Category: We recommend!

Petit Robert Bistro Profiterole Update!

We don't talk about dessert around here very often. That is partly because desserts often disappoint. So when a dessert we love, like the giant profiterole at Petit Robert Bistro (South End) arrives at our table with a different look from the last time we wrote about it, we hold our breath as our spoons descend and hope for the best.

The good news is that it is only the shape that has changed.

The pastry is still crisp and light, the ice cream is still rich and full-flavored, and the chocolate sauce is still swoon-worthy.

It is still a dessert that is worth a walk to the South End and all the other steps it will take to neutralize the calorie count.

It is also a dessert to keep in mind when you go to another restaurant where the dessert list does disappoint. At Petit Robert, they have graciously served us a profiterole at the bar, upon request.

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny Cherubino

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July 5, 2017
Spending Time with a Sparkling Old Friend This July – Argyle Vintage Brut

Well look who stopped by to help us ring in July – a sparkling old friend from Oregon who goes by the name of Argyle Vintage Brut 2013!

While we’ve had a long, happy relationship through the years, it’s been awhile since we’ve shared each other’s company.

This Pinot-forward sparkler comes from Argyle’s Grower Series and promises a rich, round peach nature helped along by “… the complexity of honey, cherry kernel and lingering anise.”

The balance and focus of the finish is said to come from the wine’s “… dynamic acid backbone and edgy minerality.”

Just this past April, Wine Spectator awarded the 2013 Argyle Vintage Brut 89 Points, praising it as “Crisp and precise, with apple and pomelo aromas and sleek, tangy flavors that finish with vibrancy. Drink now. —T.F.”

Hmm … Sounds a lot like the old friend we remember. We also remember meeting Argyle's Founder Rollin Soles (in the Argyle photo above) at Bauer Wine & Spirits. (Check out: "Argyle's Rollin Soles Talks Wine with BostonZest" in Related Posts below.)

Catching up after time apart can mean a bit of uncertainty. Maybe one or both of you have changed? We’ll let you know how it goes.

Until then, “Here’s to July!” and our Sparkling Resolution!

The Facts:

Vintage Brut | 2013 Willamette Valley AVA

Bottle Fermented, Aged on the Yeast,

60% Pinot Noir — 40% Chardonnay, ABV: 12.5%

We purchased our bottle of Argyle Vintage Brut 2013 on sale for $20 at Bauer Wine & Spirits.

* (07.04.2017) Update: As spectacular as ever! Great body with nice Pinot-forward character. Shared with friends as we all raised our glasses to toast the arrival of July! Already have another bottle on-ice and ready to go!

Related Posts:

Argyle’s Rollin Soles Talks Wine with BostonZest

March Sparkles with Argyle’s 2001 Extended Tirage Brut – It’s a Sure Thing!

Oregon’s Argyle Brut to Light-Up July!

Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino

Photography: © 2017 Penny Cherubino

July 1, 2017
Spending Time with a Sparkling Old Friend This July – Argyle Vintage Brut

Well look who stopped by to help us ring in July – a sparkling old friend from Oregon who goes by the name of Argyle Vintage Brut 2013!

While we’ve had a long, happy relationship through the years, it’s been awhile since we’ve shared each other’s company.

This Pinot-forward sparkler comes from Argyle’s Grower Series and promises a rich, round peach nature helped along by “… the complexity of honey, cherry kernel and lingering anise.”

The balance and focus of the finish is said to come from the wine’s “… dynamic acid backbone and edgy minerality.”

Just this past April, Wine Spectator awarded the 2013 Argyle Vintage Brut 89 Points, praising it as “Crisp and precise, with apple and pomelo aromas and sleek, tangy flavors that finish with vibrancy. Drink now. —T.F.”

Hmm … Sounds a lot like the old friend we remember. We also remember meeting Argyle's Founder Rollin Soles (in the Argyle photo above) at Bauer Wine & Spirits. (Check out: "Argyle's Rollin Soles Talks Wine with BostonZest" in Related Posts below.)

Catching up after time apart can mean a bit of uncertainty. Maybe one or both of you have changed? We’ll let you know how it goes.

Until then, “Here’s to July!” and our Sparkling Resolution!

The Facts:

Vintage Brut | 2013 Willamette Valley AVA

Bottle Fermented, Aged on the Yeast,

60% Pinot Noir — 40% Chardonnay, ABV: 12.5%

We purchased our bottle of Argyle Vintage Brut 2013 on sale for $20 at Bauer Wine & Spirits.

* (07.04.2017) Update: As spectacular as ever! Great body with nice Pinot-forward character. Shared with friends as we all raised our glasses to toast the arrival of July! Already have another bottle on-ice and ready to go!

Related Posts:

Argyle’s Rollin Soles Talks Wine with BostonZest

March Sparkles with Argyle’s 2001 Extended Tirage Brut – It’s a Sure Thing!

Oregon’s Argyle Brut to Light-Up July!

