DRINK OF THE WEEK: MOJITO

What could be a better refreshing drink during those hot summer days then a MOJITO! The original Cuban drink is now popping up everywhere - even in pre-made forms at the liquor store! Mojito's became one of my drinks of choice when I first went to Cuba about 7 years ago. They were so delicious, and sooo easy to drink! After Cuba, my friend Kate and I learned to make them ourselves. They are so easy, and trust me, will make your summer. My dad is a HUGE fan of the Bacardi pre-made mojito's, such an easy drink for the dock.

Mojito's are a summertime classic and a drink that I now order on the regular!

Mojito's are traditionally made with five main ingredients: white rum, sugar (or sugar cane juice), lime, sparkling water and mint. The drink combines sweet, refreshing citrus and mint which compliment the potent kick that the rum produces - making it an extremely popular summer drink!

There are a few theories as to where the name "mojito" comes from. One thinks that it relates to mojo, a Cuban seasoning made from lime and used to flavour dishes. Another thinks that it is derived from the Spanish words mojadito = a little wet, or mojado = wet.

Mojito's were Ernest Hemingway's favourite drink, and the bar La Bodeguita del Media became famous for their mojito's. The wall in the bar even says, "mi mojito en la Boedguita." (My mojito at the Bodeguita). The expression is still there today in Hemingway's handwriting.

To make a delicious mojito:

Ingredients: For a batch of six

- 1 part white rum
- 3 parts club soda
- 12 mint leaves
- 1/2 lime
- 1/2 part sugar

Directions:

- Place 12 mint leaves, 1/2 part sugar and 1/2 lime in a glass
- Muddle (mash ingredients together to release the oils from the mint leaves)
- Add rum
- Top off with club soda
- Stir well and garnish with a spring of mint or a lime wheel (for a fun trick - garnish with a rock candy stick)

photo credit: google images

DELICA & THE QUEEN

Congrats are in order to Delica Kitchen of Toronto!

Yesterday morning, the fabulous eatery catered breakfast for the Queen of England's arrival at the Toronto Island Airport. Their scrumptious food was served to the Queen and she even took two boxes of their "strawberry jammies" with her for her trip to Waterloo! A breakfast truly fit for a Queen!

Congratulations Delica! Keep up the amazing work!

photo credit: delica kitchen facebook page

CHOCRI CHOCOLATE

Chocolate lovers this post is dedicated to you!!!

Chocri is a German company that started in September of 2008 but has just announced that they are now delivering to Canada! Chocri is a company that allows you to customize your own chocolate bars via their website. The bars are made in Germany and then shipped right to your door! Chocri is a great company as they only use organic and fair trade chocolate from Belgium. They also have over 100 toppings that lets you customize your bar for your every desire!

Not only can you create your own chocolate bar, but the company has come up with great chocolate bar ideas for every occasion! So for those that have a hard time creating a delicious creation with so many options, there are ones already designed for you!

Here are a couple of the bar ideas they have:

Instant Wealth: dark chocolate, real gold flakes, raspberries
Happy Graduation: milk and white chocolate, gummy bears, ground coffee beans, goji berries
The "Cinnamon Girl" Bar: milk chocolate, cinnamon, pecans, rice crispies, bourbon vanilla, apple bits
Summer Fever: white chocolate, orange chocolate drops, organic mint leaves, coconut shavings
Dream Beach Vacation: milk chocolate, banana chips, mango cubes, papaya cubes, coconut shavings
The Firemaker: dark chocolate, ginger, wasabi peanuts, jalapenos, cayenne pepper

Here are some of the crazy and incredible ingredients that Chocri offers for their custom built bars:

Fruits: apple bits, date bits, fig bits, plum bits, sour cherries, apricot

Spices: anise, basil, caraway, chives, coriander, fennel, fleur de sel, ground chili, orange pepper, rosemary

Nuts: hazelnut brittle, noghi almonds, pine nuts, pistachios, sunflower seeds, volcano cashews, wasabi peanuts

Confections: cappuccino drops, gummy bears, strawberry drops, toffee, sizzle rocks

Decor: golden pearls, marzipan rose, mini sugar bananas, star decoration, sugar flowers

Grains: bacon, black sesame, candied lilac, candied rose petals, cocoa nibs, cornflakes, flower fix, organic chamomile, organic mint leaves, organic poppy seeds

Will you try out these cool Chocri creations?! I sure will! Visit chocri @ http://www.createmychocolate.com/

photo credit: http://www.createmychocolate.com/

GELATO

It is too hot today! 33 degrees and I'm melting! What better way to cool off on these scorching days then with a nice scoop of cold Italian gelato! I loooove gelato!

