Nutcracker Sweet Recipe
600 young dancer auditioners
1,500 pairs of ballet shoes
90 dancers
150 characters
234 costumes and a one “Mouse of the day”!
It’s a no brainer – for a tango-dancing pastry chef to hungrily anticipate the debut of her local Nutcracker Suite ballet, in this case, the production of Montreal’s famed Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. But neither visions nor actual recipe for real sugar plums could have prepared me for the feast of dance I just saw last night. Judging from the spontaneous and pervasive standing ovation in the packed house of Les Place des Arts, I am in fine company. Hours later, I am still in a reverie of music, dance and eye candy. In a word, the 2007 debut of Les Grands Ballets’ Nutcracker was: sumptuous. It was dazzling. The Nutcracker Suite music, composed by Tchaikovsky and based on the tales of E.T.A.Hoffman and had its premiered in 1892 (115 years ago!) in St. Peterburg, Russia where it showed no indication it would grow from a modest ballet to being synonymous with Christmas. (Nor did we imagine you would hear a hiphop spin on Nutcracker, in elevators to cell phone ring tunes one day).
Now of course, the Nutcracker Ballet is a classic. Montreal’s version is the legacy of its original choreographer, Fernand Nault, who passed away just last year, and was among many esteemed titles, a member of the Order of Canada for his contributions at large in the dance world, as well as Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. This production is the third stage version created by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. Forty-four years, same ballet (re-envisioned each year), same company, and same venue (Place des Arts), Montreal’s Nutcracker is the record to crack. But it! is the content that matters.Nutcracker is a fantasy that pleases children of all ages (or the proverbial 1-94) that begins in a period prestige style house, replete with in-coming guests, gracious hosts, and the tinsel and twinkle of the holiday season. At that point, the ballet is almost more of lyrically moving stage play for the dancers gracefully occupy the stage in various tablea
us and scenarios. You are never left without something to view, gasp or even chuckle over (especially in this production, for Les Grands Ballets’ offering is laced with gentle humor throughout). Strange Uncle Drosselmeyer (Robert Deskins) gifts Clara with a wooden nutcracker doll she cherishes. Later on, she sees beloved nutcracker soldier survive holiday roughhousing and a battle with mice and other nasty rodents. The Nutcracker soldier boy morphs into a real prince by midnight, who escorts her into a magical Kingdom of ! Sweets. This is a world with emissaries of dancing sweetness to greet Clara on each step of her journey. What follows are layers of magic that build to a crescendo of all that is beautifully airborne.
This particular Les Grands Ballet Canadiens, Montreal production is so beautifully appointed in costumes and set design that frankly, you could stare at un-dancing dancers, and the set for 2 hours and not feel bored. Add the magnificence of the music by Orchestre des Grands Ballets Canadiens (their own orchestra, if you please) and you would still sit breathless, transfixed. But once the dancers enter, you have a nonstop confection that is calorie-free but memory rich.What makes the set and costumes so spectacular are the hues used. They are so exciting, refined, and gem-like, that the Cirque de Soleil could take a tip or two. It is also what makes this production immediately, innately fresh. What unfolds is a majestic tapestry in gossamer, chiffon and brocade that makes your childhood memories of your own local Nutcracker suite pale by comparison. Simply put, if you haven’t seen the Nutcracker Suite lately, you haven’t seen it ever. This ballet flows from a charming outdoor winter scene, complete with snowball fights, a bevy of Christmas carolers and jaunty, gift-laden guests, en route to the Stahlbaum house where gifts are exchanged and all sorts of holiday activity abounds. The interplay of child dancers and the rest of the corps de ballet are charming but as the tone and music changes, at the sound of midnight, the lavish mansion gives way to a winter wonderland with snow falling, drifting clouds, and a luminescent moon that casts a glowing patina on the whole affairs. Act 1 (including the house scene and subsequently the Land of Snow) takes us from the stately home to the first glimpse of the sweet fantasy world Clara will visit with her prince. Visually, it begins in tones of blues and silver; by Act 2, the Kingdom of Sweets, sees those ethereal shades have bloomed into gold, with a parade of colours overlaid as the dancing soloists, duets and trios parade before us and Clara.
