I’ve talked many times about the hedonistic pleasures of food, but there are going to be few things in life that get more hedonistic than baked brie in all its molten, gooey glory. When I created my maple-apple jelly in the fall, I knew I was going to be tested in terms of what I…
Harvesting an Identity
Long has the harvest been an important part of my life and long has it been associated with fall, bountiful cornucopias of food, and Thanksgiving. Growing up in the Okanagan Valley, the fall harvest meant picking the last of the fruit and stripping our garden of its remaining plenty before tilling the vegetation back into…
Maple and Bacon-Smoked Turkey Breast
Here’s an antidote for the boring, bland and dry bird … also known as the turkey breast. When Anne and I decided to have her parents over for a Thanksgiving brunch last weekend, I hummed and hawed over whether to do a small turkey for 4 people in the early day or whether to opt…
Maple-Apple Jelly
At its most fundamental level, cooking is pure chemistry and physics. At its most profound, it is art, tradition, culture, identity and love. Nothing arguably combines both as purely as making preserves. Thus when I took up the most recent challenge in The Canadian Food Experience Project chose to make it personal, I found myself with the challenge…
Preserving: Our Canadian Tradition
I grew up among trees. Indeed, trees define a huge part of our national identity – and our food – in this country. Speak to any foreigner about their image of Canada and it will almost universally be of “wilderness” and the wide expanse of mountains, water, open spaces, and trees. Growing up, everywhere I…
Maple-Lemon Mint Quinoa with Grilled Zucchini and Dried Cranberries
What do we name our creations? It’s not like naming a newborn where you can easily choose a family member or favourite character in a novel. My ability to choose the right name will determine whether you’re reading this right now or have passed it over, dismissing this as another trendy quinoa recipe. Recipes so…
Maple Glazed Salmon with Thai Basil and Meyer Lemon
Here’s a dish that is great any time of year: either done in the oven or, if the weather permits, on a cedar plank on the barbecue. What puts this dish over the top in my opinion is the Meyer lemon zest. When I first concocted this, I used regular lemons. Then, a few years ago when…
“Desérables” (Maple Ale), Microbrasserie Le Grimoire
Wow – so this is a bit of a fortuitous moment. I’ve had this beer from BroueHaHa in my fridge for going on 3 months waiting for the mood to strike me. At 8% alcohol and 660ml, I figured I needed to be ready to open this one. The label will certainly catch the eye of…
“L’Érabière” (Maple Pale Ale), Brasserie Schoune
Yummy. Oh, yeah … yummy, all the way. I could end it there – but I won’t. Brasserie Schoune out of Quebec has nailed this maple-beer, so much so that they’ve cleverly inserted the word itself (érable) into the name. And I must say, they have also very cleverly achieved a pure insertion of maple…
Roasted Red-Kuri Squash Salad with Walnuts in Maple-Mango Vinegrette
Inspiration comes in all forms. In this case, it is a squash from my CSA share that has been tempting my creativity for a few weeks. I’ll confess, until this squash (delivered by agricultural storks) arrived in my kitchen, I had no idea that a “red kuri squash” existed, let alone what it would taste…