Finger-Lick’n Baby-Back Ribs

Tags

baby-back ribs, BBQ ribs, pork ribs, ribs

I just love weekends. Don’t you? No early rising to a frenzy of preparing breakfast for the girls, racking my brain on what lunch to send them to school with, making sure they have matching socks, brushed hair, packed school bags, appropriate gear to walk out the door with, not to mention rushing them out the door to ensure they are not late for school. And as the day goes on, what to make for dinner so that everyone will be happy, homework…more homework! I seem to be doing more homework now than I did when I was in school. How can that be? And then there’s bath time, reading time, bedtime… Come 5:00 o’clock on Friday evening, I am DONE! Done as in, “I am off the clock”! Lucky for me, hubby enjoys cooking. Hence another reason to love the weekend. Hubby does the cooking!

Ages ago, he got this fantastic rib recipe from his mum. There’s a famous rib restaurant here in Montreal that’s been around forever and I assure you that these ribs are way better than those. Finger-lick’n better!

Baby-Back Ribs

2 kilograms baby-back pork ribs, parboiled

2 cups/500 ml of unsweetened apple sauce

4 cups of brown sugar

1 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of pepper

1 teaspoon of paprika

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

4-6 garlic cloves, minced

In a medium saucepan, mix all of the ingredients except ribs. Over medium heat, bring the sauce to a boil and cook for about 3 minutes. Place the parboiled ribs in an oven dish or pan and pour the sauce over the ribs. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, turning over once and brushing the other side with the sauce.

Bake in a 350 degree F/180 C oven for 45 minutes. Turn ribs over and spoon or bush some sauce over the ribs. Continue baking for another 45 minutes. You can bake the ribs a little longer, up to an hour after you’ve turned them over. This will only allow for the meat to come right off the bone. Slather some of the remaining sauce over the ribs and squeeze some fresh lemon juice over them when serving. You can serve them as my hubby did, with home-made oven fries and coleslaw. And be prepared to eat like a caveman, or cavewoman, and lick those fingers clean!

Maple Syrup Cake

Tags

cake, cakes baked in tin cans, maple syrup cake, maple syrup desserts, maple syrup frosting

Maple syrup. It’s amazing that a maple tree can offer up such sweetness. Maple syrup season occurs each spring here in Quebec. Of course, Mother Nature plays a key role in its production. The weather needs to be above 0 degrees C during the day and it is imperative that it freezes overnight. In this way, the sap freezes overnight and when the temperature rises above zero during the day, it allows for the sap to flow through the tree. This sweet water is collected and boiled down until the water has evaporated, leaving behind nature’s sweetest of delicacies!

40 litres of water (10 1/2 U.S. gallons) is required to produce a mere 1 litre (a 1/4 of a gallon) of maple syrup. With Quebec producing 85% of the world’s maple syrup production, it’s no wonder The Great Maple Syrup Heist occurred right here on my home turf. It is hailed as the greatest agricultural theft ever, with 6 million pounds of maple syrup, valued at $18 million dollars, stolen from the Global Maple Syrup Reserve. Lucky for me, I have my stash safe and sound!

We love maple syrup in our household. Not just over pancakes and waffles, but baking and cooking with it as well. One of our favourites is Maple Syrup Cake with Maple Syrup Frosting from The Moosewood Restaurant Book of Deserts. This recipe makes a beautiful and delicious double layered cake. I keep some of my empty maple syrup tins and decided to bake a small cake in it. Appropriate, no? A little maple syrup cake baked in its tin! You could bake 4, maybe 5, and they would be perfect to give as gifts, with a ribbon tied around it. They would be great for bake sales as well.

Maple Syrup Cake
2 1/2 cups of flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 cup of butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup of pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 cup of unsweetened apple sauce

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or oil 2 round cake pans and dust with flour.

