Canada’s Kitchen 2021: Recipes from the country’s next star chefs

Directions

Combine butter, sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment and cream until fluffy. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch and salt.

Add dry mixture to the butter mixture and stir until about 75 per cent combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix until fully homogenous. Shape the dough into a square log, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for at least one hour.

Using a sharp knife, slice the log into 1/2-inch thick slices and space about one inch apart on a parchment-lined sheet. Cut the candies into three pieces each and press a few onto the top of each cookie. Finish with some Maldon salt and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 325 F. Bake for 12-15 minutes, rotating the tray halfway through, until the shortbreads are pale golden and the candies have melted. Cool on a wire rack.

Directions

Put soaked beans into a pot of water and simmer for about 45 minutes, until soft but not falling apart. Salt the water to taste and set aside while you prepare the squash. Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Peel the squash, scoop out the seeds and cut into approximately 1/2-inch cubes. Transfer to a bowl, drizzle with oil and toss to coat, season with salt, spread out on a baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes, until soft and charred on the edges.

If you’re using frozen corn, blanch it in boiling water, drain, transfer to an ice bath and drain well. In the summer, use grilled fresh corn on the cob if you can.

Drain the beans and let them cool in the fridge. To make the vinaigrette, shake the ingredients together or mix with a hand blender to emulsify.

In a large bowl, combine the roasted squash, beans, corn, parsley and dressing to taste, toss to coat and season with salt as needed.

Directions

In a large bowl, stir together the flour and baking powder. Add the water and oil and mix well. Let sit for 30 minutes.

Before frying, fold the berries into the dough, pat it out about 1/2-inch thick and cut into small circles. Heat a couple inches of oil in a shallow, heavy pot to about 350 F and fry the bannock bites, without crowding the pot, until golden. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate with a slotted spoon.

Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow dish and roll the bannock bites in the cinnamon sugar while the fried dough is still warm.

In a small saucepan, heat the butter and brown sugar, whisking until melted and smooth. Drizzle over the warm bannock bites.

Directions

Pat the snapper dry with paper towel, season with salt and pepper and lightly score on each side. Heat a generous drizzle of oil in a heavy skillet and cook the snapper for about five minutes each side, until just cooked through; transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

In a medium saucepan, bring the vinegar, water, oil and bouillon powder to a simmer. Add the carrots and let simmer for about a minute, season with salt and pepper, then add the onion and simmer for about five minutes, or until the onion is transparent. Add the pimento berries, if using, and Scotch bonnet. Add the peppers and cook for another minute. Serve the sauce over the crispy fish.

Directions

Halve the lobsters lengthwise and clean them; detach and reserve their claws. Chop half the scallions and combine with the ginger, lime juice, thyme, garlic, Scotch bonnet and about 3/4 teaspoon salt. Rub all over the cut side of the lobsters and refrigerate for at least two hours. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-low. Whisk in jerk marinade until combined and remove from heat. Reserve 1/4 cup jerk butter in a small bowl for serving.

Preheat grill to medium-high (400 F to 450 F). Toss the canola oil with the remaining whole scallions in a large bowl; season with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper. Place scallions on oiled grates and grill, uncovered, turning occasionally, until lightly charred and tender, about five minutes. Set aside.

Grill the lobster cut side down for 2-3 minutes, then flip, brush with jerk butter and grill another 2-3 minutes, until just cooked through. Serve with extra jerk butter.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 F.

Cut the cabbage lengthwise into quarters, leaving the stem end intact. Drizzle some oil into an ovenproof pan and set over medium-high heat. Sear each wedge very well on one side, then transfer to the oven for 20 minutes, or until tender enough to easily insert a knife.

In a saucepan, cook the garlic in the milk for 30 minutes, or until the garlic is tender and golden. Remove from heat and add anchovies. Let rest for 10 minutes before blending everything together until very smooth.

With the blender running, add the lemon juice and then gradually add the camelina oil to emulsify the sauce. (It won’t thicken as much as a mayonnaise, but should be smooth and velvety.)

Turn the oven up to 450 F. Spread the pieces of baguette out on a baking sheet and toast until golden. Reduce the heat to 300 F and cook for 15 minutes longer to dry the bread very well. Let it cool and pulse in a food processor until it’s very fine, the texture of sand. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the camelina seeds and lemon zest.

To assemble, spread the bagna cauda generously on the bottom of the plate. Place the cabbage on the sauce, browned side up, and top with the crumbs.

Directions

Heat a drizzle of oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat and sear the moose roast until browned on all sides. Combine the ingredients for the dry rub and spread all over the surface of the meat, and place in a smoker with willow wood at 250 F for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the internal temperature reads 115 F. Set aside, loosely covered with foil, to rest.

In the same skillet, sauté the wild mushrooms over medium-high heat with 2-3 tablespoons butter, a chopped shallot and garlic clove and the leaves pulled from a sprig or two of thyme, for 4-5 minutes or until the mushrooms have softened and are starting to caramelize on the edges. Set aside.

To make the port sauce, add a drizzle of oil to the pan and sauté the remaining shallot and garlic until soft. Add about a cup of port wine and reduce until thickened. Add a handful of black currants and a few pats of cold butter and cook just until the berries soften.

To serve, slice the moose loin and top with mushrooms and port sauce.

Directions

To make the polenta, bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan and whisk in the cornmeal. Turn the heat down low, add spices and cook until thickened, about eight minutes. Add heavy cream and adjust seasoning; let sit until ready to serve. Adjust thickness with water when reheating.

Toss together the tomato salad ingredients and season with salt and pepper.

