LCBO Food & Drink Summer 2019

Inside Scoop from page 19

1 tsp (5 mL) finely ground black pepper 2 tbsp (30 mL) barbecue rub, or less to taste

MATCHA PASTRY CREAM 1 cup (250 mL) milk

1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract or paste 1 ⁄ tsp (7 mL) matcha tea powder 2 egg yolks ⁄ cup (60 mL) sugar 2 tbsp (30 mL) cornstarch 2 tbsp (30 mL) unsalted butter ⁄ cup (125 mL) whipping cream

1 Combine all ingredients except barbecue rub in a medium saucepan. If the rub is mostly spices and isn’t too salty, you can add the full 2 tbsp (30 mL). If it’s on the salty side, season to taste. Whisk to combine. 2 Place saucepan over medium heat, whisk- ing o en until sauce starts simmering. Lower heat to maintain a very gentle simmer. Cook, whisking often, for 30 minutes. Add a splash of water if it gets too thick—it should thickly coat the back of a spoon. 3 Cool completely and transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate up to 1 month.

FROZEN APEROL SPRITZ Light and refreshing with just a hint of bitter- ness, this frozen spin on the classic aperitivo gives the original a run for its money. While you may not recognize some of the ingredients from a regular Aperol Spritz, they are impor- tant to the texture and flavour of the frozen format. 4 oz Prosecco 2 oz Aperol 1 oz vodka 2 oz fresh orange juice ⁄ oz Simple Syrup (recipe on page 150) ⁄ oz lime juice 3 oz ice water Thin orange wedges, for garnish 1 Pour Prosecco, Aperol, vodka, orange juice, Simple Syrup and lime juice into an airtight container. Freeze overnight and up to 3 days. 2 Place 2 small Lowball or stemless white wine glasses in freezer for at least 30 minutes. 3 Scrape drink mixture into blender and add water. Blend until smooth, stopping and scraping down bowl if necessary. Divide among chilled glasses with a spoon. Garnish with orange wedges and serve immediately with straws. BARQUE’S BARBECUE SAUCE David Neinstein recommends letting this sauce sit for a day or two to let the flavours come together. He also encourages you to play around with the recipe and make it your own. 2 cups (500 mL) ketchup, preferably Heinz ⁄ cup (80 mL) apple cider vinegar 2 tbsp (30 mL) tomato paste 2 tbsp (30 mL) molasses 1 tsp (5 mL) liquid smoke 1 tsp (5 mL) Tabasco sauce ⁄ cup (60 mL) light brown sugar, packed Makes 2 drinks

2 cups (500 mL) small strawberries 1 tbsp (15 mL) elderflower cordial or liqueur Lemon balm sprigs to garnish (optional) 1 Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). 2 For the crust, combine flour, sugar, salt and butter in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat until butter is evenly distributed (mixture will be crumbly). Tip into a 4 ⁄ x 11-inch (11 x 28-cm) tart tin with removable bottom. 3 Press dough into an even layer on bottom and up sides; prick bottom all over with a fork. Chill in freezer for 20 minutes. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until light golden; cool completely. 4 Meanwhile, prepare pastry cream: heat milk and vanilla until gently simmering in a small pot over medium heat; whisk in matcha. 5 In a medium heatproof bowl, beat egg yolks and sugar until pale yellow; mix in cornstarch. Slowly pour half of hot milk mixture over yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Return mixture to pot and, again whisking constantly, cook over medium until thickened; let boil 1 minute while continuing to whisk. Remove from heat; stir in butter. Scrape into a bowl; cover with plastic wrap and let cool completely. 6 Beat cream to stiff peaks; fold into matcha mixture. Scrape into tart shell and, using an offset spatula, evenly distribute. Smooth top. 7 Toss strawberries with elderflower cordial; arrange decoratively over tart and garnish with lemon balm, if desired. Serve immediately. Serves 6 WHAT TO SERVE Sake with dessert? As long as you select one with a moderate level of sweetness, the delicate and savoury character of Nigori sake is an inspired pairing with the matcha tea notes in this tart. Intentionally cloudy in appearance, the bottle should be shaken each time before pouring. Nigori Creme de Sake LCBO 612861, 300 mL, $9.10

Makes about 2 cups (500 mL)

Truly Tempting Tarts from page 96

STRAWBERRY & MATCHA TART Matcha is a powdered green tea with a sweet-savoury flavour that works beautifully in pastries, particularly if there are berries involved. Leaving the green on some of your berries makes for a pretty tart—just be sure to eat around them. You can substitute rasp- berries for strawberries too, and dress them with a little rose-scented syrup instead of the elderflower cordial—Forbes makes a terrific wild rose version (wildfoods.ca). Substitute an 8-inch (20-cm) round tin for the rectangular one indicated if you prefer. CRUST 1 cup (250 mL) all-purpose flour ⁄ cup (60 mL) sugar Pinch salt 7 tbsp (105 mL) unsalted butter, so ened

1 tsp (5 mL) granulated garlic 1 tsp (5 mL) granulated onion

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SUMMER 2019 FOOD & DRINK