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In an electric mixer, or in a bowl with a hand-held mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add maple syrup and vanilla, and beat well. Mix in the applesauce and then gently fold in the dry ingredients, just until combined. Pour the batter into prepared pans and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in its centre comes out clean. Cool completely on a rack.

If baking cakes in tins, fill it about 2/3 full and bake for about 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

 

As the cakes cool, proceed with the frosting.

Maple Syrup Frosting
1/2 cup of butter, softened
2 1/2 cups of confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/4 cup of maple syrup

Begin by creaming the butter in an electric mixer or with a hand blender. Add the confectioner’s sugar, a 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and maple syrup, and beat well.

One does need to taste-test the cake before serving it to your loved ones, don’t you think? Therefore, I always slice the top off one of the cakes and that’s the one that will serve as the bottom layer, holding the centre’s frosting. You could frost just the top and centre and leave as is. Or you could go all the way and frost all around the cake’s sides as well. It’s up to you!

As for that little cake baked in the tin, you could leave it as is. Or, you could poke some holes into it and pour some maple syrup over the top, allowing for the sponge to absorb that liquid gold. Slice it up and eat as is, or add a little dollop of maple syrup frosting. Or go for both ways. I did!

Long-Overdue Thank You’s!

Tags

Oh Lidia Awards, Oh Lidia Thank you

I have been honoured with awards from some of my fellow bloggers and I am truly appreciative. I meant to respond to these honourable mentions but then one thing lead to another and it never happened. This post is dedicated to all of you who deemed my blog worthy enough to nominate for an award.

I realize I’m doing things a little differently. And please bear with me. It is a bit of a long post, but a very important one! The rules when receiving an award are to thank those who have nominated me, which I’m doing with this post. There are also some questions to answer which might reveal something about me to my fellow bloggers that they didn’t already know. Although I cannot possibly answer ALL the questions being asked, due to my blatant neglect to do so when I should have, I will select some from each blogger and do the best I can with that. Lastly, but in my mind most importantly, I need to spread the love by passing these awards on to my fellow bloggers who I deem worthy of an award.

So, here we go…

The Sunshine Award

Way back when I had just started blogging, I was nominated for the Sunshine Award from Vina’s Delicious Recipes. If you’re looking for truly inspiring Indian dishes which scream yummy, you need to check out her blog. Thank you Veena!

Some of Veena’s questions were:

What is your favorite animal?

Pussycat

What is your favorite time of day?

Sunset in the summer, sitting by the lake with a cocktail in my hand!

What is your favorite non-alcoholic drink?

Water

Now, my picks for The Sunshine Award… because they fill my heart with sunshine!

Motherhood Is An Art  Melissa shows us, through her humourous and witty storytelling, how motherhood truly is an art!

Little Poppits  Love seeing what Teresa and her 3 little poppets are up to over in the U.K.!

The Very Inspiring Blogger Award

Next up was the Very Inspiring Blogger Award, given to me by Samantha over at food flavor fascination. Samantha inspires me with her fresh take on multi-ethnic cuisine and Oh! so yummy desserts! Thank you Samantha!

And now, 7 things about myself…

1. I LOVE french fries, good crispy french fries

2. Actually, I LOVE potatoes in all shapes and forms EXCEPT scalloped potatoes

3. I LOVE cocktails

4. I love listening to music and singing out loud… even if I’m told not to sing!

5. I love to read

6. I LOVE Nutella

7. I LOVE everything Italian!

And now my nominees for The Very Inspiring Blogger Award… because they truly do inspire me!

from the Bartolini kitchens  John keeps the memory of his Italian family alive through truly inspiring dishes, and he inspires me to do the same!

now at home mom  Ingrid manages to accomplish so much craftiness, often with so little. If I could only have a smidgen of her flair with everything crafty!

