Black Bean Salsa

This black bean salsa is one of the few dishes that I like raw onions in. And this is surprising given the onion-to-other-ingredients ratio. It has a lot! If you bring it along to a BBQ or picnic, encourage everyone to eat it. And they will, as it’s highly addictive.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

These mini apple muffins are a big hit with adults and kids alike. I made these when my niece Daisy was visiting Vancouver and she gobbled them up.

Grilled Vegetable Pan Bagnat

Now that summer is here, let’s all go on a picnic! Pan Bagnat, a yummy french layered sandwich, is what I want to bring. This sandwich is layered perfection in all of its glory. You can make it well in advance and it feeds a lot of people. A traditional Pan Bagnat has tuna, egg slices, anchovies, and olives. But this recipe is vegetarian and you can use whatever vegetables, meat/protein, and cheese you like or have on hand. Steph McVox and I use to make this sandwich for our Mother’s Day picnics with Mom and Cate–before I moved to Vancouver. We have lots of good memories of those days and we’re long overdue for a picnic. -bvox

Grilled Vegetable Pan Bagnat

• 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 large round country loaf
• 1-2 zucchinis, sliced length-way, grilled
• 1 eggplant, sliced length-way, grilled
• 4 portabello mushrooms, gilled and grilled
• 2 medium-size, ripe tomatoes, sliced
• 1 large red onion, caramelized with herbs
• Slices of your favourite cheese (I used brie)
• 12 large basil leaves

1. Grill vegetables (brush with oil and salt and pepper first) and caramelize your onions first. You can also use raw onions and cucumber slices to work around this step.
2. Whisk together red wine vinegar, olive oil, Dijon, salt and pepper together in a small bowl.
3. Slice country loaf in half and pull out some of the soft interior crumb to form a cavity.
4. Drizzle half of the vinaigrette mixture on the bottom of the bread. Top with layers of your vegetables and cheese. Drizzle remaining vinaigrette over the top. Cover with the second bread half and firmly press the sandwich together.
5. Wrap the sandwich tightly in plastic wrap, then place in a plastic bag. Put sandwich under a weight, such as a cast-iron frying pan topped with something heavy and sturdy. Weight sandwich for 10 minutes, then flip and weight it for another 10 minutes. Unwrap, slice and serve–or keep it wrapped for up to 8 hours before serving.

 

Herbed Chickpeas

This chickpea dish is my latest food obsession. I’ll make a batch at the start of the week as my quick lunch and dinner go-to staple. Cooking the chickpeas gives them a nice toasted crunch on outside and a creamy bite on the inside.

Classic Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Tomato soup is one of life’s big comforts. And whoever thought of pairing a bowl of tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich should be granted knighthood. Sharp gooey cheddar snuggled between buttery crispy bread longs to be dunked into bowls of rich tomatey goodness. Grilled cheese sandwiches are my favourite sandwich and one of the first things I learned how to cook as a child. I’d often make them for lunch alongside a bowl of Campbell’s tomato soup. Now I make my own.

Leslie’s Tourtière

Each Christmas our mom Leslie makes tourtière, the French Canadian classic. Traditionally tourtière is a New Year’s Eve meal in Quebec but it has become our family tradition to have it on Christmas Eve. I look forward to it as my mom makes a vegetarian version with veggie ground round for me! Served up savoury with baking spices such as nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon – tourtière is comfort food on steroids.

Merry Cheeseball!

My family loves a good cheeseball. Every Christmas this retro crowd-pleaser appears alongside the cheese and pickle tray, in a variety of flavours, shapes, and sizes.