KITCHEN WINDOWS is a side project of the SUNDAY NIGHT DINNER podcast.  During lockdown, while spending so much time in my own kitchen, I started wondering what other people could see from their kitchen window. And what they were cooking for comfort. I asked some of my favourite musicians, chefs, writers and visual artists. This episode features Tim and Angela Chin in their kitchen in Montreal, QC.  Tim is an incredible photographer - he shoots food, portraits, weddings, ceremonies (check out his work at timchin.com). Because of the lockdown in Quebec this year, Tim and Anglea weren't able to celebrate Lunar New Year with their extended families like they usually do. Tim wrote a moving article about his experience with increased violence against Asians, and how cooking a traditional New Year's feast encouraged him to embrace his roots more deeply. You can find the article here:
https://www.fetechinoise.ca/blog/2021/identity-in-uncertain-times
You can also read about (and find the recipe for) the Char Sui that Tim talks about in this episode. Not quite his mom's, but almost!
https://www.fetechinoise.ca/blog/char-siu-tim-chin

Tim and Angela Chin, Montreal, QC

Laura Wright The First Mess

Listen to Suzanne Barr, chef and owner of Saturday Dinette, make her mom's apple pie. 

Suzanne Barr makes apple pie!

Chef Michael Dixon makes classic French Onion Soup. Find out why it's also known as the "soup of the drunkards", and how thought and care can make simple ingredients sing.

Michael Dixon's French Onion Soup

Eshun Mott's Spanish Tortilla

Listen as celebrated author, Miriam Toews, recreates Faspa- the Sunday, 5pm meal you'll find in Mennonite households.  Learn why, as a kid, Miriam didn't like Sundays and why the science of Jell-O salad still fascinates her.     

Miriam Toews makes Faspa

Listen to Chef Rocco Agostino from Pizzeria Libretto (the first pizzeria in Canada certified as "True Neopolitan Pizza") make his famous Margherita Pizza.  Find out why he rarely makes the Sunday night dinner food he had as a kid, and how many ingredients make up his pizza dough.  The ultimate comfort food-- how about pizza for Sunday dinner?  Learn from the master. 

Chef Rocco Agostino makes Margherita Pizza

Listen to celebrated fitness expert, Dara Bergeron, make quinoa and black beans, and mini turkey meatloaves, two dishes she preps on Sundays to make the rest of her week a little easier.  Meal prep is 2-3 hours of cooking, done ahead of time when your schedule allows. Great for busy people, meal prep may just change your life! 

Sunday Meal Prep with Dara Bergeron

Listen to the road-tripping adventurers Dana VanVeller and Lindsay Anderson of FEAST make a classic Sunday night meal: meatballs.  They spent five months traveling across Canada in search of the answer to the question: What is Canadian food.  Listen to the answer!

Dana and Lindsay from FEAST make wild boar and fig meatballs

Final show of Season 1! Listen to Chef Greg Argent making a delicious version of mussels and fries, the classic Belgian comfort food. Learn tips on mussel preparation and how to make oven-baked potatoes as crispy as deep-fried.  Greg talks about being on the shows Iron Chef and Made to Order, and he reveals how the culinary industry has changed over the past 20 years. It's our final episode of Season 1 and it's a big bowl of comfort and a glimpse of the life of a chef.

Chef Greg Argent makes Moules Frites

Senator Larry Campbell makes spatchcocked chicken on the barbecue.  He's the ex-mayor of Vancouver, and he served as the Chief Coroner for British Columbia until 2001. The brilliantly written and casted TV show 'Da Vinci's Inquest' is based on his life. Now he splits his time between Galiano Island and Ottawa.  He's got stories.

Marinade for the chicken:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic
4 tbsp honey
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
4 tbsp ketchup

Saute onion and garlic until soft, then add the other ingredients and simmer for about 2 minutes.  Brush over the spatchcocked chicken and marinate for about 30 minutes.  Cook on BBQ at medium heat for about an hour.

Find the recipe here:  
www.sundaynightdinnerpodcast.com
  

Senator Larry Campbell makes Sticky Spatchcocked Chicken

For 20 years, Barbara-jo MacIntosh owned the iconic cookbook store Books To Cooks.  Join her while she makes a classic braised pork recipe from Molly Stevens' book All About Braising: The Art of Uncomplicated Cooking.

Barbara-jo MacIntosh makes Braised Pork with Cardamom and Apricots

Chef Jamie Kennedy- one of the most influential and respected chefs in Canada- has a tradition of making Christmas cake every year.  He invited me to his farm in Prince Edward County on his cake-making day, and we talked about traditions, his Summer Dinner Series, and how his barn has become his commercial kitchen.  An intimate and surprising profile of one of Canada's most celebrated chefs and local food advocates.

