By the time March arrives, the Canadian landscape out my writing window offers little inspiration. Bleak skies begone! Behold a bevy of bougainvillea!
Wrap me in it and set me alight on a frisky wave. A strawberry daiquiri to go? Surely you jest? I like your style, and yes, I’ll have another.
Sun, sand, salt: how I love thee! Friendly winds whipping up waves for those unfazed by losing a bathing suit in the fray…this is the stuff of winter daydreams. An invitation to join my sister on vacation in Captiva, Florida, was an easy yes for this writer.
While in this charming corner of the planet, I had occasion to taste two delicious desserts. You know already what the next part is, don’t you?
Is there such a thing as dessert ennui? I dare you to guess. Did I reach the marvellous muddle middle of life and somehow discover there is nothing left to try? Not so fast, friends. Of course there are more desserts than those tucked in my food memoir. Here are two versions of pies I sampled in Florida this merry March of travel*. Both are suitable for Easter feasting if those little tin-foiled eggs have already been scooped by speedy hands in the egg hunt classic .
KEY LIME PIE
I tasted a deadly delicious version of this Florida staple at a weekly market, and although they wouldn’t share their recipe, the good folks at Angelic Desserts based in Naples did share a story. The bakery is named after the baker’s daughter who died last year of cystic fibrosis. While she was ill, her mom quit work to care for her and started baking to raise funds, and continued to bake after her daughter’s death as she found it cathartic (KINDRED SPIRIT ALERT!!). Demand has been high and one taste of their key lime pie was enough to convince me that these folks know their way around pie. As my niece Alexandra said, the pie was limey perfection.
I tried some versions of my own this week. Subscribers to my buzz sheet will receive the recipe I liked best in a special Easter newsletter arriving in your inbox this Thursday.
PEANUT BUTTER PIE
My sister’s family have been going to Timbers restaurant for years whenever they travel south. So I have them to thank for tipping me off about a favourite dessert on the restaurant’s menu: peanut butter pie. This creamy treat won universal approval of all of my extended family including the youngest member, seven-year-old Charlotte.
Need some inspiration for Easter menus? Sign up here and I’ll send you the recipes.
One year ago this month: mango cake
Two years ago this month: St. Lucian Jump-Up
Four years ago this month: Feelin’groovy
Have Your Say