February 1, 2017
At the risk of disagreeing with Jane Austen, poetry is not the food of love. The truth is far more simple: food is the food of love. We gather around tables and break bread together to do more than fill our bellies. Eating helps us commune and share with each other, creating understanding, friendship, and sometimes romance. This month I’m…
January 1, 2017
January can be a month of deprivation. The New Year’s craze for cleanses and fasting, all in the name of renewal and improvement, is simply not for me. Life is too short to spend at least one month out of twelve trying to convince yourself that you can live happily on green juice and air alone. Isn’t it better to…
A dig through the food archives reveals what people were eating a century ago. Bright speeches made after justice had been done to the menu — The Morning Guardian, April 19, 1901 Apparently the best party ever to take place on Prince Edward Island was a dinner for two hockey teams held the evening of April 18, 1901. I make…
December 1, 2016
December is chocolate month here in The Little Island Kitchen, and what fun it was developing these recipes! From the awesome chocolatiers that I was able to source from to the last little spoonful of the final product, every moment has been a joy. I think that is part of the magic of chocolate – its power to delight and…
November 1, 2016
You’ve probably had it before. It might even be in your fridge right now: those gorgeous stripes of pink and white, and scrumptious flavour just waiting to be served up. I’m talking about pork belly.“This cheaper cut is about way more than just bacon,” according to Chris van Ouwerkerk, owner of Butcher & Butcher in Charlottetown. Pork belly is most…
November 1, 2016
With the abundance of produce on PEI this time of year, the effort to preserve and store vegetables for the winter has already begun. When looking at the many preserving methods, the health benefits of fermentation deserve attention. Fermentation involves breaking down food using microorganisms. Quite often these microbes naturally occur, as is the case with sauerkraut; the microbes on…
October 1, 2016
You may not have heard of them, and I certainly hadn’t until they arrived in my CSA box last autumn, but delicata squash have quickly become my favourite autumn vegetable. Golden yellow, long, and striped with a deep green, these sweet squashes are absolute lifesavers on busy weeknights when supper needs to happen fast. They have all the rich and…
October 1, 2016
This little berry packs a big punch! Elderberries, from the sambucus nigra plant, are wonderful immune-enhancing berries that can help protect our cells against some viral infections – perfect for the upcoming cold and flu season. The high antioxidant content of the berries also helps quell inflammation, making this berry a great choice for an autumn immune boost. Elderberries grow…
October 1, 2016
In food, as in fashion, sometimes less is more. I’m not referring to tiny, mean little plates that leave you begging for more. I’m talking about pared down, simple flavours that celebrate the natural essence of ingredients. Tomatoes are a perfect example of this principle. I can hardly think of a truer taste of summer than a sun-warmed tomato fresh…