Chef Jamie Kennedy makes Christmas Cake

The second half of the school year is right around the corner, and Laura Keogh and Ceri Marsh (authors of HOW TO FEED A FAMILY and THE SCHOOL YEAR SURVIVAL COOKBOOK) have some tips for how to make busy weeks a little less fraught. They started their blog Sweet Potato Chronicles- The Never-Ending Story of the Well-Fed Family while they were on maternity leave from FASHION magazine.  Their evenings of glitzy cocktail parties turned into night feedings and research on how to feed kids.  And they decided to share their hard-earned strategies with the world.  Listen as they make Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie (two pies, actually, one for dinner and one for the freezer to be pulled out on a Wednesday when you need an easy meal).  There's a pretty great strategy right there!

Ceri and Laura of Sweet Potato Chronicles make Shepherd's Pie

Listen to Jesse Brown, writer, journalist, founder of CANADALAND -- the incredibly popular news site and podcast network that focuses on media criticism and media reporting.  He's making Spaghetti Carbonara.  Known by some as the guy who broke the Jian Ghomeshi story, and by others (including himself) as "unapologetically sensational", Jesse makes podcasts that always wrestle with the important stories of the moment. 

At the end of the day, after marching on Loblaws, Jesse goes home and will sometimes make this easy, comforting, classic dish.  Cook along with him as he talks about pissing off CBC executives, arguing at the dinner table, and Dr. Snuggles. 

Jesse Brown of CANADALAND makes Spaghetti Carbonara

At the beginning of Chef Caren McSherry's new cookbook, STARTERS, SALADS AND SEXY SIDES, Chef Lynn Crawford writes: “Caren McSherry is truly a Canadian culinary icon. I can tell you that she is one of the most passionate, talented, generous, smart, creative, hilarious, life-loving, food-loving people I have ever met.”  Caren lives in Vancouver, Canada and she’s often on TV and radio in British Columbia. She’s the founder and owner of the Gourmet Warehouse, a food and housewares emporium that stocks a wide-range of products from all over the world.  She’s the author of seven cookbooks, and in 1978, she founded Caren’s Cooking School, which is Canada’s longest-running, privately owned school.

Caren worked as a flight attendant for many years and she took advantage of free flights to take cooking classes all over the world.  And she didn’t like tofu until she created this Spicy Asian Glazed Tofu which she made for Sunday Night Dinner.

Subscribe to the podcast!  We've got some awesome shows coming up including: FEIST and ADRIENNE AMATO!  NANA ABA DUNCAN (and her mom in Ghana)!  And we're set to record Marcella DiLonardo of Hey Modest Marce and Chef Charlotte Langley.  You don't want to miss a single episode!

  

Caren McSherry makes Spicy Tofu

Come into Chef Charlotte Langley's kitchen and listen to her making Cheese and Potato Pierogi.  A classic dish, and one of her favourite Sunday night comfort foods.  She also talks about rocking culinary school, her home province of PEI, and why she moved away from cooking in fine-dining restaurants.  She's feisty, passionate and lives most of her life in the Land of Po.  Press play to find out what that means!

Chef Charlotte Langley makes Pierogi

When Skye McAlpine was six years old, her family decided to move from London to Venice for a year.  More than 25 years later, they're still there.  They fell in love with the city, and, now, Skye, her husband and young son live in the same house where she grew up, overlooking a sleepy canal in a quiet corner of the city.

Her blog, From My Dining Table, is a love letter to her adoptive city and a beautiful meditation on food, family and la dolce vita.  Her new cookbook, A TABLE IN VENICE, offers a varied collection of dishes that she and her family enjoy, alongside some absolutely gorgeous photos of the floating city.

Skye came to my kitchen to make a simple yet delicious dish called Tagliolini con Scampi, Zucchine, e Zafferano.  We ended up with spaghettini instead of tagliolini, but Skye assured me that any long, thin pasta would do.  She talks about her daily life in Venice, how she learned how to cook Italian food, some of her favourite Venetian dishes, and she offers some great tips on making great pasta.  Beware, you might get hungry!

