Food

Apples, cheese, and leafy greens are the mainstay here—but feel free to add olive oil croutons, pickled onions or beets, or slivers of cooked chicken or turkey. Use Pink Lady, Empire, or Gala apples for their fresh, explosive flavours.

Tender soba noodles combined with meaty shiitake mushrooms, crisp snow peas, and a vibrant sauce flavoured with lime, ginger, garlic, and toasted sesame oil. Zesty, fragrant, healthy, and entirely delicious!

An upscale salad that is simple to make and always gets raves from company. The dressing alone is so wonderful you’ll want to double it and serve it over baby greens just for you.

If the thought of cooking the big bird makes you want to head for the hills, why not try the smaller cousin of the poultry family? Good old reliable chicken—make it organic and free-range, the lifestyle makes the chicken taste much better.

The black beans marry well with the vegetables and spices in what can only be described as a chili that warms even if the weather outside is frightful.

Roasted squash is a great alternative to potatoes. Eat it by itself, as a side, or add it to a salad or risotto.

You won’t miss the pasta with this savoury spaghetti squash dish.

Steaming fish in parchment paper packages keeps it juicy and moist. While the fish cooks, prepare the coleslaw.

This one-pot chicken and rice jumble gets an autumnal boost from butternut squash and is laced with the fragrant perfume of a variety of mixed dried spices. It’s not a spicy dish but is wonderful served with harissa, a North African spicy pepper paste.

What makes this pasta dish so quick is the sauce—you barely cook it. Big cherry or campari tomatoes look pretty and are quick to prep—just slice in half.

This is a rich, hearty dinner salad. A mix of cremini, field, and shiitake mushrooms adds a buttery tasting depth of flavour that goes well with nutty farro.

This is akin to a stir-fry but with whole pork chops instead of strips. Buy quick-cooking skinny chops, no thicker than a 1/2 inch. For best flavour use fresh ginger instead of bottled—it’s worth the extra minute or so to grate it.

Here’s a cold chaser rich in vitamins A and C plus essential iron.

Loaded with folic acid, potassium, vitamin A, and beta carotene, spaghetti squash is an excellent low-fat alternative to pasta.

Morels are as delicious as they are dear in price, so you might want to start by experimenting with other mushroom varieties. The exotic varieties are common enough in Canada and carry both good nutrition and a broad range of flavours and textures.

Served with boiled baby potatoes and seasonal vegetables, this will warm whatever winter is left in your bones. Lamb or chicken can also be substituted, but keep an eye on the moisture level and reduce your simmering time accordingly.

In a large re-sealable plastic bag, combine:

Beets are high in folic acid and potassium and are a good source of vitamins A and C.

Fresh asparagus is the truest sign that spring has sprung. These edible spears have been cultivated throughout the ages by Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans. Rich in dietary fibre, folic acid, and potassium while low in calories and containing no fat or cholesterol, these young shoots are now prepared nearly worldwide in countless ways and an be easily pickled for keeping.

The first fronds yet unfurled of a young fern, fiddleheads get their name from their shape and are also referred to as crosiers, the curved staff used by shepherds. A seasonal delicacy requiring a good rinse and thorough cooking, fiddleheads are a traditional dish of Canada’s East Coast.

Favoured by fish lovers for its sweet firmness and nutritional profile, halibut also has blessedly few bones. Rich in omega-3 essential fats and a strong source of protein, it veritably swims with the minerals selenium, magnesium, phosphorus, and potassium. Most importantly, the taste is unbeatable!

Various types of beets and honey can take this dish in plenty of delicious directions. Honey takes its flavour from the fields that surround the apiary and there are many varieties to explore, ranging from fireweed to blueberry to wildflower.

The key here is a good butcher with the bones to prove it! Naturally, you can work with other poultry as well, though the duck bones do bring a greater flavour to the broth.

Sourcing organic protein and working with large cuts is both responsible and delicious, yielding unsurpassed flavour and value. The only way for the choice of protein to be improved is through consumer voice, so don’t be bashful with your butcher.