Our Sparkling Resolution

Our Sparkling Resolution Winner’s List

What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino

Photography: © 2017 Penny Cherubino

July 1, 2017
Easy and Fun! Create a Strawberry Shortcake Dessert Bar for Your Summer Party
Entertaining this weekend? How about a "build-it-yourself strawberry shortcake table" for dessert? We've done this for years, and our guests love it! (We've refreshed this post from our archives for everyone who is wondering what to serve after the fireworks on July 4th.)

It's easy on the host and fun for the guests. Here's the step-by-step on how we do it:
- Buy the best berries you can find, preferably fresh from a local farm or farmers market.
- Here's a link to Boston area farmers markets.
- Here's a link to farms where you can pick your own strawberries.
- Reserve the most perfect berries for dipping in chocolate and eating out-of-hand. Put a shaker of sugar near the plain berries for those who would like to sprinkle a bit on their choices.
- Slice and sugar the rest and allow them to form a natural sauce overnight in the refrigerator.
- Collect a variety of bases – dessert cups, short cake, biscuits, ladyfingers, cookies, and angel food cake are a few I've used for this.
- For July 4th, add a big dish of blueberries for red, white, and blue creations.
- Add a fondue pot of dipping chocolate, and you'll have guests swooning.
- Arrange a selection of toppings. I've set out whipped cream, yogurt, ice cream, creme fraiche, and fudge sauce.
- For something tall on the table, add wine buckets filled with bottles of sparkling wine that guests can pour over a few berries in a champagne glass.
- Set up a tray of "special enhancements" (rums, liqueurs, and dessert wines) to drizzle on the cakes or sip with the shortcake. Most popular around here was limoncello.
- Add big napkins to protect clothes; spoons, dishes, or wine glasses to hold your guest's creations; and let everyone have fun with the fruit.
What's on your Summer Fun shopping list? Shop Amazon – Get Ready for Summer – Everything You Need and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

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Michael Serpa Selects Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée 736 as Our Sparkler for June 2015

Thanks to Friends Who Make Marmalade and Share!
June 28, 2017
Easy and Fun! Create a Strawberry Shortcake Dessert Bar for Your Summer Party
Entertaining this weekend? How about a "build-it-yourself strawberry shortcake table" for dessert? We've done this for years, and our guests love it! (We've refreshed this post from our archives for everyone who is wondering what to serve after the fireworks on July 4th.)

It's easy on the host and fun for the guests. Here's the step-by-step on how we do it:
- Buy the best berries you can find, preferably fresh from a local farm or farmers market.
- Here's a link to Boston area farmers markets.
- Here's a link to farms where you can pick your own strawberries.
- Reserve the most perfect berries for dipping in chocolate and eating out-of-hand. Put a shaker of sugar near the plain berries for those who would like to sprinkle a bit on their choices.
- Slice and sugar the rest and allow them to form a natural sauce overnight in the refrigerator.
- Collect a variety of bases – dessert cups, short cake, biscuits, ladyfingers, cookies, and angel food cake are a few I've used for this.
- For July 4th, add a big dish of blueberries for red, white, and blue creations.
- Add a fondue pot of dipping chocolate, and you'll have guests swooning.
- Arrange a selection of toppings. I've set out whipped cream, yogurt, ice cream, creme fraiche, and fudge sauce.
- For something tall on the table, add wine buckets filled with bottles of sparkling wine that guests can pour over a few berries in a champagne glass.
- Set up a tray of "special enhancements" (rums, liqueurs, and dessert wines) to drizzle on the cakes or sip with the shortcake. Most popular around here was limoncello.
- Add big napkins to protect clothes; spoons, dishes, or wine glasses to hold your guest's creations; and let everyone have fun with the fruit.
What's on your Summer Fun shopping list? Shop Amazon – Get Ready for Summer – Everything You Need and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Related articles

Michael Serpa Selects Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée 736 as Our Sparkler for June 2015

Thanks to Friends Who Make Marmalade and Share!
June 28, 2017
Clear Flour German Rye

We have set ourselves a quest to try all the rye breads on Clear Flour Bread's list. We started last week with a loaf of their German Rye.

Here's the German Rye which they describe as, "… a hearty and moist whole grain rye with a touch of honey." We describe it as full of rye flavor with an incredible aroma, crust with a bit of chew, and a lovely crumb.

It's a great bread to have with cheese or toasted with a bit of butter and a bit of preserves. We went with apricot!

It also made an appealing base for an open-faced egg salad supper.

Our eggs are chopped with a handy egg cutter (like this one) then mixed with crème fraîche, celery, scallion, curry powder, salt, and a bit of aleppo pepper.

Always ask, because Clear Flour may have a bread that is not on the usual list. They do make seasonal breads, and I think they occasionally make something special, just because they feel like it. That's the beauty of patronizing a small, artisan business.

You'll also find that they can tell you more about each bread than the simple description on the list.

Here is a direct link to the Clear Flour bread list. You can see, we have a bit of eating to do.

Pay attention to when each bread is available and schedule your visits to the bakery around what you want to buy.

What's on your Food Lover's shopping list?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

June 21, 2017
Clear Flour German Rye

We have set ourselves a quest to try all the rye breads on Clear Flour Bread's list. We started last week with a loaf of their German Rye.

