Very Good Food

Michael Potters Recipe for Seared Scallops and Fresh Peas

I'm at a the filming of Chef Worthy, a new food show to air soon on W Network, waiting to be called to pass my expert judgment on an amateur chef's creation. Back stage with me is Micheal Potter, host of Chef Worthy and owner of Harvest restaurant in beautiful ...

Drink for a Good Cause This Summer

The Intercontinental in Toronto is featuring the Ernestine Elixir Cocktail all summer long on The Skylounge, my favourite city patio for lounging. A sweet mix of Hpnotiq, SOHO Lychee Liqueur and cranberry juice, it's served in a chilled vanilla sugar-rimmed martini glass. Feel good about indulging in a this treat ...

What is Merquen?

Today's foodie question is from Marlene who writes: "I purchased a spice called Merquen when in Chile. We had it in a dip served with sopappilas. I was wondering if you have a dip recipe using this spice." Merquen is a chili spice blend. It is made from smoked chilies called Cacho ...

Quick Clams on The Grill and Last Curtis Stone Cookbook Winner

This week's "relaxed" entertaining recipe is my brother-in-law's recipe for Quick Clams on the Grill. I love making these, they are so simple and delicious and kind of unexpected for most people. Make sure you have really good crusty bread to soak up the butter, garlic and clam juices! My last ...

Barbecue Poached Salmon with Basil Mayonaise and Curtis Stone Cookbook Winner

This week's "relaxed" entertaining recipe is for Barbecue Poached Salmon with Basil Mayonnaise. Hopefully it's warm enough where you live to break out the barbecue, if not you can pop this salmon in the oven. It's an incredibly easy dish to throw together and it takes no time to cook, totally impressive with ...

Bird Food… I’m on Twitter

I’ve joined the twitter band wagon. If you click on the twitter widget at the top left of the page you can follow my regular tweets. I’m tweeting about what’s going on in the test kitchen, what foodie moments I’m getting embroiled in and more food food food! Join me there ...

What’s the difference between Belgian and regular waffle?

Today's question comes from Jenni Stock who asks: "I would like to have someone explain to me the difference between Belgian waffles and normal waffles... Please advise. For example, could a waffle recipe be used in either machine, Belgian or classic? Thank You So Much, Jenni" Any pastry that is made in ...

Asparagus Brunch Bread Recipe and Curtis Stone Cookbook Winner

This weeks "relaxed" entertaining recipe is for Asparagus Brunch Bread in honour of the first local asparagus (hopefully asparagus has arrived in your region). This is really somewhere between a quick bread and a pancake. It's great as a main course with a salad or a few roasted potatoes, or ...

First Asparagus

I was making a special meal for my mom on Sunday and went out to look for asparagus. I went to three stores looking for local asparagus and came up short - disappointingly everything I found was of the mushy topped, limp stalked, imported variety, and so I resorted to ...

Unbleached Flour vs Bleached Flour - What’s the Difference?

This week's question comes to me from Catherine who writes: "This is a question for Christine @ The Foodie File. I am not sure if you have covered this topic before but I was wondering what would be the difference in using unbleached flour as opposed to the usual all-purpose flour? ...