Another butter tart haven - Le Pain Quotidien

So maybe I lied when I said butter tarts are only for bad days.  They can be for good days too.  Maybe it's the type of butter tart I have on bad days.  On bad days, I like ooey gooey goodness - even if it's slightly too sweet.

On good days, I want small butter well...tarts?  Cue an example of a good day: my Big Brother and I went out to lunch and decided to have some dessert.  We stopped at Le Pain Quotidien for dessert.  And there, in the display window, was a somewhat Parisian version of a butter tart.

We both had one each and split a pot of green tea.

And boy, am I glad we each had our own.  The entire thing was lighter and much less sweet than other butter tarts I've had. Despite the fact that I know it was loaded with calories, it didn't taste like it was loaded with calories.

Now, the picture I posted with this entry doesn't do the tart justice.  I'm not in the habit of carrying a camera with me, so I had to rely on my Blackberry (and as much as I love this phone, the camera on it just isn't that great).  The tart shell was a golden brown, and the filling was actually not dark brown, but a sunny yellow colour - very different from a traditional butter tart.  And the taste?

Heaven on Earth.

And you know what?  It actually tasted buttery.  Silly, but I've never had a butter tart that tasted buttery.  The shell, yeah, but the filling?  Never.

Would I go back again for another butter tart?  Oh yeah.  Can I go back often?  Not if I'd like to fit in my pants.

(Le Pain Quotidien also serves an awesome sandwich and other baked goods.  It's a favourite lunch spot of mine.)

Restaurant rating: Definitely worth an extra hour or two at the gym.

Summer dinner

Inspired by the warm weather and summer fruits and vegetables, I decided to throw a party this past weekend.  I'm still recovering, so for now, here's a sampling of pictures. I'll post the recipes separately in the next few weeks.

Chilled cucumber and avocado soup

Sweet and savoury curry quinoa

Arugula salad

Grilled sirloin and garden tomatoes

Berries & cream with chocolate shavings

Found a new beer - Okanagan Springs

Short post today!  Found a new beer on a Saturday night adventure.  Hearty but not too heavy, perfectly round finish   Honestly, it's one of the best beers I've ever had.

http://www.okspring.com/

My mother is a bacon connoisseur

Special thanks to C for taking this pic

My mother loves bacon.  No, wait - that's probably an understatement.  My mother LOOOOVES and ADOOORES bacon.  About 9 months ago, my mother and I went to Beijing, staying at the World China Hotel.

I have to say, breakfast was always good, and there really is something to please every palate.  You want congee for breakfast?  Sure.  An omelette with cheese, mushrooms and peppers? Sure, whatever you want - the chef is standing there waiting for your order. Watching your waistline?  Porridge, oatmeal, whole wheat toast, fruit, yogurt...all of that was available. And, if for some really, really, strange and warped reason you felt like having salmon sashimi for breakfast, that was available too.  

With such a large selection of food, you would've thought potatoes, eggs and bacon would be available.  And well, it was.  Just not the way my mother and I imagined.  Because, while we were in Beijing (which is, approximately a 15 hour flight away), they had the audacity to serve TURKEY bacon.

Personally, I was fine with the bacon.  It was kind of chewy, but still, it tasted like bacon.  But to my mother? It was BLASPHEMY.  How could a five-star hotel NOT have proper bacon?  My poor mother...every day, she would go back to see if the kitchen was serving pork bacon.  Every single day, she'd be disappointed.  

But, the funny thing was, as much as she complained about it, she would have the turkey bacon every day and then critique it.  Thinking back, it was similar to a wine connoisseur tasting rating a bottle of wine.

But the experience (if it taught me anything) is that we Canadians really are spoiled by the quality of bacon produced here. If you want bacon at home? Sure, make it.  It's pretty messy, but worth it.  (If I'm REALLY desperate for bacon, I'll throw it into the oven and bake it - it helps with the fat content...kinda...)

Don't feel like cooking?  Head over to Cora's or the Sunset Grill.  Or any other local greasy spoon.  My point is, good quality bacon is accessible anywhere in Canada. And not just regular pork belly bacon strips.  There's back bacon, peameal bacon, (and after some research), slab bacon and cottage bacon. (I'm pretty sure I'm leaving some out.)  

To be frank, we're pretty spoiled when it comes to bacon. Given the selection we have here, I guess it does explain why one of the very first meals we had out after getting home was at Cora's. Can you guess what my mother ordered?

Butter tarts are good for the soul

I love butter tarts.  What's not to love? Oooey-gooey, sticky goodness, with a flaky buttery shell and crunchy maple pecans (apologies to all the butter tart purists reading this). To me, butter tarts are perfect.  But I'll only indulge on certain occasions.  Like when it's been a particularly stressful day (rarely do I crave a butter tart on a good day).

There's something about a butter tart that demands my full attention. Maybe it's because the flaky crust will break apart and leave a long trail of crumbs, or the sticky filling will drip onto my shirt as I take that first bite.  A butter tart is so rich, so complex to make and so difficult to eat, that it needs time and respect to properly enjoy.

By focusing solely on the butter tart in front of me, any worries or stress are temporarily shelved.  It gives me a few minutes to re-focus and re-group and hopefully, gain a different perspective on whatever is bothering me.  Butter tarts are sweet, calming and comforting.  Butter tarts help soothe the soul, or at the very least, this blogger's soul.

Did I have a butter tart today?  Yes.  Do I plan to have a butter tart tomorrow?  Absolutely not.

Crema Coffee Co. at Yonge/Bloor serves a mean butter tart.

Butter tart rating: satisfaction level, 10; guilt level, 7.  Okay...maybe the guilt level is closer to a 4.