Anise to Za'atar

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  • Food Writing/ Reflections

    On eating variety, finding comfort, and enjoying the magic of food with kids

    October 1, 2019
  • Baking/ Brunch/ Recipes

    Apple Streusel Coffee Cake

    September 12, 2019
  • Condiments/ Food Writing

    Foraging and Preparing Staghorn Sumac as a Spice

    August 26, 2019
  • Dinner/ Food Writing/ Lunch/ Recipes

    Manoomin and Grilled Halloumi Salad

    August 9, 2019
  • Baking/ Dessert/ Food Writing/ Recipes

    Mexican Chocolate Cake with Sour Cherry and Red Currant Jam

    July 25, 2019
  • Dessert/ Recipes

    Mulberry Earl Grey Sorbet

    July 19, 2019
  • Food Writing/ Lunch/ Recipes

    Vietnamese Inspired Seafood Pasta Salad

    May 3, 2019
  • Baking/ Dessert/ Food Writing/ Recipes

    Donald Trump eats Tacos: Why eating and cooking diverse food won’t make you a better person (and, a recipe for Eggless Ras El Hanout Spiced Apple Cake with a Brown Butter and Rum Icing)

    April 4, 2019
  • Baking/ Breakfast/ Recipes/ Reflections

    On Grandmothers and Cooking (and a recipe for Dutch Canadian rye bread/roggebrood)