Here's the German Rye which they describe as, "… a hearty and moist whole grain rye with a touch of honey." We describe it as full of rye flavor with an incredible aroma, crust with a bit of chew, and a lovely crumb.

It's a great bread to have with cheese or toasted with a bit of butter and a bit of preserves. We went with apricot!

It also made an appealing base for an open-faced egg salad supper.

Our eggs are chopped with a handy egg cutter (like this one) then mixed with crème fraîche, celery, scallion, curry powder, salt, and a bit of aleppo pepper.

Always ask, because Clear Flour may have a bread that is not on the usual list. They do make seasonal breads, and I think they occasionally make something special, just because they feel like it. That's the beauty of patronizing a small, artisan business.

You'll also find that they can tell you more about each bread than the simple description on the list.

Here is a direct link to the Clear Flour bread list. You can see, we have a bit of eating to do.

Pay attention to when each bread is available and schedule your visits to the bakery around what you want to buy.

What's on your Food Lover's shopping list?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

June 21, 2017
Make Universal Hub a Morning Habit

We all have morning routines. Universal Hub (UH) is part of mine. Since keeping up with local news is important to me, I read newspapers and each morning I visit Universal Hub to get a very local update on what happened overnight or the latest on first responder incidents that I heard on our scanner.

This late day incident in Chelsea is a great example of why you want to check UH when you hear more sirens than usual, see helicopters circling, or smell smoke. When this was taking place, someone over on the Reddit Boston forum asked about all the state police vehicles on Route 1. Another forum member said that they found out what was happening by going to UH! Good to know I'm not the only one.

In addition to the great work of Adam Gaffin and a few regular posters, this can be a good source of crowdsourced information. Regular readers know the commenters with good, reliable information and those with a worn out drum that they beat at every opportunity.

As more so called news operations become promotional vehicles for network shows or sports teams, it's important to find your own sources of local news. Universal Hub is one of the best.

Support Universal Hub

As with many other sites, Universal Hub is supported by advertising, affiliate programs, and contributions.

There is a link that asks readers,

"Help keep Universal Hub going. If you like what we're up to and want to help out, please consider a (completely non-deductible) donation."

You'll find the place to click by scrolling down in the right hand sidebar. The next time you get a great, timely, local answer to your question, "What's going on right now in Boston?" click the link and drop a few coins in the UH tip jar.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Screengrab from Universalhub.com

June 16, 2017
The Canteen for Wonderful Take Out (or Eat In) Options in Provincetown

We had a bunch of excellent meals from The Canteen on our last trip to Provincetown. We highly recommend this wonderful spot if you are visiting our special place by the sea.

One of the best pieces of news we heard before arriving in town was that The Canteen was open year-round. They're open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner – and they deliver! "What more could you ask?" you say. "Great food," we say and they deliver on that wish as well.

It was rather cold on our visit, so we really appreciated the rotating list of wonderful soups they offered. The one above is a spring minestrone.

We had to try it, since we had just finished one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns about minestrone and had ended it with information about a spring version! This one was rich and lovely.

We told you about their great lobster rolls and fabulous clam chowder the first time we reported on this gem by the sea.

Another favorite was a soup with greens and chicken meatballs.

Of course we had sandwiches too. The Cod Bánh Mì was a big hit with us. Since we were not always on the same eating schedule, they were gracious about preparing a deconstructed version of Ed's favorite pulled pork sandwich that we could reconstruct when he was ready to enjoy it.

There are a few seats out front and a larger seating area in the rear. Like many outside eating places in Provincetown, The Canteen is dog friendly. So if you're day-tripping with a furry pal, grab a seat and send one of your group inside with your order for great food. You'll get a number and the staff will find you when it's ready.

What's on your Food Lover's shopping list?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

June 14, 2017
The Canteen for Wonderful Take Out (or Eat In) Options in Provincetown

We had a bunch of excellent meals from The Canteen on our last trip to Provincetown. We highly recommend this wonderful spot if you are visiting our special place by the sea.

One of the best pieces of news we heard before arriving in town was that The Canteen was open year-round. They're open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner – and they deliver! "What more could you ask?" you say. "Great food," we say and they deliver on that wish as well.

It was rather cold on our visit, so we really appreciated the rotating list of wonderful soups they offered. The one above is a spring minestrone.

We had to try it, since we had just finished one of our Fresh & Local newspaper columns about minestrone and had ended it with information about a spring version! This one was rich and lovely.

We told you about their great lobster rolls and fabulous clam chowder the first time we reported on this gem by the sea.

Another favorite was a soup with greens and chicken meatballs.

Of course we had sandwiches too. The Cod Bánh Mì was a big hit with us. Since we were not always on the same eating schedule, they were gracious about preparing a deconstructed version of Ed's favorite pulled pork sandwich that we could reconstruct when he was ready to enjoy it.

There are a few seats out front and a larger seating area in the rear. Like many outside eating places in Provincetown, The Canteen is dog friendly. So if you're day-tripping with a furry pal, grab a seat and send one of your group inside with your order for great food. You'll get a number and the staff will find you when it's ready.

What's on your Food Lover's shopping list?

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

June 14, 2017