OOEY GOOEY, SWEET & SEXY
Whatever its origins, the aptly named butter tart is the quintessential Canadian treat
The country is in the grips of planning one of the biggest birthday bashes in its history: Canada 150 is going to be the party we’ll be talking about well into the next century.
And it’s during such nationalistic pride that we celebrate all things Canadian — like our food.
How our wheat is one of the most coveted across the globe, and how more than 80 per cent of mustard seeds grown out west are supplied to the rest of the world.
From burgers to poutine, smoked meat to maple syrup, Nanaimo bars and, of course, Canadian bacon — and let’s not get started on our beer! — Canadian cuisine is, quite simply, the sum of our country, from sea to shining sea.
But the truth is, there really is not one food that defines the nation. Throughout the decades, the cuisine has evolved and today it’s more a reflection of the multicultural fabric that envelops this great country and exhibits the diversity of everyone who lives and cooks here.
Still, if there’s one food that establishes our national identity — I’d have to say it’s the butter tart! It’s certainly part of our heritage and as Canadian as you can get. With just a handful of ingredients you get what many call one of this country’s most quintessential desserts.
It’s ooey and gooey and sweet and sexy.
And beyond delicious. Runny or firm, plain or with raisins or currents, butter or — dare I say it? — lard-based crust, when you think of a defining Canadian staple, its gotta be this darling.
Where did it derive from? Theories prevail about the butter tart’s origins, but the Collins English Dictionary notes it’s “one of the few pastries with a genuinely Canadian origin.”
According to Thecanadianencyclopedia.ca., “the first published recipe came in 1900 with The Women’s Auxiliary of the Royal Victoria Hospital Cookbook.
However, the origin is believed to be much older, most likely the result of the filles du roi (King’s Daughters), in which approximately 800 young women were sent to Québec from France between 1663 and 1673 to help colonize.
“These young ladies brought with them their traditional European recipes but were forced to adapt them according to what was available.
“The sugar pie, a singlecrust pie with a filling made from flour, butter, salt, vanilla, and cream, is a likely precursor to the butter tart.”
And there are those who say the Scots should lay claim to the tart’s identity, given they create a similar treat.
So romantic, our sweet butter tart.
Poems have been penned and thousands of words have been written paying homage to this classic dessert.
Festivals have been created, tours arranged and trails organized, all in honour of this great treat that is painstaking to make, yet devoured in minutes.
So quintessentially Canadian, eh?