Crispy Bits

Lemon Blackberry Trifle

This recipe comes to me by way of the priestess, nay, the goddess of the kitchen, Nigella Lawson.  I’ve been a fan and fanatical advocate of the raven-haired Brit since her show Nigella Bites, with her impeccable style, spot on palate, and slightly subversive humour.  And no one can make love to a spoon the way she can.  I did meet her once and we had a little chat.  To be perfectly accurate, I met her along with maybe 3000 other fans at a book signing.  Despite the mob, she remained regal and warm in her chartreuse twin set, offering a genuine smile to all.

I must admit her cookbook prose have had a profound inspiration on my own desire to write.  I’ve savoured each and every one of her publications, reading them more like novels rather than as a resource.  I enjoy her informative preambles mixed with the regional vernacular (splodge, nubbled, blitzed) and simple recipes with inspired flavours.  She blends cultures and style with no apology.  One region she loves to explore is Italy, from crostini to dolce.  …Hence, this recipe, slightly modified, from her publication Forever Summer…

This is everything a trifle should be:  rich, oozing, cool, and creamy.  It’s also easy to make (please forgive the ready-made ingredients) and best if made well ahead of serving, rendering it perfect for easy entertaining.  The Italian inspiration comes from the ingredients: crunchy amaretti biscuits, sweet and puckering limoncello, and standing in for custard is a silky mascarpone mousse with blackberries providing a blistering contrast. 

The measurements are offered more as a guideline, with the size of your trifle bowl influencing the proportions.  For these photos, I used my oval porcelain casserole dish that I usually employ for mac and cheese, although it is most presentable in a glass trifle bowl (my own having disappeared after attending a potluck and not to be seen since).

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Honey Crackle Granola

I love granola.  It connects perfectly with my preference for crunchy things.  I fondly look back at one of my favourite childhood breakfasts and remember a bowl of Quaker Harvest Crunch with some cold milk poured over the top.  Not being one for mushy foods (don’t get me started on over-ripe bananas), I especially enjoyed how the cereal retained its special crunchiness, truly living up to its name, right to the last bite.  For any non-Canadians who might be reading this, the cereal is essentially crunchy nuggets of rolled wheat and oats with brown sugar, coconut, almonds and honey.

As an adult with an expanding waistline, however, one pays slightly more attention to the nutritional value and calorie count on boxed cereals.  I was interested in making my own crunchy granola with a dream-list of ingredients, throwing in some heart-healthy additions to boot.  After much consulting and many attempts, I am pleased to present a recipe that has grown to be much-requested.

 Of course one can use any ingredients available in the pantry, and indeed every time I make granola, it’s different in subtle ways from the previous batch.  So feel free to experiment with different ingredients like hazelnuts, cashews, sunflower seeds, pistachios, wheat flakes, bran flakes, or anything else that catches your eye at the health food store.  And while you’re mixing things up, play with the ratio of sweetness to your own liking, or swap out the honey with an amber maple syrup for a deeper sweetness.  

 But if you can, please use the Maldon salt.  It counters the sweetness and brings out the flavour of the nuts and seeds while the white flakes almost burst on the tongue in the most satisfying way.

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Clementine Almond Cake

This recipe has been haunting me from the pages of a Nigella Lawson cookbook for some time.  It’s a fairly simple recipe with a little twist…whole boiled clementines are a required ingredient.  I love the taste of orange and almonds are one of my favourite baking ingredient, but for some reason, the cake hasn’t made it into my repertoire.  Until now.   My parents were heading over for a visit and I was looking for something easy and flourless that we could nibble on after dinner, with tea, or if we just wanted something a little sweet.   I remembered this recipe, tinkered a bit with the ingredients and instructions…I never have been one to leave things alone…and came up with a winner.  Let me know what you think.

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