Put Some South in your Mouth
It would be very easy to say that the only reason to visit Lynchburg is Jack Daniels. The large distillery almost literally being the life support system for the tiny town in Middle Tennessee. It's basically a given that if the distillery wasn't there perhaps the entire town wouldn't exist. However, to say that JD is the only thing worth visiting in Lynchburg is simply not true. A number of small businesses, particularly in and around the courthouse square offer a wonderful way to spend a couple hours shopping and eating. Purveyors offering things such as antiques, JD collectables as well as snacks and full restaurants.
I've even blogged about one of them.There are a few full restaurants but if you're feeling a bit peckish, there are a few places offering snacks and/or sweets. One such place is Nina's Taste of Tennessee. Named after Linda Ward who's lovingly known as Nina by her grand children this little store sells home made confections as well as other food related items and seasonal bric-a-brac. All made in the long thin state. While you can pick up items like Lodge cookware, various sauces, Jim Shore collectables and other nick-nacks hand crafted in the "Volunteer State" it's the sweets coming out of Nina's kitchen that brings people in the door.
Out front you'll find Johnny manning the counter, greeting people with that southern hospitality and charm. All the while Linda whisks away in the kitchen.
So let's get a look at what she's got cookin' in that there kitchen.
There are plenty of things to sample and among them are some fudges. I was able to sample the Chocolate, Whiskey, and Peanut Butter Fudges along with some straight and Whiskey Caramel Syrups. I'll deal with the fudges in a second but as for the syrups they're really good. They come from a local purveyor which also has other offerings. The addition of a little JD in syrup really adds some depth. You don't get that "Boozy" taste that can often times happen when alcohol is used but a nice, well rounded flavour. It has much more going on than the virgin syrup.
One thing that really caught my eye was the chocolate dipped Oreos. Now, some will say you shouldn't mess with perfection and in principal, I agree. Citing Oreos as perfect the way they are. There's no getting around the fact that on their own, in their original incarnation, Oreos are possibly the king of the grocery store bagged cookies. These original types, dipped and then drizzled with the opposite colour chocolate are simply incredible. I wouldn't say better than plain but different. No better and certainly no worse. They come in white and dark chocolate and if you're like me and can't decided which one to chose, get both. I cut both in half and split them with Madame Butterfly. Even after all that, I couldn't decide which cookie was better.
The star of the show and what got us in the door is the house made Whiskey Fudge. Being able to compare the regular version with the whiskey version it was clear, much like with the caramel sauce, the JD makes a difference. It just has more body. There's not so much that a non whiskey person would be turned off, enough you can tell there's some in there and certainly enough to push it over the edge as far as fudges go. As with most places selling fudge, it's sold by weight so you can pretty much buy as much as you like.
Incidentally, the Peanut Butter Fudge was absolutely amazing.
So there you go folks, some excellent goodies to satisfy anyone's sweet tooth.
You can find Nina's Taste of Tennessee at 14 Short St on the north side of Lynchburg Square in Lynchburg, Tn.
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You can also find them on the web.
Well that's all for this time. We'll see ya again in the food court.
Sweet and Savoury.
In 1986, with little fanfare, a small bakery opened in Toronto's up and coming trendy neighbourhood, Cabbagetown. Already having outgrown owner Janet Schreiber's kitchen, it would be 4 short years before Phipps Bakery outgrew those digs. An upsize to include a cafe and relocation found their new home on Eglinton Ave. E.
Such was the success of Phipps that 10 years later further expansion would occur. Another 5 years would pass before, too busy to run as one entity, they split their retail and wholesale operations and both have thrived.
The retail store (bakery) offers great options for both the sweet and the savoury along with espresso (coffee, etc.) and a quaint little dining area in which to enjoy.
As I've said before, sometimes it's just better to let the place speak for itself. "At Phipps we love everything about great desserts and food. We love to make it. We love to eat it. We love to savour it. And we especially love the pleasure that it gives to all our customers. Selling good food is not just business for us—it’s our way of expressing what we stand for and our long time commitment to our customers."
If you see a mission statement like this, you can pretty much take comfort in the knowledge that you'll leave satisfied if not smiling like the cat that just swallowed the canary.
