May 1, 2018
Kevin and Aurora MacLean build success around plant-based eating If you’ve been looking at the menus at many of Charlottetown’s restaurants you’ve probably noticed more plant-based options. Last year saw the opening of PEI’s first largely-vegan restaurant, followed by the opening of PEI’s first fully vegan cafe earlier this year. The steady growth in veganism on PEI is undeniable—more people are…
March 31, 2018
What’s that food? Water chestnuts and the tree chestnuts found in your backyard are not related and belong to two different plant families, though they do look very similar and both are delicious. There are two different plants that are referred to as water chestnuts. The one we’re describing is the the Chinese eleocharis dulcis, not the water caltrop. Water…
March 1, 2018
Local-grown versus off-Island goods sparks debate in farmers’ markets Winter poses a variety of challenges for small-scale farmers who have booths at farmers’ markets. The most notable one is the ability to keep their booth filled with fresh, locally grown produce. Some farmers use greenhouses to grow produce throughout the winter months, however, quantities and variety generally become limited. There…
March 1, 2018
(What’s that food?) Taro is a tropical root vegetable that originated in India and Southeast Asia, and it is believed to be one of the earliest cultivated plants. The most commonly eaten part of the taro plant is its starchy corm-similar to a tuber-and is a staple of worldwide cuisines, including in Africa, China, India, and throughout the South Pacific…
February 1, 2018
(What’s that Food?) You will more than likely smell this large, tropical fruit before you see it, and chances are you will think you are smelling something other than what you are. Durian: some love it, and some love to hate it. It can be eaten raw when it is ripe or can be cooked. Enthusiasts and those familiar with…
January 1, 2018
Warming up to Indian cuisine in PEI’s capital There’s been something special in the air in Charlottetown lately, and it’s not just the remnants of Christmas spirit. How about freshly baked naan and the scent of richly spiced curries that have been simmering into perfection? The alluring smell of Indian food is now more common and recognizable in Charlottetown than…
January 1, 2018
(What’s that food) This is celeriac. The root vegetable is also called celery root, but in fact it’s not the root of store-bought celery. Celeriac is grown for its root rather than its stalks. It might not be the prettiest looking vegetable, but what it lacks in appearance it makes up in taste and nutrition. Looking a bit like a…
December 1, 2017
PEI Sea Salt Company launches From the waters of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence on the north shore of P.E.I. comes a sea-salty new business that two Island entrepreneurs dove right into. “The PEI Sea Salt Company – it automatically identifies us as local, and we’re all about local,” said co-founder, Darren Blanchard. Blanchard originally got into the sea salt…
October 1, 2017
Brian and Lorna McMaster, The Taco Farmers, want you to save your seeds The Taco Farmers. The name is pretty spot on when you consider that Lorna and Brian McMaster grow nearly 100 per cent of the ingredients for the menu of their taco-centric booth at the Charlottetown Farmers’ Market. However, what you may not realize is that your tortilla…
September 1, 2017
Chef Kyle Panton’s vision to bring local ingredients to Island restaurants It may have all started with a couple of slices of white bread. On a busy, fateful day during chef Kyle Panton’s early teen years, he was asked to help out in the kitchen at his mother’s diner in Belfast, making his first out-of-home sandwiches. “I absolutely loved it.…