Rhubarb and Cod

Miso Clam Chowder

March 9, 2023 No Comments

Today’s recipe is a little riff on a family favorite. I, like most people who grew up on the East Coast of Canada, grew up eating fish and seafood chowder. My grandmother always made a huge pot whenever and wherever the entire family congregated. Naturally, the chowder was always accompanied by a fresh batch of tea biscuits. I often say that this combo would be my preferred last meal. It is perfect, so why mess with it? Well, because I can’t help it. It’s not in my nature to leave well enough alone. Today’s Miso Clam Chowder is not an improvement of a childhood favorite because you can’t improve upon perfection. This is not an attempt to elevate, this is playtime. Delicious playtime, I might add.

Grains & Legumes, Pork, Salads

Warm Barley Salad with Kielbasa

March 6, 2023 No Comments

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Salads can be a tough sell in the winter. The weather is depressing so cozy comfort food is all we really want. And “cozy” doesn’t generally apply to a salad. And the ingredients required for a salad? Well, let’s just say there’s a reason winter produce isn’t particularly celebrated. But if your definition of the word “salad” is lenient, and it really should be because “salad” is a surprisingly broad term, you can in fact make a cozy salad. And today’s Warm Barley Salad happens to be a prime example of that fact.

Breads & Rolls, Sides, Snacks, Starters

Orange Feta Focaccia

March 2, 2023 1 Comment

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Focaccia was the first bread I ever made. And there is a very good reason for this – it’s dead simple. I mean, of course, you can make focaccia complicated. You can obsess over minute details and tirelessly perfect the process, like a sushi chef trainee making batch after batch of rice. But in my perfectly imperfect daily life, quick and dirty but delicious focaccia is all I’m after. So that’s exactly what today’s recipe is. A chill approachable rendition of an almost universally loved bread. And if you’re new to the world of yeasted doughs, this is the perfect place to start. This Orange Feta Focaccia is a confidence-building recipe.

Breads & Rolls, Snacks

Pesto Shallot Cheese Buns

February 25, 2023 1 Comment

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It’s the end of February, only carbs and cheese will do. We had a bit of a snowstorm in Toronto this week. And while we’ve been enjoying a reasonably mild winter this year, this is always the point in the season where my patience begins to wear thin. The cold feels more insulting, the snow more cumbersome, and the road salt more disgusting. And as anyone Canadian will tell you, March offers very little respite from the winter weather. The calendar may announce the arrival of Spring but more often than not the forecast has other plans. So when I hit this weather-worn state while staring down the barrel of yet more winter, I like to make things like today’s Pesto Shallot Cheese Buns to help see me through. They’re a cozy and unabashedly indulgent ray of sunshine when there is very little to be found. So let’s make them!