The Count of Monte Pancake: A Sweet and Savory Treat for National Pancake Day (and a Hungry Jack/T-Fal Giveaway)

I was compensated with product for this post, though the views expressed are all my own

Update: This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to the winner, Jackie! 

It seems as if there's a food holiday for everything. If, say, you want to take off work to observe National Wiener Schnitzel Day, then please mark your calendars for September 9. Or if you'd like to arrange your next vacation around a month-long celebration of salad, vinegar, or hamburgers, make sure to request your paid time off for the month of May.

Meanwhile, I am considering declaring my adherence to a pancake religion of some kind (it's as good as any) as this February 17 is National Pancake Day and I could really use a day off. Mind you, I have no quibble with a pancake holiday whatsoever, especially given the fact that I've been invited to celebrate it - and T-Fal's 60th anniversary - by the folks at Hungry Jack and T-Fal.

Wild Blueberry & Lemon Love Balls (Astarpungar): An Icelandic Sweet Treat for the NORTH Festival, a Celebration of Nordic Cuisine

This is a sponsored post in collaboration with the upcoming NORTH Festival in New York City. The content is 100% my own. 

In case you missed the memo, I adore Iceland. Reykjavik is an incredible city, and the surrounding countryside is breathtakingly beautiful. I am well aware that I'm incredibly fortunate to have had the chance to visit twice: once for a combination holiday and research trip for an article for Culture magazine, and a second time as part of an impromptu girls' weekend, aka the Hangover, Lady Edition. 

And so when Honest Cooking contacted me to do a post sharing my love of Iceland as part of the upcoming NORTH Festival in New York, I was more than happy to oblige. I was given complete freedom to write about anything I wanted, and naturally I knew my topic would be food.

Mother's Day Macaron Giveaway from Sucre {Ah, Alliteration}

Like a lot of food bloggers these days, I regularly get requests from publicists asking me to share their respective products with my readers.

"Please review this flavorless processed snack food!"

"I think your readers would love to hear about the latest innovation in microwave dinner technology!"

"Here are some uninspired recipes featuring [insert food product here]. Please share with your readers!"

"We are offering one lucky reader a chance to win this coupon for gum, valued at 25 cents!"

Do a cursory search through the Tasty Trix archives and you'll notice that I invariably ignore these requests. They tend to display a staggering lack of understanding of what I write about, what I cook, and who I am.

But exceptions prove the rule. Case in point: The email I got from Sucre in New Orleans, offering to send  one of my U.S. readers  their signature 15-piece macaron collection in time for Mother's Day.

Well. This was more like it.

Blueberry, Bourbon, & Brown Butter Spiced Cakebread: the Un-Fruitcake

Recently, a representative from the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council saw my recipe for seared duck breast with blueberry sage sauce and invited me to participate in a recipe competition.  The rules? Create an original sweet or savory recipe featuring winter fresh or frozen blueberries. Extra points for twisting up tradition and creating a new classic holiday dish.

Curry Leaf-Infused Lime Curd Tartlets with Cardamom Rose Whipped Cream and Candied Curry Leaves, in a Coconut Almond Crust

"Yes, that's it," said the Hatter with a sigh. "It's always tea time . . . "

                                                        --Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

As soon as I found out that the theme for this month's Five Star Makeover - hosted as ever by our fearless leaders Natasha of 5 Star Foodie and Lazaro of Lazaro Cooks - was to be a variation on a dish one might find at high tea, I knew that I wanted to incorporate Indian flavors somehow. After all, Indian cuisine has become an integral part of food culture in England, and I thought it would be fun to reference it in such an old British tradition as high tea.

My regular readers are no doubt aware that I almost always choose to make (and eat) savory over sweet, so I though I'd play against type and do something sweet for high tea. And so these curry leaf-infused lime curd tartlets with cardamom rose whipped cream and candied curry leaves were born.

Pecan Pralines and a Review of the Joy the Baker Cookbook

This post is part of the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook Off, hosted by Heather at Girlichef and sponsored by Hyperion, who provided participants with a complimentary copy of the book. 

