Sweet and Spicy: Pepperoni Pizza with Basil and Honey

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are mine. And, as usual, I will only write about products that I really love! 

You guys. I just made the best pizza. I know, I know, we all think we make the best pizza, but this really is the tops. I mean, just look at it! The golden, chewy, whole wheat crust, saucy sauce, basil pesto, loads of mozzarella - fresh and shredded, thinly sliced jalapeno pepper, heaps of pepperoni, fresh basil leaves that I grew myself, and a good drizzle of honey. If you like your pizza with a bit of heat and sweet, then this recipe is for you. It's the second installment for my partnership with Grimm's Fine Foods this summer, and I'm so pleased I get to bring you the very best ideas on how to use their excellent products. They are always gluten, lactose and soy free, with no MSG added and contain no fillers or sketchy bi-products. And, they are made in Canada!

Saucy Spiced Beef & Lentil Meatballs with Linguine

I've unpacked my luggage (thankful a bottle of wine didn't break!), done the laundry, resumed my routine and yet my 7 day excursion to Montréal still is at the forefront of my mind, and will be for a long time, I imagine.  There's so much to tell, I don't really know where to begin.  This could be a long post, so go make a cup of tea and grab a snack (leftover Halloween candy maybe?) and curl up with me for a bit.   I suppose I should begin at that moment when I first saw the city I left so long ago.  We descended over soccer fields and rows of brick houses; trees with amber leaves still clinging.  A friend met me at the airport - I hadn't seen her since 1998, when I was a nanny for her small children - now grown young men.  What a way to age oneself - seeing kids you once used to read Goodnight Moon to now in University writing essays and all that fun stuff.  That afternoon and the next we walked and walked, me finding the rhythm in my step I once had when I was a fresh-faced young art student living away from home for the first time.  I saw some old haunts (my first apartment!), and ate all the good stuff you eat while in Montréal - almond croissants, bagels (oh the bagels!) and smoked meat sandwiches.  It was totally glutinous, but I figured since I was walking so much, the calories didn't count.  Logical thinking, yes?
 

When Bloggers Brunch: Shakshuka and Rosemary Foccacia

So what do you make when one of your favourite food bloggers comes to town?  This was my dilemma a few days ago when Dan came to my little house for a visit.  A Saskatoon ex-pat, and an all-around awesome dude, Dan is one of my favourite people in the whole world.  He does all kinds of great things for the Calgary culinary scene, and he's even started a program that teaches university kids how to cook.  Like I said, dude is cool.  So I do what you're not supposed to do when a guest you wanna impress is soon to be seated at your table:  I make recipes I've never made before.  For carefree entertaining, you're supposed to stick with the tried and true.  But not me.  I go into uncharted territory.  However three things brought me to safety:  1) The source.  It's Ottolenghi.  It's bound to be perfect. 2) It's eggs.  How hard can you mess up eggs? 3) It's homemade bread.  Even if it's not perfect, it's still perfect.  Plus I've seen shakshuka a million places around the interwebs and figured it was time to share it here.  So glad I did.  Unbeknownst to me, it's one of Dan's favourite dishes.  Also unbeknownst to me, we were practically wearing identical plaid shirts.  Great minds!  Great taste!