Skip to content

Holiday 2024 Isssue

83 Pins

·

16 Sections

·

4mo

lcbofoodanddrink

By

LCBO Food & Drink Magazine

By reducing the sugar and adding a few spices, we’ve transformed granola into a savoury salad topper. Here, it finishes off a hearty winter salad of raw kale, carrots and parsnips, but its applications are endless. Sprinkle it on roasted vegetables, serve on a cheese board, or snack on it straight up.

Nothing is more comforting than a roast chicken dinner at home. This bird cooks over shallots braised in cider, apple butter and mustard. What really sets this chicken apart is its sweet, spicy and crispy skin, which is achieved by basting the bird with honey, cayenne and a secret ingredient: baking powder.

Equal parts cookie and brownie, these intensely chocolatey treats need nothing more than a warm drink to wash them down. Enter Malted White Hot Chocolate, the perfect creamy accompaniment.

Warm Welcomes - A cozy holiday season menu

This nostalgic cookie brings the best of both worlds: a structure that holds its shape when baked and a yummy flavour with the deep notes of molasses and spice. Because of a higher-than- usual sugar content, these gingerbreads are baked at a lower temperature than others. This ensures they bake through evenly without the risk of darkening the edges.

Royal icing is easy to use and very forgiving. If your icing’s too thick, you simply add a touch more water; if it’s too thin, add more icing sugar. It dries out quickly, so always keep the surface fully covered with plastic wrap. Meringue powder is a dried powder of sugar, pasteurized egg whites and stabilizers. It can be found at most bulk stores.

A traditional sugar cookie makes the perfect canvas to dress up with decorations. This delicious version works beautifully as is, but can also act as a vehicle for a range of seasonal flavours—vanilla bean, freshly grated nutmeg or citrus zests are great additions to customize your dough.

Smart Cookies - Cookie decorating 101

A lighter-textured cousin of pound cake, this butter cake blurs the line between sweet and savoury with sharp cheese and piney rosemary. A garnish of sweet grapes and richly caramelized honey take it to another level. If you feel like gilding the lily, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Instead of Penance, you could use any sharp, aged cheddar.

French onion soup is reimagined as a savoury sandwich cookie and a whimsical party snack. To make it vegetarian, simply replace the beef broth with vegetable. This recipe makes more onion jam than needed, but it’s a versatile condiment for a cheese or charcuterie board. Instead of Five Brothers, you could use Gruyère, Appenzeller or Comte.

Olives, their brine and blue cheese make this dip a salty, umami-rich treat to share with any fan of the übertrendy Dirty Martini. Juniper-forward Tanqueray London Dry Gin was used to develop this recipe, but any London dry gin will work nicely, and if gin isn’t your thing, try vodka. Instead of Highland Blue, you could use Roquefort or Bleu Bénédictin.

Say Cheese - Recipes using Ontario cheeses

If you’re on social media, you’ve likely seen a version of the viral French ravioli, Ravioles du Dauphiné, pop up in your feed. Popularized by Café Chelsea in New York, this impressive pasta dish tastes as good as it looks. Traditionally filled with Comte cheese and crème fraîche, we’ve added roasted parsnips for a seasonal twist. Serve one per plate for a starter that is guaranteed to impress.

Okonomiyaki is a savoury Japanese pancake heavily adorned with toppings. Here, we’ve given roasted turnips the same treatment, dressing them up with Kewpie mayonnaise, bonito flakes (aka katsuobushi) and okonomi sauce, all of which can be found at Japanese grocers and most Asian supermarkets.

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride? Rutabaga can relate… until now. We’ve decided to give this humble root vegetable a starring role by roasting it in honey and bathing it in brown butter. Throw in some crunchy walnuts and robust Gruyère cheese, and you’ve got a marquee-worthy dish.

Rooting for Vegetables - Root veggie recipes

This scrumptious appetizer is like garlic fingers from your local pizza joint, but with extra pizzazz. The garlic is enhanced with a clever trick of mixing garlic powder into the flour for dusting the dough, while a squeeze of lemon at the end brightens all the flavours. Speaking of your local pizza joint, many will be happy to sell you some uncooked dough for this recipe.

A craving for sticky toffee pudding can be quickly satisfied with these warm, saucy mug cakes “baked” in the microwave. Crème fraîche provides a cool, creamy contrast, while quick candied dates lend their salty-sweet chew. It’s the perfect dessert to cozy up on the couch with on movie night.

