I never made this pastry before, probably because it *seemed* somewhat intimidating. The reality is though that few doughs are really that scary. Some people likely avoid it because it contains lard, i.e. pig fat. Frankly though, lard is way tastier than anything made with vegetable shortening. Hot-water pastry was probably used for the “coffin” pastry crusts of olde, where the pastry was really just a free-standing vessel for the pie contents. Once cooked, the […]
Thanksgiving in Canada, and time for pie! I don’t make pie that often, mainly because if you make it, then you have to eat it (which is always a bummer right?). Pies (of any sort) can be too sweet – so this recipe is nice because it’s not overly sweet. It does use corn syrup, which I’m not the biggest fan of, but you could always substitute something such as maple syrup. Pecans are native […]
Visited the Danish Pastry House a few weeks back in Oakville. Lots of real Danish pastries!
The canelé is a French pastry, which originated in the Bordeaux region of France. It features a thick caramelized sugar crust that gives way to a custard-like interior that’s permeated with the aromas of rum and vanilla. This one is from Blackbird Baking Co. in Kensington Market, Toronto. The outside… the inside… Stay tuned for my first attempt at baking these.
This is a delicious “Hot Chocolate” donut from Glory Hole Doughnuts. I had it at Lit Espresso Bar on Bayview Ave.
This particular recipe comes from Standard Baking Co. Pastries, by Alison Pray and Tara Smith. I’m using the sweet pastry I talked about in the previous post. The frangipane is walnut, and the pears Flemish Beauty. This is my first attempt at a tart like this, and I have to say I was extremely happy with the outcome. Note the recipe in the book uses almond meal, however walnuts and even hazelnuts work fine, likely pecans […]
Recipes for sweet pastry dough abound. Let me rephrase that, recipes for pastry dough abound. So how do you know which one is best? Well, likely that is based on personal taste. This past weekend I made a lemon tart and a pear frangipane tart, both of which have a sweet pastry. The fillings and pastry came from different sources. The pastry dough came from Richard Bertinet’s book Pastry (Ebury Press, 2012). As simple as it […]
despite the snow 