grilled veggie fajitas

pictured above: grilled halloumi & asparagus & green/yellow zucchini drizzled w/garlic tahini marinade


It's been very hot here in Toronto, too hot to turn on any inside elements. Our meals are either huge bowls of salad, or BBQ something or other, or my favourite: leftovers stuffed into a tortilla.

If you invest about 30 mins washing, slicing, marinading some veggies, about 15 mins grilling (or more time depending on how many veggies you have), then you'll have a weeks worth of delicious, nutritious meals.

GRILLED VEGGIE & HALLOUMI FAJITAS

3 yellow zucchini
3 green zucchini
2 bunches of asparagus
2 pkg halloumi

prepping veggies:

wash zucchini, chop off ends, and then slice lengthwise in 1/4 inch slices (you should get about 5 slices)

wash asparagus, do not chop or cut, simply hold it by the spear and the base and arch in half, asparagus will snap where it needs to on its own

rinse halloumi, slice up lengthwise in into about 5 slices, depending on size of your block

marinade: (try to prepare first thing in the morning so that marinade flavours marry)

12 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
couple splashes of tamari
3 cloves of garlic crushed
dash of cayenne pepper
couple of pinches of brown sugar
sea salt (not much since tamari is already salty, and halloumi is saltyish)
cracked black pepper to taste


when you are hungry:

fire up bbq for about 20 minutes

place all veggies in a large glass or metal lasagna dish; pour marinade over veggies, using tongs make sure everything gets some marinade on it, let sit for 20 minutes (while bbq heats up)

after 20 minutes, dump veggie & halloumi salad into a grill pan (make sure to place it ontop of a spill proof pan w/edges so that marinade doesn't spill everywhere)

place on bbq, cook veggies on medium heat, unlike meat, veggies need more TLC so every couple of minutes toss mixture around w/tongs otherwise they will burn and halloumi will melt through the slots on your pan

once asparagus is as tender as you like, remove from heat

lastly, stuff veggie & halloumi mixture into a tortilla, add a couple slices of avocado and enjoy

next day you will have one of the best lunches of your life

Toronto Taste - pssst

To date, Toronto Taste has sold 1000 tickets to this Sunday's 20th Anniversary event! This year, like every year, they work tirelessly to make hunger history. By selling 600 more tickets, they will be one huge step closer to alleviating the huge burden that is hunger to those in the city of Toronto.

Second Harvest's vision is 'that no one need ever go hungry in the communities we serve'. Together, we CAN help make this a reality.

Pssst, want to know who else is helping?

All the Best Fine Foods will present Braised Korean Short Ribs w/Pickled Carrots

Chiado Restaurant will present Lobster w/Passionfruit Coulis and Panfried Bananas

Hiro Sushi together with Forte Bistro will present Pan Seared Smoked Salmon Sushi Rolls w/Rabbit Pate Japanese Mustard and Nori Paste

Dufflet Pastries will present, something scrumptious...and Chef Michael Smith will cook up sheer delights...and, well, there's so much more.
Please come see for yourself.

Toronto Taste - a taste of Toronto

Toronto Taste 2010

Just got off the phone with Patty Lowry, Copywriter Extraordinaire(!), we chatted about her involvement in this year's Make Hunger History campaign, which marks the 20th anniversary of Second Harvest's Toronto Taste fundraiser.

I asked her, how did it feel to work on this pro bono project?

She said, 'doing something from the heart is so satisfying. It gives us an opportunity to make a difference'.

She went on to say, that doing pro bono work for Second Harvest is near and dear to her heart, because it's about helping those closest to us, hungry people on the streets of where we live.


For me, trying to make sense of scarcity in such an abundant society is a complex issue, it makes me sad, and frustrated, but I know that together we do make a difference.


Toronto Taste is this Sunday, June 13, 6:30pm-10pm, at the ROM

Join 60 of the Toronto's top Chefs and 25 beverage purveyors for an unforgettable evening.



