Category Archives: Pie & Other Pastries

Vol au Vent is the French for “windblown” and is a reference to the lightness of the puff pastry shells that can be used for both savoury and sweet fillings. They can be made appetizer size and go all the way up to main course size. For many years it was possible to purchase them […]

As summer comes to an end there is still time to enjoy the last of the orchard fruits (and get some really good deals!). There can also be the issue of what to do with it all! Being the recipient of a goodly supply of ripe nectarines, I made several calls and spent a lovely […]

I posted previously a recipe for mushrooms in filo and realized that I didn’t do the mushrooms justice as I use this delicious mix in many different ways. The technique is sourced from a dish one of my students had asked if she could make. Feeling homesick, she was hoping her grandmother’s recipe might help. […]

It has been suggested that finding a clump of rhubarb in a witches garden was a common occurrence as using a stock to “stir the pot” was said to amplify the energies of what was being prepared. This week when I finished making Rhubarb Lemon Syrup, I remembered a sheet of puff pastry in the […]

Mincemeat has an interesting history, a bit of which we will get to in a moment. I thought though that I would start with the pears as this mincemeat has no meat in the recipe. I first came across a pear mincemeat recipe in a Ball recipe book at least two decades ago. It was […]

I am back for round two. I still have no idea what button I pushed that deleted the entire post and left me with one lonely “t”. My hope is that in the end what gets created now will be a better post. Sour cherries have a very limited season. They are generally ripe mid […]

Along the sides of roads and down country lanes blackberry brambles are in full fruit. They are in fact coming to an end and before they disappear for another year along with fresh blueberries, here is an easy mixed berry pie, finished with a crumble topping. When picking wild blackberries, it is always a good […]

We have a valley about three hours away by car that grows wonderful fruit; grapes for wine making, cherries, melons, apples, peaches, apricots and nectarines for jams, wine, preserving and just enjoying. This time of the year I always look forward to the first of the local nectarines and generally do not do anything other […]

Baklava is a sweet Mediterranean dessert made from filo(or phyllo) pastry, nuts of some variety and honey or a syrup. After baking the thin sheets of pastry to golden brown perfection, honey or syrup is immediately poured over the individual pieces or a full tray allowing the sweetness to be absorbed into the layers of […]

Local apricots have a relatively short season. If yours have already finished then canned, drained apricots can be substituted in these easy danish pastries. You will find that fresh apricots are more substantive once baked but canned apricots allow you to enjoy apricots this way all year long. Magically speaking, apricots are a fruit of […]