The One Lovely Blog Award

I was awarded the One Lovely Blog Award from Fae over at Fae’s Twist & Tango. Fae creates the most beautiful dishes, with influences from Persian and Japanese/Asian cuisine, amongst others. She is one foodie I would LOVE to have as a neighbour! Let’s say she could be the neighbour to my right…

More random things about me…

1. I am a loyal friend.

2. I love the ocean.

3. I love heat.

4. I hate the cold!

I nominate for The One Lovely Blog Award…

Please Pass The Recipe  Lady Red Specs, A.K.A. Sandra, lives Down Under and amazes me with the most delicious-looking dishes! I’ve lost count of her numerous recipes which I’ve added on my “to do list”! She is the foodie I would want as my neighbour living on the other side of me, to my left!

Mama Miyuki Easy Pantsy  An Indonesian living in Japan, Mama Miyuki makes Indonesian-inspired meals and Bento meals that look like a work of art! Really!

The Super Sweet Blog Award

Awarded to me by Tea With Erika. Erika creates the loveliest of sweets and if I could have tea with Erika every afternoon, it would make my day!

Super Sweet questions:

1. Cookies or cake?    Cookies

2. Chocolate or vanilla?    Vanilla for ice cream, chocolate for everything else!

3. Favourite sweet treat?    Chocolate

4. When do I crave sweets the most?    In the afternoon

I nominate for the Super Sweet Blogger Award…

Mama’s Gotta Bake  She’s bad, she’s bold… and she likes sugar! What more can I say except that if Sheryl lived next door, I would be ever so happy… and ever so HUGE!

at 350 degrees  Carissa is a high school student who bakes the most scrumptious-looking desserts! If my daughter’s could bake like this when they’re in high school, we’re in business!

THE HUNGRY MUM  The loveliest of treats, sweets and baked goods! Truly deserving of the Super Sweet Blogger Award!

The Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award

Fae from Fae’s Twist & Tango has honoured me twice with an award! How lucky am I? Thank you Fae for deeming my blog worthy of these awards and with your always kind comments on my posts!

Here are some questions from Fae:

1. Do you prefer getting or giving presents?    Giving… but I LOVE receiving presents which my girls have made just for me!

2. Your favourite flower?    Peony

3. What is your passion?    To make people happy!

And the nominees for the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award goes to:

Uni Homemaker  Anne cooks up the most mouth-watering meals and the yummiest sweets! The pictures of her food ALWAYS make me crave whatever it is she presents us with!

Vedged Out  Somer is an inspiring Vegan who has the most appetizingly yummy vegan foods EVER! If only I had her strength… When I’m looking for a vegan meal or sweet, she is my go-to girl!

The Liebster Award

Liebster, German for beloved, darling, sweetheart… and awarded to encourage those bloggers with fewer than 200 followers. Awarded to me by Please Pass The Recipe. I have mentioned up above how wonderful Lady Red Specs is with her food when I awarded her with the well-deserved One Lovely Blog Award. Thank you Sandra!

This same award was also given to me by tasty treats 13, a wonderful dessert blog by a very inspiring school-aged student who bakes yummy treats and takes them to school to share with the class! How sweet is that?

More random facts about me…

1. I LOVE summer

2. I love drinking Prosecco in the summer

3. I love to hear the sound of ocean waves crashing on the surface

4. I LOVE to hear the sound of my daughters laughing

5. I love watching movies

Questions asked by Please Pass The Recipe:

1. What do you love most about blogging?    Telling a story.

2. Red or white wine?    Red in winter, white in summer

3. What food is your guilty pleasure?    Anything with chocolate

4. What do you love most about where you live?  Montreal has that “joie de vivre” feel to it

5. Favourite lazy Sunday dinner dish?    Italian pizza purchased from the Italian baker

6. Coast or country?    Both

7. Outside family, who would you most like to have as a dinner guest?    All the bloggers mentioned in this post!

8. Favourite cookbook?    Oh! Wow, that’s a tough one… Sorry, I pass on this one!

And I now nominate for the Liebster Award:

My Easy Gourmet  Eleni has a most lovely blog with GORGEOUS pictures and absolutely beautifully-made food!

cottage grove house  I’ve only just discovered this blog and I love it! Simple yet inspiring dishes, presented with Oh! such lovely photographs! I just love that “softness” she gives to her pictures!