Brush husked cobs with oil, season with salt and pepper and grill for about 10 minutes, until tender and charred. Cut the kernels off the cob. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium-high heat and sauté the corn and chilis, seasoning with salt as needed.

Season scallops with salt and pepper, and heat the oil in a small pan over medium-high heat and sear scallops on one side, until nicely browned. Flip and take the pan off the heat, adding butter to finish cooking the scallops.

To serve, spoon a loose dollop of polenta onto each plate and spread into an even circle in the centre. Spoon corn in three spots on the plate and set scallops on top, seared side up. Pile the tomato herb salad in the middle of the plate and crumble remaining feta cheese around the perimeter.

Directions

To make the vinaigrette, macerate the onion and garlic in rhubarb juice for about 20 minutes, then place in a blender with the herbs. With the blender on low, slowly drizzle in the oil until fully incorporated. Season with salt and more rhubarb juice, if needed, to taste.

For the black garlic reduction, combine the black garlic, vinegar and honey in a saucepan and simmer until reduced by half; purée until smooth, strain and season with salt.

To assemble, season the greens with rhubarb vin, and both greens and tomatoes with salt. Place in a bowl and drizzle black garlic reduction and the herb vinaigrette to taste around the salad, and crumble some ricotta overtop. Store the extra vinaigrette and reduction in the fridge for future salads.

Directions

To make the slaw, toss all the ingredients together in a bowl and let it marinate while you prepare the rest.

In a bowl, combine the rice flour, cornstarch, baking soda and powder, spices, salt and pepper. Remove half and put in a shallow bowl. Whisk the beer into the remaining dry ingredients – you should have a mixture with the texture of heavy cream. (Add a little more beer if you need to achieve the right consistency.)

Heat about two inches of oil in a heavy, shallow pot to about 350 F. Dredge the fish pieces in the dry flour mix, then in the wet batter. Repeat one more time and fry until golden. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain.

Serve the fried fish on fresh tortillas, topped with slaw.

Directions

Par boil or cook the potatoes in the microwave for about 6-7 minutes, until tender. Drain and pat dry. Heat butter and/or oil in a large skillet and cook potatoes over medium-high heat, tossing until golden. Add garlic, thyme, cilantro, smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Toss to combine and remove from heat.

Make the hollandaise: Bring a pot with an inch or two of water to a gentle boil. In a metal bowl that will fit on top of the pot, whisk the egg yolks. Place on top of the pot of simmering water and whisk in the melted butter in a steady stream, whisking until thickened. Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk in the lemon juice, smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Stir in a bit of fresh dill. Keep whisking until the bowl is cooler to the touch; place it on a cold wet cloth or in another bowl with ice water to cool it down if you like.

Melt 1/2 cup butter in a dish large enough to dip the fish in. Combine the paprika, garlic and onion powder, savory, thyme, salt, pepper and cayenne in another dish. Dip fillets in butter, and then the blackening seasoning to coat.

Melt the remaining butter with oil in a heavy or cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the fish (if it has skin, skin side down), and cook for 4-6 minutes on each side for medium. Plate the fish and potatoes, and drizzle with or serve hollandaise on the side for dipping. Garnish with fresh dill, if you like.

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook whole potatoes, skin on, until tender. While they cool, combine Parmesan rinds and cream in a saucepan and simmer for 40 minutes, until thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Once potatoes are cool, rub off the peel and pass through a potato ricer. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk the flour and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the egg and ink. Put the flour mixture on the countertop and make a well in the middle; add potato and mix in the egg mixture. Knead everything together to form a slightly sticky, soft dough, adding flour if needed.

Working with small amounts of dough at a time, roll into a long ropes and cut 3/4-inch pieces. Set aside to rest.

For marinara: Sweat shallots and garlic in olive oil until soft, but not brown. Add tomatoes and crush slightly to release juices. Season with salt. Purée the sauce with an immersion blender. Add the ‘nduja and press to break up in sauce, simmer for 30-40 minutes. Finish with butter.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the gnocchi for 1-2 minutes, or until floating. Transfer to pan with hot butter or olive oil to crisp up, and serve with both sauces drizzled on top.

Directions

In a food processor, pulse berries, habaneros and salt until a wet mash forms. Transfer into a sterile mason jar and cover with plastic wrap on the surface of the mash. Seal jar and store in a cool dry spot (i.e., back of the pantry) to ferment for 7 to 10 days. The mash will start to bubble and climb the sides of the jar. Taste for desired sourness. Transfer mash to a blender, add vinegar and sugar and blend on high till smooth and emulsified, adding more vinegar or sugar to taste. Pour through a sieve into a pot and boil for three minutes, stirring so it doesn’t scorch. Transfer into sterile mason jars, seal while hot and cool upside down.

Prep the fish wings: Keep the fins on, scale and remove any small pin bones or ribs. Separate belly fins into two, and separate collars into fin and neck. Rinse well.

Combine the salt, sugar, Labrador tea, fennel seed and peppercorns and cover the fish pieces, using a quantity of cure that’s about 5 per cent of the weight of your fish. Let sit two hours, or overnight. Rinse well and pat dry.

In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, paprika, salt and pepper. Whisk the eggs and weigh them; add an equal quantity (by weight) of water. Put the panko in a third shallow bowl. Heat a couple inches of oil to 325 F in a heavy, shallow pot set over medium-high heat.

Holding the fish pieces by the fin, dip them one at a time in the flour mixture, then egg, then panko. Deep fry a few pieces at a time for about three minutes, or until they float and hit an internal temp of 145 F. Transfer to paper towels to drain and toss with the fermented berry hot sauce to serve.