    February 20, 2019
  • Breakfast/ Brunch/ Lunch/ Recipes

    Shakshuka with Ethiopian Berbere Spice

    February 7, 2019
  • Baking/ Dessert/ Recipes

    Speculaas Bourbon Crumble with Pear and Cranberries

    January 29, 2019
  • Dessert/ Recipes

    Sheep’s Milk Panna Cotta with Sumac, Brandied Cherries and Hazelnuts

    January 22, 2019
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  • A well regarded food writer/recipe developer recently tweeted that he was having to learn something new: how to cook for his family every day. ⠀⠀ And it struck me how so many of even the ‘food literate’, the chefs and writers and such, have never had to cook like this. In contrast, our grandmothers did this without a second thought… ⠀⠀ And, perhaps this is one of the kitchen legacies that my mom left me: we never ate out or ordered in, and each day she made sure there was dinner on the table for her family of six. She normalized the practice of cooking. ⠀⠀ I’ve had a number of Qs recently about how I’ve been able to keep up my cooking in the ways that I have. And, in part, it’s because I’ve spent the past two years practicing. What you see here on IG is what I cook for my family. That’s been my primary goal: making sure there is something delicious on the table for my family to eat. ⠀⠀ I think I might write more about what I’ve learned and how to cook family meals each day, but so much of it has been about planning and practicing, about learning what rhythm works for you because we’re not all going to cook the same things or have the same rhythms. ⠀⠀ But, I think, what this period of social distancing is revealing to many (along with so many other lessons) is the immense amount of work and planning that goes into cooking every day. As a child, it looked like my mother did it with ease; it just happened and I didn’t question how. That work of making regular family meals has constantly been devalued but, in the current reordering of normal, those who have tried to jump back into that routine have been struck: this is a lot of work! To which the generations of women who have fed and sustained us in their home kitchens, replied: no shit! ⠀⠀ These are the plantain molotes from @bricialopez’s book #Oaxaca, filled with a black bean paste and cotija. Instead of the classic masa, plantain is used in the dough which, when fried, gives a soft, sweet shell with all the golden goodness of a tostone, complemented by the savoury black bean and salty cheese. It took me a few tries to get the consistency of the dough right but when I did…. *chef’s kiss* The family loved these!
  • How has your cooking changed over this period of social distancing or quarantine? ⠀⠀ For many people, the biggest change might be that they actually have to start cooking at home 😂 For me, I was already cooking almost every day, sometimes multiple times a day. In some ways, my cooking hasn't changed that much, especially if you only look at volume. ⠀⠀ But I've tried to be more rigorous. I am terrible at eating 3 'square meals': maybe eating a hurried lunch (no breakfast), then a family dinner, and snacking way too much. So I'm trying to sit down and eat a breakfast, make something with whatever is leftover in the fridge for lunch, and then still a family dinner. ⠀⠀ I've also become more flexible. I typically plan ahead what I'm making for dinner but I've been more attune to what's in the fridge and making sure it gets used in a timely manner. There's tomato sauce open in the fridge? Then let's make pizza! Leftover ground beef? Let's do patty melts again! ⠀⠀ I've also been more creative and adaptive, looking at what we have to make ingredient substitutions. I typically love roaming Toronto to find specific ingredients that are just right, but there's a lot less roaming these days... ⠀⠀ For example, this meal was inspired by a recipe in @sonokosakai's book #JapaneseHomeCooking. A couple weeks ago I had roasted a duck, freezing the meat and the broth I made with the bones. For the broth, I added ingredients for dashi, as well as some soy and mirin to my original duck broth. With it: duck breast marinated in soy, mirin & rice vinegar; scallions seared in duck fat (also from the roasted duck!); bok choy; a pinch of grated ginger; and a sprinkle of shichimi togarashi. It's not the recipe in the book, but it's in that vein & it's delicious! ⠀⠀ It's still just 10 days into this wildness for our family but already I can see how it's restructured our schedules and habits. It's a shake up. So I'm trying to use the spaces that the shaking creates to rethink and reorder how I cook. And, also, to hold on to what I can (and what's important) while everything is getting shaken around me.... ⠀⠀ #covidcooking #japanesefood #sobanoodles #homecooking #eattheworld #fbcigers
  • The spaces between us are larger than ever but it feels like the world has shrunk. ⠀⠀⠀ Or is it just me? ⠀⠀⠀ The pandemic has revealed so much about our societies, and our world. That we’re all connected and entangled with each other in so many ways. That we’re not all the same: that we don’t have the same access to resources, don’t have the same protections. ⠀⠀⠀ But what’s been revealed has always been there, just hidden from those unwilling to see it. We all have blinders that we know are there yet choose to wear. ⠀⠀⠀ Food has always been a window into some of these truths, too. Our food, the ingredients, and the ways we eat reveal how connected we are. They also reveal that we’re not the same: that we don’t all have the same access to food, to healthy food, to good food. ⠀⠀⠀ This pandemic is going to reorder so much of how we live; it already has in such a short time. Each hour, each day feels like a new shuffle. A new crack is formed or deepened. New bonds are formed, networks strengthened. ⠀⠀⠀ How it is going to reorder the ways we eat, the ways we access food? Is it going to deepen the unequal access to good food? Or is it going to connect us in healthier and more sustainable ways? It’s really up to us…. ⠀⠀⠀ Pictured is the lamb barbacoa from @bricialopez's book #Oaxaca, a generous dish for celebrations and community. It’s rich lamb is coated in a complex blend of peppers and spices, making a slick sauce whose color imprints itself onto everything it touches. I’d made this before ‘social distancing’ was a term we all knew, and now I’m wishing I had some more. The authors write that this is a dish to share with friends over a glass of mezcal and I look forward to the times when we can all do that together again! ⠀⠀⠀ #OaxacaCookbook #oaxacanfood #mexicanfood #covidcooking #comfortfood #eattheworld #fbcigers #foodwriting
