Quaintrelle Weekender

Four ways to a better weekend

Welcome to Quaintrelle Weekender.

This is a short list of things I am currently loving to make eating, drinking, and hosting easier and a lot more interesting.

“We need books, time, and silence.” – Philip Pullman

[*Editor’s note: and wine]

You know what’s really stressful?

When all your books on hold at the library become available but you’re still halfway through a mediocre one and have to keep them on hold until you’re done this only OK book.

It’s not so bad that you will admit defeat and throw in the towel (I used to have a personal policy to finish all books I started. Then, in my wiser and older years, I realized life is short, time is money baby, and if you haven’t gripped me by about page 50, we’re not making it for the long haul and it’s you, not me, and I’m not sorry.)

Anyway, as you can tell by my frustrated prose (sorry to be so aggressive on a weekend morning), I’m in one of those places right now.

I am a devotee of the Libby library app. But gosh darn it, that thing is like a job.

I’m literally 50% through Colm Tóibín’s Long Island, the fictional hit of summer. Like, allll the smart and sophisticated people who subscribe to The New York Times Book Review raved about it. Erudite critics gushed reviews like, “a masterclass in subtlety and intelligence,” “sly narrative magic,” “brilliant, compelling, utterly human.”

It’s fine. Better than its prequel, Brooklyn. So I’ll read it through (those smart critics call the surprise ending, “shattering.” Something to look forward to 150 pages from now.)

But man, my anxiety when – and I am not kidding about this – EIGHT books become available after waiting MONTHS for some of them, and I’m stuck on Long Island when I really want to be in The Midnight Library.

(If you’re not a Libby app user you may be wondering why I don’t just take them out. Le sigh. You only get digital loans for three weeks and then they disappear from the app. Nothing is worse than getting into a book and having it disappear without a possibility of renewal for another six weeks. You also only get to keep 30 on hold at a time, which seems like a lot, and it is, but new releases can have a wait so long, it can take months to get to the front of the line. Meanwhile, you still want to place holds on other books… you can see this system verges on Beautiful Mind territory.)

Anyway, hopefully those books come around again before the Thanksgiving weekend in two weeks. We’re all headed to my parents house for a good ole’ family holiday, and I’m looking forward to not doing much more than staying cozy by the fire with some engrossing reads. If you have any recommendations, please send them my way.

Clean Up

Tawashi Brush

This marvel of Japanese engineering is one of the best cleaning tools in the world. That’s not hyperbole.

It’s made of tightly woven coconut palm fiber, so it’s biodegradable and doesn’t hurt your hands. It also cleans up like a Ninja.

It can scour any baked-on stuff from your cast iron and baking trays in minutes. It can get the grime off your stove top and oven, with no scratches. And, it’s still delicate enough to scrub farm-fresh potatoes and just pulled-from-the-ground carrots.

They last forever, and when they finally give up the ghost, they’re biodegradable, unlike those plastic scrubbies and nylon sponges piling up in landfill.

I got mine with an order from Fable, where they’re only $12 CDN, but they can be found cheaper with a quick internet search in other places.

Light Up Your Life

Stonebriar Candles

I talk about this every year when the days get cooler and shorter. I’m a candle burner. Everyday. Morning and night. And these are the best candles I have found to date.

They are truly long lasting (when they say seven hours, they mean seven hours), burn evenly, are smoke and scentless.

I buy the 300-pack of tea lights which does comes with the sticker shock of about $55 CDN… but that works out to 19 cents per candle. A 300 pack last me just about all season.

I also like the pillar candles, which range in height from three inch to eight inch, with a burn time of about 65-80 hours, and range in price from $4 to $7.

Cook The Book

Martha Stewart’s Hors d’Oeuvres Handbook

I picked up this 1990’s manual in my building’s “take a book leave a book” library.

What a find!

Co-authored by

Susan Spungen

, this 500-page canapé encyclopedia is a detailed, inventive, workable, and inspiring text for any host – seasoned or starting.

And in true Martha fashion, everything is scrupulously thought through. It’s nearly exhausting.

The book is broken down into 10 chapters starting from building blocks which covers dough recipes and ideas for vegetable and fruit bases, moving through everything from dips, skewers, cheese, and drinks and finally ending with classics everyone knows and loves. Then it’s divided into sections: the first, inviting photos of every recipe (that hold up remarkably well for a 30 year old book) with notations on which page to find the recipe, which is in the second section. The third section is a literal guide on everything from hosting a party to assembling, presenting, and reheating your hors d’oeuvres. Next we move into suggested menus (which helpfully note the page of each recipe), followed by a short glossary of recommend equipment, then a list of pantry items and short description on what they are, taste like, and why they’re needed. We’re not done yet! Finally we have a page each on equipment and food suppliers, a three-page directory, and lastly, the index.

Holy. Smokes.

Yes, some of the recipes are nostalgically charming (is anyone really going to hollow out a cherry tomato and pipe in goat cheese?) but the flavours and techniques work, even if some presentations are slightly dated.

This book proves Martha’s the Queen, and apparently Susan Spungen is her Head of State.

Kitchen Equipped

Le Creuset Mini Round Cocottes

Not only are these one-cup serving vessels cute as a button, but they’re surprisingly handy. and versatile.

In a few weeks, I’m sharing an excellent recipe for Thanksgiving leftovers in which the said leftovers are served in cocottes. That move alone really jazzes up the “leftover” part. I’ve used my cocottes for French onion soup, mac and cheese, individual baked dips… and they’re super cute to serve olives, nuts, and bar snacks.

Thank you for reading Quaintrelle.

This newsletter is written by me, Erin Henderson, journalist-turned-sommelier-turned-entrepreneur. I literally drink and throw parties for a living, and every Saturday, I share some of my favourite finds for better weekends.

For the next few weeks this newsletter will remain free, with an option to upgrade to a paid membership coming in October for special perks and privileges.

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