LCBO Food & Drink Autumn 2025

MINI CURSED CANDIED APPLES Glam up the traditional sticky treat by creating gorgeous black or striking red versions of them for Halloween. Skewer them using food-safe wooden Popsicle sticks (check the label) or even twigs, but be sure they are food-safe (from a non-toxic tree) and give them a good scrub. 8 to 12 small Pink Lady apples 8 to 12 food-safe sticks or sturdy skewers Vegetable oil for greasing 2 cups (500 mL) granulated sugar 1/2 cup (125 mL) water 1/2 cup (125 mL) light corn syrup 1/2 tsp (2 mL) black or red food colouring 1. Thoroughly wash and dry apples and branches if using. Skewer each apple with a Popsicle stick or twig where the stem is located. 2. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Grease parchment with a little oil. Fill a small bowl with water and set out with a pastry brush. 3. Add sugar, water, corn syrup, food colouring, vanilla and salt into a medium-size saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring often. When boiling, use a pastry brush dipped in water to brush down any sugar caked onto the pan above the surface of the candy mixture. This will prevent crystalized sugar on the pan falling into the mixture, which will ruin the candy. Gently boil sugar mixture, brushing edges occasionally, until mixture reaches 300°F to 310°F (149°C to 154°C), about 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Carefully dip a skewered apple in mixture until coated but leaving some apple exposed at the top. Let mixture drip off. Set on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining apples and candy mixture. (If candy mixture begins to harden you can reheat over medium heat until liquidy.) Let apples cool. If making ahead, apples will keep well overnight. Wrap each apple in foil that’s been lightly greased with oil. WHAT TO SERVE Cowbell Brewing Co. Original Cider LCBO 24890, 473 mL, $3.65 Ontario makes gorgeous apple cider— balanced and refreshing, but often with subtle herbal or floral notes underpinning the honest-to-goodness orchard fruit. Try a dry one here for contrast. 1/2 tsp (2 mL) vanilla extract Generous pinch of kosher salt Makes 8 to 12 candied apples

naturally for 5 to 10 minutes. Carefully vent to release any remaining steam, then remove lid. Fluff rice with a fork. Cover and let stand until ready to use. 2. Prepare sofrito by placing chorizo in a large paella pan or very large frying pan over medium-low heat. Cook until lightly golden and fat starts to render, about 5 minutes. Add olive oil. When hot, stir in onion, garlic, bay leaf and salt. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes, until onion is soft and translucent. Add peppers and paprika. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes until softened slightly. Add tomato and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 more minutes until mixture has thickened. Scoop 1 cup (250 mL) sofrito mixture into a large pot and set aside. 3. Season shrimp with salt and pepper. Push sofrito to the outside of the paella or frying pan. Increase heat to medium. Heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) oil in centre of paella pan. When oil is shimmering, add shrimp. Cook just until shrimp is bright pink and curled, 1 to 4 minutes per side. Remove pan from heat. Remove shrimp to a plate. Set pan back over heat. Add remaining 1 tbsp (15 mL) oil. When hot, cook squid until seared, 30 sec onds to 1 minute per side. Remove to a plate with shrimp. Remove pan from heat. Add cooked and fluffed rice to sofrito in pan. Stir to mix. 4. Add wine to large pot that was set aside with 1 cup (250 mL) sofrito in it. Heat over medium-high until simmering. Add unopened cleaned mussels. Cover and cook until mussels open, 1 to 3 minutes. 5. Tip mussels over paella, pouring liquid evenly over surface. Be sure to discard any broken shells or mussels that are not open. Topple shrimp and squid over paella. Serve immediately. TIP Devein shrimp using kitchen shears to cut out the back of the shrimp from its tail to its head and remove and wipe out the vein. Scrub mussels clean, removing and discarding beards. Discard any mussels that are open and don’t close when given a firm tap. WHAT TO SERVE Caminos del Puerto Rueda Verdejo LCBO 44525, $12.95 A dry white with good acidity and an array of herbal, floral and citrus notes will pick up the seafood and cut through the richness of the paella. Why not turn to Spain’s trending Verdejo grape? Makes 8 to 12 servings

CAULDRON PAELLA This traditional Spanish dish gets a Halloween makeover and cooks up beautifully with black or purple rice, black-shelled mussels and whole head-on shrimp, which offer more flavour than the peeled ones—although feel free to use those instead. Sofrito is a sauce preparation common in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Latin American cooking. BLACK RICE 2 cups (500 mL) black or purple rice 1 carton (900 mL) vegetable or chicken broth Generous pinch of salt SOFRITO 1 cup (250 mL) chopped chorizo, about 1/4 lb/115 g (optional) 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil 1 Spanish white onion, finely diced 1 small garlic clove, thinly sliced 1 bay leaf (optional) 1 generous pinch salt 2 red or orange peppers, finely diced 1 tsp (5 mL) smoked paprika 4 canned plum tomatoes, drained and chopped SEAFOOD MIXTURE 1 lb (455 g) large, whole head-on shrimp or shelled and deveined shrimp (see TIP) 2 to 3 generous pinches kosher salt and pepper 2 tbsp (30 mL) olive oil, divided 1/4 lb (115 g) squid, cleaned and sliced into rings (optional) 1/2 cup (125 mL) dry white wine 1 to 2 lbs (455 to 905 g) fresh mussels, scrubbed with beards removed (see TIP) 1. For black rice, cook following package direc tions, using broth instead of water. Or if cooking in a pressure cooker, soak black rice in water for 1 hour, then fine-strain. Add rice, broth and salt to pressure cooker. Stir to mix. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes. Let pressure release

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AUTUMN 2025 ————————