Phipps is a bit of a community anchor in the high rent, Forest Hill neighbourhood of Toronto. It's location is at once on the fringe of Forest Hill and right in the heart of the "Upper Village." Occupying a store front among the likes of pilates studios, clothing stores and other food purveryors.
The front of the bakery is simply that. A bakery. As far as the offerings anyway. There's, as I call it, a Trophy Case with cakes and pies and all those great goodies. The coffee bar is up here as well. It's almost it's own, separate place. You can come in, get a coffee and sweet, walk out and never know there was a tea room in back.
Back there is the hot table and salad bar. You can also find breads and sundry items. In an interesting decor plan, there's almost no transition. The dividing line between sweets and savouries is more or less marked by the Babka's.
This is also where the seating is. The small area of about 10 mismatched tables and chairs is set up like a European street cafe. Up to and including (faux) store fronts.
In the very back where the kitchen is and all the magic happens. So let's get a look.
There are a handful of items on the hot bar that are supported with a salad bar and some soups. There is also Chili daily. Entree's can include Ratatouille and Vegetable Chow Mein. These dishes as with the soups are subject to change daily but from what I can tell, pretty much anything you choose won't disappoint.
The Mac n Cheese served at Phipp's is good though not spectacular. It's got good cheese flavour and it pretty creamy. For those who like their pasta al dente then you'll be somewhat disappointed. This is not the be all and end all in mac n cheese however it's a solid offering that'll get ya where you want to go.
The Lentil Stew is absolutely fantastic. My only exposure to lentils (in stew form) is the Indian dish, dal. Which is curried lentils.
Here we basically have a beef stew with a minimal amount of beef and loads of lentils. The gravy is definitely tomato based with some beefiness to it. There's not a lot of heat and make no mistake, this is not at all "Indian like." Which I suspected. I felt it benefited from some pepper on top. Enough to up the heat level just a bit and thoroughly round out the flavour.
So after saying all that I get a message from the "Twitterverse" telling me it it's vegetarian. Leaving me, thoroughly, completely, with egg on my face.
Phipps uses Mountainview coffee in their shop and I can honestly say, it’s some of the best I’ve had.
My usual order, Americano, is smooth, rich and comes with a nice crema. While I like the slight hint of bitterness some coffee delivers I find that I don’t miss it here and even prefer it.
The Espresso delivers that bitterness. They serve up a nice, chewy, creamy strong cup of Italian coffee here. It has beautiful crema, so thick it left a hefty foam on the sides of the cup when I was finished.
The a fore mentioned Cinnamon Babka is excellent. As you know I'm a huge chocolate lover but if it's not chocolate, it better be cinnamon in my books. Oddly enough, I'd never had babka. I'm quite familiar with it's smaller sibling, the cinnamon roll so it's not like this is a new food for me. The biggest difference is cinnamon rolls are thin (ish) disks often covered with an icing, babka is the same type of yeast dough in loaf form with a streusel topping. Absolutely, thoroughly enjoyable. It would be nice to see them sell this by the slice in the cafe to drink with your coffee. It comes in chocolate as well.
The Apple Rugelah is simply fantastic. It's almost like a small apple pie. Big apple flavour complemented nicely with cinnamon. The pastry is not to be confused with pie dough but is good none the less. It's not quite as buttery or flaky as you'd find and texture wise it's maybe more like shortbread.
The cookies for the most part are very good. My lone exception to this is the Peanut Butter cookie. I should’ve known to begin with since I’ve had a hard time finding PB cookies I like. Their offering, while tasty, had a very dry, crumbly texture that I just didn’t care for. Much better is the Double Chocolate Chip which had good chocolate flavour and some really nice chew. Better still was the Cranberry, Oatmeal. Nicely chewy without a displeasing oatmeal taste but oatey none the less. The cranberries and golden raisins provide a nice amount of sweetness. My favourite though is the Chocolate Chip. A nice balance of chew and crispiness and with plenty of chocolate chips but not overly sweet. It’s just a good solid cookie.
One of the things on which non Canadian residents miss out is Butter tarts. These tarts are somewhat similar to pecan pie with it’s sugary custard. There is a base way to make them and then some will introduce pecans or raisins to the party. Phipps takes them further. Adding caramel or chocolate drizzle. They mix and match pastry and pecans to come up with 4 different varieties. First and foremost, I’d skip the chocolate ones. Chocolate and buttertart don’t mix IMHO.
The best I think is the Caramel Buttertart. They use shortbread as pastry and top it with caramel. What’s neat is you get a bite and think, mmm shortbread. Oh, there’s that filling. Then finally you get the caramel left since it’s a bit chewy. A terrific butter tart.
So there you go folks. Whether it's a just a coffee, a peace offering to your sweet tooth or a full meal. The home cooked offerings at Phipp's won't disappoint.
You can find Phipp's Bakery Cafe at 420 Eglinton Ave. E. in Toronto, On.
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You can also find them on the web, facebook and Twitter.
Well that's all for now folks, see ya next time in the food court.
Sometimes I think it’s best to just let the place speak for itself. “The Flaky Tart is an old school bakeshop that marries nostalgia with whimsy. Using only the freshest ingredients, Chef Madelaine Sperry creates and builds tasty pieces of art that both satisfy her creativity and her passion for the business.”
Madelaine comes from a baking background. Learning at the side of her mother as a child. From there she studied at George Brown College in Toronto and then it was off to Europe. Returning home she was Executive Pastry Chef at the very prestigious Rosedale Golf Club. From there she went into business for herself.
Madelaine also offers up some of the most beautiful Wedding Cakes you can imagine.
Perhaps the best thing about The Flaky Tart is that the goodies aren’t cloyingly sweet. A lot of times these bakeries load things up with sugar. So much so that it tends to drown out the flavour of what it is that flavour is supposed to be. TFT’s goody’s flavours come through very boldly. I would also say that the lack of sugar (or perhaps I should say the use of exactly enough sugar) is really what makes this place so addictive. There's nothing to stop you from eating too much. There's no sore teeth from all the sugar. There's no DT's from all the sugar. Nope, there's just good common sense to tell you when you've had enough. Should you have any.
I should also point out that The Flaky Tart also offers up some savoury options like Meat Pies. But I’m just here for the sweets.
TFT is just one of a number of store fronts in Toronto’s Mount Pleasant Village. Inside the place just smells like a bakery. If you didn't already know that from the outside. Just last week I walked by and was drawn in like I was being beamed aboard a space ship. The smell of fresh ginger wafting out the front door was irresistible. Once inside you'll see a wide array of goodies from which to chose on either wall and a "Trophy Case" beside the cash register. All the baking is done in the back behind the magic curtain.
So let’s take a look at that baking.
The English Toffee Brownie is as you can imagine excellent. One look will tell you that. The brownie isn’t quite as dense as most brownies but certainly far from cake like. The thick fudge icing is quite nice. The English toffee is perfect and glued to the top with caramel drizzle. It’s missing a richness that keeps it from being decadent IMHO. So if you were looking for that, you may be a bit disappointed. It’s so good otherwise that it can be over looked. In fact, for most adults, it would be too much if it was knee buckling.
The Pumpkin Spice Cake is ridiculously good. Ranking up there with some of the best non chocolate desserts. It has a very distinctive pumpkin pie spice flavour which was rich in clove. The whipped cream is nice and light and what dessert isn’t better with some caramel right??
The Butter Tarts are among the best in the city. Not my favourite (my moms are) but still awfully good. They have an incredible rich taste but are a bit runny and I’m not a big fan of the runniness. You may notice that there’s a fair bit of extra crust. That extra crust is there so you can break pieces off and dunk them in the ooey goodness. I do like that aspect. I think my friend is addicted to them.
A special thanks to Jen of FoodPr0n for the use of this picture.
The Old Fashioned Fruit Tart is excellent. Sour cherries are cooked down to a jam like consistency but with a few whole cherries in there as well. The balance between sugar and tart is quite nice. It's just about right in the middle. Not particularly either. It really seems to let the fruit shine. While eating this I happened to bite it so perfectly that I got a great cross section of the pastry. It's beautiful. Very flaky. You could actually see the different layers of dough with a microscopic space between each layer.
Cupcakes are also available of course. This specimen is a Ginger Cupcake with Vanilla Buttercream. Oh man this is good. Like a mild, soft, gingerbread man with a beautiful icing. I thought the vanilla could’ve been a bit stronger but it was fine as it was. I do love vanilla so maybe it’s just me.
