The Hungry Squid

I learned two things today. 1) That it is possible - and surprisingly easy - to invent a quick bread recipe 2) That it is difficult - surprisingly difficult - to take pictures of said quick bread. But tonight felt like a very bread-y night. An evening of browsing real estate websites in search of the perfect digs in Halifax calls for some serious carb fuel; luckily, this bread came to rescue. 10 minutes of prep, 45 minutes of baking, and out comes a loaf of bread that has it all: a rustic, nutty texture from the pecans, whole wheat flour and oats, the smooth sweetness of maple syrup, and bursts of crunchy, tangy Granny Smith apple. Apple pecan bread with oatmeal and maple syrup Ingredients - 1 cup whole wheat flour - scant 1/2 cup quick oats - 2 large eggs, room temperature - 1/2 cup margarine - 1/4 cup maple syrup (Grade A) - 1 tsp baking powder - 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped - 1/2 cup pecans, lightly toasted and chopped - 1/4 tsp cin...

There are four problems with baking for one. 1) recipes for baked goods are often difficult to halve. This leads you to 2) make way too much cake, far too many cookies or more loaves of bread than you can possibly consume. Therefore 3) you end up eating more than you really should, and unfortunately, 4) you have no one to lie around with and moan about how gluttonous you were. First world problems? Most definitely. The cookbooks that I own are mostly made to serve “4 or more”, and the recipes for after dinner sweets are no different. Determined to make my way through the “The Gourmet Cookie Cookbook”, a lovely compilation of the best recipes from Gourmet magazine from each year between 1941 and 2009, I came across one that was fairly simple and made with ingredients I had on hand. The recipe was for “lace cookies” but in my hands, the cookies, while still thin, were crisp only on the edges. The centres were slightly chewy and richly almond-flavored, and with a ...

  I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a huge salad fan. Don’t get me wrong – I don’t dislike them, but there is just something about digging into a pile of leafy greens that doesn’t really turn my crank.   Of course, I appreciate a good salad, maybe one with strawberries and almonds, or feta and quinoa, but overall, given the choice of a vegetable alternative, I would veer away. Fattoush, however, is an exception. I’ve always liked fattoush. The crisp bright colors – magenta radish, cherry red tomato and cool green cucumber – are so attractive, bathed in a lemony, creamy, garlicky dressing, and I love the crispy pieces fried pita bread that finish the dish off. I came across this recipe while leafing through a new cookbook that I acquired over Christmas called “Jerusalem”, a wonderful cross-cultural compendium of favorite recipes from two Jerusalemites and celebrated UK chefs, Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. The modifications that I made cu...

When M and I met up in Halifax, we thought that it would be a quick 2-day jaunt; after all, we’re both busy people, with work always waiting impatiently for us at home. Little did we know that the Maritime weather gods had their own plans…two days later, flights cancelled due to a major snowstorm, M and I were “stranded”, if stranded is what you would call being made to relax and enjoy the beautiful, friendly coastal city. And what better way to enjoy Halifax than to indulge on fine East Coast cuisine and local brews? Over the course of four days, we consumed all manner of delicacies from the sea – mussels in white wine sauce, haddock fish and chips, lobster ravioli, seafood chowder, sushi – as well as a respectable amount of beer and scotch in true UK style. So naturally, when I came home my body felt like a ton of beer battered bricks, and I have begun the slow process of detoxing. This simple soup is the perfect start to a week of clean eating – a light, slightly...

It’s official: both Punxutawney Phil and Wiarton Willie have declared there that we will have an early spring. So long, snow! See ya later, space heater. Till next year, marshmallow parka! But alas… it doesn’t feel like winter is giving up so easily. I am sure I’m not alone in feeling the winter “blahs”. The cold weighs you down and during the most frigid, darkest months, wrapping yourself in a blanket and hibernating on the couch is infinitely more appealing than anything that involved going outdoors. So, in an effort to stave off the February chill in my small apartment, I decided to do some baking, and make use of the few overripe ones begging to be eaten. This one-bowl recipe is simple, fast and has the added benefit of being butter, flour, and sugar-free. The result: moist and chewy oat cookies, barely sweetened, with a deep chocolate flavor that is a perfect foil to the brightness of the banana and the lingering, creamy richness of the peanut butter. ...

After a week of bitter wind and bone-freezing chills, Montreal is finally starting to warm up again. I saw the first signs of life on my Friday commute to work: even though they were bundled up as ever, people were walking with their heads up, not bent against the winter gales. There were even a few joggers out!   A good sign, no doubt. Ottawa was also stirring from its frozen slumber when I arrived on Friday night, a great way to start a birthday weekend with family. For my mother’s birthday dinner, we went to Zen Kitchen, an excellent, intimate bistro in downtown Ottawa that serves gourmet vegan fare with a first-rate wine cellar. Vegan is not often associated with fine cuisine, but places like Zen prove that, in the hands of a talented and creative chef, meat and dairy-free ingredients can be turned into innovative, delectable dishes that are filling without being carb-ladden. So in anticipation of the night’s meal, my mother and I wanted to make a desse...

Chocolate is the definitive holiday ingredient. I love chocolate in everything – cakes, cookies, pies, tarts, wrapped in foil or from a box – and the holidays are the perfect excuse to binge without guilt. These cookies are rich and chocolatey without being cloyingly sweet; creamy white chocolate chips and crunchy pecans add an interesting texture and make the cookies attractively cobbled and cracked. Don’t be deterred by the chili powder – just a touch of spice brings out the deepest dark chocolate flavor! Merry Christmas, and happy eating! Spicy double chocolate cookies Adapted from AK’s recipe Ingredients -        1/3 cup flour -        ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder -        1 tsp baking powder -        ¼ tsp salt -        6 squares (6 oz) semisweet chocolate, chopped -   ...