Of particular note to this baker/dancer/author was the trio of dancing pastry chefs, who dance out, laden with trays of cakes and mixing copper bowls of batters, bestowing their wares on Clara and her prince. Bi-aproned, white chef hats, and toe-shoes – what else could you ask for.
This is a young, fresh company and the roles of the primary parts will change depending on which performance you attend but my guest and I were treated in this opening soiree to the delicate grace of Sugar Plum Fairy par excellence, Marika Kido and consort Mariusz Ostrowski, followed by the refinesse of Snow Queen and her Cavalier), danced by Callye Robinson and Jesus Corrales. Particularly captivating was the Spaniards, danced on this occasion by Vanessa Montoya, Jean Sebastien Couture and Shane Ohmer. They got the verve and energy of Spain in elegance and energy and received an extraordinary hand for it. Wee mice, creepy rats, fighting with toy soldiers kept the children in the audience stalk still but the Oriental tableau, danced by principal Marie-Eve Lapointe, and her attendants drew a hush, wherein you could almost here the sound of the chiffon tent they created! float down on to the stage. Add a few dewdrops, a jaunty King of Candyland, snowflakes, a Marzipan shepherd and his sheep (including a balky black sheep), princely prancing reindeer and the every popular Russian dance with Matryoshkas, and you have a floating tableau that keeps you as transfixed as Clara (Eden Solomon) and her prince escort (Hokuto Kodama). The Mechanical Colombine, Mechanical Harlequin, Soldier and toy like Nutcracker were so well danced and acted, complete with touches of David Copperfield magician box magic (‘now you see nothing; now you see dancers where there was air’) were sheer treats, in every respect. The Waltz of the Flowers probably was one of the highlights. The costumes were extraordinary as the female corp du ballet were floral buds amongst the ‘green stems’ of the male dancers. Lavish, fantastical but always, delicate and elegant. At 2 hours, the production could have doubled and held everyone seat bound. The ballet was exceptional in all ways but ! its hallmark was its freshness, elegance and overall delicacy ! of touch , from the music, décor to the corps of dancers. A cliché, heavy duty Nutcracker, this was not.
Les Grands Ballets is also broadcasting their production live through some Guzzo Theatres. This is novel and digitally wonderful and makes ballet more accessible to more people. But for 15 days in December, ballet companies world wide, rely on 2 weeks to produce a year’s revenue. If you support them by seeing a live performance, in Montreal, or wherever you are, you keep the Nutcrackers, and dancers world-wide, sweet. In New York, recently, there was a feature that entitled, So Many Nutcrackers, So Little Time, a nod to the plethora of Nutcracker productions in that cultural capital. For the rest of us, particularly in Montreal, there is likely to be just really extravagant production.But when it is one such as Les Grands Ballets, it is all you need. But pack some real nutcracker sweets for the intermission. Because you can’t eat the costumes and the sets.
For Ticket Information Les Grands Ballets Canadiens website
Marcy Goldman
Editor, Baker & Dancer
Recipes
Sugar Plum Almond Cake
A gossamer little almond cake, fortified with marzipan (almond paste) and slivered almonds, finished with a pirouette of plum jam makes this a dreamy tea cake for after the ballet.
4 ounces almond paste (marzipan)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup toasted almonds - slivered
1/3 cup plum preserves
Sugar for dusting
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8 inch layer pan or an 8 by 4 inch loaf pan. Cream the almond paste, butter and sugar until fluffy and pasty. Add extracts, eggs, and milk. Blend well. Fold in salt, baking powder and flour. Fold in almonds. Spoon half of batter into pan and then spoon on the plum preserves. Top with the rest of the batter and swirl with a knife slightly. Garnish with reserved nuts and dust with sugar. Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake until done, or until cake springs back when gently touched with fingertips (35 to 45 minutes). Cool well. 8 to 10 servings. Freezes well.
