LCBO Food & Drink Autumn 2017

TREND SPOTT ING

ROOT- TO-LEAF

our daily bread

Stale slices don’t have to be the bane of the breadbox. Instead, think of them as an opportunity to cook up some incredible dishes. There are cucina povera classics from Italy such as panzanella and ribollita. Then there’s panade from France, which transforms a dried-out baguette into a divine cheesy casserole. With Thanksgiving around the corner, stockpile bread ends in the freezer for croutons, stuffing and crispy crumb toppings. And remember to take advantage of discounted day-olds at bakeries, such as a loaf of challah for this fabulous Vanilla Cinnamon Baked French Toast (recipe at foodanddrink.ca).

A lot of veggie scraps can be diverted from the compost heap onto your dinner plate. Here’s how. squash guts  Roast the seeds with olive oil and salt in a 300°F (150°C) oven until golden brown, about 45 minutes. Sauté the flesh in butter until soft then whiz it in a food processor for a satiny puree. beet greens  Like Swiss chard, beet leaves are delicious boiled in salted water until tender and dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. Slice the stems into 1 ⁄ 2 -inch (1-cm) pieces and pickle in a basic brine. carrot tops  Think of carrot leaves as robust parsley and use them in a classic green sauce such as pesto, salsa verde or chimichurri. Then serve it with carrots roasted in their skins. leek greens  The dark green part of a leek is excellent cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces and stir-fried with garlic, ginger and dried chilis. Or blanch long pieces and wrap them around thick fish fillets before steaming. broccoli stems  Peeled and thickly sliced, broccoli stems can be cooked along with the florets in most dishes. They are also terrific raw: try them peeled and shaved in our soothing Beef and All-the-Broccoli Soup (recipe page 156).

SHOP SMART If you only do one big weekly shop, plan meals using the most perishable foods first.

bank on it

While food banks and food rescue pro- grams help fight hunger, they’re reducing food waste at the same time. “We play an active role in finding homes for high-quality, nutritious food that might otherwise go to waste,” says Carolyn Stewart, executive direc- tor of the Ontario Association of Food Banks (oafb.ca). “This is often food that may have just a labelling error or cosmetic imperfection, but it’s still healthy and delicious.” Every year, Second Harvest, a food rescue organization in Toronto, delivers millions of pounds of surplus food to its social services agencies. Divert- ing this food from a landfill has tremendous benefits for the environment. Thanks to Second Harvest, in 2016: THE NUMBERS ADD UP

9.8 MILLION LBS surplus food over

5.1 MILLION LBS greenhouse gases saved

GHG

24  FOOD & DRI NK AUTUMN 2017