What makes my labours on this blog so rewarding are the exceptional people I discover. Perhaps the most inspirational is the poised and passionate Hoda Paripoush, founder and director of Sloane Tea Company. A Toronto-based alliance of boutique fine tea merchants, certified Tea Sommeliers, and culinary experts, Sloane Tea Company represents a guild of small-batch, premier tea gardens throughout the world.

Sloane Tea’s Founder & Director Hoda Paripoush

Hoda’s passion for tea is rooted in her childhood. Of Persian descent but born in India, she was raised in a family of tea lovers, who come from a land of tea gardens and perfumed flower blossoms. After her family immigrated to Brockville, a very young Hoda experimented in her mother’s kitchen, blending her tea with aromatics within her reach (orange blossom water, ginger, rose water or cardamom).

As a creative and ambitious young adult, Hoda studied perfumery in Grasse, France (the world’s perfume capital) and became a certified Tea Sommelier. Hoda now travels the world in search of the finest teas, individually sourcing them directly from point-of-origin. In the process, Hoda has built genuine, close-knit, and exclusive relationships with the world’s most esteemed artisanal tea gardens. Hoda brings these splendid loose leaf teas back to Canada. Using her perfumery expertise and exotic ingredients (such as herbs, flowers, and real fruit pieces), Hoda and her team of certified Tea Sommeliers and culinary experts blend some of the leaves into ambrosial teas with fragrant top, heart, and base notes that linger and enchant; others are offered unblended, straight, pure, and stunning. Hoda insists on perfection every step of the way, from crop to cup.

Sloane Tea selections are categorized by taste (citrus, sweet, fresh, spicy, floral, or creamy) or by type (white, green, oolong, black, herbal, and iced). Estate Reserve teas are rare, limited production, hand-rolled artisan teas from premier estates. Each tea is packaged in gorgeous tins with designs inspired from something meaningful on Hoda’s travels: a vintage Japanese kimono was the inspiration for one design.

I could pick a different Sloane tea to delight my every mood. My top favourites include the unblended, medium-bodied Estate Reserve Darjeeling 2nd Flush black tea, revered as the “champagne of teas”. Its designation of origin, highly prized tea leaves are plucked between May and July on the award-winning Jungpana Estate in Darjeeling (Sloane has the exclusive North American rights). I find it slightly brisk and incredibly refreshing.

Both my husband and I are enamoured with the silky Signature Blend Oolong Crème and its fragrant, buttery sweetness that reminds me of a hint of dulce de leche. Hoda shared a wonderful legend about this tea:

 “This signature oolong from the Wuyi Mountains in China is said to have come about when the moon fell in love with a comet. The comet passed her by, as comets will do. The moon cried milky tears which chilled the tea fields, withering the leaves and giving them a delicate creaminess.”

Hoda says Oolong Crème is also remarkably refreshing steeped as an iced tea. Scroll to the end of my post for Hoda’s Iced Tea Brewing Instructions.

Sloane’s most popular tea, Heavenly Cream, is a medium-bodied, smooth and creamy, long leaf Ceylon black tea blended with hints of bergamot and vanilla. It’s especially rich with a splash of whole milk.

The Shop For All Reasons recently invited Hoda to present her teas at Tea 101, second in a series of informative tasting seminars from some of The Shop For All Reasons’ outstanding suppliers. Hoda taught us how to taste tea (called cupping by the industry): taste with your nose first, inhaling the fragrance, and then sharply slurp the tea into your mouth, sucking in oxygen and rolling the tea along your tongue to reach all of your taste buds. We compared the exquisite notes between six of Sloane’s delicious teas.

I learned so much about tea. Black, oolong, green, and white teas are derived from the same plant, Camellia sinensis; the differences between them are the result of different levels of oxidation. More importantly, they need to be brewed using different temperatures of water; the easiest and most precise method is to use the Breville IQ Kettle (a variable temperature control kettle). Brewing instructions are on the bottom of each Sloane tin.

The Shop For All Reasons has apothecary jar testers (taste with your nose) of each of the teas in Sloane’s line. Drop in and marvel over the fragrant differences between each tea.

A luxurious Mother’s Day gift for the tea lover, Sloane Tea will transport Mom to an estate of old-world luxury (Downton Abbey’s Carson not included). And the tins are so elegant I am willing to bet she’ll find another use for them once they are empty.