Gelato is Italy's take on the ever popular ice cream, but with THREE big differences. Firstly, gelato has a significantly less butterfat than ice cream (hooray!). Ice cream generally has somewhere between 20-26% but gelato only has about 10%. (good news for the waistline!) Gelato is also much denser than ice cream as ice cream is produced by mixing cream, milk, sugar and then adding air. Manurfactures add air because it doubles the quantity of their product - therefore more bang for their buck. But not gelato, no air is added to it therefore resulting in a higher quality dessert with a richer and creamier taste. The final difference of Italy's ice cream is that gelato is served at a warmer temperature than ice cream. They are both served below freezing temperature, but gelato is served about 10-15 degrees warmer. Since it is warmer and less frozen, the taste of gelato is further enhanced as it melts in the mouth! Gelato is quite old, and dates back to the frozen desserts served in ancient Rome and Egypt - made using ice and snow!

Gelato is typically flavoured with resh fruits, nutes, or bakery products. I prefer gelato to ice cream for this exact reason. The flavours are so fresh and delicious, I would choose a scoop of mango gelato over ice cream any day!

Luckily, in Toronto, we are fortunate enough to have some fantastic spots for gelato. My two favourites are HOLLYWOOD GELATO and IL GELATIERE. HOLLYWOOD GELATO is a popular Leaside hangout, and a favourite spot of mine since highschool! They offer over 20 flavours, and they are all made in-house, daily using all natural inredients. My favourites there are coconut cream pie, pistachio, mango and lemon. But the Rockey Rocher and Chocolate Peanut Butter are two of their most popular flavours! I like my gelato a bit lighter which is why I choose fruit or nut tastes over chocolate.

IL GELATIERE is my other favourite spot, open annually, so whenever you feel the craving you can pop on over. They also do take home containers, which is great when you need a good gelato for dessert at a dinner party!

So get out there and beat the heat, cool off with a nice scoop of Italy's favourite treat, GELATO!


photo credit: google images

TWITTER

I finally caved and got twitter.... check there for updates about emma's eatery and my food finds!

http://twitter.com/emmabeqaj

EMMA'S EATERY: BAKED GOODS

This weekend is the kick-off for my summer baked goods! I spend a lot of my time at my cottage during the summer, and there is a store at the island where all the lake activity takes place; swimming, sailing and tennis. The one thing the store is missing though, is freshly baked goods. So I decided that this summer I would start selling my own products - especially pies, seeing as there are so many great summer fruits.

This morning I headed to the grocery store and came home with all the necessities for flaky pie crusts and scrumptious fillings. To start, the pie crusts. I have never really made crust from scratch before, so this was a new challenge for me. Twelve pie crusts later, and I think I have the hang of it - thank you The Joy of Cooking (the food bible!). My fillings today consisted of a classic apple pie and a delicious blueberry pie with a hint of lemon. I tried for the peach pies, but they just are not ripe enough right now. More to come though - hopefully raspberry (my fav!), strawberry-rhubarb (a summer classic) and peach. With such an abundance of fruit I think I am going to start making jams as well. Nothing better at the lake then starting off your morning with a good piece of multigrain bread and a thick serving of homemade jam!

For those of you Stoney Lakers - I will be selling my products at The Juniper Island Store most Friday, Saturday and Sundays! I also will be taking orders via the phone for weekends.

Here are some pictures of my pies, pre baking and then the finished product! I will also give you the recipe for the piece crust - it is so simple and so easy!

Pie Crust (The Joy of Cooking)

Ingredients:
Yields one 9 inch pie (but both a top and bottom layer)
note: for just a bottom crust, cut the recipe in half
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup lard or shortening (chilled)
- 2 tbsp butter (chilled)
- 4 tbsp cold water

Directions:

- In a bowl sift together flour and salt
- In another bowl combine and soften shortening and butter
- Add half of the shortening mixture to the flour bowl and mix until the texture feels somewhat flakey
- Add the reamining shortening mixture until you have a dough like consistency
- Add cold water and knead until you have formed a dough ball
- Chill in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes
Note: When you go to roll out the dough, you will probably need to add a little bit more water to it to get it moving, so it isn't too dry and crumbly.


photo credit: my own images

OH CANADA!

    HAPPY CANADA DAY!! 