For the past month, I have been participating in the Joy the Baker Cookbook Cook Off and Spotlight hosted by Heather at Girlichef. Each week, along with 20-odd other bloggers, I made a recipe from the book.

Lavender Lemon Bars for the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook Off

This post is part of the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook Off, hosted by Heather at Girlichef and sponsored by Hyperion, who provided participants with a complimentary copy of the book. 

It's week 3 in the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight, the week I've been waiting for: Blogger's Choice. For the past two weeks, my fellow participants in the cook off and I have been baking a selection of recipes from the Joy the Baker Cookbook (just released!) chosen by our hostess, Heather at Girlichef.

You may recall that I've tried my hand at the chocolate fudge brownies, flax seed crackers, and mini chamomile cakes. They've all been a smashing success, but I have been itching to pick whatever I want from the book. And the choice was a no-brainer: these lavender lemon bars. Surprised I didn't choose one of the book's savory dishes when I had the chance? Well, I'm tricky like that.

Chamomile Mini Cakes with Honey Frosting for the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight & Cook Off

This post is part of the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight and Cook Off, hosted by Heather at Girlichef and sponsored by Hyperion, who provided participants with a complimentary copy of the book. 

Look at me - my second sweets post in as many weeks! Will wonders never cease? There is, of course, a perfectly good reason for my foray into the sweet side of life: For week two's recipe from the forthcoming  Joy the Baker Cookbook, our Cook Off hostess, Heather at Girlichef, chose these cute little chamomile mini cakes. Technically, I suppose you could call them cupcakes, but I'd rather think of them as elegant tea cakes. 

Chocolate Fudge Brownies with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting for the Joy the Baker Cookbook Spotlight & Cook Off

No, you don't need new glasses. That is a sweet treat you see on your computer screen, and not only that - it just so happens to be brownies.

Brownies on Tasty Trix. Heavens! But before you start gathering your canned goods and running to your backyard fallout shelter, let me explain. I have decided to play against type, for a very good reason.

Saffron & Cardamom Cheesecake with Rosewater Mascarpone and Pistachio Topping

Yes, kids, you read that right: I made a cheesecake. My very first. And not a savory one either. Nope, this was a bona fide sugar bomb:

Never fear -  your Trix has not been body snatched. I am still firmly in the savory camp. But recently Poppa Trix experienced an uncharacteristic desire for a homemade sweet treat. Strange times indeed! Like me, his illicit food cravings tend towards the salty, the fried, and, of course, pizza. Always pizza. We literally never eat dessert after dinner. In fact,  I only own one cake pan, which I have never used. 

Lavender Whoopsie Cookies with a Lemon Mascarpone Filling for National Cookie Week

When the fabulous Michael of the Gay Gourmet asked me to participate in his first-ever National Cookie Week event, which he is co-hosting with Schmackary's Cookies of New York, I enthusiastically said "yes" for two reasons. For one thing, I would never say no to any request made of me by any of my gay friends - they are all simply too marvelous for words. And besides, my gay bffs always accommodate me, and I certainly wouldn't want to do anything to buck that trend.

Sugared Mexican Buns and a Nick Malgieri Cookbook Giveaway

As this posts, Poppa Trix and I are somewhere in Krakow ... drinking beer, eating at a milk bar, devouring kielbasa, or simply sleeping it all off. But I didn't want you to miss me too much! So, because you didn't get to come on vacation with me, I am giving away a copy of Nick Malgieri's latest book, Bake!, to one lucky reader!

Double Chocolate Mousse Cake for French Fridays with Dorie

I'm just going to come right out and say it: This is one ugly cake. Just look at it - short of a faux antique paint job on a chest of drawers, how many visually appealing things can you think of that are covered in hard, crackly wrinkles?

Sweet & Spicy Lavender Honey Quickbread for the International Incident Lavender Party

Hey lavender! Are you ready for the party?

Have I mentioned how grateful I am for these monthly International Incident Parties? So often these days, my life gets overwhelmingly busy and I find myself neglecting (and missing) both my blog and the many, many food blogs I love to read. But these parties give me an assignment (the theme) and a deadline (the party date). And I always make my deadlines! Best of all, they help me stay connected with many of my fellow food bloggers. So many thanks (as always) to our awesome hostess and founder Penny aka Jeroxie!