Adding ricotta to meatballs guarantees a moist, tender result. The herbed ricotta mixture is used in the meatballs and also as a condiment for the meatballs and vibrant green salad. Form the meatballs a day or two ahead of time and refrigerate in an airtight container for a quick dinner.

Movie Night! - Recipes for a cozy night on the couch

Created in the early 1900s by Ada Coleman, the first woman head bartender at the American Bar at London’s Savoy Hotel, this drink is deceptively simple and an expertly balanced mix of bitter and sweet, whether made with traditional or non-alcoholic gin.

Although most people reach for the red to make their mulled wine, this recipe calls for white, as well as a little honey, brandy and fresh pear slices.

Essentially Spain’s answer to the spritz, this common patio drink is a simple mix of sparkling wine and sweet vermouth.

Less Is More - Low-alcohol cocktails

Courtesy of Alex Archer, Estate Mixologist at Wayne Gretzky Estates, Niagara-on-the-Lake, hints of citrus, honey and sweet spices add a wintery touch to this twist on a whisky sour.

Courtesy of Jeremy Harb, Food & Beverage Manager at Prince of Wales Hotel, Niagara-on-the-Lake, this cocktail’s blend of sweet icewine and spicy Tabasco pays homage to the Niagara region, mirroring the chill of its frosty winters and warm welcome of its hospitality.

Infused with cloves and lime zest, this cocktail syrup is also excellent in a Daiquiri or Rum Punch, and can also be used to sweeten hibiscus tea. Golden cane sugar gives the syrup a hint of molasses flavour, but much less than demerara or brown sugar would.

Other recipes - More ideas from the Holiday 2024 issue

Use this infusion in our Spruce Spritz cocktail!

If you love the bracingly fresh, almost minty sensation of fresh rosemary, this winter Margarita riff is for you. It has a fragrant foam that’s shaken separately from the drink, which receives its own evergreen burst through a muddling technique. Clean the shaker very well before foaming, and ensure it’s as cold as possible. Adjust the bright citrus note to your taste, as limes vary in tartness.

This cocktail is lovely made with either spruce or fir. Not only is this drink spritzed with sparkling wine, but it also gets a final “spritz” of fragrant evergreen infusion (find atomizers at dollar stores or drugstores, or cocktailemporium.com) before serving—a touch reminiscent of top bars. If you use them, the pomegranate seeds provide a festive, snow globe–like effect: they’ll initially sink, then gradually float to the top of the drink.

Going Green - Cocktails with evergreen flavours

Whippy marshmallow topping and swirls of dulce de leche adorn these classic holiday cookies-turned-bars. Make them in advance, but be sure not to overbake them—tenderness is key here!

A homemade cheese ball is the way to go so you can pick your cheese and add lots of fresh flavours. Here, we’ve worked it into a tree shape, but feel free to roll it into the classic ball and experiment with other herbs and nuts that you love. It’s important to bring the cream cheese and butter just to room temperature, but no warmer (or they’ll be too soft, which makes it harder to shape the mixture).

Create your own decorative cocktail picks by fastening small decorations (especially any one-offs from years gone by that you have kicking around) to the top of wooden skewers. If needed, use a bit of food-safe adhesive, but try to make sure these parts aren’t dunked into the drink. They’re just for show!

Get In Tune - Holiday recipes inspired by holiday songs

If you prefer a yeasted doughnut over a cake one, this risen, brioche-style (almost French toast–like) pull-apart cake is for you. The definition of coffee cake is a sweet baked delight that matches well with a hot cup of coffee, so we’ve taken the best of all these dessert worlds and rolled them into a tasty treat you’re encouraged to eat with your hands. It is a pull-apart cake, after all!

Rethink the beloved baked brie and serve a creamy burrata with phyllo crackers for spreading instead. This luscious, rich and milky cheese smeared over pastry bites is every bit as satisfying.

Here, you’ll find that the things one loves about a shrimp ring—fresh shrimp and delicious sauce—are flipped into a sizzling warm mix that leaves lots of delicious sauce for sopping up with bread.

Fair Trades - New twists on favourite recipes

This dip takes seconds to make so you can throw it together even after your squad has arrived. Truth, it’s really just an excuse to eat chili crisp, the condiment of the moment. Look for Fly By Jing online at goodegg.ca and Mama Teav’s Hot Garlic from hudsonandoak.com.

