Montreal

  • April 23rd, 2010

    Bliss Bar

    With The City and The Hills debuting new seasons, we’re in need of sinful snacks. 

    On TV Trash Tuesdays, we’ll visit Les Chocolats Briimstone. Run by former pastry chef Skye Sloane, it carries exotic treats like gluten-free New Mexican fudge by Cocopotamus, and Sloane’s own Toots Sweete line of mini-truffles made with Balsamic, Blueberry Port and Chardonnay (75 cents each). And instead of dinner, feed on a Vosges Barcelona Bar ($6.50/85g) blended with milk chocolate, sea salt and hickory smoked almonds.

    Salty and sweet, just like Justin Bobby on the beach.

    Les Chocolats Briimstone, 5879 Sherbrooke St. W., N.D.G., 514-439-3275.

  • March 5th, 2010

    Apple of Your Eye

    If an apple of day keeps the doctor away, we've got an MD in Triple Jim's Crispy Organic Apple Chips.

    Grown and manufactured in B.C., these tasty apple chips  are completely natural—and addictive. They make a perfect afternoon snack or post-dinner sweet treat.

    Apples for dessert? Aren't you clever now.

    Triple Jim's Crispy Organic Apple Chips, $3.99 (or 2 bags/$5 on sale now) at Whole Foods, www.wholefoods.com

  • August 19th, 2009

    Yo Yo Yogourt

    We know we need our calcium, but there’s only so many glasses of milk a gal can drink. And cheese? Fabulous but fatty.

    We’ve just discovered a solution that’s so delish, it’s almost too good to be true. Yeh! Yogourt offers frozen yogurt by the ounce (.48 cents/oz), self-served in a cheery pink shop. Low in fat (so the guilt factor is mercifully scant), choose from over a dozen flavors including green tea, cheesecake and mango. Add healthy toppings like flax seed and wheat germ or splurge your diet-points on chunks of decadent Kit Kat.

    Yeh! to that!

    Yeh! Yogourt, 3804 St. Laurent Blvd., Montreal, 514-903-7248, www.yehyogourt.com

     

  • June 17th, 2009

    Bittersweet Baker

    There may be no scientific proof, but we firmly believe that cake can mend a broken heart. Erin Bolger’s The Happy Baker, a divine collection of recipes blended with personal stories about her dating misadventures, has plenty of cheer-up treats like The Big Hurt Cheescake.

    Ingredients
    1 cup finely crushed ginger cookies
    ¼ cup melted butter
    3 8oz softened cream cheese packages
    1 cup sugar
    1 Tbsp all purpose flour
    1 tsp ground ginger
    1 tsp lemon juice
    1 tsp vanilla
    1/2 tsp salt
    3 slightly beaten eggs
    1/3 cup caramel sauce

    Method
    Preheat oven to 350°F and cut parchment paper to fit bottom of a 9-inch springform pan
    Mix crushed cookies and melted butter, press into prepared pan, bake 5 minutes
    Beat cream cheese with a mixer until smooth
    Beat in sugar, flour, ginger, lemon juice, vanilla and salt
    Stir in eggs, beat, pour mixture on top of crust
    Bake 45 minutes until centre is set
    Before serving, spoon caramel topping over cake

    The Happy Baker: A Dater’s Guide to Emotional Baking, $19.10 at Chapters.ca .