Puzzle Time

Last week at work a dessert was sitting on the counter when I arrived. It looked like a vanilla cake with chocolate chips in it. It was decorated with pink & white icing. I was stoked! I love it when residents drop off goodies and I get to sample other peoples' desserts!

As I went through my tasks, the dessert sat next to me. I began to look at it closer... Those were no chocolate chips and that was no cake. Instead, what I seemed to be seeing was as pudding with raisins in it.

The maker of this dessert is Italian and no one seems to remember to ask her what exactly this is.

When I had a break and could taste it, it was very boozy - lots of rum in it, I believe. And it had the texture of unbaked cake batter. What I think it was, however, was lady fingers soaked in booze and mixed with...something...Vanilla custard? Whipped cream & custard? Some combination thereof?

I have no idea, but here's a picture:

So, we have the following elements:

• booze - rum, I think
• raisins
• possibly lady fingers - or some cookies or cake or something, soaked
• custard - maybe

Does this ring any bells for anyone? I never see this resident and the cook is always too busy to remember to ask! If you know, leave me a comment. Thanks!

Magazine Monday #35: Ricotta Cookies

I got this huge, 2lb container of ricotta cheese in the States for just under $3 (a container half that size goes for $5.99 at my local overpriced grocery store). I made some ravioli with part of it, and then I decided to make this recipe for Ricotta Cookies that came in the April 2009 issue of Canadian Living. It was part of a section containing a menu for an Italian-inspired brunch, so these cookies might have an Italian root or two.

The recipe is here.

First let me say that the dough was very fluffy and nearly batter-like - and it was very difficult NOT to eat it right out of the bowl with a spoon. It was that good.

The recipe describes the cookies as "cakey" and they definitely were. They were totally awesome, and as you can see, I even went to the trouble of tinting the icing with bright colours. Don't you just love my garish purple cookies? The cream cheese icing is a must - it really finishes off the cookie well.

I loved these, and will probably make another batch this week because I'm donating baking to the SPCA for their bake sale a week from now.

Lunch at Leo's Taverna

Pizza and fries: two of my favourite foods. Add ice cream into the mix and you have my ultimate trio of comfort food.

On Friday, I went to Nelson with my dad to do some grocery shopping at Save-On and to attend the Kootenay Artisans' Christmas Craft Fair. For lunch, we opted for a tried and true spot we hadn't been to in a while, Leo's Taverna (409 Kootenay St.). They serve Greek and Italian dishes - souvlaki, calamari, pizza, pastas. It's good food and it's very reasonably priced for the lunch menu.

I was in the mood for something totally junky, and although the pizzas looked really tempting, I saw that they had a pizza sub that was served with fries and Caesar salad. How could I go wrong with this combo? My dad opted for a chicken shishkabob that was served with rice and a huge Greek salad.

The service was slow despite there being not very many people in the dining room. But when the food came we were not disappointed. Dad loved his meal, and mine totally hit the spot. The sub was a tad cold in the middle, but it was still good nevertheless. The Caesar was a bit bland, however, and was the weakest link in the meal. For $8.95, however, it was still a good deal. My dad's shishkabob was about the same price. The two of us ate for about $20. I almost had dessert, but I was really full!