This Tomato and Watermelon Salad from SOUTH is Sensational Read more…
Greek Salad and Whole Roasted Cauliflower are Tops in “The Last Schmaltz”
Country Greek from “The Last Schmaltz” is a Salad Comprised of
the Usual Ingredients Plus the Welcome Addition of Chickpeas
What is a nice Jewish boy from North York doing with a mini-empire of quirky restaurants in a gritty neighbourhood of downtown Toronto? Doing pretty well is the short answer. Read more…
Redemption, Recovery and Kale Caesar Salad Are on Celebrity Chef Jonathan Gushue’s Menu
This kale caesar salad, garnished with goat cheese, croutons and chunks of bacon, is delicious
“I wouldn’t trade my worst day sober for my best day drunk.” — Jonathan Gushue Read more…
This Spud’s for You: Potato Salad from Old-Fashioned to Fancy
My creamy old-fashioned potato salad uses pickle juice
This feature appeared in the Toronto Star in 1996. My favourite version is the first one.
“Potato salad: A cold or hot side dish made with potatoes, mayonnaise and seasonings. It became very popular in the second half of the nineteenth century and is a staple of both home and food-store kitchens.” — John Mariani: The Dictionary of American Food and Drink Read more…
Big Apple Bites: Weird Grasshopper Tacos and Superb Brussels Sprouts at Toloache
I recently spent four glorious days in midtown Manhattan.
For two of those, I was pretty much closeted in the Roger Smith Hotel attending back-to-back seminars at a cookbook conference. Read more…
Pomegranate Seeds and Other Salad Secrets
I know the name Ruby Watchco keeps popping up in this blog – and it’s for good reason.
The meal Ross and I enjoyed there one Saturday night a couple of months ago was simply stellar, “simply” being the operative word. The uncomplicated, vibrant flavour and texture combos of each and every dish from the sensational salad with still warm buttermilk biscuits to a wondrous baked apple bathed in silky sabayon were all that good food should be.
It was the salad which was visibly being tossed to order by co-owner Lynn Crawford and brilliant co-chef Lora Kirk as they stood together at the kitchen pass that left a lasting impression. And I’ve been creating versions of it ever since. Read more…
What’s Cooking in Melton Mowbray?
MELTON MOWBRAY – It’s tough keeping up with Dr. Matthew O’Callaghan as he strides purposefully across the cobbled square in the centre of this lovely historic town, population about 24,000, located in the heart of Britain’s East Midlands.
Wearing a jaunty beige mini-version of a cowboy hat he bought in New Zealand, my guide for the day has been a town councillor here for 12 years and is a man with a mission.
This is boldly illustrated by a brand new sign he proudly pointed out at the vintage train station where I arrived after a scenic hour-and-a-half ride from London with one change at the nearby city of Leicester. Read more…
Sensational Salad
“The food production chain is really simple. We plant it, we grow it, we gather it, we cook it, and then we eat it. When this process occurs with a certain immediacy and a minimum of interference and, if it is nurtured by people who are truly passionate about what they are doing, the results can be glorious.” – John Ash.
John Ash is a chef, thinker and fantastic cook. I broke bread with him at the wonderful west-end Toronto restaurant Chiado a few years ago as a guest of my friend Bonnie Stern, foodie par excellence. We shared thoughts on food such as the ones quoted above while enjoying a delicious Portuguese tapas-style meal. Read more…
Dressed to Kill
When I was growing up, my job at dinnertime was to set the table and make the vinaigrette for a salad my nutrition-conscious mother served with each meal. It was your basic version: 2 to 3 parts olive oil to lemon juice or vinegar sometimes with a little mustard whisked in, salt, pepper and, mum always insisted, a good pinch of sugar.
Maybe that influenced my taste in salad dressing but I like a hint of something sweet to counteract the acidity of a vinaigrette. Orange juice concentrate is one trick I use, occasionally maple syrup and often rice vinegar. Read more…
