Last week, She's So Green blogger, Samantha, gave us a few great tips on container gardening.  This was a post that is close to my heart.  I am a huge fan of uber-local eating and over the past few summers, have slowly been converting my backyard flowerbeds into my own little urban farm, growing everything from parsley to potatoes.  However, I recognize that the extent of my garden isn't for everyone.  It takes a lot of time, effort, research, and patience to grow a great food garden...something not all of us have.  Luckily, there are a few edibles that are super-cheap,... More »

Last weekend, I was treated to the Girlfriends Getaway package at Horseshoe Resort in Ontario's Muskoka region.  On my drive up there, my mind wandered to all of the exciting events we had planned: a yoga class, massage, facial, and time to relax in the pool and hot tub.  But you know what I was most excited about? The food.  I had been dying to try the food there ever since I read that executive chef Dylan Tulloch was selected as the "local chef of the year."  Now, not only was I going to eat in his restaurant, Silks, I... More »

I know that after five years I should know to expect it, but the 12 weeks between Easter Break and the last day of school are the most hectic 12 weeks of my year.  Between coaching track & field, squeezing every last bit of learning out of my students, helping my son prepare for exams, persuading my daughter to do homework even though its hot and sunny, training for my spring running races, working on my vegetable and herb garden, and getting my kids ready for sleepover camp, I barely have time to breathe, let alone time to have dinner... More »

Over the past three weeks, I've have the privilege of attending three diverse, yet amazing foodie events: The Good Food and Drink Show, The Green Living Show, and DishCrawl Toronto.  At the Good Food and Drink Show, I got to sample the latest and greatest trends in the Toronto Food scene.  I found out that tea is the new coffee, trucks are the new restaurants, and beer is the new wine.  The back-to-basics local eating movement continues...with a side of South Asian and Caribbean.  These trends were mirrored the next week at the Green Living Show, when I found out that... More »

I didn't cook my family dinner tonight.Ok. That's not altogether true.  Technically, I did prepare dinner, but it took very little skill or effort and it wasn't up to my personal standards of excellence.  My roast chicken was store-bought, my broccoli was plainly steamed, and my potatoes wedges were the simplest, one-two step recipe ever.This is the polar opposite of the usual homemade ravioli/decorate-your-own meatloaf cupcake/caprese-salad kababs concoctions I normally serve my family. But between the drum lessons and badminton team and play practice and Hebrew school and the emergency trip to the dollar store to get supplies for a... More »

Doughnuts.  They appear on almost every single list of top 10 foods to avoid. Yet I just can't seem to resist their white flour, sugary, deep-fried fatty goodness.  Doughnuts are the reason I don't really mind driving my son to his 7am practices.  You see, there's this little hole-in-the-wall coffee shop that bakes outrageously delicious doughnuts.  But you only have one chance per day to get 'em hot and fresh, which is, you guessed it, 7am. Besides these doughnuts, I really do try to eat healthy by reducing unnecessary fats in my diet.  I eat Greek Yogurt instead of sour cream,... More »

So if I haven't scared you off yet with the promise of yet another chicken recipe, let me reassure you now that this one is special...for a few reasons.1. Your kids will love it.2. You will love it.3. Your kids and you will love making it.Now that I've regained your confidence, let me tell you what you'll be making: Potato Chip Chicken.Lots of people have heard about it, some have tried it, but not too many are doing it properly.  The chips don't stick, its too salty, its too greasy, its too soggy, and overall, its just doesn't taste as good... More »

"I can't believe it's KOSHER!"The five magic words every Jewish cooks wishes to hear during Passover. Beginning this Monday evening, we will have to find creative and delicious ways to feed our families without the use of bread, pasta, rice, cereal, and a whole bunch of other no-nos--including beer and mustard. Throw a couple of giant family feasts (Seders) with very specific ceremonial foods that must be served and you've got the culinary challenge of the year on your hands. Most Kosher-for-Passover recipes call for substituting taboo ingredients for the their Kosher counterpart, but that's not how I roll.  I don't... More »

So all week long, I'd been planning to give you an awesome recipe for green cookies for St. Patrick's Day.  I could've just added green food colouring to my favourite oatmeal cookie recipe but no, I had to get all "healthy" and "creative".  So I tossed the tried and true aside and instead, experimented with a new recipe for cookies that calls for avocado in place of butter. Apparently, the taste disappears while the green colour remains.  "Perfect!" I though to myself.  "What a perfect GREEN recipe for St. Paddy's Day!"Silly me. They were, in a word, VILE.  Vile to look... More »

Even though I'm chronologically 39 (yikes!)-years-old and feeling more and more my age every day, in my mind there are tons of times I still feel like a kid.  Like how I still laugh at toilet humour.  Or how I still love all those gross-out movies like (don't judge me) Jackass and The Hangover.  And of course, when I see such movies, I always eat the junkiest but most delicious snack ever: Popcorn with layered butter with a package of peanut m&m's tossed in the bag.  It's my belief that if you're gonna treat yourself, you might as well go... More »