Our pear tree is bearing fruit, lots of it. So far this summer I have made a pear upside down cake, pear marmalade, pear sorbet and pear and vanilla jam and I have another large bowl of pears that I picked Friday. Looking at the tree, there are still loads more pears. I don't want them to go to waste!
Other recipes to make with pears: brandied pears, pear torte, pear brandy, pear and carrot soup...as you can see, I have done a lot of google searches. I have also looked in my cookbooks and am now in the midst of baking Pear Clafouti from the Barefoot Contessa in Paris cookbook. It is a mixture of flour, eggs, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, salt, and some pear brandy (I replaced with apple liquer) poured onto a dish of sliced fresh pears. Sounds like a yummy breakfast for us today!
Suggestions for pear recipes are welcome.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
New restaurant in the hood: Pizzeria Libretto
Yum. We went to Pizzeria Libretto, the newest hot spot in our neighborhood, on Wednesday night, which turned out to be opening night and I am hooked! First, the place is way bigger than I expected, probably seats about 70, which is good news as I am sure it will be popular. For the first night, I was impressed by the service, decor and of course, the food.
The menu consists of salads, bruschetta, salumi, cheeses, and pizza. As there were only 2 of us, we couldn't try a whole lot, but I am sure we will visit again soon. FYI: Of all the dishes we had, we didn't leave a morsel on the plates. We started with bresola, arugula and asiago cheese which was a fairly big portion for the two of us, and tasted very fresh. This was quickly followed by the bruschetta with wild mushrooms which had a delicious olive or truffle oil on it and the mushrooms were gorgeous! For a pizza, we went with the duck confit. I have not had pizza this good since moving to Toronto. So fresh, thin crust, not too oily, and really top-notch ingredients and seasoning.
The fact is, there is nothing else like this in the vicinity. We used to have to go to College or Queen for any good Italian, and this place is not just good, it is really well priced. The highest costing item was about $15 and even some of the wines by the glass were only $5.
Our first meal was so good, I can't wait to go back and try everything else on the menu. I know B was eyeing the bar area and thinking of when he'll be back, with or without me!
The menu consists of salads, bruschetta, salumi, cheeses, and pizza. As there were only 2 of us, we couldn't try a whole lot, but I am sure we will visit again soon. FYI: Of all the dishes we had, we didn't leave a morsel on the plates. We started with bresola, arugula and asiago cheese which was a fairly big portion for the two of us, and tasted very fresh. This was quickly followed by the bruschetta with wild mushrooms which had a delicious olive or truffle oil on it and the mushrooms were gorgeous! For a pizza, we went with the duck confit. I have not had pizza this good since moving to Toronto. So fresh, thin crust, not too oily, and really top-notch ingredients and seasoning.
The fact is, there is nothing else like this in the vicinity. We used to have to go to College or Queen for any good Italian, and this place is not just good, it is really well priced. The highest costing item was about $15 and even some of the wines by the glass were only $5.
Our first meal was so good, I can't wait to go back and try everything else on the menu. I know B was eyeing the bar area and thinking of when he'll be back, with or without me!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Foods to try
A blog I read, Chocolate & Zucchini, linked to an interesting list of 100 items to eat. I have followed the instructions and bolded those I've eaten and crossed out the ones I would not try.
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake
OK I would try any of the above but have reservations about the roadkill. Some of these I can't believe I haven't tried (Spam, goulash), while others I know why I haven't (I love dirty vodka martinis, but am not a gin fan). This is a fun exercise. Just counted it up and have 38 out of 100 to try. Fun!
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake
OK I would try any of the above but have reservations about the roadkill. Some of these I can't believe I haven't tried (Spam, goulash), while others I know why I haven't (I love dirty vodka martinis, but am not a gin fan). This is a fun exercise. Just counted it up and have 38 out of 100 to try. Fun!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Subscribe To
Posts
All Comments