  • Here's a wrap up link for all the recipes I shared for #soupweek! Bookmark it, share it, cook from it! (Link is in the profile!) ⠀⠀ There were amazing soup recipes from @yasminkhanstories @thecinnaman @thekitchenista @bry.washing @_worldinapocket @dgritzer @kawalingpinoy & myself. ⠀⠀ Our world is rapidly being reshaped and I wanted to engage that too: #foodwriting doesn't have to be merely escapist or inspirational (though that has its place). It can handle the depths and complexities of our world, of our stories, of our fears. This is just a humble recipe roundup, but soup is also an important #comfortfood for me and this is a time for comfort! ⠀⠀ "as COVID19 and the responses to it reshape our worlds in mere hours, what I am struck by is how we need the lessons that soup has to teach us. ⠀⠀ It’s sharing food, so let’s continue to share with each other (just don’t share the virus!). It’s good food to prepare ahead of time for a time of need, so let’s do that. It’s simple and doesn’t need a lot of ingredients, perfect for times when we might need to simplify our lives. It’s comforting and warming, and we need food like that in these times. It’s easy to package up and give some to those who need it, so let’s keep doing that too." ⠀⠀ Read it all on the site (this is just an excerpt!), the link is in the profile! ⠀⠀ #reciperoundup #souplove #soupseason #soupsoftheworld #eattheworld #f52grams #fbcigers #covid19
  • So, here in North America at least, it feels like the world shifted a little, even just in the last 24 hours?! And it feels like the shifting probably isn't over just yet.... ⠀⠀ Often moments like this are framed through a lens of 'lacking' or 'deprivation', the events that are cancelled, the moments lost, the 'isolations' enforced. ⠀⠀ But we can also see the possibilities: the chances to be gentle with oneself, the chances for kindnesses with one another, the chances to build and practice other forms of relationality with one another. Let us not be afraid to keep caring for and engaging the people around us. ⠀⠀ This is the last of the recipes I'm going to share for #soupweek. Go out, stock up on squash and lentils too. Now we're ready. ⠀⠀ This is the Red Lentil and Squash Soup with Za'atar Croutons, from @yasminkhanstories' book Zaitoun, and it's also found online (I'll share the link in my profile ☝). It's aromatic and hearty, and the croutons add a nice crunch. I actually, instead of making classic bread croutons, used za'atar pita chips for the croutons! ⠀⠀ #Zaitouncookbook is a beautiful book, full of delicious recipes like this one. But what I also love about Yasmin's book is how she delves into the lives and politics of the people making the food. There's no way to talk about #Palestine and #Palestinianfood without talking about how these are deeply impacted by occupation and displacement. She's gentle, careful, and respectful - it's a book to learn from, not only from the recipes, but from how they were collected, written, and put together. In a slightly different way, It's also a refusal to stop caring and engaging with those around us. ⠀⠀ This is not a time to stop caring for one another, not a time to succumb to fear (though, I get the temptation). I hope you are all able to be gentle with yourself and with others. Now is the time to grow and strengthen our care for one another, for our communities (and to expand how we understand who is in our communities!) I'll be here learning how to practice this, too. And, I'll probably be making lots of soup 😂 ⠀⠀ #souplove #eattheworld #middleeasternfood #fbcigers #zaitoun #craftbeer #eatwell #f52grams
  • A new #soupweek recipe to share with you - @thecinnaman's Turmeric Corn Coconut Soup (recipe link is in my profile!) ⠀⠀⠀ Turmeric is really big right now in North America, highly touted for its health benefits: its active compound (curcumin) is an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. ⠀⠀⠀ But, like many other food trends North Americans jump on, this one often divorces turmeric from its historical and cultural anchors. It's a trend itself: North Americans jump on a 'superfood' trend, ignoring the Indigenous and ancestral knowledge keepers that have kept the practices and ingredients alive and, in the process, this often makes it harder for those cultures to get those ingredients, which are often central to their cultural practices. It's not a healthy trend... ⠀⠀⠀ And, in many ways, this isn't a new phenomenon. Reading the book #CuminCamelsandCaravans, I was struck by how spices maybe were the original 'superfoods' whose marketing claims outstripped their actual health properties. Arabic traders marketed the mystique of the spices, their mysterious healing powers, to Europeans with the money to spend. ⠀⠀⠀ And, that's not to say that there isn't medicinal qualities in spices, but that often the markets aren't actually interested in the depth of knowledge behind those claims, the rich cultural practices that the spices and health practices are part of - they just want to jump on the trend for trendiness' sake. ⠀⠀⠀ This soup is loaded with delicious golden turmeric, alongside corn and coconut milk: a twist on a classic corn chowder. It also has a 'Middle Eastern' twist, using semolina to thicken it. It's delicious and simple to make. And, it's #vegan. And, #vegetarian. And, pretty healthy too 😉 ⠀⠀⠀ #souplove #turmeric #eattheworld #eatfresh #vegetariancooking #eathealthy #comfortfood #middleeasternfood
