So, I have to confess to never, ever having eaten a pavlova made by a real pastry chef. Once, my friend Helena took me to a fancy market when I was visiting her Vancouver to show me the beautiful pavlovas that they made there, but we just admired them. My point is that I think…
Tag: baking
Marzipan Cake with Baked Figs and Mint (Gluten-Free or not)
This cake is fluffy from egg whites and nutty, rich and aromatic from toasted almonds. It’s topped with fresh figs that are baked until they are glazed, syrupy and plump. The fresh mint is hard to place but it balances the sweetness of the cake and figs. I brought it to our friend Eric’s birthday…
Dark Hazelnut Linzertorte with Blackberry Filling (Gluten-free)
I have been visiting my mother on Gabriola Island in British Colombia, Canada. My dad chose Gabriola as the place he wanted to retire and build a house before he passed away and, a year ago, my husband and I got married here. My mum comes takes her vacation at the house every August and…
TomatoTart! Tomato Pie! Tomato Cobbler! (all gluten-free or not)
I used to make tomato pie from More Home Cooking by Laurie Colwin, which (along with Home Cooking) is one of my favourite books. Tomato Pie the epitome of summer comfort food…tomatoes baked with cheese, herbs and a bit of home-made mayonaisse in the most delicious biscuit crust. I tweaked the recipe over the years to…
Slacker’s Caramelized Rhubarb Clafouti (gluten-free or not)
I know that the strawberries are finally in season and I should be moving on from the rhubarb. I know that this is my third rhubarb post this month. I know. The truth is that I have a hard time making it to the greenmarket early enough to get the strawberries. By the time I…
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies made with Amaranth, Brown Sugar and Sea Salt (Gluten-Free)
This recipe for chewy gluten-free chocolate chip cookies is from the marvelous food blog Cannelle et Vanile and it is so perfect, so delicious I have nothing to offer in the way of personalization or improvement…and I say that as a self-professed crispy chocolate chip cookie loving snob. These cookies are not crispy but they are…
Two Orange Almond Cakes for Passover (gluten-free)
We have been hosting a lot of dinner parties this month. Last week, I made two Orange Almond cakes for our guests. Despite having the same primary flavours, these two cakes were very different from each other. Clearly, I have a thing for the old almond and orange combo in deserts (tangerine marmalade cake and marmalade and…
Floral Scented Shortbreads (Gluten-Free)
These cookies combine the lovely aromatic quality of Indian deserts with a crisp and not too sweet shortbread. I was inspired by the cardamom, pistachio and rosewater shortbread on the lovely food blog My Darling Lemon Thyme. I enjoyed these rose scented cookies so much, that I started experimenting with orange blossom water and culinary…
Irish Soda Bread Inspired Scones (Gluten-Free) Traditional Irish Soda Bread
Happy St Patrick’s day, a few days early! On the actual day, I will be hiding from the festivities in my apartment eating these Irish soda bread inspired scones. I’m not always the most participatory Irish person. I teach at a school where a lot of the teachers are Irish and/or Italian American. The students…
Empanadas filled with Sauteed Swiss Chard Stems, Green Olives and Roasted Red Peppers (Gluten-free or not)
What do you do with swiss chard stems? It is an ongoing question in my kitchen. I eat about two bunches of sautéed swiss chard a week year round. In the winter though, I find that the stems overwhelm the greens both in flavour and texture. So, I cut out the stems and use them to…
Big Sis Little Dish 