Love Tastes Like Strawberries

When asked what a person's favourite season is, many would reply: summer! Others, who long for the crisp mornings and breezy afternoons may say autumn or spring. Then of course, there are the Canadians that take their patriotism a little too seriously and choose winter.
When I am asked what my favourite season is, the answer is simple: strawberry season!

For just a few weeks each year, Nova Scotians relish in the sweet natural treat of local strawberries. We ditch our scarily large, firm and tasteless California substitutes for a much more modest looking, but oh so sweet Nova Scotia strawberry.

So, because strawberries make up about 80% of my diet this time of year, and since it's been a while since I've done a pastry post, here is a delightful recipe for Strawberry Shortcake - one of my utmost favourites!


Zoe's Sweet Strawberry Shortcakes


For the shortcakes:

1 2/3 cups  all-purpose flour
3 1/2 tablespoons sugar (if your hand slips, and you accidentally add four, don't worry - it's for the best)
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 hard-boiled egg yolks (yes - you must boil the eggs first then just use the yolks - just trust me)
pinch of salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
2 teaspoons lemon zest (optional)
2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream


Shortcake assembly:

1 box of the delicious, ripe strawberries
2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

whipping cream, beaten to soft peaks (as much as you like)

In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, egg yolks, and salt. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and zest and pulse until the flour resembles coarse meal. Add 2/3 cup of cream and pulse until the dough comes together. I always forget to only put in some of the cream. Oops.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead a couple times and then pat it into a rough circle about 6 to 7 inches in diameter, and 3/4 to 1-inch thick - thicker is better.

Now you can make the biscuits into whatever shapes you like. Here, being lazy, I cut the dough into six wedges, however a solid cookie cutter (I have a heart-shaped one, perfect if making dessert for your sweetheart) or a drinking glass will do to make neater shortcakes. Chill the shortcakes for 20 minutes or so.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush the tops of the shortcakes very lightly with heavy cream and sprinkle lightly with the coarse sugar. Bake until risen and golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Turn the pan around halfway.

While the shortcakes are baking, toss the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice together in a bowl. Let stand a few minutes so the strawberries and sugar really get cozy with each other - creating seriously yummy effects.
Now, just cut the shortbreads and spoon on the whipped cream and strawberries and smile in sweet, berry satisfaction. White wine accompaniment not compulsory but highly recommended.

Kitchen First Aid: Tips to Avoid Disaster

We have all been there. You've been slaving away for hours trying to make the perfect pastry, the most delectable casserole, a dreamy sauce. Then, you get to a stage and something doesn't seem.... right. You triple-check the recipe, recount the steps in your head and still somehow, your vanilla custard looks more like scrambled egg whites than something you can spread in a tart.

Suddenly, you start to sweat a little, you can feel your pulse begin to quicken, you look at the clock and see you have 25 minutes before guests arrive and you have flour in your hair. Well, if there is one thing I have learned, crying and stamping your feet does not make your hollandaise sauce any less revolting looking (although it feels like it will!).

Well friends, fear no more, I'm going to teach you a Zoe-original method that I use, well, a lot.

CPR: Culinary Pandemonium Recovery

I feel the same way about cooking and baking as I do about being a musician: it's not just the amount of skill or talent you have, it's how well you can handle those small (or very large) mistakes we all make from time to time. Because some days, the damn pie crust just does not want to roll out (can I get an Amen?).


Here are some very straight-forward but helpful hints I've acquired (mostly the hard way) over the past few years.

1. Accidentally dumped a little too much of one ingredient in your dish? Hand slip while holding the salt? Well, the only sure-fire solution to that problem is letting your hand slip with everything.. aka. get ready to double that recipe! I had to freeze five tart doughs once... oops!

2. Here's a classic Zoe move: slaving away over your cake only to take it out of the pan too soon and it crumble into several steaming, vanilla pieces. Here's a couple great tricks: a) make a simple syrup on the stove with sugar and water (or you can add fruit to reduce down) and fill in the cracks. This will hold the cake together and make it a smoother surface to ice. b) fill in the cracks with frosting... who doesn't want more frosting? c) crumble that cake up, because you're making trifle!

3) When candy and fudge won't set: Add more liquid (cream) and but that pot back on the stove to keep boiling.. and have faith!

4) When your frosting looks like sugar soup. Well ladies and gentlemen, I don't mean to brag, but frosting just happens to be my specialty, born out of a long and deep love affair with birthday cake. The key to saving your frosting is small additions. Take a PORTION of your icing and add more confectioners' sugar until it's starting to get super thick, then add VERY small amounts of milk, or butter, or cream cheese, or really and delicious wet ingredient at a time while continually tasting so that the sugar doesn't dominate and give your guests cavities.

5) How to fix a cream sauce: I'm not sure if this is the best method, but it works for me! I set my sorry looking sauce aside and boil some new cream in a pot until it's reduced down significantly. Then I simply add the sorry sauce and whisk until my biceps are numb and voila! The creamy delicious sauce of your dreams.

I hope this helps your future kitchen endeavours, and I will be sure to post more as more disasters happen - which they will!

What are your go-to kitchen nightmare fixes?

My Evening with Chef Gillis

Between teaching, rehearsals and composing it is hard these times to get some quality cooking and baking time in. So when my beautiful friend, Jessi Gillis asked if I'd like to get together and have some culinary fun, I leaped at the chance! Last Saturday Jessi came over and we drank delicious red wine and shared some fun recipes while Jessi taught me some simple and very useful little tips for the kitchen!

We had decided ahead of time that I would choose the dessert to make and she would choose the main course. I was beyond excited and intrigued when Jessi proposed the idea of making homemade pasta! I learned all about making delicious pasta dough, the uses of mascarpone cheese (yum!!) and how to make a tasty roasted vegetable sauce and another pesto variation - I love pesto!!

The result? A delicious ravioli stuffed with mascarpone cheese and caramelized onion (I'm drooling thinking back on it) with both a homemade pesto and a roasted red sauce! I know, she is all kinds of talented.

When Jessi asked me to take charge on dessert I contemplated for quite awhile what to make but I decided it would be best to stick to what I love most - strawberries, vanilla and exorbitant amounts of icing. So, we created "the rose cake". Excited by my new piping kit (a lovely present from my sister's beloved), I made a vanilla buttercream frosting infused with a simple strawberry syrup. Jessi was kind enough to teach me all about how to make different syrups - I have no idea how easy it was! Underneath the mountains of frosting was a VERY sweet and simple vanilla cake.

Voila! The Rose Cake!

All in all, it was a perfect evening of delicious food and fabulous friendship. To read more about Chef Jessi Gillis and her fantastic catering company, Highland Drive (and her new shop opening up in the Hydrostone!!),

Check out what Jessi has in store!