Buffalo Rising Online

Christa Glennie Seychew

A cream tea is one of the finest things on earth. At least that’s my opinion. High tea is equally beautiful, but if you’re looking for something less extravagant, a cream tea is the way to go. Cream tea and afternoon tea is the same thing to the best of my knowledge. It is traditionally a light snack (though that term is debatable) that takes place in the afternoon around 4pm. Freshly brewed tea is served with of items like biscuits (on this side of the ocean we call them cookies), small cakes, finger sandwiches and scones with cream.

Ahh… cream. Any of you that have already read my spread on butter in March’s issue will not be surprised to hear that I have an abiding love for dairy products. The dairy component in this meal is clotted cream or Devon cream.

Clotted cream is tastier than its name might infer. Clotted cream is made by heating unpasteurized milk t…

Christa Glennie Seychew

I think I may have died and gone to heaven- I’m sure you’ll feel the same once you get to the end of this post.

Kevin O’Connell, Jr., chef and owner of O’Connell’s Hourglass, will be offering thirty very, very fortunate guests the opportunity to partake in a remarkable feast. A mere glance at the menu is enough to deliver a shiver of ecstasy through the spine of any dedicated gourmand.

Monday, April 9th, O’Connell will host a Grand Cellar Dinner at his lovely restaurant. Lauded for its fantastic wine cellar, it is no surprise that the selection offered at the event will be stellar. One would be remiss to pass up the chance to sample each of these remarkable wines in conjunction with the phenomonal menu.

I haven’t a single doubt that this rare (and sure-to-be remarkable) event will fill up within the next two weeks. If you are interested in attending I …

hippiegrrl

On Friday, March 23rd from 6:00 – 9:00pm, the Buffalo Rotary Foundation will be sponsoring an event in the Mary Seaton Room at Kleinhan’s Music Hall to benefit the Frank Lloyd Wright’s Rowing Boathouse. The event, Wines of the World (or WOW for short), will include a sampling of wines from many different countries, as well as appetizer stations prepared by some of Buffalo’s best restaurants. A live auction, Chinese auction and silent auction will also take place during the event.

In 2000, a group of individuals formed a 501(c)(3) corporation to bring Frank Lloyd Wright’s vision of a rowing boathouse to life here on the waterfront of Buffalo. Coupled with the many other Wright masterpieces in the city, this boathouse will serve as a welcome addition to the array of Wright landmarks currently housed in Buffalo.

The mai…

hippiegrrl

If you were wondering how many days are left until Easter (or how much longer you have to go with that Lenten sacrifice) check out the Broadway Market site. They have installed a "Countdown to Easter 2007" clock on the front page to keep you in the know.

The Broadway Market is always a great place to go for meats, butter lambs or chocolate covered strawberries and they will now be able to continue going in a positive direction due to their new status as a 501(c)(3), non-profit, organization. The market's application for a designation change was approved by the Internal Revenue Service this past week and the new status gives the market the ability to apply to private foundations for funding of market improvement projects. This is a great boost to the market itself, not to mention the local area that it serves. Best of a…

Christa Glennie Seychew

Yancey’s Fancy is an award-winning cheese maker based in the Finger Lakes region. Their legacy begins with the settlement of founder Leo Kutter of Bavaria, Germany in the Cowelsville, NY area in 1926. There he worked as a maker of Limburger until the war began. After the war he moved to Corfu where he began his own company, manufacturing Swiss, brick and cheddar in addition to Limburger. Since then, the business had been handed down and has undergone many changes. Today, Yancey’s Fancy offers an extensive line of cheeses and cheese curds. Fortunately for us, a number of are available at the Lexington Co-op.

Yancey’s cheeses are extremely reasonable at only $5.99 per lb. I took home a nice wedge of aged cheddar made with “Finger Lakes Champagne”. It was bright and flavorful, the perfect addition to a piece of homemade apple pie.

Christa Glennie Seychew

I have to disagree with Mr. Carroll on this point. Jam should be part of every day.

Preserves should not be reserved for morning toast, or employed solely as a best friend to peanut butter. Though both scenarios will end with the smacking of lips and licking of fingers, good jam can be used in many applications. I often make pork tenderloin with preserves, whole grain mustard and a little sherry. Many of the “berry” jams are great with chicken. Virtually any flavor can be added to your make-at-home ice cream recipe repertoire, and all of them are good inside a freshly-baked tart.

Whether you’re looking for preserves as an ingredient, or as something to smother a biscuit with, Guercio’s has one of the best jam selections in the city. As an import store and a corner grocery, they carry the giant jar of grape jelly right next to the demure little glass vessel of p…

Christa Glennie Seychew

Charlie Chaplin’s are something of a mystery. Sponge candy is a well known regional oddity, apparently something that people who relocate have a tough time getting their hands on. As an area resident, Charlie Chaplin’s can be hard to track down, far more scattered than the ubiquitous sponge.

They also have an undetermined provenance. Much “Googling” led me to a South Bend, Indiana candy company that has been producing “Chocolate Charlie’s” for over eighty years. The trouble is, they only make them from October to December, and their ingredients and texture are different than the version available here.

It wasn’t until a few years ago that I heard occasional mumblings about Charlie Chaplin’s. The interpretation that I have most often seen is a big block of dark or milk chocolate full of cashews, coconut and windows of gooey marshmallow. I was able to find…