Category: Food/Drink

I had an interesting idea for a fall amuse bouche for an upcoming menu. I start with tart granny smith apples and cut them into slices and dehydrate them. During dehydration they go limp which is when I put them into a round mould to get their shape. Once I have the crisps I cube up the remaining apples and soak them in a Armagnac sugar mix for ~6hrs. I found that longer infusions extract bitterness from the peel leading to off tastes. I then plate the Armagnac soaked apples over whipped cream on the apple crisp making a playful treat.

Ever since I saw the butterfly-pea flower infused gin “Empress” (and the price tag that went with it), I wanted to try to make my own pea flower infused gin and have some fun with how it changes with acidity. For those that aren’t aware the pea flower is a pH indicator which means that it changes color with pH. IT starts of with a deep blue at neutral pH and goes pink in acidic conditions ~pH 3. This allows for a beautful presentation where you start with a peaflower infused gin that is blue and as you mix in the tonic (built in glass) the drink progressively goes pinker and pinker with a nice ephemeral hue.

I recently had the opportunity to make some Japanese A5 waygu for a celebration. I cooked these on a cast iron plate over a wood fired grill. In total it was 3 ribeye and 2 strips all of which were to die for. Textually the meet was practically falling apart and the flavour was out of the world. A phenomenal experience and recommended for everyone to try once.

A fall/winter classic that warms you up on a cold day and is a perfect dish for this time of the year. No real variations on the recipe a slow braised cut of beef pairs perfectly with polenta and then a light salad to balance it out.

I was able to get my hands on a couple bushels of home grown Ontario Pears 😉 and decided to try my hand at fruit wines. I juiced all the pears through my kitchenaid and then adjusted the juice with pectinase to clean it up and reduce cloudiness. I let this ferment in plastic jugs up to 10% abv which still had a bit of sweetness and was refreshingly tart.

Following my trip to Italy I have been craving Aperol spritz as it truly is a perfect drink for a hot summer day. The recipe is not overly complex but I do like a particular variation with a sugar cube placed at the bottom of the glass as it both adds flavor and provides a nucleation point for the Prosecco.

Vodka infusions are exceedingly simple and provide a great way to elevate a cocktail. The premise is simple, you use ethanol as a solvent to extract whatever flavor you want. I made 4 different infusions: chamomile, strawberry, pineapple and lemongrass. I have had improved results by using dried fruits as the end product is not diluted and I find I get faster infusions.

Not much of a recipe, just a couple notes. Got this from a colleague who is an avid fisherman, the fish tasted great but cleaning and preparing the fish was a fair bit of work and makes you appreciate the convenience of supermarkets.

This is another recipe that is just perfect for a cold winter day. Very hearty and just cures the winter blues.

The beef short rib is fall of the bone tender and the butternut squash risotto is just a perfect fit for a hearty cold winter day.

Taking a bit of inspiration from other recipes this is perfect on a cold winter day. Oxtail is braised in a wine sauce until falling apart and served over wilted spinach and parsnip puree. This is all topped with a meet jus though I probably could have reduced and thickened it up a bit better. I definitely overdid the amount of parsnip puree but it was to die for so no complaints.