Madelaine makes a pretty mean cookie as well. This Triple Chocolate Chip known as Jason’s Favourtie, is Milk, Dark and White Chocolate Chips in a nice cookie batter. For the most part the batter is just there to hold the chips together. You gotta love that. I’ve been told that the Ginger/Molasses Cookie is phenomenal but I haven’t tried it. Yet!
Mrs. Sippi loves her some macaroons and seeing these nice “To Go” bags I figured I’d have to treat her. The subdued sweetness really works well with these and seems to make the coconut flavour stand out even more. Mrs. Sippi absolutely loved them. They’re everything she could’ve wanted.
You can find The Flaky Tart at 711 Mt. Pleasant Rd. in Toronto.
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You can also find them on the web, facebook and Twitter.
Well that’s all for now kids. See ya next time in the food court.
Davwud
There is, perhaps, no more iconic symbol of childhood than milk and cookies. The purity of the milk and the sugariness of the cookies mirroring the innocence and sweetness of a child. A cookie, dunked in milk like a child frolicking in a puddle. They go together, as Forrest Gump would say, "like peas and carrots."
Unfortunately we don’t remain kids. We grow up. Condemned to sneaking cookies from our “Stash”. Tucked away in a tool box, underwear drawer or back of the cupboard. Covertly enjoying a treat while other adult eyes are focused elsewhere.
These days you don’t have to be a kid or even Santa Claus to enjoy this quintessential treat. In what looks to be the newest “It” thing, little shops selling flavoured milk and a variety of cookies are popping up in cities all over North America. One such place can be found in Toronto’s Beaches neighbourhood.
Moo Milk Bar is a little store front in the yuppiest (do yuppies still exist??) part of Toronto. Danielle Oron, the French Culinary Institute trained and New York City chef and fashionista, married a local Toronto boy (Tas) and together they own and operate Moo. Tired with the direction fine dining was headed and wanting out of the fashion industry she traded in life in the Big Apple for life in the Big Smoke and a simpler calling. Wanting to get back to basics as she says, she chose the tight knit, family oriented community to open her newest venture and showcase her culinary talents.
Moo really is quite small. Probably no more than about 15 feet wide. The outside is awash in (Milk) white and (Chocolate) brown paint with large windows. Inside antiques and old pictures hang on the wall and the counter is faced with reclaimed barn board. A few stools line the walls but for the most part though, this place is just about all kitchen and storage. There is also some fake grass and little piggies for a bit of whimsy.
In that kitchen, Danielle is churning out cookies, ice cream sandwiches and pies. All from her own collection of recipes refined over the years. The milks are made with fresh fruits and home made syrups. Quality ingredients go into the cookies and pies and they even make their own ice cream for the sandwiches. If milk isn’t the drink for you, an espresso or cappuccino may just hit the spot.
So let’s have a look at these goodies.
The flavoured milks we tried were good. Nothing all that great in my mind but perhaps we just didn't hit a flavour that really wowed us. There are a number of them to choose from so you may have to try a few to get the right one.
The Caramel in almond milk was okay but not nearly caramelly enough for my taste. Keep in mind that I'm known to squirt caramel in my mouth straight out of a squeeze bottle.
The Strawberry was much better but not exactly what Mrs. Sippi was hoping for. Longing for memories of Strawberry Quick from when we were kids this one is certainly a much better quality drink. It was more like melted strawberry ice cream. Made with real strawberries it's quite good but for that Pepto Bismal looking milk of our youth it wasn't "Candy" tasting enough.
All the cookies are terrific but… first off let me describe for you my perfect cookie. Flavour not withstanding, I’m talking about structure here. I like a puffy cookie with a crispness to the outside (not just the edges) and an nice chew on the inside. These cookies are not those. These ones are much thinner (with a crispy edge) than I prefer but that's, for the most part, esthetics. The irregular shapes scream home made.
They have, at any one time, 6 different flavours from which you can choose. They rotate them on a daily, weekly, hourly, whenever-we -feel-like-it basis. So you never know exactly what specimens from which you can choose. We took one of each for a good sampling.
Oatmeal Raisin - I hate, hate, hate raisins so as such I'd rather eat boogers. Mrs. Sippi said it was really good though.
Cowgirl - This is an almalgum of different cookie mix ins. Micro chips, chocolate chips, nuts, toffee bits, etc. It was a really nice cookie however I think I'd have liked it a lot more without the nuts.
