Food

Sushi is a fast-growing favourite among kids today, but it isn’t always budget friendly. Surprisingly, it’s quite simple to make at home and easy to customize so there’s something for everyone. Adding beets to the sushi rice during the cooking process adds a fun natural pink colour that your kids will love. This is also a fun meal for getting your kiddos in the kitchen and involved in meal prep. This finger food is great for trips to the beach or a casual dinner on a busy night. It works perfectly in school lunches or as a great on-the-go snack. You can fill these sushi rolls with all your kids’ favourite vegetables and proteins. Don’t forget to make some for yourself!

Pasta with a simple sauce is likely a weekly, even daily, staple in most homes with little ones. This plant-based dish may not include meat, but protein is still high on the list. The puréed cannellini beans add a thick, creamy texture to the sauce, as well as protein. Paired with lentil pasta, this dish will provide flavour and your kids’ daily portion of protein.

Vibrant and refreshing mint is a prolific garden staple during the summer months. Check out these tasty recipes that make the most of this delicious herb.

Grilling is a great way to boost the flavour and sweetness of fruits; heat caramelizes the naturally occurring sugars. For this recipe, sun-kissed peaches are used; however, other fruits such as pineapple, mango, nectarine, or plums would work equally well. Paired with a refreshing minty pesto sauce, this speedy dessert is sure to be a hit at your next barbecue.

Sweet mango and zippy mint add an extra punch of flavour to this guacamole-inspired dip. Avocados, which are the backbone of guacamole, contain a good amount of healthy polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, which help boost metabolism and keep you feeling fuller for longer.

This vibrant summer salad works equally great as a side dish or light lunch. It also travels well, should the urge to eat al fresco strike. Leftovers keep well refrigerated for a few days.

This soup makes good use of two ingredients that abound in the garden during summer: zucchini and mint. Marrying the two in this refreshing soup makes for a vibrant lunch or light dinner. Cooked zucchini is very high in vitamin A, which supports good vision and a healthy immune system.

Who wouldn’t want to eat ice cream for breakfast? This cool and creamy concoction only feels like an indulgence. Packed with fibre from bananas, spinach, mint, and oats, this breakfast is sure to keep you feeling full and satisfied until lunchtime.

Bright and vibrant, golden berries give this fruity salsa fresca a tart and tangy crunch that pairs well with mango. Serve with a salad of mixed greens, and these salsa and skewers are transformed into an eye-pleasing meal that is flavour filled and delicious!

Each year, beginning in late spring until the fall, nature rewards us with an array of sweet and delicious berries in an assortment of beautiful hues of yellow, orange, red, blue, and black. Found on backyard bushes, at local farmers’ markets, or growing wild in nature (if you’re fortunate to find them), summer berries are bountiful, beautiful, and delicious, with flavour and sweetness that by far surpass their transported-in counterparts of winter months!

So smooth, so rich, and so creamy, you’ll find it hard to believe it’s not dairy! Toasted hazelnuts and coconut are bound together by sweet dates, creating the perfect nutty and gluten-free base that’s then topped with a dreamy layer of tangy blackberry decadence. These bars are easy to make and store well in the freezer for up to a week. Enjoy at room temperature or frozen—they’re delicious either way!

Purple-stained and pillowy soft, these ricotta balls are delicate and delicious with a hint of blueberry. Once assembled, they cook quickly, so prep gnudi ahead of time for a quick and satisfying meal! Instead of olive oil, finish this dish off with a drizzle of honey and transform this dish from savoury to sweet! Gnudi are best enjoyed the day they’re made.

Swap out balsamic glaze in crostata topping with this balsamic reduction with a strawberry kick!

A fruity spinach salad spinoff tops a hearty crostata packed full of juicy and sweet roasted summer strawberries. Served warm or cold, this beautiful rustic tart is plenty sophisticated for any afternoon brunch. In a pinch, you could substitute frozen pie dough to make the crust.

This smoothie bowl is not just for smoothie lovers! Thick and creamy, this tangy bowl of goodness is high in protein and fibre and a perfect way to include berries at breakfast. Sweetened with banana and completely customizable, top it with your favourite nuts and seeds to help you stay energized. Try adding a teaspoon of beetroot powder when blending and watch the colour pop!

The simplicity of this layered dessert hides its deeper and more complex aromatic flavours. A cherry compote subtly scented with rose makes an exquisite combination with cardamom yogurt and a topping of ground pistachios and dried rose petals. When buying rose petals, look for dried ones grown for edible use.

Just as lavender grows alongside thyme and rosemary, it is often included with these herbs in the French dried herb mix called herbes de Provence, a classic seasoning for lamb. This recipe gets a double dose of lavender by using it first in a similarly inspired fresh herb rub to season lamb prior to cooking and then with the addition of a blueberry jus amped up with fragrant lavender. Dried lavender works best in this recipe; find it in your local specialty grocery and make sure to look for products marked “culinary grade.”

There’s one flower you may already have in your pantry. The thin red threads we know as saffron are the stigmas pulled from the centre of the saffron crocus. Saffron brings bright colour and subtle earthy and slightly grassy floral flavours to dishes and is frequently used in rice dishes of all kinds—from biryani to paella and risotto. Here, saffron is used with cinnamon, cloves, and orange to lend flavour and colour to quinoa along with a classic combination of almonds and currants.

These mussels make an elegant and alluring cold appetizer that will stretch to feed a crowd. The classic combination of fennel and tomatoes is enlivened with a floral vinegar, prepared in advance. Alyssum has a peppery, aniselike flavour and, like fennel, pairs well with tomatoes.

When the heat of summer has you ready to wilt, this refreshing summer gazpacho with watermelon, tomatoes, and almond is guaranteed to cool you down. Marigold petals are used to make a slightly spicy, peppery oil with mild notes of citrus; it’s used in the soup and as a beautiful edible garnish. Avoid the bases or “heels” of marigold flowers, as they can be quite bitter.

Pretty on the plate, this salad of delicate greens contains bright, juicy, tart sorrel; crisp radish; and delicate bachelor’s buttons. Despite the blue, pink, and purple hues of bachelor’s buttons, also known as cornflowers, their flavour is fresh and green. The dressing comes together with a bachelor’s button vinegar made in advance by infusing the flower heads into apple cider vinegar for a bright, subtly sweet flavour. If you can’t find bachelor’s buttons, you can use nasturtium or violas.

Fresh, light, and a little zingy, this beverage is a wonderful nonalcoholic option to serve at game-day festivities.

Burgers are a perennial game-day favourite, but not always a nutritional win. Root for the healthier team by swapping out beef for salmon and cheese slices for a velvety feta yogurt sauce. And then finish everything off with a stack of veggies. To let all the other flavours and textures shine through, consider subtracting the bun. For burgers, panko bread crumbs or quick-cooking oat flakes can be used as a replacement for almond flour.

Despite its traditional game-day look, this glorious spread is not your average stack of nachos. In a huge win for vegetarian sports fans, we swapped ground beef for meaty tempeh stewed with tomatoes and a winning mix of seasonings. Black beans, punchy radish, creamy avocado, and melty cheese round out a dish that could not be more fun to eat. If you want these nachos to be fully plant-based you can use shredded dairy-free cheese. To go a little more traditional, regular tortilla chips can be used instead of the sweet potato variety.