote using dried fruits, but the recipe I am offering today is definitely a summer... View Article
September 22, 2012
Spun sugar looks so impressive and is really quite simple to make. Granted, it’s a bit messy but I have organized a system that works for me so I don’t hesitate to make it regularly for garnishing desserts. Spun sugar is made from sugar, water and corn syrup that are allowed to boil to a caramel. The caramel reaches a certain stage in which long thin strand of “angel hair” drop when you dip a... View Article
September 22, 2012
I love baking cakes but find that I don’t do it very often, saving it for when we have company. The problem is that a regular size 9-10 inch cake is just too much for a couple of servings and I end up wasting a lot. But I like to bake cakes, so, I decided to make a small recipe, enough for 4 individual little cakes that I can play with, fill, decorate, garnish and... View Article
September 14, 2012
Melt-in-your-mouth four ingredients cookies that everyone who likes to cook should have in their repertoire. They are quick to make and so sweetly delicious. I believe these cookies hail from the mediterranean and you see versions of them in many middle east cuisines. The dough has to be chilled first and then baked at low temperature (I use convection mode at 320℉. ) You can roll the dough into a log, refrigerate until cold and... View Article
August 31, 2012
Plums are in season and there all kinds of types and colours available at the market. I like baking with prune plums and have been waiting their arrival with anticipation. Finally they were at the market on my last visit (everything is late here) so I bought a bunch and have been having fun with them in the kitchen. I made plum jam, plum butter, plum sauce, plum fruit soup, plum pizza, plum muffins and... View Article
August 19, 2012
So, this week my countertop in the kitchen has baskets full of peaches and apricots finishing their ripening process over here. I tried to control myself when I went to the market because this week it is cooking for two but still, a whole bunch of “stuff” jumped into my basket and came home with me. What could I do but open my kitchen and let them stay. The apricots especially are beautiful this season.... View Article
August 10, 2012
Golden Cherries Calfoutis Here is a delicious dessert to make with the abundance of cherries in the market right now: cherry calfoutis. French in origin this simple dessert is traditionally baked with red cherries that still have the pits in them. The pits impart a nutty, slightly bitter flavour to this dessert that makes it quite special. However, I make it with pitted cherries and in this recipe used golden cherries rather than the traditional... View Article
August 9, 2012
There are so many gorgeous fruits in the market right now my head just spins when I go shopping. Cherries, apricots, peaches, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, melons of all kinds, nectarines, plum. Oh, I am dizzy with excitement. Often we just have them “straight” in a fruit salad or with a little bit of cream (see peaches and cream here) but I also like to bake desserts: tarts, pies, buckles, cakes, fruit crisps, even muffins with... View Article
August 6, 2012
I love summer rituals and have established a few here at our summer home in Kelowna. An early morning walk through the sleepy neighbourhood, a soy latte on the patio at The Roasted Bean on Cooks Rd (best lattés) or “opening” and “closing” the patio morning and night. We have food rituals as well. A slow breakfast at home on the patio, or lakeside breakfast ritual at the one-of-a-kind Hotel Eldorado or on the patio at... View Article
July 20, 2012
I have a couple of rhubarb plants in our otherwise wild back yard in the country where we live. It’s the only plant that seems to survive here. It is impossible to have a garden or even landscaping as we have a large number of wildlife roaming the forest and meadows around us and they eat everything in sight. They even come up on the deck to lunch of my flower pots, when i have... View Article