I thought I should add one more random thing about me to end this post. I am a procrastinator!  Hence, leaving all my thank-you’s and appreciation to my fellow bloggers until it’s almost too late!

Bourbon & Maple Syrup Fusion

Tags

bourbon, bourbon and maple syrup cocktail, bourbon and maple syrup drink, bourbon cocktail, maple syrup cocktail

My eldest daughter is officially a teenager. Yesterday, we celebrated her 13th birthday. 13!! I have no idea where the years have got to, but here we are. I am the mom of a teenager! I think I’ve been a wonderful mom so far. I mean, how could I not? They’re little and cute, they’re sweet and want to hang out with you ALL the time! They are constantly asking me questions because they truly believe that I know everything! And most importantly, they don’t have attitude or answer back.

Now, it’s a whole new ball game. I’ve been wondering what kind of mom I’ll be to a teenager. Will I still be cool and fun enough for her to want to hang out with ALL the time? Will she still ask me all kinds of questions, or will she just assume that she knows it all? Will she be sweet and cuddly, or will she push me away when I need a hug?

In her birthday card, here were my words of wisdom to her…

My sweet Charlotte! You’re 13! I don’t know where all the years have gone but I have truly enjoyed watching you grow into the “teen” that you have become today. I want you to know that it’s a great big world out there and if you put your mind to it, you can do anything you want! Anything! EXCEPT… get a tattoo, have attitude and answer back!! I love you my Charlotte! Happy, happy birthday!

I mention it here in case she loses that card or forgets what I’ve told her. If that “I told you so” day ever comes, she cannot deny it. This will be a constant reminder! And who knows, this could lead to a new blog: “The trials and tribulations of a teenager’s mom.” Or, “How I ended up in an asylum.”

So while the teenagers were hanging out in the basement doing whatever it is that teens do, I was upstairs doing what every teen’s mom does…enjoying this most delicious cocktail! I do hope that none of her friend’s parents will read this… Oh! How could I forget? One of the mom’s WAS here. Sue made sure to come back for cocktail hour when she discovered what I was concocting!

I mentioned in my last post, Cabane à sucre Au Pied de Cochon, that I had a very yummy cocktail at this restaurant. So yummy in fact, that I tried to recreate it at home. And recreate it I did! Oh wow! It was fantastic! I began by making maple syrup jelly. That’s right, maple syrup jelly! Oh! So! Yum! I mean, REALLY yum!

Sprinkle a small package of unflavoured gelatin, about 2 teaspoons, over 1/4 cup of water in a small bowl. Set aside while you proceed with the next step. In a small saucepan, stir 1 cup of water with 3/4 cup of pure maple syrup. Bring to a boil and stir in the gelatin. I wanted a layer of about 1 inch/2.5 cm thick, therefore I poured it into 2 separate glass dishes. Refrigerate until solid, about 3 to 4 hours. You can either try and get the whole thing out in one piece and chop into little cubes, or you can cut cubes right out of the dish. If you could refrain from eating it all before you use it for your drinks, good on you!

Drop the chopped maple syrup cubes into a whiskey glass. Using Kentucky Bourbon, I poured about 2 tablespoons/30 ml (or 1 1/2 oz) into the glass, along with the same amount of carbonated water (I used San Benedetto, but you could also use Perrier or even club soda). Add about 2 teaspoons of pure maple syrup. Give it a taste and adjust to your liking. Add a couple of ice cubes and an orange slice, slightly squeezed. Blood orange adds the perfect colour to it, don’t you think? Slurp it up and enjoy!

