Our strawberry rhubarb charlotte was inspired by one we had at Au Pied de Cochon this past June. We were so impressed by the delicious dessert that I adapted it for Tomiko’s unofficial birthday party over the Canada Day long weekend. The tart rhubarb makes this strawberry rhubarb charlotte really special, since we can only […]
cream
Maple Crème Brûlée
This year for Donatello’s birthday, I made maple crème brûlée instead of any type of birthday cake. This is a variation of the one I made last year, I just substituted maple syrup for the white sugar in the custard. I didn’t have any maple sugar, but if you do, you can use 1/2 cup […]
Thick’n’Creamy New England Clam Chowder
Travelling through New England in spring 2014 and autumn 2015, my parents and I made sure to take advantage of the local quahog clams via delicious, creamy clam chowder. Manhattan clam chowder is lighter and tomato-based, but New England clam chowder is thick and creamy and rich. Here is a recipe that I made for Tomiko, […]
Crème Brûlée
Donatello loves crème brûlée and always orders it whenever it appears on a menu. For his birthday in December, I made individual crème brûlées for him (and the family); and of course, he got the biggest one. After dinner and gifts, I pulled the ramekins of crème brûlée out of the fridge and lit up […]
Croquembouche Birthday Cake
Instead of a regular old cake for Tomiko’s 30th birthday, I made a towering croquembouche! Last year I made her a white chocolate raspberry cake, but I wanted to create something special this year. I have loved profiteroles (aka cream puffs) since first trying them when I was about 14, and so I eventually learned […]