December 2011 Newsletter

December 2011

www.danashortt.ca

::: gifts for cooks...and hostess gifts! -$12.98 each - any of our 41 varieties of extra-virgin olive oil or aged balsamic vinegar (200 ml) -15.98 and up - dsg wrapped hostess gifts & gourmet gift baskets $18.98 - 60 ml. bottle of our white truffle oil & 60 ml. bottle of our black truffle salt, all wrapped up -$13.98 - $14.98 coach house shortbread, 10 flavours, wrapped package of 18 pieces -rheo thompson candies chocolate, reid chocolate, eve chocolate....need I say more? -$10.00 and up - dana shortt gourmet gift certificates $149.98 - 2 L italian, stainless steel "fusti" container filled with 2 L of your choice of extra virgin olive oil or balsamic vinegar ::: what's in our fresh fridge today? -brownies $6.98/slab -tons of fresh scones $8.98/8 -quesadillas $10.98 each -wild mushroom soup with sherry $9.98/L -best ever meatloaf $9.98 small, $19.98 large -white chicken chili $14.98 -lamb shepherd's pie with sweet potato topping $9.98 small, $19.98 large ::: recipe-of-the-month I am thrilled to announce that my friend Tina Roberts has finished her cookbook and it is now available for sale at the shop! Many of you will recognize Tina's name because she's contributed so many wonderful recipes to my newsletters and Chronicle columns over the years - including her famous "blueberry drizzle salad" and her award-winning "marinated brie". Her cookbook is titled "The Two Sisters cookbook". Tina originally planned on only making 3 copies - one for herself, one for her sister Audrey and one for her mom. However, the cookbook was such a huge hit with friends and family that she ended up giving away over 100 copies! Long story short, Tina decided to adapt the original version and create 20 new menus, each inspired by a family memory. Tina has generously shared a new recipe from the book - her Caesar Crisps (from the "Marry Me" menu). Also - Tina is holding her cookbook launch at our shop on Sunday, December 11th from 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. Please stop by to meet Tina and enjoy some sample recipes from her book! Tina's Caesar Crisps Tina says “I love Caesar Salad, so I thought I’d put my creativity to work and invent an appetizer that has the same delicious flavours. This appetizer is also pretty to serve during the holiday season – the red and green are perfect at Christmas”. Ingredients: EGG MIXTURE 1 large egg yolk 4 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese 2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice ½ tsp grated lemon zest 1 clove garlic, pressed ½ tsp Dijon mustard ¼ tsp Worcestershire sauce red hot cayenne pepper sauce freshly ground black pepper 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 4 large flour tortillas TOPPING 1 cup peeled, seeded, and finely chopped tomatoes (about 1 pound) kosher salt ½ cup grated Asiago cheese 2/3 cup grated mozzarella cheese 4 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese ADD THE LOVE ½ cup finely chopped romaine lettuce hearts Method: Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk together yolk, cheese, juice, zest, garlic, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, pepper sauce, and pepper in a small bowl until smooth. Slowly whisk in oil. Divide egg mixture evenly over tortillas. Place tortillas on baking sheets. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and let stand for 5 minutes. Drain excess liquid from tomatoes. Sprinkle tomatoes, Asiago, mozzarella, and Parmesan cheeses evenly over tortillas. Bake tortillas for 12 to 14 minutes or until tortillas are golden and cheese is bubbling. Remove from oven. Add the love: Slice tortillas into wedges, sprinkle with lettuce, and serve immediately. Tip:To peel tomatoes, wash tomatoes thoroughly and bring a pot of water to a boil. Cut a shallow ‘x’ into the bottom of each tomato. Place tomatoes into boiling water and remove after 30 seconds. Run Under cold water to remove skins.

::: 12 days of christmas sales (thursday, dec 1 - monday, dec 12) We are offering the following specials: -two, wood-fired 9" pizza's for $13.98 including tax (7 varieties to choose from) -large, 10" leek & sausage pot pie for $13.98 including tax -15 pack spring rolls for $10 including tax -mulligatawny & spinach-tomato thakali soups for $8/L including tax PLUS - our cheese tortes are on sale! Sun, Dec 4 - maple pecan ice wine torte for $13 including tax (save $4) Sun, Dec 11 - pesto tomato torte for $12 including tax (save $4) ::: extended holiday hours Holiday Hours starting Dec 1: Monday - Friday - 9:30 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. Saturday - 9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Sunday - 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. (Dec 4, 11 and 18th only) note: we are open all days in December with the exception of Christmas Day and Boxing Day ::: one of my favourite blogs One of my favourite blogs (and it's local!) is called Eat, Spin, Run, Repeat. It's an amazing resource filled with fitness advice, diet & nutrition tips, food and product reviews and tons of delicious, healthy recipes. I recently got in touch with Angela to tell her about our new olive oil & balsamic vinegar tasting bar, as I knew from reading her blog that she loved cooking with balsamic vinegars. Angela recently stopped by the shop to check out our "bar" and wrote a comprehensive review of her experience, complete with photos. Please check out her review and blog by clicking the link below: http://eat-spin-run-repeat.com/2011/11/29/the-most-amazing-bar-ive-ever-been-to/ ::: gift baskets! We would love to help you with your corporate and/or personal gourmet gift baskets this holiday season. Baskets start at $40.00 and up and are filled with our made in-house items as well as customer favourites like Rheo Thompson Candies & Reid Chocolates. Click on the link to view our 2011 holiday basket info: http://www.danashortt.ca/gifts.htm#basket ::: coach house shortbread! Did you know that we are one of only 14 retailers in Canada selling "Coach House Shortbread"? We carry 10 flavours - 5 sweet and 5 savoury. The shortbreads are featured in the current holiday issue of the LCBO's Food & Drink magazine (last page of the magazine) and Vicky Sanderson of the Toronto Star recently wrote that they are "the best shortbread I've ever had in my life (sorry, mom)" Click here for their website with more info: www.shortbread.ca ::: merry christmas! Happy holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa to all of you from all of us at DSG! Thank you for your loyal patronage and support in 2011 - we look forward to serving you in 2012. ::: www.danashortt.ca