What a great day to celebrate our amazing country! This includes celebrating the wonderful flavours that our country has to offer! From coast to coast, we are so lucky in the food, restaurants and creations that our country provides us. From local fresh fish on the east coast, to maple syrup shacks in Quebec, we have it all!

Celebrate Canada today and whip up something fantastic with any of the great products produced in Canada. Eat and cook local today - try out some new farmers markets and taste those great summer berries. Or make a classic Canadian dish - using bacon or maple syrup of course!

Enjoy Canada Day and the all the food we Canadians love!

Here is a recipe by Chef Michael Smith for Canada Day: Canadian Fruit Celebration Crisp

Ingredients: Serves 6 to 8

- 2 to 3 pounds of your favourite berries (see Variations below)
- 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- ½ cup (of all purpose flour
- 2 cups of brown or white sugar
- 1 more cup of all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, melted

Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 350°F
- Toss the berries with the cinnamon, ½ cup of flour and 1 cup of sugar, then spread it evenly into a 9 by 5-inch baking pan 2 inches deep.
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together 1 cup of flour, remaining 1 cup of sugar and nutmeg. Drizzle in the melted butter and stir until well blended with the dry ingredients.
- Scatter this topping evenly over the top of the fruit. Bake until fruit juices are bubbling around the edges, the fruit is tender and the top is golden brown, about 1 hour.

Variations:

There are many ways to add your own ideas to a fruit crisp. Try apples, peaches, pears, plums or rhubarb. Even chunks of come-from-away mango, banana or pineapple bake into a memorable crisp. You may use one fruit or try different combinations of fruit. You may also try stirring in raisins or your favourite nuts. You can modify the topping with whole wheat flour and vegetable oil instead of white flour and butter. You can use your favourite baking spice instead of cinnamon or nutmeg. Cardamom is always a treat!

ENJOY!


photo credit: globeandmail.com & foodtv.ca

FOOD&DRINK FINDS

So as many of you probably know, FOOD&DRINK (Ontario LCBO's magazine) is one of my all-time favourite food magazines. The recipes, wine, writing, pictures - it's all top notch. But one of my favourite things about the magazine is that they are always on the lookout for cool products that you can actually use around your kitchen or in everday life. I was reading the sprind 2010 issue this morning and came across some great finds which I thought I would share with you.

The "URGE TO SUBMERGE"

This kitchen gadget may look strange - but it is such a great tool. It is a little basket that is submersible and made of flexible food-safe silicone. The "foodpod" takes away all of your anxieties when boiling food. You can now boil eggs without cranking them, easily blanch broccoli and then shock them right away in cold water, steam a pound of mussels, coo potatoes and then lift to drain, or even submerge whole spices and herbs into soup stock. This foodpod is available at www.dansecoinc.com or call 1-877-DANESCO to find where this product is sold near you! (price: $22.99)

WINE SKINS

What a genius invention! These bottle enclosures (for $3.50) are the perfect leak-proof solution for any traveler with a bottle that because of travel restrictions are prohibited from putting the liquid into their carry-on. Instead of rolling your breakable bottles in your clothes and risking the chance of it breaking and then spilling all of your stuff, wineskins provide you with the ability to prevent the bottle from breaking. Reinforced bubble wrap and the shape is designed to prevent all liquid travel problems. Perfect for wine, spirits, olive oil or even shampoos! Call 1-877-AGE-WINE to find a retailer nearest you! HAPPY TRAVELS!

photo credit: google images & my own pictures

CAKE CUTTER

Cutting a cake means there is always one bad slice at the beginning. There is rarely a "perfect" slice cut right off the bat, unfortunately. But with this new product called the "Main Squeeze," Magisso's "clasp-and-lift cake slicer oops-proofs the serving process." (Toronto Life) Cake cutting made easy! And with this cool design you can probably imagine why! This interesting kitchen tool is available at Studio Brillantine in Toronto. 

Studio Brillantine specializes in presenting new designs that are exciting and different. According to Studio Brillantine, "the designers, architects and artists have enriched our culture showing us a new way to experience the everyday creating products for us to enjoy and experience in our lives connecting us to their world. " The Studio Brillantine collection are objects that are chosen because of their historical significance, quality, function, emotional and visual impact, innovation, humour and vision! Check out the arry of interesting and crazy products Studio Brillantine has to offer - including the main squeeze cake cutter! This product definitely fits Studio Brillantine's collection to a tee!

Studio Brillantine

1518 Queen St. W.
Toronto, Ontario
416‑536-6521
http://www.studiobrillantine.com/

photo credit: torontolife.com & google images