One would think Érik A Ropogós Cseresznye is what comes to
mind. Well maybe just a little. But actually it is Csekhov’s Cherry Garden
If there is one thing communism can be credited with it is
the accessibility of culture. Museums and art galleries were dirt cheap and we
went regularly, mostly on Sundays. Instead of church people went to see world
class art exhibitions. I had my favourite rooms in the permanent collection. We
had season tickets to live theatre and the Philharmony. Work and school distributed
them for next to nothing. That’s when I got acquainted with Shakespeare, Chekhov
and Molière. I was twelve when I saw my first opera at the Budapest Opera
House. The Anvil Chorus in Verdi’s Troubadour sent chills up my spine. I knew I
will never be the same.
We tried to give culture to our children, but the expense and the lack of it in Canada was wholly discouraging. Art is holy and should never be treated as profit. If there was something I can resent in this system is that culture is superfluous. Unfortunately the lack of culture has a dumb down effect. Beyond reality TV and rock concerts there is not much more.
CHERRY CRUMBLE PIE BARS
1-1/4 cups almond meal or very finely ground almonds
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup butter, cut up
2 cups homemade cherry pie filling or 1 can cherry pie filling
1 tsp almond extract
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a 13x9x2-inch with parchment paper, over the edges of the pan; set aside.
- For crust, in a large bowl, stir together the flour, almond meal, brown sugar and salt.
- Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs.
- Remove 1-1/2 cups of the mixture; set aside.
- Press the remaining mixture evenly onto the bottom of prepared baking pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.
- Spoon cherry filling over hot baked crust, spreading evenly
- Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture.
- Bake about 40 minutes more or until filling is bubbly and topping is lightly browned.
- Cool in pan on a wire rack.
- Lift the baked mixture out of the pan.
- Invert onto a baking sheet; remove foil.
- Invert again onto a cutting board.
- Cut into bars.
- Makes 24 bars.
