Bistecca Fiorentina
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This traditional steak dish of Florence is world-renowned. The best bistecca comes from the Chianina herd of cattle, bred in Italy for their rich flavour and relative leaness.
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These recipes are developed, tested and re-tested until perfect. Try one at home tonight.
Featured Recipes
Baby Lettuce and Seedling Salad with Mushroom Confit
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A confit, traditionally, is a way to preserve duck or goose. The same method is used here to preserve the mushrooms. They will keep covered in oil for 2 weeks. I often double the amount of mushrooms just to have some left over.
Read MoreCuban Stir-Fry of Pork, Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes
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A tasty stir-fry combining ingredients that are Cuban. Use canned black beans and shred the sweet potato on a mandolin or grater. This insures it cooks quickly in the skillet.
Read MoreChicken Breasts with Herb Stuffing
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This chicken is a sparkling spring-like dish. Use the earliest herbs in your garden or buy your favourite kinds. Serve with a vegetable confit.
Read MoreChocolate Roulade Filled with Chocolate Cream
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A rich roll of chocolate with a knockout filling. If the roll breaks you can always patch it together with the chocolate
Read MoreBrined Pork Chops with Apple Ginger Sauce and Farro
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The secret to juicy pork chops, which can easily become dry when grilled or baked, is brining. It really does make all the difference and renders the meat not only succulent but extra-flavourful.
Read MoreSoto Ayam
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During the four years Victoria Hutton lived in Jakarta, she fell in love with the fresh, pungent flavours of Indonesian food. With an abiding interest in cooking, she decided to explore the cuisine and write a book, now in the planning stages, for non-Indonesians. One of her favourite dishes is Soto Ayam, the popular chicken noodle soup served with many garnishes. It makes a wonderful family dinner as everyone chooses their own add-ins.
Radicchio and Roasted Grape Salad
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It was at Enoteca Sociale in Toronto that I first tried a dish similar to this one and I was blown away by the intensity of its flavour. The slight bitterness of radicchio is offset by the sweetness of the grapes, which become even sweeter through roasting. I
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Cuban Chicken and Rice
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This dish is a shout-out to Cuba, whose food will probably become more Americanized now that it’s easier for Americans to travel there. Chicken and rice is really the national Cuban dish and most families have their own recipe. This one is mine. It is a close cousin to paella but with Cuban spicing. Use short grain rice, either Spanish or Italian arborio.
Read MoreVietnamese Shrimp Pancakes
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These lacy, gluten-free pancakes, known as bánh xèo in Vietnam, can be wrapped around all kinds of fillings, including leftover stir-fries and vegetable curries. Or, served with ginger-lime sauce, they’re a perfect match for fish or seafood.
Read MorePeruvian Spiced Fish with Quinoa
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There’s no real substitute for the yellow aji peppers used commonly in Peru. They are quite hot and have a grassy flavour. I have used serrano peppers here, which is not quite the same but still makes this dish inspiring. Halibut is not a fish used in Peru. You would more likely find this made with Chilean sea bass. I recommend using sustainable fish if you can find it.
Read MoreBraised Artichokes Barigole
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This classic buttery French dish only works with small artichokes. If you prefer not to add the butter at the end, omit it. Without butter, the dish will be more classic Italian than French.
Read MorePasta Carbonara
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Made with pancetta, eggs, cheese and cream, carbonara is soaked in tradition.
Read MoreFlatbread with Dandelion Greens Pesto
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I used a flatbread that was about 9 x 12 inches (23 x 30 cm). If dandelion greens are unavailable, replace with arugula (which does not have quite the same punch but is good nevertheless).
Read MoreOrecchiette with Fiddleheads
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This sauté highlights some of the earliest spring vegetables, which you can interchange as they become available; try asparagus, early mushrooms like morels or spring greens.
Read MoreFava Bean, Red Potato and Mushroom Compote
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f you can’t find fresh fava beans, you can substitute edamame. Morel mushrooms or chanterelles would be perfect in this dish if they are available. Hon shimeji don’t have quite as pronounced a flavour, but they are available at this time as they are grown indoors. If you have a herb garden the chives are probably peeking out by now.
Read MoreCrisp Skinned Maple Salmon
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This is the time of year when maple trees are being tapped and sap is flowing. Use new maple syrup or finish up last year’s batch for this recipe. Use a nonstick pan or if you are a confident cook, use a heavy pan like a cast iron one for the best crisp skin.
Read MoreJerusalem Artichoke and Bacon Chowder
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Jerusalem artichokes (not actually artichokes, but rather root vegetables) are perfect for spring with their artichoke-like flavour. This chowder could be puréed (if you omit the bacon) to make a creamy soup.
Read MoreKonkan Shrimp Curry
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Miheer Shete of Toronto’s Bannock restaurant has trained and worked around the world. Originally from Mumbai, he came to Canada five years ago but never lost the taste of home. The flavours in this curry are inspired by Konkan, a coastal area near Mumbai where coconut, curry leaves, tamarind and seafood are abundant. This is a variation on his octopus curry that was one of the most popular dishes at CurryFest
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