Hoda’s Iced Tea Brewing Instructions (to make 1 litre/quart)

1. Boil 2 cups of water and pour over 7 tsp. (approximately 14g) of tea, in a heat-safe pitcher.
2. Steep for 12 min and then fill with 2 cups of cold water.
3. Remove tea leaves (Sloane Sachet) from pitcher.
4. Garnish with fresh mint, blueberries, or citrus slices.

Where to buy, how to make the perfect cup of tea, and more on Sloane’s website: http://about.sloanetea.com

Follow Hoda on Twitter and Facebook for information on upcoming Sloane Tea tasting events. Laura from Laura Slack Chocolates and Hoda will be conducting a Tea & Truffle Pairing at the Toronto Botanical Gardens on May 11th.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sloanetea

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sloane.tea

For upcoming supplier seminars at The Shop For All Reasons, visit their website or sign up for their newsletter.

Behold Streetsville’s newest legend: Burger Legend. I haven’t been this excited about a burger joint since Streetsville’s first take-out (the now long gone Terry’s Burger House) first moved to town.

What makes Burger Legend burgers, well…legendary? Start with a trip to the butcher every single morning to buy fresh, whole AAA Canadian beef chuck; additive-free, preservative free, ground fresh daily by Burger Legend. Yes fresh beef, never frozen (they don’t even own a freezer). Add real (not processed), aged Canadian cheddar cheese. Top with huge strips of thick-cut, smoky/sweet, maple smoked bacon so flavourful that you have to fight off sneaky fingers. Put it on a lightly grilled, freshly baked sesame seed bun. Finally, a burger we can feel good about sinking our teeth into.

Behold the Classic Burger: 100 grams of 100% pure beef (no fillers), juicy and flavourful, spiced just right, nestled on a bed of mixed baby greens, blanketed with melted cheddar, topped with thickly sliced tomato, and Bawss sauce (a delicious mayonnaise-based crossover somewhere between Thousand Island dressing and barbeque sauce).

And this beauty, the Veggie Burger: a huge panko-crusted portobello mushroom, crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside, stuffed with cheddar cheese, on mixed baby greens, topped with more aged Canadian cheddar cheese, thickly sliced tomato, and Bawss sauce. Oh yeah, come home to Mama.

How to decide between the Classic and the Veggie? Order the Fusion Burger to get both on the same bun. Man, that’s gotta be good!

There are ten burgers on the menu, including the Poutine Burger, the North Beach (with guacamole) and the All Day Burger (with fried egg and maple smoked bacon). But your first visit should be all about the Great One (named after another legend, Wayne Gretzky): with aged Canadian cheddar, maple smoked bacon, mixed greens, tomatoes, and Bawss sauce.

Fries are freshly cut (remember they don’t own a freezer) Canadian russet potatoes, double-fried in peanut oil; available with gravy or as poutine. It’s going to take all my strength to try to resist the Maple Bacon Poutine.

Burger Legend started out as a gourmet food truck and has now laid roots in our village (aren’t we the lucky ones). Kiss the drive-thru junk burgers good-bye and say hello to real, fresh flavour. Welcome to the village Burger Legend!

Take-out or casual, quick bite, eat-in. Last time I was there, they were still waiting for their interac to be hooked up so bring cash just in case.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BurgerLegendFT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BurgerLegend

UPDATE: Crawford’s Village Bakery is closing November 30, 2014.

Happy Easter! This week, I’ve got notes on my ham and tips on potatoes and homemade desserts for your Easter feast, including a treasured heirloom recipe I served at our family Easter last weekend. Please scroll to the bottom for the recipe.

But first, here are some ways to put a little spring in your step this Easter. Easter is in full bloom at Terra Greenhouses – just look at the sea of gorgeous pink or blue hydrangea blooms.

And of course, there’s no place like Springridge Farm for Easter fun. Click here for what you need to know before heading out to Springridge Farm’s Easter Festival, held on Good Friday April 18, Saturday April 19 and Sunday April 20, 2014: www.springridgefarm.com/easter-egg-hunt.htm (be sure to check out the video link). Say hello to the baby chicks.

Every Easter, Starsky Fine Foods sells these adorable baked lambs that make a sweet table decoration.  And look at the colourful Easter palms.

You can find pussy willows at Herridge’s Farm Fresh Market, which opened yesterday.

By the way, the quiches we ordered last week from Crawford’s Village Bakery were as delectable as their pies: Crawford’s famous pie crust filled to the brim with a generous, flavourful custard that wasn’t too rich.