Party - This is a terrific sugar cookie with coloured sprinkles. Very rich and creamy tasting it was one of the better offerings.
Chocolate - Sometimes I wonder why I bother with double chocolate. Most of the time it's inferior to regular chocolate chip. This was no exception. Not that it was bad. It wasn't. In fact, it was very good. Just second fiddle to the other chocolate offering.
Milk Chocolate Chip - One of the best tasting chocolate chip cookies I've ever had. Pretty much everything a chocolate lover could want. Nice flavour in the dough that isn’t too sweet and nicely supported the rich chocolaty chips. Certainly the best of the bunch.
Brown Sugar Toffee Bit - Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised. English Toffee is great. It seems it's even better in cookie form. Especially when played off against the richness of the brown sugar cookie dough. Another absolute winner.
Moo's Ice Cream Sandwiches are so stunningly better than those you find in a convenience store it's like it's a completely different animal. The chocolate chip cookie was the perfect medium to sandwich the fresh made Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. I'm not sure how, exactly, to put this but perhaps saying the quality of the two components shone through here is the best way. It just tasted like it was on another plain. Far and away the best ICS I've ever had. Tas took one out to show Mrs. Sippi and she said it was like waving a steak in front of a hungry dog.
They also had Double Chocolate Chip with Banana Ice Cream which we didn't try.
So there you have it folks, a trip down memory lane just north of Kew Beach.
You can find Moo Milk Bar at 1918A Queen Street East, Toronto, On.
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You can also find them on facebook, Twitter and the Web.
Well that’s all for now kids. See ya next time in the food court.
Davwud
It would be very easy to say that the only reason to visit Lynchburg is Jack Daniels. The large distillery almost literally being the life support system for the tiny town in Middle Tennessee. It's basically a given that if the distillery wasn't there perhaps the entire town wouldn't exist. However, to say that JD is the only thing worth visiting in Lynchburg is simply not true. A number of small businesses, particularly in and around the courthouse square offer a wonderful way to spend a couple hours shopping and eating. Purveyors offering things such as antiques, JD collectables as well as snacks and full restaurants.
I've even blogged about one of them.There are a few full restaurants but if you're feeling a bit peckish, there are a few places offering snacks and/or sweets. One such place is Nina's Taste of Tennessee. Named after Linda Ward who's lovingly known as Nina by her grand children this little store sells home made confections as well as other food related items and seasonal bric-a-brac. All made in the long thin state. While you can pick up items like Lodge cookware, various sauces, Jim Shore collectables and other nick-nacks hand crafted in the "Volunteer State" it's the sweets coming out of Nina's kitchen that brings people in the door.
Out front you'll find Johnny manning the counter, greeting people with that southern hospitality and charm. All the while Linda whisks away in the kitchen.
There are plenty of things to sample and among them are some fudges. I was able to sample the Chocolate, Whiskey, and Peanut Butter Fudges along with some straight and Whiskey Caramel Syrups. I'll deal with the fudges in a second but as for the syrups they're really good. They come from a local purveyor which also has other offerings. The addition of a little JD in syrup really adds some depth. You don't get that "Boozy" taste that can often times happen when alcohol is used but a nice, well rounded flavour. It has much more going on than the virgin syrup.
One thing that really caught my eye was the chocolate dipped Oreos. Now, some will say you shouldn't mess with perfection and in principal, I agree. Citing Oreos as perfect the way they are. There's no getting around the fact that on their own, in their original incarnation, Oreos are possibly the king of the grocery store bagged cookies. These original types, dipped and then drizzled with the opposite colour chocolate are simply incredible. I wouldn't say better than plain but different. No better and certainly no worse. They come in white and dark chocolate and if you're like me and can't decided which one to chose, get both. I cut both in half and split them with Madame Butterfly. Even after all that, I couldn't decide which cookie was better.
The star of the show and what got us in the door is the house made Whiskey Fudge. Being able to compare the regular version with the whiskey version it was clear, much like with the caramel sauce, the JD makes a difference. It just has more body. There's not so much that a non whiskey person would be turned off, enough you can tell there's some in there and certainly enough to push it over the edge as far as fudges go. As with most places selling fudge, it's sold by weight so you can pretty much buy as much as you like.
