Portuguese egg tarts and why I love them

I don't exactly know when I tasted my first pastels de nata. I do know that I have since brought their delightful sweet flakiness to as many people as I can. Coffee dates with friends, potluck contributions to work meetings, most recently one to my grandfather who's still stuck in the hospital. Man oh man, did that make his day... I've never seen anybody eat of of these so fast...

For a long time I only ever had these tarts from Italian bakeries and cafes. Kind of funny, no? Nowhere near Italy and with a completely different food history, Portugal has it's own food thing going on - flame grilled chicken sandwiches, fresh seafood and egg dishes, and Port wine to name a few off the top of my head.

I think it has something to do with Portuguese bread. Ever the Italophile, my dad still swears that bread from the Portuguese bakery is the best. He's done his homework to discover that many of the Italian cafes and trattorias around town source their buns from Portuguese bakeries. In any case, I imagine this is how the Portuguese egg tart made its way into the display cases of Tra Amici Cafe and the Italian Centre Shop. The tarts pictured above, however, come from the Handy Bakery on 118th Ave and 87th Street. The ladies at the counter there are very friendly and the prices are exceedingly reasonable.

The essence of the tart is the creamy, sweet egg custard. Not jiggly or runny, it is a dreamy consistency. It doesn't even really taste like egg. But it's not just pure saccharine either. The tarts were first introduced by nuns at the Monastery of Belem, near Lisbon, in the early 1800's. Egg yolks were used in baking because the egg whites were needed for things like starching nun's habits. (Taken from this article in the Christian Science Monitor, it's fascinating!)

Since then, this delectable confection has become the signature pastry of Portugal. J and I were recently in Montreal visiting family and we stayed in the Little Portugal part of the city. The Plateau is an area full of international flavours - but undoubtedly, the smell of flam grilled chickens from all the sandwich shops is the dominant aroma, at least in my nostrils.

I awoke one morning to find that J had already been up and out, discovering the neighbourhood. He had returned with hot coffee and a little white box that I eagerly opened. Inside were four pasteis de nata, freshly baked. Not only is the custard filling velvety and beautiful yellow, but the pastry exterior is as once flaky and chewy. I don't know how, and frankly it blows my mind every time, as I am terrible at pastry.
You know how I know it will work with J and me? The man knows the way to my heart, obviously...

combatting brain drain with smoked meat sandwiches

I saw a very delicious story on the news the other day. Amid stories of natural disaster, corrupt bankers and politicians, and a flailing economy, this warmed the cockles of my heart.

Click here to watch the news piece

I turns out that the greatest smoked meat sandwich to be had in New York is found at neither Carnegie nor Katz's delis, but at a new spot called Mile End Delicatessen that opened last January in Brooklyn. CBC reported that the deli received its top rating from Zagat, the authority in food and travel guides, described by CBC's David Common as the "gastronomic bible of New York City."

Owners Noah Bermanoff and Rae Cohen are Montreal ex-pats who sell the iconic smoked meat as well as St. Viatur bagels, hand delivered either by FedEx or quite often by friends who drive through the night from Montreal ensure their fresh and speedy arrival each morning.

The main attraction at the tiny hot spot is their beef brisket smoked meat. Also on the menu: poutine with real cheese curds, borscht, and sandwichs names like the "Ruth Wilensky" which is sliced salami on an onion roll (10 cents extra for no mustard) and "The Beauty" - lox on a bagel with cream cheese, tomato, red onion & capers served either open or close-faced.

The format is simple, the price is right, and the food looks amazing. It looks as though they've come up with a winning strategy as they are currently planning the opening of a second location. Too bad it's not up the street from my house. I miss Montreal smoked meat all the time.

Photo Credits:
Daniel Kreiger
Michelle V. Agins/The New York Times
brownstoner.com

tasty treats on the terrace at Two Rooms

I was on Whyte Avenue today, looking for a nice place to take a friend for lunch. She's a north side-er and not used to going out to eat, so the job of choosing a place fell to me. I will admit, the choice was largely contingent on wherever I was able to find parking.

Luckily for us both, there was a spot right in front of Two Rooms Cafe. Located in a beautiful old heritage building on Whyte and 103rd Street, the cafe has a small interior - 5 or 6 tables - with an open kitchen and a pretty, atmospheric waterfall.

The real beauty of this spot, though, is the patio seating outside. Looking out at the legendary Princess Theatre and the (in)famous Commercial Hotel and Blues on Whyte, my friend and I had prime people-watching views in either direction of the avenue. The heat was sweltering but we were safe under the shade of Two Rooms' broad umbrellas.

Our server was friendly and helpful. She came out right away with ice water for us both and when I couldn't decide between the grilled portabella mushroom or the prosciutto panini, she was quick to offer advice and informed me that the mushroom sandwich was, in fact, her favourite on the small but creative menu. My grilled sandwich was fresh and prepared with lettuce, tomato, feta cheese, and avocado spread. My friend had the grilled chicken sandwich that came on fresh multigrain bread. We both chose the house salad on the side, which came with romaine lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, roasted red peppers, shredded carrots, and a house-made buttermilk herb vinaigrette served on the side.

When I went inside to pay I got a good look at their dessert case and was tempted by a sumptuous looking lemon poppy seed thingy. Turned out it was lemon poppy seed cheesecake, topped with local honey. I got a slice to go and brought it over to some friends who live in the neighbourhood. They were spending their afternoon of sunshine sorting a year's worth of bottles and cans and I figured they could use a little something sweet.

All told, the beaming sun shone down on me on my encounter with Two Rooms. While I was pouring over the dessert case I also noticed that it was lined with a very decent assortment of local, microbrewed, and imported beers. I will have to come back to incorporate them into my next sunny day on the patio at Two Rooms.