  • So this #soupweek has been stretched way out.... 😂😂 it's more like soup month at this point but I'm going to wrap it up this week! It's been a long stretch this past month on the 'real life beyond Instagram front'.... ⠀⠀ A last round of seasonal colds that lingered on and on and on.... A busier than normal schedule compounded by my partner being away. It's been a grind. I told my partner the other day that I just feel.... overdrawn. Too much going out, not enough coming in. ⠀⠀ And that's hard when you're a creative producer, when your goal is to create 'content' (as much as I dislike the word/concept of 'content creator'). How do you keep creating from an overdrawn 'bank' of energy? ⠀⠀ So, how do YOU recharge? How do you practice 'self care'? How do you take care of yourself or let others take care of you? ⠀⠀ Soup is a favorite meal when I'm exhausted: the energy to deliciousness ratio is one that adds to the bank. It's simple but restorative, quick but hearty and nutricious. ⠀⠀ This one is one of my standbys, the @thekitchenista Creamy Kale and Potato Soup with Bacon. It's hearty, delicious, nutricious, and adaptable. One of the versions I've been making recently is just adding some ras el hanout spice mix, which adds a nice warming spice to the hearty potato base. ⠀⠀ On top of it being a standby, @thekitchenista is one of my food blogging inspirations, someone who I've followed for a long time and seen her work grow, develop, and flourish. She's great at explaining cooking processes, making cooking something new less intimidating, and for having recipes that are consistently delicious. ⠀⠀ Check out her work, make the soup (link to the recipe is in the profile!), and if you have some ras el hanout, sprinkle a little in (while you're cooking the onions, celery & carrots - to let the spices get nice and fragrant!). ⠀⠀ #thekitchenista #soupseason #souplove #potatosoup #comfortfood #eattheworld #raselhanout #homecooking #madeinstaub
  • Sometimes it's the writing that hijacks you, sometimes it's the flavors. Sometimes it's both. ⠀⠀ I remember first reading @bry.washing's essay on Korean soondubu jjigae and immediately FEELING what he was saying. We live in different places, have different experiences, and yet I felt what he was saying at an emotional level, like deja vu. ⠀⠀ I don't remember my first pot of jjigae but I do remember the way which gojuchang first grabbed me. It was a stick-up for sure, maybe more of a mugging because I had no idea what was coming... ⠀⠀ It was my first time dining solo in Korea. We had just moved there. I hadn't learned to read hangul yet, or speak a word. So all I could do was mime the slurping of noodles to our waiter. He disappeared and reappeared with a giant bowl of glistening noodles topped with a large mound of red paste. He pantomimed that I was to mix it in and then disappeared. ⠀⠀ I just remember my whole body reacting to that fiery paste. Like, tingly all over, sweat bubbling into each pore, shaky hands. And me being absolutely certain I was going to finish it, and equally certain the waiter was laughing his ass off at me. ⠀⠀ My body still reacts in a certain way but now it looks more like withdrawal symptoms. I don't eat it often, the kids can't handle it's 🔥, but every now and again I get a wicked urge for spicy Korean food. I can't describe why, but that gojuchang kick has a special connection for me. Maybe it was all the experiences of that year in Korea, contained in that flavor, maybe it seared its way into my brain, mapping its trail onto my tastebuds so that I would never forget. I don't worry too much about the 'why': i just enjoy that deep satisfaction it brings now. ⠀⠀ And maybe it was this connection that I read in Bryan's piece. He writes of family and love and each of these is a connection, a being in place with someone else. And food often holds relationships and experiences for us, giving a tangible, senses-driven anchor for what can feel so indescribable or unspeakable. ⠀⠀ This is @bry.washing's recipe for soondubu jjigae, a classic Korean stew: spicy, umami broth laden with silken tofu and shrimp. Recipe is in the profile ☝ ⠀ #soupweek
  • Oh, the fate of all the best laid plans! I had it all planned out: days on days of delicious soup recipes laid out just so.... ⠀⠀ But, then, a well placed sickness that wouldn't let me go (no, it wasn't coronavirus!), a partner away on a trip, and for 8 days I cooked 'survival food' for the kids and collapsed each night too tired to think of #soupweek. ⠀⠀ Each time my partner leaves (and this time in particular because I was sick), I am amazed by single parents. HOW DO THEY DO IT?! Our four little beauties run BOTH OF US ragged on the BEST OF DAYS, so hats off to single parents because y'all are the real superheroes in my books. ⠀⠀ But, my partner's back (#praisechorus) and to ease back into Soup Week (because I still have recipes and ideas to share!) I've got this recipe for Haitian Soup Joumou for you on my site. ⠀⠀ It's a post from a while back and one of the more popular posts on my site. Typically, soup joumou is made to celebrate the New Year but it's so good that I eat it more often than that! ⠀⠀ Pumpkin/squash, beef, noodles - it's hearty and delicious. And, there's some serious history and story that goes with it. As I write in the post: ⠀⠀ "This is history: history of the Americas, Black history, history of freedom struggle. This is a dish of the Haitian Revolution, of Haitian independence. It is Haitian history in a bowl." ⠀⠀ Check it out to learn more about the importance of the Haitian Revolution and to cook the delicious recipe, which comes from @csjmediapublishing. Link is in the profile! ⠀⠀ #haitianfood #soupjoumou #souplove #soupsoftheworld #eattheworld #pumpkinsoup #soupseason
