Friday 5 – What to do with spring vegetables

By Chris Garbutt

It’s been a while, but I thought it was time for another Friday 5. Vegetables are finally fresh again! So let’s look at five links on what to do with them:

1. Radishes. Radish, Boursin & Chive Tartines.

2. Spinach. Italian Sausage & Spinach Pasta.

3. Asparagus. Well, you can make Chicken, Feta and Asparagus Salad for yourself. Or maybe an Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Lemon Pasta. Of course, you can eat it on its own, but can you eat it with your fingers? Forget all that, just grill it already!

4. Scallions. Make pancakes! Yummy!

5. If you can find some really really fresh peas (I might be pushing this one in Toronto right now), try this one.

…

Oh, all right…

Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a big fan of rhubarb. But it is a classic spring vegetable, so enjoy. Just don’t ask me over:

Rhubarb Soup

Orange-Rhubarb Compote

Rhubarb Cobbler – I think this would be amazing with any fruit, by the way. If you substitute, please ask me over.

Friday 5 – Dishes to Help Keep You Warm

By Stephanie Dickison

According to the Weather Network, it feels like -24 degrees today.  Ugh.

So, I give you 5 dishes to help keep warm on this blustery day.

Enjoy!

1.  Stick to your ribs Spicy Mac ‘n Cheese

2. Nothing says hearty like Braised Short Ribs!

3. Hearty Sausage & Corn Chowder keeps ‘em coming back for more

4.  Tuscan Pot Roast – just the name makes me drool!

5.  Keep it simple, but heartywith this Farmer’s Dinner

Friday 5 – Perfection

By Chris Garbutt

Anyone who believes that nothing’s perfect hasn’t read enough food blogs. The word “perfect” appears millions of times. Herewith, a perfect storm of perfection from the foodiesphere:

1. You know you’ve been looking for it: The Perfect Mac n Cheese. I ask you, have you found a better version?

2. No one knows perfection better than Martha. In honour of the coming American holiday, here is Her Stewartness’s perfect Thanksgiving turkey.

3. Always screwing up boiled rice? Apparently you can get it right, and it will be perfect! Still, do people really have that much trouble with boiling rice?

4. The word “perfect” appears in this post. It’s my excuse to put in a link to Butter and Radish sandwiches. A little out of season, but man, I gotta try me one of those!

5. This whole blog thinks it’s perfect. I won’t argue. Check out the post on cooking pumpkin flowers.

Friday 5 – Chili

By Chris Garbutt

As we’ve mentioned in the past, October is national chili month in the U.S. Let’s have a look at some chili options:

1. Because we just can’t get enough of Newfoundland, from Rock Recipes, a Grilled Corn, Roasted Red Pepper and Sausage Chili.

2. I wondered if this American classic had a Canadian version. So I Googled “Canadian Chili” and got this.

3. A nice variation: White Bean and Chicken Chili.

4. It’s not chili, but it’s loaded with chillis – Tofu with Beans and Bok Choy.

5. Can chili kill you? Apparently so.

Friday 5 – A Brief Random Blogroll

By Chris Garbutt

1. Can slow roasted tomatoes take you to heaven? Try it yourself.

2. Elana Safronsky asks the question: do we really need to use plates for take-out?

3. Who has the best beer in the Canada? Check out the results of the Canadian Beer Awards.

4. Have you had edamame at home? You must. Here are some tips.

5. James Chatto of Toronto Life fame considers the future of cuisine in Toronto.

Friday 5 – Squash

By Chris Garbutt

Stephanie and I liked the Fall Foods 5 post so much, I thought I’d offer some more, with a focus on squash. It’s not just for Thanksgiving anymore!

1. Butternut squash soup is so passé. Try Acorn Squash Soup with Cumin and Curry Leaf.

2. Slice up that butternut squash instead and make a pastry.

3. It’s a recipe for Sausage and Rapini Stew, but the squash pulls it all together.

4. Save the seeds and roast them. Or keep them for planting.

5. Pumpkin is a squash, and now it’s a flavour for a beer.

Photo by Flickr user x-eyedblonde, used under a Creative Commons licence.

Friday 5 – Beets!

By Chris Garbutt

Before we get too deeply into the fall, let’s take a look at the red sensation — beets.

1. A recipe for Beetroot and Potato Salad.

2. Keep it simple: a Beet & Chevre Salad.

3. Nothing better than borscht: Svalbard Beet Soup with Goose Stock.

4. Try it raw: Grated Carrots & Beets.

5. Make it pink: Beet Gnocchi.

Photo by Flickr user Ayala Moriel used under a Creative Commons Licence. Check out her beet salad recipe.

Friday 5 – Top Posts of the Summer

By Chris Garbutt

It’s been a fun summer of blogging here at Pan Magazine. Here are our five most popular links of the last four months:

1. A Capital Berry – My love letter to strawberries in season.

2. Five Delicious Newfoundland Dishes – A selection of the best from the rock.

3. Ten Reasons to Love Chocolate: A Healthy Passion – One of our favourite books this summer, on an ingredient we can enjoy year-round.

4. Magic Gnocchi Night – An Argentinian tradition.

5. Eat Local, Save the Environment a Little – Turns out red meat is more environmentally damaging than food that comes from thousands of miles away.

Friday 5 – Hot Dog!

By Chris Garbutt

As summertime comes to a close, let’s get back to an old summer classic — the hot dog.

1. What the heck is a half-smoke? Looks like a chili dog to me, but it looks different from anything I’ve tried. Find out the history of this Washington, D.C. favourite here. Although, apparently, it’s not really a hot dog at all.

2. For locavore/carnivores in Toronto, here are some local hot dogs.

3. I’ve seen stuff like this before, but it’s still ridiculous.

4. Did you know that the U.S. has a hot dog season? Did you know that during that season – Memorial Day to Labour Day – Americans eat 7 billion hot dogs? Did you know that works out to 818 hot dogs a second?? Now you do.

5. Gourmet hot dogs – you knew it was coming.

Photo by Flickr user jslander used under a creative commons licence. Apparently, slaw on hot dogs is a West Virginia thing. I think Carolinians would beg to differ.

Friday 5 – Fall Foods to Look Forward To

By Stephanie Dickison

It’s not that far away, people. We might as well start to get excited about all the squash, potatoes and stews.  And collecting recipes…

1.  Pumpkin and corn soup!  It doesn’t get much more fall than that.

2.  Well, when the cooler weather hits, fast and easy does sound rather appealing, doesn’t it?

3.  To our lovely vegetarian readers, you’ll want to skip over this one.

4.  But here, I’ll make it up to you with these squash side dishes!  I hope we’re okay now.

5.  Fall’s Most Fattening Foods.  ‘Nuff said.