Thanks for the Delicious Memories 2009!

It’s hard to believe that another year has come and gone. Time sure does fly when one is having fun and eating a lot of good food, doesn’t it? 2009 saw me checking out a couple of restaurants around the city, revisiting childhood traditions of fruit picking, and making more use of my teeny, tiny closet of a kitchen.

So what will I remember most from 2009? One particular meal stands out, but first the honourable mentions. The year kicked off with a sugary bang when Toronto held it’s first ever Cupcake Camp. Professional and amateur bakers got together, baked a whack load of cupcakes, and raised money for charity at the same time. What was thought to have been a small event turned out to be a huge success, drawing out more than 300 people to the event. Not that’s memorable!

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Shrimp Bisque

Christmas is over and done with, and I hope everyone had a lovely time with your families and lots of good food! I think I'm still suffering from a post-Christmas food coma!

This soup I made as a starter for our Christmas dinner, but it'll make for a delightful starter to your New Year's Dinner menu or for future dinner parties. Don't let the word bisque scare you. It may be French and fancy-sounding, but this soup is incredibly easy to make. Granted, it doesn't have the same, silky-smooth texture of a traditional French bisque (unless you strain the soup again after the second purée), but I quite like the slight chunkiness to the soup—it makes it a little more rustic.

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Christmas Cookie Round-Up 2009 - Part 3: Spritz Sugar Cookies

Are we all sugared out yet? I'm pretty much at the point myself, but I could not share this recipe for you. The sugar cookie has always been a perennial favourite of mine ever since I could remember. It was one of the first cookies I ever made with my mom, and we made it every Christmas with a variety of adorable cookie cutters.

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Christmas Cookie Round-Up 2009 – Part 2: Raspberry Cream Thumbprints

Is it just me, or does anyone else feel like they’ve been so behind in Christmas preparation this year? I love the Christmas holidays. Every year, I always look forward to November rolling around because they means I can start rolling out my holiday decorations and music without getting too many “You’re crazy” stares from friends and strangers.

I usually go all out when it comes to Christmas cookies, and this year was no exception. I managed to make ten varieties.

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Christmas Cookie Round-Up 2009 – Part 1: Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti

I posted this recipe a long time ago in my previous blog that I shared with my brother, but thought that these biscotti were deserving of a repost here on Bon Eats.

I’ve made quite a few biscotti in my days (not at all an influence from all those Italian classes I took in university!) but these have to remain one of my top favourites. The tart-sweetness of the cranberries plays off the buttery crunchiness of the pistachios. And I love the use of olive oil in this recipe—you can subtly pick it up in the cookie.

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