Nutcracker Sweet Biscotti
In honor of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens Nutcracker 2007
Sweet, studded with all sorts of nuts, these are biscotti with confection with biscotti. Danced, in the kitchen, by Marcy Goldman.
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons dark corn syrup
1 cup melted unsalted butter
3 eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups pecans
1 cup walnuts
1/2 cup hazelnuts
1 cup almonds
1 cup minced caramel toffee bar (like Skor)
1/2 cup caramel topping
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place it on top of another baking sheet (you will need two together as the biscotti is gooey and this extra insulation will prevent burning and over browning).Spray a 9 by 13 inch p! an with nonstick cooking spray and place on baking sheet. Line the bottom and sides of the pan with pieces of parchment paper (the batter is sticking and this will help you remove it after baking)
In a mixer bowl, blend the sugar, corn syrup and melted butter. Blend in the eggs and vanilla, then the flour, salt and baking powder and blend a little bit. Fold in all the nuts and chopped caramel bar. Drizzle in most of caramel topping. Spoon into prepared pan, drizzling remaining caramel topping on top. Bake until firm, about 45-55 minutes. Cool 20 minutes and then freeze for 45 minutes. Then turn the biscotti 'cake' out onto a parchment paper lined work surface with a brisk movement.
Using a sharp knife, slice into 3/4 inch slices and put back on a baking sheet to dry out in the oven, another 20 minutes, 325 F, turning once. You might find these hard to cut and get uneven shards -that is fine.Chill the biscotti in the fridge an hour or so to make them 'set up' a bit faster
(They are sticky even after! the sec ond bake but even 1-2 hours at room temperature helps them dry out more and they go from soft/sticky to crispy/sticky)
Makes about 1 1/2 -2 dozen
This is a Marcy Goldman original recipe
1,500 pairs of ballet shoes
90 dancers
150 characters
234 costumes and a one “Mouse of the day”!
It’s a no brainer – for a tango-dancing pastry chef to hungrily anticipate the debut of her local Nutcracker Suite ballet, in this case, the production of Montreal’s famed Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. But neither visions nor actual recipe for real sugar plums could have prepared me for the feast of dance I just saw last night. Judging from the spontaneous and pervasive standing ovation in the packed house of Les Place des Arts, I am in fine company. Hours later, I am still in a reverie of music, dance and eye candy. In a word, the 2007 debut of Les Grands Ballets’ Nutcracker was: sumptuous. It was dazzling. The Nutcracker Suite music, composed by Tchaikovsky and based on the tales of E.T.A.Hoffman and had its premiered in 1892 (115 years ago!) in St. Peterburg, Russia where it showed no indication it would grow from a modest ballet to being synonymous with Christmas. (Nor did we imagine you would hear a hiphop spin on Nutcracker, in elevators to cell phone ring tunes one day).
