If you don’t know by now, when it comes to Sugar Shack season, the hottest seat in town (or 45 mins north of town) is none other than the Cabane à Sucre Au Pied de Cochon; established by none other than the culinary genius behind the Pied De Cochon brand, Chef Martin Picard. Word has gone around the block a couple of times that these exclusive reservations are taken explicitly through email through what seems to a lot of people as a lottery system, where the chosen ones humble-brag on Facebook and make a conscious effort to make sure you know they went. As you would imagine, the menu was completely over the top featuring foie gras on top of foie gras layered over confit duck and lobster glazed by blind nuns served to you by strippers carrying balloons on roller-skates… well, not that last part.
March marks the month-long celebration of my birthday bringing together friends and family, heartfelt presents and gift receipts. But more importantly, March is the unofficial-official beginning of Zeppole month. This Italian dessert is usually made once a year to celebrate St. Joseph’s day, but for local bakeries, they take the entire month and the opportunity to produce these light and fluffy doughnut-like treats to satiate cravings that have been building up over the past year.
I know people like to stick with what they know, and deviating from the norm is something difficult for most. So if you have a hard time trying dumplings other than the standard ones that fill up your table, take a baby stop and try the scallop dumpling.