Alongside all the usual garnishes for caviar, serve this ready-to-go topping. It’s an ideal accompaniment to all sorts of caviar.

Easy, Breezy Entertaining - Simple recipes for your holiday platters

Let raspberry’s sweet-tart charms take centre stage with this simple, luscious, crowd-pleasing dessert. With the raspberries macerated with Chambord and folded with almond-scented whipped cream, this is an elegant twist on the classic English sweet. Frozen raspberries, packaged at their peak, are easy to find and affordable during winter months.

Chestnuts roasting, fire crackling—this drink captures all the hygge feels. A levelled-up maple-pecan syrup infused with cozy baking spices and vanilla bean lends this wintry variation on the classic true fireside allure.

The familiar butterscotch allure of dulce de leche meets the complex notes of aged port in this sophisticated take on salted caramel. Drizzle it over ice cream, swirl it into brownies or dunk fresh fruit into it to add complex sweetness. No matter how you enjoy it, this deeply luxurious sauce will have you coming back for more.

Double Duty - Spirits in cocktails and desserts

Gochujang adds fire and umami to this satisfying soup of sweet shrimp and fat noodles, while kimchi gives it depth and tang. Available at Loblaws and Asian supermarkets, frozen udon are decidedly preferable to shelf-stable, though the latter can be used successfully—simply cook according to package directions.

This simple vegan soup is hearty enough for a cold winter night, but light enough to provide an antidote to bouts of holiday indulgence. Feel free to substitute any fresh sprouts you have on hand or really anything green and salady.

One of the most beloved takeout dishes is reimagined as a comforting soup. Coconut milk keeps the soup creamy but light, while cauliflower makes it satisfying without being overly heavy. And by using a number of pantry ingredients, this dish will also keep your shopping list short.

Dinner for One - Cozy soup recipes

Fuyu persimmons are a smaller variety that are flattened on both their tops and bottoms. Unlike the Hachiya persimmon, they can be enjoyed when firm without being astringent, making them the ideal choice for these delicious upside-down cakes.

Layers of spiced sponge are soaked with a tangy pomegranate syrup, then filled with a rich pastry cream studded with fresh pomegranate seeds. Because it’s served chilled, this cake is better made in advance, which allows time for the cream to soak into the cake slightly. Pome granate powder is optional, but it gives the cream a lovely pink hue. You can find it at natural food shops.

This vibrant tart brings out the best of winter citrus and adds an impressive hit of colour to any dessert table. When making the filling, be wary of overcooking the mixture—you’re looking for a pourable consistency rather than a thick traditional curd. If you want to save time, the glaze is optional, though it does boost the colour.

Desserts That Dazzle - Showstopping holiday bakes

Kettle corn becomes a salty-sweet sensation when it’s elevated with all kinds of tasty things, including candied pecans, coconut chips and dark chocolate shards. It’s a party in a bowl, a party anyone would be lucky to be invited to.

Based on South Asian snack mixes, this chaat features roasted chickpeas, nuts, cereal and raisins. Spiced with turmeric, cumin and lashings of cayenne and pepper, it’s sweet, savoury, spicy and impossible to stop eating after just one handful. It will be the talk of any holiday party.

Classic Chex mix takes a trip to Hawaii with rich macadamia nuts, a maple-soy coating and furikake, an umami-rich Japanese seasoning that’s popular in Hawaiian cooking. Mostly used to season rice, furikake consists primarily of nori, sesame seeds and bonito (flaked fish), so it’s not vegetarian-friendly. You can find it at just about every Asian grocery store.

Bits and Bubbles - Homemade snack mixes

Medjool dates and pecans form the base of these fudgy cubes, which are no-bake, healthy and delicious—a rare combination during the holidays. For the best possible texture, try to serve them fridge-cold.

These moist, gluten-free mini carrot cakes get all the holiday feels from fragrant baking spices and a cream cheese frosting flavoured with rum and nutmeg. Don’t be tempted to skip the little bit of coconut flour, as it’s vital for getting the right texture. (You can buy just a little bit at most bulk food stores.)

A decadent swirl of two kinds of ganache sits in a hazelnut crumb–style crust in these outrageously good dessert bars that happen to be gluten-free. Dulcey is Valrhona’s wonderful caramelized white chocolate, and when it’s transformed into ganache, it bears an uncanny resemblance to dulce de leche.

Bake a Difference - Gluten-free baking recipes

Holiday 2024 Isssue | recipe details, popular recipes, whisky shop