The Country Ham that I ordered from Heatherlea Farm Market was easy to prepare and I was pleased with the results. Basically, I just removed the skin, trimmed the fat and scored it, then placed the ham cut-side down in the slow cooker, added a bit of water, and let it slow cook until the fat rendered and the meat reached a safe temperature. After I let it rest, I glazed it according to the recipe (see Easter Feast: Part One), let the glaze rest, and then carved it. I have never smelled a more aromatic ham. It was so succulent and tasty straight out of the slow cooker. If you are planning on making this recipe, be aware that the six pound ham just fit in my oval seven quart slow cooker and served sixteen people with leftovers.

What goes better with ham than scalloped potatoes? If you are craving a casserole of thickly sliced potatoes in a rich and creamy sauce with lots of sharp cheddar cheese, I really like Chef Michael Smith’s recipe: Potato Cheddar Casserole.

Herridge’s Farm Fresh Market has Ontario greenhouse rhubarb, a harbinger of spring. Click here for an easy Rhubarb Torte recipe that will make a confident baker out of an apprehensive one and a rhubarb lover out of anyone: www.olivetoeat.com.

On her blog Cook Me Quick, my friend Carol posted the original recipe for the heavenly carrot cake that the Cheeseboard Café used to serve. Oh, I’ve got lots of good memories of waitressing with friends at the Cheeseboard during my school years; the food was so good that it sparked an interest in cooking in me. The Cheeseboard Cafe’s Carrot Cake recipe can be found here: http://cookmequick.com/2013/10/02/cheeseboard-cafe-carrot-cake/

Here is what I made for our feast:

Grandma Brown’s Broken Window Glass Cake

Makes one 9” x 13” pan, serving 16 +

I treasure my grandmother’s handwritten recipe for this family favourite we used to serve every holiday. It’s a ridiculously retro dessert but it’s light, refreshing, and appealing to all ages. The colourful cubes of Jell-O look like a church stained glass window. I am reviving this cheery cake to our annual Easter feast with a tip of my Easter bonnet to Grandma Brown.

Grandma Brown preferred strawberry, cherry, and lime Jell-O for the cubes; I like to replace one red coloured Jell-O with grape if I can find it (Walmart) or orange. Make the Jell-O cubes early in the morning on the day before you plan to serve the dessert; they need to chill until firm before you fold them into the filling. Defrost the Cool Whip in the fridge while preparing the Jell-O. Later that day, finish the dessert and let it chill overnight.

Special Equipment:
3 (8”) square pans
1 (9” x 13”) rectangular pan

Ingredients:

Jell-O Cubes:
1 pkg. 3 oz. (85 g) grape or orange Jell-O
1 pkg. 3 oz. (85 g) cherry or strawberry or raspberry Jell-O
1 pkg. 3 oz. (85 g) lime Jell-O

Filling:
1 cup canned pineapple juice
½ cup white sugar
1 pkg. 3 oz. (85 g) lemon Jell-O
1 container (1 litre) frozen Cool Whip whipped topping, thawed or 2 cups whipped cream

Crust:
2 ½ cups Graham cracker crumbs
¾ cup (scant) brown sugar
½ cup melted butter
Butter for greasing pan

Directions:

1. Place the frozen Cool Whip in the fridge to thaw for 4 to 5 hours while the Jell-O sets.
2. Jell-O Cubes: Prepare the grape, cherry, and lime Jell-O separately; empty each flavour into three separate 8-inch square pans. Add 1 cup of boiling water to each pan; stir well to scrape gelatin granules from bottom of pan and dissolve thoroughly. Add ½ cup of cold water; stir thoroughly. Cover with plastic wrap; chill in fridge until firm, at least 3 hours. When firm, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (but leave in pan) and proceed with next steps.
3. Filling: Empty 1 package of lemon Jell-O in a large bowl; set aside. Place 1 cup pineapple juice with ½ cup sugar in a small pot and bring it just to the boil, stirring frequently; watch carefully and remove it from the heat as soon as the first bubble appears. Pour hot pineapple mixture over Jell-O and stir thoroughly until dissolved completely.  Add ½ cup cold water. Mix well. Chill in fridge to partially set (set your timer for every 15 minutes to stir and check for readiness); it should be partially thickened and cool but still in liquid state.
4. Crust: Meanwhile, mix crumbs with butter, and sugar; stir well. Set aside about 1 cup for garnish. Pat remaining crumb mixture firmly and evenly over the bottom of greased 9×13-inch cake pan to make a crust; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
5. Fold Cool Whip into partially set lemon Jell-O. Gently fold in Jell-O cubes. Pour into graham cracker crust. Sprinkle reserved 1 cup of crumb topping over top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 6 hours or overnight. Serve chilled the next day.

UPDATE: Crawford’s Village Bakery is closing November 30, 2014.

Grab your Easter bonnets, ladies and gents, and follow me along the virtual bunny trail as I gather up some of my favourite local treats. This week, I focus on what you need to order ahead: hams, quiches, pies, and handcrafted Easter chocolate. I share a great tip on exceptional wines and my favourite fruit salad recipe (scroll down to the bottom for Mary Katherine’s Cinnamon-Scented Fruit Salad). Next week: potatoes, homemade desserts, and decorations. Make your Easter feast special for the loved ones gathered around your table. Hippety hoppety!

If you are looking for premium local estate wines and boutique imports (many of which are not available through the LCBO) at direct-from-winery pricing, contact Oakville’s Laurie Blaha. A broker for Sideroad Twenty Cellars, Laurie will suggest wines to pair with your Easter dinner and give you a $10 off your first purchase coupon. Order on-line. Delivery can be made to your home, office, or cottage. Ontario residents only. But hurry – orders should be in by Monday April 14th for delivery by Thursday April 17th in time for Easter.

Our sizable clan is planning an easy Easter lunch. I’ve pre-ordered freshly baked quiches from Crawford’s Village Bakery & Distinctive Foods; they also sell frozen, unbaked quiches. Crawford’s is brimming with a wonderful assortment of quality gourmet pantry products and freshly baked goodies. Easter suggestions include lemon meringue or Easter Egg pies (chocolate mousse  pie garnished with whipped cream and an Easter egg, available from April 18th through April 21st only), squares (including rhubarb or lemon on a shortbread base), and cookies (including Cottontail cookies). Crawford’s handcrafted Easter chocolate, made on-site using fine Belgian chocolate, has been a long-enjoyed tradition for our family. Look at the fine detail on Charlotte and Edward and the beautifully decorated large egg, ready to be filled with Crawford’s truffles, hazelnut crisps, and caramels.

Quiches in the oven, next stop: ham. My nephew-in-law, Jean-Yves, served a succulent slower-cooker ham at Christmas, so I am giving this recipe a try for the first time: Cook’s Illustrated Slow-Cooker Glazed Ham. Cook’s Illustrated recipes are from America’s Test Kitchen and are exhaustively tested and re-tested, so I am confident the recipe will work. I bought the magazine (Cook’s Illustrated Make-Ahead Dinners 2014) at Target a few weeks ago but you can access the recipe on-line here by signing up for a 14-day free trial membership: http://www.cookscountry.com (it costs a few dollars a month to continue with the membership).

You can’t use a spiral-cut ham for this recipe because it will dry out in the slow cooker. I’ve ordered a Country Ham (uncut, bone-in, skin-on, cured/smoked) from Heatherlea Farm Market in Caledon, ON. Heatherlea’s Country Hams are sourced from Stemmler’s in Heidelberg, Ontario and are excellent quality hams from local farms. Heatherlea Farm Market raises pasture-fed, free-run, drug-free Black Angus beef and sells local free-run, naturally-raised chicken, pork, lamb, and bison. Wild boar, Berkshire pork, and emu are available on occasion.

Especially lovely at Easter, this colourful fruit salad is enrobed with a cinnamon and citrus-infused syrup. I use a different combination of fruit every time: this time strawberries, kiwi, pineapple, mango, and oranges. Thanks to my bff’s sister-in-law, Mary Katherine, for the recipe.

Mary Katherine’s Cinnamon-Scented Fruit Salad

Makes about 6 servings (easily doubled)

This keeps well for a couple of days in the refrigerator.  Delicious served alone or over ice cream or lemon gelato. It makes a good breakfast topped with vanilla yogurt and granola.

Ingredients:

1 orange
1 large lemon
About 5 to 6 cups total of assorted, ripe but still firm fruits, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces (combos of citrus, berries and tree fruit work well)
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of sugar
1 cinnamon stick

Directions:

1. With a sharp knife or vegetable peeler, remove only the peel (leaving the bitter white pith behind) of the orange and the lemon; slice peel into thick strips and set aside. Segment the orange, cut into bite-sized pieces and add to a large 8-cup capacity bowl; set aside. Juice the lemon; add about 3/4 of lemon juice to large bowl (reserve remaining 1/4 to adjust acidity level to your taste at the end).
2. Add assorted fruit to large bowl; stir gently to coat with lemon juice to prevent browning.  Chill in refrigerator.
3. Meanwhile, heat water to boiling in a small saucepan. Add sugar; stir until dissolved. Add cinnamon and reserved peel; immediately reduce to medium heat. Simmer gently until slightly reduced, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat; cool to lukewarm.
4. Strain syrup; pour over prepared fruit and fold in gently so as not to bruise fruit. Discard peel but keep cinnamon sticks for garnish. Taste salad and if desired, add remaining 1/4 of reserved lemon juice; fold gently. Cover and store in airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Garnish with cinnamon sticks, if desired.

