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Recipe: sticky toffee pudding

Several months ago, I met up with Manisha and Kitt for the first time. We had a food blogger food- and photo-fest at The Kitchen in Boulder. I don’t typically dig on dessert despite making dessert (what seems like) all of the time, but I am always curious to see how restaurants make and plate their desserts, so I am usually willing to split an order with my companions. We agreed on the sticky toffee pudding, something I had heard raves about from others who have dined at The Kitchen. Rich. Delicious. I’m not a big chocolate fan, but I will shove little old ladies out of the way for toffee (not really, but you get my point).

i like dates, dried dates, lunch dates, ski dates, play dates…

I was perusing The Kitchen’s website the other day, in search of their phone number to make a reservation for my dear Kell’s visit in April (she’s coming allllll the way from Oz!) when I noticed a recipes link. Huh. Click. Click click. Click. STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING?! You know I had to try it.

choped dates in the food processor

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Recipe: mixed berry galette

It’s the first day of spring! We’ve been experiencing a very warm last week of winter here in the Rockies, so the arrival of the spring equinox didn’t really seem all that out of place today.

kaweah has taken to snoozing in the sun on our warm deck

Jeremy and I went skiing at Mary Jane (Winter Park really, but we prefer the Mary Jane side because it’s steep and has lots of moguls) earlier in the week. Ice in the morning, slush in the afternoon = spring conditions. What stuck in my mind from that day was the damp smell of pine forest. I love that smell. I love it because it calls to me. It tells me it’s time to head into the backcountry for some spring mountaineering. After skiing, we went into Boulder to pick up my cousin who was visiting for a night before heading out to Vail with a ton of friends. We had a little time before her bus arrived and decided to upgrade some of our 15-year old gear with the new-fangled lightweight, durable stuff!

sweet: glacier rope and crampons

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Recipe: margarita jello

At the party we threw last weekend I was all prepared to serve up margaritas to our guests because that sounded like a good way to wash down those shredded beef and carne adovada tacos. As luck would have it, only one person asked for a margarita and so I was stuck with a bag of limes after the party was over.

what to do with juicy limes…

I shouldn’t say stuck with the limes, because there’s always something good to make with limes. I should say stuck with tequila because neither of us drinks tequila. Then I recalled a mojito jello that Helen had posted last summer and wondered if I might try something similar with the margarita. I had a good recipe in hand after researching all over the web for the *best* margarita cocktail. It goes something like 2 parts 100% agave tequila (silver, I don’t know what silver means, but basically don’t buy shitty tequila), 1 part Grand Marnier, and 1 part fresh lime juice. I guess I’m a serious lightweight because that was kinda strong for me. I preferred it with simple syrup, more lime juice, less booze.

sprinkle gelatin over the water to soften

fresh squozen is best

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