Cabane à sucre “Au Pied de Cochon”

Tags

Anthony Bourdain Au Pied de Cochon, Au Pied de Cochon, Cabane a Sucre, Cabane a sucre Au Pied de Cochon, Martin Picard, Montreal restaurants, Sugar Shack

My posts thus far have been about food. The foods I love and cook. Foods which have a special meaning to me. Foods I make for my loved ones. Today, I want to share 3 cool things about the city of Montreal.

1. Montreal is a summer town. By this I mean that come summertime, Montreal is a happening place. After 6 months of gruelling winter weather, Montrealers flock outside in droves, enjoying the warmth of the sun and all that the city has to offer. The world renowned Montreal International Jazz Festival. The Grand Prix. The Just for Laughs Festival and the Beer Festival are but a few events which take over the city.

2. Montreal is a Foodie Town. It has the second highest number of restaurants per capita in North America, after New York City!

3. 85% of the world’s maple syrup comes from Quebec, the province in which Montreal is located.

Because I am a foodie who loves checking out the happening spots in my city, I will occasionally mention some of Montreal’s great eateries.

Which brings me to the prominent Montreal restaurant Au Pied de Cochon and Quebec’s famous, crowd-pleasing Cabane à Sucre, otherwise known as The Sugar Shack. Au Pied de Cochon is a restaurant run by an eclectic chef, one of Canada’s best, Martin Picard, whose signature cuisine is all about indulging in rich and fatty foods centred around pork (cochon) and foie gras, the fattened livers of duck and goose. Anthony Bourdain visited the famed restaurant for his television series “No Reservations”. For those who are NOT vegetarian nor faint of heart, you can watch this clip from his visit.

Enter the cabane à sucre. Quebec sugar shacks feature a traditional menu consisting of ham, eggs, bacon, beans and lots of maple syrup. So we have the traditional sugar shack and the not-so traditional chef Martin Picard. Do you see where this is headed?

Anthony Bourdain also visited Martin Picard’s infamous sugar shack for his new television series “Parts Unknown” which aired this past Sunday evening on CNN.

Martin Picard combines his Au Pied de Cochon signature foods with maple syrup, making his “Cabane à Sucre au Pied de Cochon” the hottest ticket in town! Reservations are taken exclusively via e-mail beginning December 1st at midnight, for a chance of obtaining a table during the 12 week run which begins in February (Friday through Sunday evenings only). I see it as a lottery ticket, one that I was fortunate enough to win! Some people have been waiting 2 to 3 years to get a hot seat here! We were a group of 11 when we attended a few weeks ago, eager and exhilarated to be dining at this celebrated shack. Having lucked out last autumn for his apple menu, featuring all things pork, foie gras and apples, I knew what was in store. Should you be intrigued with that menu, you can check it out here.

We began with their signature maple syrup cocktails. A frozen maple daiquiri and a sublime Bourbon, maple syrup and sparkling water, with maple syrup jello cubes on the bottom! Can you tell which one I had? Although I am no fan of Bourbon, except when making a Bourbon & Cola Glazed Ham, this drink called out to me and Oh! am I glad it did! I will definitely try to recreate this one and share the results with you.

As were sipping our drinks, we were greeted with dessert! Yes, dessert for starters! And not just any desserts. A three-tiered stack of wood logs topped with… what childhood dreams are made of: maple syrup glazed donut holes, maple cotton candy, mini ice cream cones filled with maple toffee, chocolate-dipped maple whippets (a marshmallow sitting atop a maple biscuit and covered in chocolate), homemade flaky, buttery, maple and almond croissants, maple popcorn, maple canelés (a crunchy, maple crust pastry filled with a soft and tender custard), a honeycomb of maple sugar toffee. And sitting at the very bottom of the tier, Jack Daniels with maple syrup shots!

I must not forget the maple syrup crème caramel and my absolute favourite, a thick and custard-like gelatin of yogurt with maple syrup jello cubes throughout. Oh My Word!!! I was in heaven!

