Happy Day 11 of the cmd+vent calendar! Please excuse me for getting this out so friggin’ late: I’ve had my face in front of an over for a better part of the day. Cinnamon, sugar, and flour is likely going to be lodged under my fingernails for the next two days as I furiously scrub my hands raw to get clean.
Today’s cmd+vent letter is written by the very best baker I know if my life, Katie. As the Canadian Mary Berry, they can make a mean batch of pies that’d have Ina Garten shook. The origins of our friendship is actually rooted in pop music (aha! Surprise: we’re huge 1D geeks), so when I asked Katie to participate in the cmd+vent calendar, I’m happy to announce today’s letter fuses both themes.
You’re in luck if you’ve been tasked with bringing a dessert for any parties this week–Katie’s shared a handful of tasty recipes to reflect on how sweet 2017 has been in music. Give them a try and hit us back with how the recipes worked out for you.
For those who’re swearing off sweets starting January, may I remind you we still have one week left in December to enjoy a barrage of delectable confections. Treat yo’ self! Enjoy, and happy baking!
________________________________________
Hello! I’m Katie, a baking enthusiast in my professional and personal life, and a pop music fan. There’s nothing I love more than planning desserts and dishes. I love thinking about how a certain dish can evoke the same feelings a holiday, a person, or even a song does. The relationship between food and music is an important and intricate one. Since dessert is my speciality, here are five of my favourite songs from 2017, and a dessert you could serve with them.
________________________________________
“Despacito” (Remix) - Daddy Yankee & Luis Fonsi feat. Justin Bieber
"Despacito" was undoubtedly one of the biggest songs of 2017. It had even some of the most vocal Bieber haters getting their groove on. With both Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi hailing from beautiful Puerto Rico, naturally I had to choose a dessert that matched. I ended up picking maduros en almibar, which is ripe plantain slices fried in a brown sugar (and rum) sauce. Think of bananas foster. You can even serve it with ice cream! A fun and delicious dessert that’s also quick and easy to make, so you can get back to dancing to "Despacito" sooner rather than later.
I remember the first time I listened to this song, I immediately loved it. Her album ended up being one of my favourites of the year as well. I struggled a bit trying to think of a dessert that evoked a similar feeling this song gave me. After some deliberation, my mind went to the fact that Lorde is a Kiwi, and a kiwi is green, just like the song. I thought I had hit a dead end because I couldn’t think of a fitting dessert that had kiwi in it, but I remembered these fruity white sangria pops which have slices of kiwi frozen in them. These look beautiful, are delicious, and remind me of summer, just like this song does. Cheers!
This is sort of a given for anyone who knows me, but biases aside Slow Hands was a real bop! Even being a long term Niall Horan fan, Slow Hands surprised me with its sensuality. So what is a fitting dessert for this tune? I decided on this chocolate soufflé with salted caramel. Soufflés can be a bit tricky, but the payoff is a light and airy cake that is somehow rich and decadent at the same time. It’s kind of sexy, kind of fun, just like the song. Plus it has salted caramel in it which is one of my most favourite flavour combinations. For whatever reason, "Slow Hands" and caramel just makes sense to me.
What a tune! First time I heard this song the hook was stuck in my head for days. Kendrick Lamar is at the top of his game, it’s no surprise he’s got seven well-deserved Grammy nominations. And what is more humble than apple pie? But this isn’t just any regular apple pie, it’s apple hand pies with cheddar baked into the crust! Cheddar and apples go surprisingly well together. The saltiness and richness of the cheddar and crisp sweetness of an apple just works. And, you can grate a little extra cheddar on top before baking because extra cheese never hurt anyone. So be humble, and enjoy some apple pie while you’re at it.
Honestly, did any song have as much of a cultural impact as "Bodak Yellow?" This song was everywhere this year, and I’m still not tired of it. Seeing as Cardi B is only the second solo female rap artist to get a number one single on the Billboard Hot 100, what dessert could possibly live up? I wanted to represent my favourite, and possibly most iconic song line ever, these expensive, these is red bottoms, these is bloody shoes. However, I was finding it hard to find something that was truly red, and that properly represented the song to me. Finally I decided on these rosé champagne cupcakes (which would be easy enough to customize red) because they are beautiful and rich, just like our girl Cardi B.
You can feast your eyes on Katie’s creations (and very pretty kitty) via Instagram: morbidmagic
The 12th day of cmd+vent is out tomorrow!