  • Next up for #soupweek is a fav from my friends over at @_worldinapocket: this Golden Coconut Soup with Kale, Collards & Frozen Dumplings! ⠀⠀ There's lots to love about this recipe: it's healthy, adaptable (and easily made #vegetarian), quick to make, and DELICIOUS. ⠀⠀ But, there's something else I love about it too. It has a citation. ⠀⠀ @mackannecheese writes that, "The flavors in this soup are inspired by those I learned to cook with after fully immersing myself in the manuscript of @pkgourmet's cookbook, #Indianish, last year [Mackenzie was the photographer for the book]. You won't find a recipe for this soup in her new book, but I have taken ideas from the flavor profiles and techniques from Ritu, Priya's mom, and incorporated many of these ideas into the food I make in my own kitchen." ⠀⠀ It's a small thing, but it matters. Food, recipes, thoughts, ideas, techniques - they come from somewhere. It's part of the relationality of food. ⠀⠀ Citation is a kinship practice. It's a practice of care and community. Citation chooses to build good relationships over exploitative ones. ⠀⠀ There's a new scuffle in the food community over appropriation and citation in relation to #ragebaking and @ragebaking tweeted today that "much of the discussion should really be about what allyship looks like [vs Qs of ownership]." Citation is about community and care, about building with each other. There's so much more to be said about this and, as someone who has been plagiarized multiple times (including in very public ways played out in the media), I've got a few things to say but let's leave it here for now, with a quote from the scholar Sara Ahmed: "Citation is world creation. What world are we creating?" Check out the soup recipe (I've got a link to it in my profile) and check out the work @mackannecheese and @viedfinder are doing over at @_worldinapocket! #souplove #soupseason #eatfresh #eathealthy #eattheworld #foodwriting #fbcigers #savblogawards
  • It's new recipe day on the website AND it's #soupweek! So I have a recipe for this Haudenosaunee Hominy Soup up on the site! ⠀⠀ This... was hard to write. Many of my Indigenous friends and people I know have spent the past weeks manning barricades, protesting, threatened with arrest (or actually arrested), and demanding that Canada recognize their right to decide what happens on their Indigenous lands. ⠀⠀ And, as blockades spring up around Canada, each spark lighting more blazes around the country, and as Canadians are faced with the truths they never intended or wanted to face, I am struck by the question: how do you write about food in a time like this? How do you write in a way that doesn’t evade, ignore, or minimize what is happening? How do you write into your food the anger, the fear, the cynicism, and the hope? How do you write about your privilege, your power, and your place? This is a lot to ask of food or food writing. ⠀⠀ But that's where I began. With what's happening, with the declaration that 'Reconciliation is dead', and with the land that I write from, this Dish with One Spoon treaty land, Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee land. ⠀⠀ Check it out, learn more about the Indigenous lands you might live on, share, and make some soup - serve it in a bowl, share a spoon if you'd like, and don't bring any knives to the table.... ⠀⠀ #dishwithonespoon #indigenousfood #foodpolitics #canadianfood #fbcigers #eattheworld #torontofood #tkaronto #hominy #cornsoup #soupseason #foodwriting #wetsuwetenstrong #reconciliationisdead
  • The next installment of #soupweek is this delicious Miso Squash Soup with Sesame-Ginger Apple topping from @dgritzer and @seriouseats! ⠀ Soup is a common way to use winter squashes, making a sweet, silky bowl of deliciousness. But this recipe takes squash soup down a different road, mashing it up with classic Japanese miso soup flavors to balance the sweetness of the squash with the umami of the dashi broth and miso. ⠀ A couple months ago I got a message asking what I meant by umami and it's a good Q. ⠀ What is umami and how do you describe it? Umami was actually 'discovered' (perhaps classified is a better word) because of dashi broth; a Japanese chemist wanted to get to the bottom of its flavor and became the first to argue that umami is a basic taste, alongside sweet, salty, sour & bitter. ⠀ Umami comes from sodium salt of glutamate and it has a distinct 'savory' quality, a rich 'meatiness' that is found in foods like seaweed, cheeses (think Parmesan), and tomatoes. It gives a 'fullness' or a depth of flavor in foods. And, as you can tell, it's hard to describe 😂 ⠀ Dashi broth is at the heart of this recipe. Dashi is typically made from kombu (a type of seaweed) and bonito fish flakes. Dashi has a delicate sweetness, a hint of smoke, and a rich umami character. ⠀ Many groceries now carry both kombu and bonito flakes (my local 'health food' store had both) if you want to start from scratch or you can go the 'instant dashi' route (just add water!), and my local Japanese grocer also carries prepackaged dashi 'teabags' you just have to steep. ⠀ The soup process is straightforward, but the result is a smorgasbord of flavors. Sweet, earthy squash (I used red kuri) is balanced by sea-tinged, smoky umami, complimented by nutty miso, and then pureed silky smoooooth. And, then, the topping! Crisp apples are offset with sesame and ginger, scallions add a contrast in flavor and color, and a small sprinkle of shichimi togarashi (a 7 spice blend that includes chilis, orange peel & sesame) finishes it all off. ⠀ It's familiar in many ways, but the combinations and contrasting flavors make this soup a special treat! Check out the recipe through the link in my profile ☝

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