Truthfully, at first I was a bit at a loss when I found out that this month's theme was lavender. Ironically, I had just used culinary lavender for the first time in the recent Incident Scones Party, in my lavender, cardamom, and cracked black pepper drop scones. Eek! Just how many lavender dishes can one person come up with?

A Tale of Two Tortes: Brown Sugar Fig & Lemon Plum

plum torte

a slice of plum torte

fig torte

If you were to look over some of my recent posts - gooseberry tartlets, sour cherry compote, lavender drop scones - you might begin to doubt the truth of my past claims that I'm not generally the biggest fan of dessert.  While it remains true that I don't eat much of it, I have been on something of a sweets-making bender lately. I suppose it's because baking is so therapeutic - it forces you to slow down and only think about what you're doing, not about the million-and-one other tasks clamoring to be finished (or begun).

Lavender, Cardamom & Cracked Black Pepper Drop Scones: International Incident Scones Party

When the theme for this month's International Incident Party was announced  - hosted as ever by the lovely Penny aka Jeroxie, along with August birthday babies Anh of  A food’s lover's journey and  Cherrie of Sweet Cherrie Pie - I must admit that at first I wasn't terribly inspired. Scones. What to do? Unlike many of my fellow party goers,  scones are not a cultural reference point for me. I didn't grow up enjoying scones at tea time.  I don't even know when "tea time" actually is.  I take coffee breaks and eat bagels.  Of course I wanted to make fun and creative scones, but I had no idea where to begin.

But then one day I was flipping channels on the TV, and I caught the end of a cooking show - I don't remember which one - about something called "drop scones." Hmmm. They looked like little pancakes. Ah, pancakes! Now that I can work with. Indeed,  a bit of research taught me that drop scones are also called Scottish pancakes. They differ from typical American breakfast pancakes in that they're smaller and not necessarily sweet, which I found appealing.

Boozy Sour Cherry Compote

Are sour cherries even in season anymore? I made this so long ago, I have no idea.  Things have been so hectic lately that I have fallen behind with blogging, cooking, and life in general, I'm afraid.

If you can find  sour cherries, I highly recommend that you make this immediately. If not, well ... bookmark it for next year, I guess. Apologies! I will be a better blogger.

Gooseberry Tartlets with Jasmine Whipped Cream to Celebrate My Blogoversary

I hope you aren't too disappointed or angry with me when I tell you that I don't have anything clever or exciting  to give away for my blogoversary.  My excuses are legion: busy-ness, forgetfulness, sleepiness.  Instead, I offer you these gooseberry tartlets.  I knew as soon as I saw these berries at the farmers market that I had to make something out of them.  How cute are they?

A Piece of Cake: Baking & Pastry Arts Semester One Recap

Almond Cake

Poppy Seed Bundt Cake with Cardamom Streusel

At long last, my first semester as a culinary student is over. For our practical final (there was also a written one)  we had to make a pate sucree, lemon curd, and French meringue. In other words, a lemon meringue tart.

International Pizza Pie Incident: Lángos, aka Hungarian Pizza, Three Ways

 Because a little tiny bit of fried pizza never hurt anyone ...

Welcome to the second International Incident Party, in which food bloggers from around the world put their own spin on a different dish each month. For April, we celebrate the birthday of the Incident Crew's founding member, Penny aka Jeroxie, with variations on the theme of pizza pie. (For full details and info on how to participate, check out her post about it here.)  

I must admit that when pizza was announced as the theme, I initially felt a bit stymied. You see, though in general I don't tend to be overly didactic or rules-y about cuisine, pizza, to me, is a simple and beautiful thing. It's a plain New York-style pie, with no toppings other than a modest amount of mozzarella cheese, maybe a bit of fresh basil,  and that beautiful, tangy tomato sauce. That's how I always used to order it in Brooklyn, and that's how I make it at home.

I wanted to  break out of my own pizza preconceptions and go a completely different route for this party, but what to do? Well, my quandary was instantly obliterated during my trip to Budapest, where I tasted the delectable lángos, otherwise known as ... Hungarian pizza! Bingo.