What came next was an overdose of rich and delectable dishes. Fried confit of duck legs covered in a sweet and sticky maple BBQ sauce. Crispy on the outside, tender and moist on the inside. DELICIOUS! My favourite after the yogurt! And after all that maple syrup yumminess.

Oreilles de crisse, which translates literally to “Christ’s ears”, is a traditional Quebec dish served in sugar shacks. What are they? Deep-fried, smoked pork rinds. I am usually not a big fan but when I tasted these…Oh! They were perfect! They were ever-so light, like a tempura, and crispy and salty! So light in fact, that one could have eaten the whole lot without a moment’s notice! I know because I almost did. They were sitting on top of an endive salad mixed with onions, little bits of rabbit hearts and a rich, creamy sauce. My favourite after the starter desserts and the duck legs!

Actually, I take that back. This next dish might have been my favourite. A crepe fried in duck fat, of course, and topped with maple syrup-cooked beans, fried eggs, cottage cheese, shallots, chunks of melt-in-your mouth pan-fried foie gras and beautiful strips of smoky salmon. Oh! So rich and sumptuous! Yes, definitely my fave!

Or perhaps this next one…A very light omelette which sat on top of a crispy layer of potatoes and melted cheese. Sprinkled over the omelette were maple syrup bacon crisps and pan-seared calf’s brain, crispy on the outside and very tender on the inside, with a drizzle of maple syrup poured over the whole thing. Oh my! At this point, you might be questioning the whole hearts and brains and gizzards and things. But if you don’t know what it is and don’t care to know, you’d love it. I kept mouthing to everyone at our table NOT to mention to dear hubby what he was eating. He didn’t know and thought everything was quite good!

We also ordered the Au Pied de Cochon tourtiere, an optional course which needed to be ordered at the very beginning of our meal. How could we resist? It’s only once a year! What can I say about the impossibly tender and flaky pie crust, filled with venison and pork and foie gras and yumminess! That it was perhaps my next favourite down the list?!

And this is when we were served a dish of simply fried green beans. Well, not quite so simple. They were maple-glazed and sprinkled with crunchy almonds. To give us a break from all the decadence!

My neighbour David, being on his first visit to this culinary extravaganza, turned to me and said, “That’s it, right? Because I’m done!” To which I replied, “Oh, I don’t think so. I’m pretty sure there’s more to come.” And there was!

Imagine this: a whole roasted chicken stuffed with sausage, foie gras and lobster, and served with lobster bisque to drizzle over the carved chicken sitting on your plate! Because it was just sitting there, you know. For the longest time I simply gazed at it, willing myself to take a bite. And when I did, I decided that this was my absolute favourite dish! Truly! You would think it an odd combination, but it really was out of this world!

It wouldn’t be a complete sugar shack meal without ham. This ham is smoked right outside the front door, so as we walk about on the grounds (or just hang out hoping to make room for the remainder of what’s to come) we have this wonderful smell of wood-smoked ham permeating the air. The ham comes glazed with maple syrup and beautiful slices of pineapple resting on top. I cannot tell you what it tasted like, I really could not take another bite! Really! I packed it up and took it home but everyone said it was delicious!

Whether it be because I was in disbelief or perhaps because my brain was in a comatose state, I neglected to take photos of the next two dishes except after we had ploughed through…

And now for the final round of desserts. Maple taffy on a stick, sitting in maple ice cream. I just love maple taffy and had to make room for that. It only comes around once a year! And that creamy and luscious maple ice cream, my favourite! Of course, I just had to try the maple meringue angel-food cake, topped with a maple frosting, which reminded me of melted marshmallows, filled in the centre with crispy almonds, pistachios and maple syrup. My ultimate favourite! You are probably thinking that I would make a lousy food critic with me loving everything…

What could be a perfect ending to this epic food experience? A picture of Martin Picard with ME! Thanks to the patience and insistence of my friend Halvdan, I was lucky to get a picture with the celebrated chef!