Bunchland

Cookie mogul Eden Hertzog shares recipes she enjoys with her family

When Cedar starting eating solids, we were extremely careful about what he ate. This is probably true for most parents, but haven’t you noticed it’s especially true lately, amongst all us new age, yuppie, hippie, local food-eating, baby-wearing, co-sleeping, teaching-our-kids-to-sign parents?

We started with organic pear puree, then organic butternut squash puree, then organic oatmeal. He loved all of it, and then it became clear that Cedar pretty much wanted everything we were eating too. I think they call that “baby-led weaning” – or wait, isn’t that just “eating”?

In any case, I’m going to say it’s been a bit of a slow decline with food options. He’s become pickier. He used to really love veggies, probably because he didn’t know he was eating them. Now, I swear, if there is spinach in his eggs he will literally catch the tiniest shred of it and look at me, disgusted, before spitting it out. What is up with that?!  Read more...

Because alfresco trumps the kitchen table. Even in winter.

Does the thought of winter camping makes your toes curl in anticipation of turning blue? Hankering to get outside and shake off the cabin fever? Pack up your sled with well-stocked picnic basket (or insulated backpack) and head outside! There’s a freedom and excitement in eating outdoors, no matter what the weather is. Here’s what to pack to turn your winter picnic into a party:

THE NECESSITIES

Before we get started on the fun stuff, there are a few basic items you should have on hand. Blankets are optional if you’re wearing snow or slush pants, but  spreading a blanket out really means a picnic. Don’t forget to bring lots of napkins for runny noses and a garbage bag for any waste. If it’s a sunny day, you may want to apply some sunscreen on the face before heading out.  Read more...

Cookie mogul Eden Hertzog shares recipes she enjoys with her family

Every week I post recipes that are inspired by my little Boy Wonder, Cedar, but this week I’ve decided to turn my attention elsewhere. This one is going out to that OTHER man in my life: my husband. Not my roommate, or co-housekeeper, or co-parent, or errand-runner, or co-homeowner, or guy-I-nag-all-the-time. Nope, I have no interest in any of those guys right now. Now Ladies, or Gents, we all know that the quickest and most surefire way to a man’s heart is through his stomach (really?) so get that apron on, spritz a little sweat on your upper lip, and let’s get cooking.

One of Brian’s most favourite dishes of ever-all-time is Pho Ga. For those who don’t know what that is, you need to get on it. One of our first dates (and the first time I had Pho) was to his favourite spot, Pho Linh, for a steamy bowl of this delicious soup.  Read more...

Cookie maven Eden Hertzog shares recipes she enjoys with her family

I haven’t been eating well lately. I only noticed this when I started a daily journal a couple of weeks ago to track my sleep/meals/mood and how they all may correlate. There are days when I feel all proud and smug to write my meals down, and other days when I avoid the journal and want to fib like a little naughty schoolgirl. What I notice is that I eat a lot of bread to fill myself up, or skip meals, or eat sugar late in the day because I obviously haven’t nourished myself well and my body needs sugar to function. Tsk tsk…

For me, a healthy day would be this: fresh fruit, healthy fats, good proteins, yummy grains or starches (like sweet potatoes!), and of course – vegetables. Oh mighty vegetables, why do you haunt me so? And why does Cedar suddenly smush his nose up at you?  Read more...

Whether you spell it Matzah, Matzo, or Matzoh, there are lots of delicious and unconventional  Matzo ball recipes for your Passover enjoyment

The key to a good matzo ball is to refrigerate the batter overnight. Here are five great recipes featuring our favourite Jewish dumplings:

1. Vegan Matzoh Ball Soup

You’ll need:  Read more...

• Box of Streits’ or Manischewitz matzo ball mix
• Egg replacer powder. The matzo ball box comes with two envelopes. For each envelope they ask for 2 eggs however this needs to be tripled.  (You’ll need 6 egg equivalent per individual package)
• Oil
• Vegan “chicken” soup mix.  VeganBits found “chicken” soup powder at Whole Foods.  Apparently it tasted surprisingly like Chicken Soup

Keep warm with these hearty crock pot soups

Friends, it is cold out. There’s hardly a city in Canada that isn’t freezing right now and it will only get colder when the sun goes down. On these evenings, a great slow cooker soup paired with some crusty bread is one way to keep warm. The slow cooker lets you go about your day and come back to edible warmth.  Here are four recipes we can’t wait to try out:

1. Chicken Enchilada Soup  Read more...

• 1 lb. of chicken breasts
• 1 can of diced tomatoes (15 oz.)
• 1 can enchilada sauce (10 oz.)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 small can diced green chilies
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can of corn niblets (15 oz)
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt