We continue the discussion about parfait glasses (C8 these many moons). Christine Helby of Forbes says, “I had two guests for lunch on Christmas Day and was asked if I could make a trifle. I made it in a bowl, layering the ingredients, as one does with a trifle. When one of the guests was asked whether he enjoyed it, his response was ‘I’ve only ever eaten trifle in a parfait glass.’ How on earth could one make a trifle in a parfait glass? Has anyone else ever performed that trick?”
However, Mary Carde of Parrearra (Qld) has other ideas. “Tut to those Col8ers suggesting parfait glasses be used for making lemonade spiders. Such an elegant receptacle has never lost its original purpose for serving delicious sweets. These days though, the desserts are more sophisticated, such as tiramisu or banoffee cheesecake. If you prefer to repurpose the glass, retain the tastefulness they deserve and use sparkling red wine instead of lemonade.”
Caz Willis of Bowral says, “Where I grew up, these treats were called a ‘float with coke’, or ‘float with orange’, etc. From memory, they had a different name in South Australia.” These things are fluid, as when Col 8 grew up, years ago on Sydney’s north shore, a “spider” was ice cream and syrup, but in milk, not soft drink.
Arachnophobes should look away now. Evan Bailey of Glebe has a different use for his parfait glasses, to wit: “To catch and release a large huntsman spider you need a large glass bowl. Carefully place the bowl over the spider, then slide in the cover from an LP record. Carry the whole shebang outside, invert the bowl and remove the LP cover. Ensure that the spider is not still in the bowl. Rinse the glass bowl, and have a calming shot of something from a parfait glass.”
Another handy home hint comes from Dawn Glase of Moss Vale, “A parfait spoon is excellent for removing the dregs of jam at the bottom of its jar.”
Then, one more tale of the Brownian motion of Col8ers. Gary Logan of Bardia says, “My aunt went down to take her garbage to the bin room in her Villawood apartment and met her neighbour. She then went to the airport and got her flight to Perth to visit us. We took her to dinner that evening and at the next table was her neighbour from Villawood. They had both unknowingly been on the same flight that morning from a Sydney to Perth.”
Column8@smh.com.au
No attachments, please. Include
name, suburb and daytime phone