Food

Made from chickpea flour, chickpea pasta has a similar taste and al dente texture to regular pasta, but with a lot more dietary fibre and protein. That makes it a healthy base for this colourful vegetable-forward pasta salad with tasting notes of the sunny Mediterranean. Hummus serves as a surprising backbone to a creamy dressing.

The idea is pretty simple: start with adding a dressing to a jar and then layer on various ingredients such as crisp veggies, buttery fish, and greens. Bingo … salad in a jar that’s ready to go when you are, with not a limp green in sight. Perfect for weekday lunches and healthy quick dinners. Wild salmon or Arctic char are good stand-ins for rainbow trout.

This happy jumble of vegetables is not only beautiful to look at but also scrumptious. Try to use a rainbow of different colours for the most striking salad presentation.

In ancient China, black rice was called “forbidden rice” because only nobles were allowed to eat it. Luckily, today we mere mortals can harness its salad-perfect, slightly sweet, and nutty taste. Bright and fresh, this salad isn’t only flavourful with a winning mix of textures; it’s packed with nutrients, too.

Salmon and spinach are the nutritional stars of this dish. Salmon provides an impressive array of nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, protein, and B vitamins. These help reduce inflammation and aid in bone and muscle health, as well as promote proper heart and brain function. Spinach is a great source of insoluble fibre and, thanks to a plant compound called lutein, may help boost your eye health.

The beauty of this recipe is that it’s greater than the sum of its parts. It just goes to show that thoughtful and (dare I suggest) fancy fare doesn’t need to be complicated. The pea pesto garnish will make more than you need, but it’s a delicious accompaniment to almost any meal and keeps well for up to a week when refrigerated in an airtight container.

Nothing against romaine, but you’ve never met a better, brighter riff on the classic Caesar than with this raw broccoli and kale twist. They can stand up to the creamy dressing, so there’s no reason you can’t make this crowd-pleaser well in advance. Dare we say the salad gets better with time—the dressing will continue to tenderize the leaves without turning them soggy. Lacinato (dinosaur) kale is better suited for this salad than tougher and more fibrous curly kale, but the latter will work in a pinch. Crispy chunks of seeds offer an upgrade to croutons.

This soup makes good use of two ingredients that abound in the garden during summer: zucchini and mint. Marrying the two in this refreshing soup makes for a vibrant lunch or light dinner. Cooked zucchini is very high in vitamin A, which supports good vision and a healthy immune system.

A basic tomato soup has plenty of umami, but when you use roasted tomatoes, dried tomatoes, a whisper of soy sauce, and a crispy Parmesan accompaniment, each spoonful delivers considerably more. It’s comfort food taken to new heights. You can also press the easy button and garnish with a simple dusting of grated Parmesan or pecorino cheese.

Toast for dinner? Certainly, when it’s the base for a dish reminiscent of comforting chicken pot pie that comes with an umami-laced gravy of your dreams. Miso’s concentrated umami flavour (and versatility) means you just need a little bit to boost sauces, salad dressings, and soup broths. The gravy is also wonderful strewn over roasted potatoes.

This power bowl is overflowing with umami showstoppers. While beets and apple add a sweet element, combining umami and sweet in one dish has become a culinary trend among savvy chefs. Sourced from Canada’s East Coast, dulse is a chewy seaweed that takes on a bacon-esque personality when turned crunchy in a hot pan. But if not available, shards of hijiki or arame or even roughly chopped nori can stand in for dulse. Other grains such as sorghum, farro, freekeh, or wheat berries can work here too. Make it plant based by swapping out egg and mackerel for grilled tempeh.

Now that kimchi has hit the mainstream, it’s time to work its umami-fiery crunch into more of your cooking repertoire, including this punchy salsa that adorns a plant-based tempeh filling that brings even more umami oomph to the table. Served in fresh-tasting lettuce leaves, the whole dish is a riot of appetizing colour. For taco night, you can also scoop everything into warmed corn tortillas.

The spelling is different, but the pronunciation is easy: “zoog” sauce. Zhoug is a delightfully bright green fresh dipping sauce with plenty of heat. It’s easy to make and simply delicious drizzled over grilled meats and vegetables. It’s common in Middle Eastern dishes. We paired it up with mild paneer and fresh local bell peppers for a massive “wow” factor.

Halloumi is the quintessential cheese for carrying flavour, making it a versatile flavour star for many different dishes. In this spring salad, we’ve joined in-season Canadian maple syrup with South Asian curry and then added this delicious Cypriot cheese. It’s a potpourri of global fusion flavours all on one plate!