Now of course, the Nutcracker Ballet is a classic. Montreal’s version is the legacy of its original choreographer, Fernand Nault, who passed away just last year, and was among many esteemed titles, a member of the Order of Canada for his contributions at large in the dance world, as well as Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. This production is the third stage version created by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. Forty-four years, same ballet (re-envisioned each year), same company, and same venue (Place des Arts), Montreal’s Nutcracker is the record to crack. But it! is the content that matters.Nutcracker is a fantasy that pleases children of all ages (or the proverbial 1-94) that begins in a period prestige style house, replete with in-coming guests, gracious hosts, and the tinsel and twinkle of the holiday season. At that point, the ballet is almost more of lyrically moving stage play for the dancers gracefully occupy the stage in various tablea
us and scenarios. You are never left without something to view, gasp or even chuckle over (especially in this production, for Les Grands Ballets’ offering is laced with gentle humor throughout). Strange Uncle Drosselmeyer (Robert Deskins) gifts Clara with a wooden nutcracker doll she cherishes. Later on, she sees beloved nutcracker soldier survive holiday roughhousing and a battle with mice and other nasty rodents. The Nutcracker soldier boy morphs into a real prince by midnight, who escorts her into a magical Kingdom of ! Sweets. This is a world with emissaries of dancing sweetness to greet Clara on each step of her journey. What follows are layers of magic that build to a crescendo of all that is beautifully airborne.This particular Les Grands Ballet Canadiens, Montreal production is so beautifully appointed in costumes and set design that frankly, you could stare at un-dancing dancers, and the set for 2 hours and not feel bored. Add the magnificence of the music by Orchestre des Grands Ballets Canadiens (their own orchestra, if you please) and you would still sit breathless, transfixed. But once the dancers enter, you have a nonstop confection that is calorie-free but memory rich.What makes the set and costumes so spectacular are the hues used. They are so exciting, refined, and gem-like, that the Cirque de Soleil could take a tip or two. It is also what makes this production immediately, innately fresh. What unfolds is a majestic tapestry in gossamer, chiffon and brocade that makes your childhood memories of your own local Nutcracker suite pale by comparison. Simply put, if you haven’t seen the Nutcracker Suite lately, you haven’t seen it ever. This ballet flows from a charming outdoor winter scene, complete with snowball fights, a bevy of Christmas carolers and jaunty, gift-laden guests, en route to the Stahlbaum house where gifts are exchanged and all sorts of holiday activity abounds. The interplay of child dancers and the rest of the corps de ballet are charming but as the tone and music changes, at the sound of midnight, the lavish mansion gives way to a winter wonderland with snow falling, drifting clouds, and a luminescent moon that casts a glowing patina on the whole affairs. Act 1 (including the house scene and subsequently the Land of Snow) takes us from the stately home to the first glimpse of the sweet fantasy world Clara will visit with her prince. Visually, it begins in tones of blues and silver; by Act 2, the Kingdom of Sweets, sees those ethereal shades have bloomed into gold, with a parade of colours overlaid as the dancing soloists, duets and trios parade before us and Clara.
Of particular note to this baker/dancer/author was the trio of dancing pastry chefs, who dance out, laden with trays of cakes and mixing copper bowls of batters, bestowing their wares on Clara and her prince. Bi-aproned, white chef hats, and toe-shoes – what else could you ask for.
This is a young, fresh company and the roles of the primary parts will change depending on which performance you attend but my guest and I were treated in this opening soiree to the delicate grace of Sugar Plum Fairy par excellence, Marika Kido and consort Mariusz Ostrowski, followed by the refinesse of Snow Queen and her Cavalier), danced by Callye Robinson and Jesus Corrales. Particularly captivating was the Spaniards, danced on this occasion by Vanessa Montoya, Jean Sebastien Couture and Shane Ohmer. They got the verve and energy of Spain in elegance and energy and received an extraordinary hand for it. Wee mice, creepy rats, fighting with toy soldiers kept the children in the audience stalk still but the Oriental tableau, danced by principal Marie-Eve Lapointe, and her attendants drew a hush, wherein you could almost here the sound of the chiffon tent they created! float down on to the stage. Add a few dewdrops, a jaunty King of Candyland, snowflakes, a Marzipan shepherd and his sheep (including a balky black sheep), princely prancing reindeer and the every popular Russian dance with Matryoshkas, and you have a floating tableau that keeps you as transfixed as Clara (Eden Solomon) and her prince escort (Hokuto Kodama). The Mechanical Colombine, Mechanical Harlequin, Soldier and toy like Nutcracker were so well danced and acted, complete with touches of David Copperfield magician box magic (‘now you see nothing; now you see dancers where there was air’) were sheer treats, in every respect. The Waltz of the Flowers probably was one of the highlights. The costumes were extraordinary as the female corp du ballet were floral buds amongst the ‘green stems’ of the male dancers. Lavish, fantastical but always, delicate and elegant. At 2 hours, the production could have doubled and held everyone seat bound. The ballet was exceptional in all ways but ! its hallmark was its freshness, elegance and overall delicacy ! of touch , from the music, décor to the corps of dancers. A cliché, heavy duty Nutcracker, this was not.
Les Grands Ballets is also broadcasting their production live through some Guzzo Theatres. This is novel and digitally wonderful and makes ballet more accessible to more people. But for 15 days in December, ballet companies world wide, rely on 2 weeks to produce a year’s revenue. If you support them by seeing a live performance, in Montreal, or wherever you are, you keep the Nutcrackers, and dancers world-wide, sweet. In New York, recently, there was a feature that entitled, So Many Nutcrackers, So Little Time, a nod to the plethora of Nutcracker productions in that cultural capital. For the rest of us, particularly in Montreal, there is likely to be just really extravagant production.But when it is one such as Les Grands Ballets, it is all you need. But pack some real nutcracker sweets for the intermission. Because you can’t eat the costumes and the sets.
For Ticket Information Les Grands Ballets Canadiens website
Marcy Goldman
Editor, Baker & Dancer
Recipes
Sugar Plum Almond Cake
A gossamer little almond cake, fortified with marzipan (almond paste) and slivered almonds, finished with a pirouette of plum jam makes this a dreamy tea cake for after the ballet.
4 ounces almond paste (marzipan)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup toasted almonds - slivered
1/3 cup plum preserves
Sugar for dusting
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 8 inch layer pan or an 8 by 4 inch loaf pan. Cream the almond paste, butter and sugar until fluffy and pasty. Add extracts, eggs, and milk. Blend well. Fold in salt, baking powder and flour. Fold in almonds. Spoon half of batter into pan and then spoon on the plum preserves. Top with the rest of the batter and swirl with a knife slightly. Garnish with reserved nuts and dust with sugar. Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake until done, or until cake springs back when gently touched with fingertips (35 to 45 minutes). Cool well. 8 to 10 servings. Freezes well.
Nutcracker Sweet Biscotti
In honor of Les Grands Ballets Canadiens Nutcracker 2007
Sweet, studded with all sorts of nuts, these are biscotti with confection with biscotti. Danced, in the kitchen, by Marcy Goldman.
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons dark corn syrup
1 cup melted unsalted butter
3 eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups pecans
1 cup walnuts
1/2 cup hazelnuts
1 cup almonds
1 cup minced caramel toffee bar (like Skor)
1/2 cup caramel topping
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place it on top of another baking sheet (you will need two together as the biscotti is gooey and this extra insulation will prevent burning and over browning).Spray a 9 by 13 inch p! an with nonstick cooking spray and place on baking sheet. Line the bottom and sides of the pan with pieces of parchment paper (the batter is sticking and this will help you remove it after baking)
In a mixer bowl, blend the sugar, corn syrup and melted butter. Blend in the eggs and vanilla, then the flour, salt and baking powder and blend a little bit. Fold in all the nuts and chopped caramel bar. Drizzle in most of caramel topping. Spoon into prepared pan, drizzling remaining caramel topping on top. Bake until firm, about 45-55 minutes. Cool 20 minutes and then freeze for 45 minutes. Then turn the biscotti 'cake' out onto a parchment paper lined work surface with a brisk movement.
Using a sharp knife, slice into 3/4 inch slices and put back on a baking sheet to dry out in the oven, another 20 minutes, 325 F, turning once. You might find these hard to cut and get uneven shards -that is fine.Chill the biscotti in the fridge an hour or so to make them 'set up' a bit faster
(They are sticky even after! the sec ond bake but even 1-2 hours at room temperature helps them dry out more and they go from soft/sticky to crispy/sticky)
Makes about 1 1/2 -2 dozen
This is a Marcy Goldman original recipe