'Pairing cuisine and compassion' is a huge responsibility, please buy a ticket to the event, or buy raffle tickets for great prizes or bid on the auction items.

To purchase tickets, please contact the Second Harvest office at 416.408.2594.

Hope to see you there :-)

Oh-how-we-adore-buttermilk Pancakes!

I always triple this recipe, that way we get one huge Sunday morning breakfast, then the next day the kids can have pancakes for dinner, and then again for breakfast the following day!

1 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tablespoon sugar
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk
2 generous tablespoons butter
splash of maple syrup
splash of pure vanilla extract

Add 2 tablespoons of butter to a non stick frying pan, and melt butter on low, set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together.

In a separate bowl whisk egg, then add buttermilk, and a splash of vanilla and a splash of maple syrup. Mix well. Add butter. Mix well.
Add the wet to the dry. Mix well.

Pour batter onto your non stick. Sometimes I use a ladle, other times I use a large spoon, other times I pour freehand (depending on how large the kids like the pancakes).

If you have a waffle maker, this same recipe is great for waffles.

Enjoy! xoxo

Apple Butterscotch Muffins

One of my best friends, Mama M G, has been tweaking her muffin recipes for the last couple of years. She makes great muffins, but like most of us homecooks, she enjoys challenging herself to tweak the recipe 'just a bit'. She came over a week ago today, with a new batch of muffins to share and declared that she'd finally perfected her recipe, which means she is content to stop tweaking.

One bite into these mouthfuls of joy and I knew she was right! These are moist, and sooo flavourful and just too darn delicious to stop at one, yet healthy that you don't feel guilty eating three. Trust me, I know!

Enjoy! Let me know how it goes and I'll pass on your feedback to Mama M G - who will eventually dip her toe into blogging...


Apple Butterscotch Muffins
Makes 24

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup vanilla yogurt
3 large apples, grated, skins and all
1 cup butterscotch chips
　

Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Line 24 muffin cups and set aside.

Mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon, and set aside.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and add the granulated sugar and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar. Beat until fluffy. Add the egg and mix. Mix in the yogurt. Stir in the dry ingredients and fold in the apple. Next add the chips.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, sprinkling the remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar on top.

Bake for 10 minutes, turn the heat down to 400°F, and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Cool the muffins for 5 minutes in the tin, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Tamra Davis Rocks!

Watch Tamra Davis cooking and feeding people at the Food Bank for New York City. She's awesome and inspiring! PS all her shows are great!!

Bakers Journal April 2010

So grateful to Bakers Journal for publishing our story in the April 2010 edition of their awesome publication! Brian Hartz is definitely the nicest, most professional, and supportive Editor I've ever worked with, ever! Thank you Brian for giving us the opportunity to share our fundraising story. Hopefully others will enjoy learning about how our community is helping another community (with MSF and FINCA's help); learning about the power of social marketing; and enjoy the reminder that cupcakes, although small are enriching and magical beyond our comprehension.

Pub Fare Cupcake & friends @ #ironcupcake

Iron Cupcake Toronto was a great challange! Thank you For the Love of Cake for hosting; thank you to the gracious, caring and happy volunteers; thank you Brian for collaborating with me on this creative 'green & beer' focused adventure - loved the pretzel journey and your pretzel bench; thank you to little S and littler S for being so supportive of Team @foodplayground; thank you to Acts of Sweetness for encouragement and laughter; thank you KLB Cream Ale - you're one great versatile beer, great refreshing creamy ale AND great baking beer!

There were 16 competitors, yet the focus wasn't on competition it felt more like a celebration of how truly versatile cupcakes are. I admire all of my fellow participants' ingenuity and dedication to baking.

FYI, for those of you interested in participating, next month's secret ingredient: COFFEE!

Iron Cupcake Toronto! Mar 14, 1-3pm

We have a printing partner!

The Interprovincial Group just called, they will print our cookbook, pro bono!
So truly grateful for their belief in our Cupcakes 4 Haiti endeavours. Thank you!