What better way to celebrate Canada’s 150th than enjoying a quintessentially Canadian dessert?
This year, the Kawarthas Northumberland Butter Tart Tour is getting a patriotic makeover with the new “Canadiana Collection” of butter tarts. Each bakery has been encouraged to develop a new flavour that showcases their Canadian pride.
Earlier today (May 16), the new flavours were launched to the world at an event at the Silver Bean Cafe, where the tarts were paddled in by canoe and ceremoniously handed to Stu Harrison, General Manager of the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce. The flavours are available now on the Kawarthas Northumberland Butter Tart Tour.
Brenda Wood, Executive Director of Kawarthas Northumberland, says that they thought a Canadiana-themed collection would inject more life into the already booming Butter Tart Tour.
“The butter tart tour has a life of it’s own, but we wanted to bring something new into it to get people energized about it, and we thought, what better way than to tie it in with Canada’s 150th.”
Geoff Kirkland from Firefly Bakery (2281 McCracken’s Landing Road, Lakefield, 705-977-3308) used local products to capture the Canadian spirit.
“We tried to really focus on ensuring that we’re using lots of local products in the tarts. They’re not just Canadian, they’re also a celebration of what the Kawarthas has to offer.”
Firefly Bakery is offering a Maple Icewine butter tart made with wine from Kawartha Country Wines and an Apple Pie Butter tart made with Empire cheese curds.
Both are made with butter from Kawartha Dairy.
Diane Rogers of Doo Doo’s Bakery (187 County Rd. 28, Bailieboro, 705-939-1394) presented the Bailieboro Baconator, the Double Double, the Stompin Tom, made with maple whiskey.
“Those were the things that were really near and dear to my heart that were Canadian. Bacon, whiskey, and coffee.”
Janet Healey of Baked 4U (1837 Lansdowne St. #9a, Peterborough, 705-874-1695) created four Canadiana-themed tarts.
“I love trying to pair different foods together. It just makes me excited, I love creating things.”
Two of her tarts were homages to famous Canadians: the Trudeau and the Rick Mercer. She is hoping that she will get the chance to serve the tarts to the men who inspired them.
“I’d love it if they came to try them.”
Here are some of the many Canadiana-themed butter tarts available to try on the Butter Tart Tour:
The Cavan Blazer
Bakery: The Pastry Peddler (17 King St E, Millbrook, 705-932-7333)
This butter tart is made with caramelized apples and cinnamon cream cheese, then topped with caramel drizzle and a white chocolate maple leaf. Deanna Bell-Hall named the tart as an homage to local history and to the play put on by the 4th Line Theatre. “It’s sort of rebellious like the Cavan Blazers were.”
Maple Ice Wine Butter Tart
Bakery: Firefly Bakery
This decadent tart is made with Maple Ice Wine from Kawartha Country Wines. Wine and butter tarts, need I say more?
Cheddar Apple Pie Tart
Bakery: Firefly Bakery
This butter tart is beautifully presented, with tart sliced apples and a crust that contains Empire cheese curds, which Geoff Kirkland of Firefly Bakery points out are a Canadian staple. “You can’t go to a gas station in Ontario without buying some cheese curds.”
The Goose Butter Tart
Bakery: Ste. Anne’s Spa (1009 Massey Rd., Grafton, 905-349-2493)
This tart is made with maple syrup infused with Ste. Anne’s Feathery Pear Tea, a blend of green and white tea with apple chunks, pears and daisy petals. *Gluten Free
The Ste. Anne’s Butter Tart
Bakery: Ste. Anne’s Spa
This tart contains candied rhubarb and strawberries for a tart and sweet filling. The crust is infused with rose petal extract from the spa’s own gardens. *Gluten Free
The Grafton Butter Tart
Bakery: Ste. Anne’s Spa
This tart contains apples caramelized with maple syrup and old goat cheddar. *Gluten Free
The Stompin’ Tom
Bakery: Doo Doo’s Bakery
This tart, made as an homage to the Canadian music legend, is made with maple whiskey.
The Bailieboro Baconator
Bakery: Doo Doo’s Bakery
This sweet and salty tart is made with the most Canadian of meats and a good quantity of maple syrup.
The Large Double Double
Bakery: Doo Doo’s Bakery
For those who can’t pass a Tim Horton’s without hitting the drive through, this tart has a beautiful coffee flavour.
The Lumberjack
Bakery: The Whistle Stop (141 Charlotte St., Peterborough, 705-740-2036)
Make a fashion statement with your butter tart with the Lumberjack. This tart is made with Grandma O’Reilly’s traditional recipe, but the top is patterned with plaid.
The S’more Butter Tart
Bakery: The Dutch Oven (7 King St. W., Cobourg, 905-372-2263)
With a graham cracker crust, butter tart filling, dark chocolate ganache and a toasted marshmallow on each tart, The Dutch Oven has created a tart that tastes like the most decadent campfire fare.
The Marie Dressler
Bakery: The Dutch Oven
Made to honour the famous Cobourg-born actress, this tart features strawberries mashed with Canadian Ice Wine, cream cheese and butter tart filling, then topped with white chocolate ganache.
The Nanaimo Bar Butter Tart
Bakery: The Magic Rolling Pin (302 King St., Peterborough, 705-745-6556)
This tart is the love child of a butter tart and a nanaimo bar, topped with custard icing and a drizzle of chocolate.
Mrs. Waldron’s Butter Tart
Bakery: Quaker Oaks Farm (789 Monck Rd., Sebright, 705-833-2989)
These traditional tarts are made according to Mrs. Waldron’s recipe. It honours the role of Canadian moms like Mrs. Waldron in our history.
The Rick Mercer
Bakery: Baked4U
Baker Janet Healey Googled Rick Mercer’s favourite treat to make this tart honouring one of her favourite Canadian television personalities. Apparently he enjoys Tunnock’s caramel bars.
The Trudeau
Bakery: Baked4U
What butter tart would Justin Trudeau eat? Janet Healey of Baked4U is betting he’d choose something as healthy as possible. This butter tart combines nuts, apples, raisins and coconut with butter tart filling.
The Crosswind
Bakery: Baked4U
This tart is made with butter tart filling and a decadent layer of cheesecake made with locally produced Crosswind Farm goat cheese.
The Cortland
Bakery: Baked4U
This tart combines apple pie filling with butter tart filling for a tart that might be the ultimate comfort food.
Canadian Farmhouse Butter Tart
Bakery: South Pond Farms (1020 Gray Rd., Pontypool, 705-277-1649)
This tart is traditional and elegant, made with honey and maple syrup from South Pond Farms.
The Buckwheat
Bakery: South Pond Farms
Maple syrup, Square Nail bacon and Crosswind Farms chèvre come together in this tart envisioned by Chef Kevin McKenna. *Gluten Free
The Beaver Dam Tart
Bakery: The Kawartha Buttertart Factory (895 Water St., Warsaw, 705-313-4190)
Baker Cathy Smith reimagined a haystack cookie as a beaver dam. “We sit right on the beautiful Indian River, so we see lots of these out there.” She put it on top of one of her decadent original butter tarts for a Canadiana treat.
The Coffee Crisp
Bakery: The Kawartha Buttertart Factory
Coffee Crisp bars are only available in Canada, and this tart features crumbly coffee crisp over a classic Kawartha Buttertart Factory tart.
The Canada 1-5-0
Bakery: The Kawartha Buttertart Factory
A plain butter tart with red and white Canada flag notions and a drizzle of dark chocolate. Because eating butter tarts is a great way to showcase your national pride.
For a complete butter tart tour map, visit buttertarttour.ca.
