INBOX

Here’s What You Said…

in!

P. 8

SWEET TWEETS:

See anyone you recognize in the August issue of @canadianliving? *cough cough* — @serenaryder

Max spotted this Blueberry Cornmeal Cobber on @canadianliving and begged me to buy it. Definitely worth it. — @LifeWhereWeAre

Ooohhh! This #lazycheeseburger has me drooling in Sept. issue of @canadianliving #delish — @NitemareNibbler

EASY AS PIE

I’m a good cook and a very capable baker, but if a recipe requires rolling out pastry…forget about it! It never turns out for me. Fondant sticks, pie crust cracks, sugar cookies are too thick/thin…. I just haven’t mastered this skill yet. So it was with much hesitation that I attempted The Ultimate Peach Pie recipe (August 2014) for my husband. When I began making the crust, it was really soft—even though I used cold butter and cold lard. Adding more liquid and sour cream seemed like it was going to create an oozy-gooey sticky doughy disaster… but I did it anyway, refrigerated my discs and, in the end, it came to this work of art! I’m so happy with how it turned out. Thank you, Canadian Living. Like I needed another reason to love you more! — Jess Mersereau

THE STATE OF UNDRESS

I applaud Karma Brown for her mature and insightful report on naturism and Bare Oaks Family Naturist Park (“The Naked Truth,” August 2014), armed only with her pen and notebook. I have read far too many articles written by nonparticipants who describe naturism as if it’s some kind of weird malady, at worst, or a self-indulgent peep show, at best. Well, it’s not—being nude and the acceptance of the human body (and all of its imperfections, shapes and sizes) should be fundamental in the education of life and nature, and especially in the development of better self-respect.

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A piece of advice for Karma, though: Don’t give it up—listen to your daughter! — Rick Sylvester

RAISIN RECON

I greatly enjoyed the raisin-no-raisin debate (“A Sticky Situation,” July 2014), and I am firmly in the antiraisin camp when it comes to butter tarts. I prefer my grapes fermented and in a glass, rather than dried and then plumped up in baked goods. Raisins in baking acquire a particular texture that makes me think of biting into eyeballs. However, I married into a family that is definitely proraisin, and they take their butter tarts very seriously! My husband’s father attended Tec Voc High School in Winnipeg, and the cafeteria at the time was renowned for its butter tarts. Somehow the recipe was acquired (this part of the story is shrouded in the mists of family lore) and now remains a closely guarded family secret. My husband and I and his folks usually get together once a year for a butter tart day; we spend most of it mixing, rolling, filling and baking, and then divide up the spoil to take home. One year we went a little overboard and made 17 dozen! His folks will do anything to hide the raisins on me, but I stand firm and usually get a paltry dozen with pecans, just for me. — Jodi Ferguson

SPREADING THE LOVE

There was so much Canadian spirit in your July issue that it has renewed my interest in and love of your magazine. You managed to capture something that I cannot find in any other magazine— the diversity and beauty of Canada. I loved the little red Authentic Canadian Product logos spread throughout. The health articles were upbeat and fresh— not once did I miss the “spot the mole” articles that seem to come out at this time of year. “Connecting Through

Food,” about Caterine Cheng and the community kitchen, was a refreshing addition to your emphasis on highquality recipes and the importance of home-cooked meals. I know it was your Best of Canada issue, but if you carried this spirit throughout the year, you would be offering a unique publication. — Nancy Willoughby

Talk to Us We want to hear from you on Facebook, Twitter and our blogs. You can also email us at letters@canadianliving.com. (Be sure to include your contact info.) You could win a Canadian Living cookbook just for sharing. And we still love snail mail, so send your letters to 25 Sheppard Ave. W., Suite 100, Toronto, ON M2N 6S7.