Ever since an Indian friend introduced me to dosas at Guru Lukshmi – a restaurant, she asserted, that serves the finest, authentic South Indian vegetarian cuisine in our region – I have been hooked. The food has the flavours of India that I love but without heavy sauces and rich meats it tastes bright, clean, and healthy. Fresh, quality ingredients are prepared using traditional family recipes that have been passed down – and mastered – through generations of the family who owns Guru Lukshmi.

Don’t worry if you aren’t familiar with this type of Indian cuisine; Guru Lukshmi’s menu will guide you through the many choices. South Indian cuisine is usually hotter so start out with mild choices and work your way up.

Rasam soup is a fiery blend of lentil, tamarind, and tomato juice – not for the faint of heart. I can’t handle the heat but my husband loves it.

Sambhar is a spicy soupy stew made with tamarind, vegetables, lentils, red chili peppers, and spices.  Chutneys are fresh delights: the tomato chutney seems to be the hottest, the coriander chutney is sweet and bright, and the coconut chutney is cooling.

Idly are two soft pillows of ground, fermented, and steamed rice and lentils – sponges for the wonderful sambhar and chutneys you dip them in. You can order them plain with sambhar, coconut chutney, and tomato chutney on the side for dipping (photo below);

or order them “dipped” (as Sambhar Idly) and they come soaked in spicy sambhar sauce and topped with ghee, chopped tomato, fresh coriander, sweet purple onion, and coconut chutney (photo below). Either way, they are quite filling and should be shared as an appetizer.

The dosas are absolutely addictive: traditional South Indian crepes (made of fermented rice and lentil batter) that are delicate and crispy, yet deliciously satisfying. Create your own custom dosa by selecting one of many flavourful pastes, toppings (onions, green/red peppers, coriander, ghee butter), and whether you want to include a potato filling (“aloo masala”: a mild potato stuffing with fried onions, herbs, and spices), and cheese.  You can also specify the spice level, amount of oil (cholesterol-free vegetable oil), and texture (soft, medium, or crispy). My preference is mild and crispy.

How do you eat a dosa? Tear off a piece with your fingers and dip it into your sambhar and one of the chutneys or take the messier route and pour the sambhar onto your dosa, tear off a piece and dip it into some chutney. It’s fun to double dip, mixing two or three chutney flavours with each bite.  Dosas come with sambhar and three chutneys (tomato, coriander, and coconut).

My favourites are Guru Lukshmi’s signature dosas that are so flavourful the family had them trademarked to prevent others from copying their creations. Mysore Bhaji Aloo Masala Dosa is spread with a mild mysore paste (garlic, herbs, and spices), aloo masala potato stuffing, fresh onion, coriander, green and red peppers, butter, and secret spices – it is uniquely ambrosial (photo below). Though it is rated mild on the menu, the heat is head-tickling and sinus-clearing but pleasant and not painful; a great choice for those who can handle what I think of as medium heat.

When I want something a little less filling, I order the Vegetable Spring Dosa (a.k.a. diet dosa) without the aloo masala potato stuffing but with cheese and coriander paste.  It is stuffed with shredded carrot, green cabbage, sweet purple onion, sweet green pepper, chopped tomato, and a hint of ghee (photo below). Fresh, bright, clean, and just spicy enough to warm me nicely from my ears to my toes.

Opened in 2003 by husband and wife team Kumar Gurutharan and Thana Lakshmi, Guru Lukshmi has since moved from its Erin Centre Boulevard location to Derry and McLaughlin, while steadily gaining popularity. On my latest visit, I arrived when the restaurant opened at 11:30 a.m. on Friday and easily found seating; by 12:00 p.m. the restaurant was full and shortly after, a healthy line-up formed. Apparently it is busier on the weekends – the reason why the owners have recently allowed reservations with some seating saved for walk-ins. Service is efficient, fast, and friendly. Décor is chic Indian: dark walls with silver wall decorations and pretty lights.

Reservations are welcome – read the reservation policy here: http://www.gurulukshmi.com/reservation.html

www.gurulukshmi.com