Recipes Articles

A good friend passed along this delish dessert recipe, and although we haven't taken it for a test drive yet we certainly plan to this weekend.  After all, any time strawberries and cheesecake are mentioned in the same sentence, it's just automatically a winner.

And even though strawberry season is well over in most of the Northern Hemisphere, we refuse to let a little thing like the...

Ever since grilled-cheese sandwiches made their (very recent) entrance onto my family’s menu, I knew this classic comfort food was due for a gourmet makeover.  Here are my two takes on this simply delicious sandwich:

Cheese and Jalapeno Bread, sliced
2 tbsp butter

Option 1:
2 slices Aged Cheddar Cheese
4 slices Bacon (cooked)
1 avocado, sliced

Option 2:
2 slices Smoked Mozarella Cheese
100 g (3oz)...

Clink glasses on All Hallows Eve with a festively creepy cocktail!

The lurid colour of the Harvest Green Punch is spooktacular (sorry, we couldn't help ourselves...)
1 part Midori Melon Liqueur
1 part Dark Rum
1 part Light Rum
2 part White Cranberry Juice
1 part Unfiltered Apple Juice
1 part Simple Syrup
Juice of one lemon
Add all ingredients and mix well.  Garnish with fresh fruits like apple...

Paying respect to the infamous post-Thanksgiving (Canada) glut, I made my friends a fruity parfait for dessert and skipped the cake and cookies. They were so pleased with the light sweet flavours, turkey and pie were but a distant memory.


(makes 1)

1 pint strawberries (half mashed, half cut up)
1/2 pint blueberries
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup pecans halves, crushed
1 Tbsp sugar

As of recently, my weekend nights consist of planning whimsical bridal showers and fancy wedding receptions. Not because I’m getting tied down, err, married, but because 2 of my best friends are tying the knot next year! One of the tasks I’ve been assigned to is trying new drink recipes that best reflect the couples.

2 parts Red Passion Alize
1 part Absolute Vodka
splash of Lime Juice
Peach...

For the past few months I've made a commitment to scour as many cookbooks as I can to learn new recipes that are nutritious, delicious and importantly, easy.  I don't have all afternoon to get all Julie & Julia in the kitchen.  I have 2 hours tops when I get home from work to whip something up with a glass of Chardonnay in hand (or Shiraz if it's winter). 


I recently...

Dolce Salato Antipasto

Sometimes a full course meal doesn’t set the tone for a rustic, romantic evening. This sharable platter mixes both sweet and salty tastes (“dolce” is sweet in Italian and “salato” is salty), and its sample-sized portions are open for a variety of tasty choices.


Brie cheese
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Prosciutto
Spicy cacciatore sausage
Olive and rosemary focaccia bread

Despite any controversy on the proper way to pronounce it, bruschetta is a universal hit. Even your tomato-hating friends will agree: this recipe is bursting with flavour.
 
Grilled Naan Bread with Bruschetta


2 slabs Naan bread
3 vine ripe tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1/2 lime (juice of)
1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
splash olive oil...

This summer my garden is overflowing with tomatoes. Both cherry and fresh vine ripe varieties were growing at what seemed to be light speed this year. Having such an abundance of this delicious fruit (botanically speaking) made for some fun recipe experimentation.

Portobello & Cherry Tomato Chicken with Gruyere


1 chicken breast
1 large Portobello mushroom
10-15 cherry tomatoes
1 clove garlic
1...

Fruity Sangrias are popping up on menus everywhere because of their communal potential - ideal for outdoor entertaining on the patio. This easy-to-make and refreshing crowd pleaser goes quickly so you may want to double the recipe.
 

2 750 mL bottles of white wine or Prosecco (sparkling wine)
1 1 L (1 qt) bottle of sprite or club soda
2 1 L (1 qt) bottles of peach (and white grape, if...