Skye McAlpine makes Spaghettini with Shrimp, Zucchini, and Saffron

Nana Aba Duncan is the host of CBC Radio's weekend morning program, Fresh Air.  She was born in Ghana, she grew up in Newmarket, Ontario, and she lives in Toronto.  This soup is called Groundnut Soup in Ghana, where it is a well-loved dish.  It can be made with any kind of meat (goat, chicken, beef), any combination of vegetables (okra, carrots, beans), and lots of peanut butter.  Listen to Nana Aba talk about family roles, visiting Ghana, comfort foods, and the movie, Black Panther.  And we also got to talk to her wonderful mom in Ghana.  Thanks WhatsApp!

Nana Aba Duncan makes Peanut Butter Soup

Listen to Chef Claire Tansey making one of her classic Sunday night dinners- meatloaf.  Her cookbook: Uncomplicated: Taking the Stress out of Home Cooking, proves that great food doesn't have to be difficult to prepare. 
Listen to why Claire decided to make the book, what Sunday night dinners were like for her as a kid growing up in Montreal, and why creating a family tree through recipes fascinates her.
She's funny, relaxed, and smart, and I had a great time spending the afternoon in her kitchen. I highly recommend her book (and so does my mom- the woman whose least favourite room in the house is the kitchen!)

Claire Tansey makes Herb and Garlic Meatloaf

Bread making in the time of Covid-19.  Join Lindsay Cameron Wilson (host and creator of The Food Podcast) and her 10-year-old son, Rex, as they make Molasses Brown Bread in their kitchen in Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

Lindsay Cameron Wilson and Rex Wilson make Molasses Brown Bread

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Julie Van Rosendaal spends most of her time in her Calgary kitchen, cooking, baking, and taking photographs.  She’s a cookbook author, a cooking instructor, a food writer and a columnist on the Calgary Eyeopener on CBC Radio One.  You can find her super popular blog where she documents recipes and life with her husband and son at www.dinnerwithjulie.com. And check out her podcast Crispy Bits wherever you listen!

Music in this episode was written by JJ Ipsen. 

Here's the recipe for the No Knead Bread that Julie was talking about:

Ingredients:
3 cups (400 grams) bread flour
1¼ teaspoons (8 grams) table salt
¼ teaspoon (1 gram) instant or other active dry yeast
1¹⁄³ cups (300 grams) cool (55 to 65 °F) water
wheat bran, cornmeal, or additional flour for dusting

Method:
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and yeast. Add the water and, using a wooden spoon or your hand, mix until you have a wet, sticky dough, about 30 seconds. Make sure it's really sticky to the touch; if it's not, mix in another tablespoon or two of water. Cover the bowl with a plate, tea towel, or plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature (about 72 degrees F), out of direct sunlight, until the surface is dotted with bubbles and the dough is more than doubled in size. This will take a minimum of 12 hours and (my preference) up to 18 hours. This slow rise--fermentation--is the key to flavor.

When the first fermentation is complete, generously dust a work surface (a wooden or plastic cutting board is fine) with flour. Use a bowl scraper or rubber spatula to scrape the dough onto the board in one piece. When you begin to pull the dough away from the bowl, it will cling in long, thin strands (this is the developed gluten), and it will be quite loose and sticky--do not add more flour. Use lightly floured hands or a bowl scraper or spatula to lift the edges of the dough in toward the center. Nudge and tuck in the edges of the dough to make it round.

3. Place a cotton or linen tea towel (not terry cloth, which tends to stick and may leave lint in the dough) or a large cloth napkin on your work surface and generously dust the cloth with wheat bran, cornmeal, or flour. Use your hands or a bowl scraper or wooden spatula to gently lift the dough onto the towel, so it is seam side down. If the dough is tacky, dust the top lightly with wheat bran, cornmeal, or flour. Fold the ends of the towel loosely over the dough to cover it and place it in a warm, draft-free spot to rise for 1 to 2 hours. The dough is ready when it is almost doubled. If you gently poke it with your finger, making an indentation about 1/4 inch deep, it should hold the impression. If it doesn't, let it rise for another 15 minutes.

Half an hour before the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 475 degrees F, with a rack in the lower third position, and place a covered 41/2 - to 51/2 -quart heavy pot in the center of the rack.

Using pot holders, carefully remove the preheated pot from the oven and uncover it. Unfold the tea towel, lightly dust the dough with flour or bran, lift up the dough, either on the towel or in your hand, and quickly but gently invert it into the pot, seam side up. (Use caution, the pot will be very hot.) Cover the pot and bake for 30 minutes.

Kitchen Windows: Julie Van Rosendaal, Calgary

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Claudia Dey is a writer and the co-founder of the design studio and clothing brand Horses Atelier.  Her latest novel is Heartbreaker.  Don Kerr is a musician and record producer.  He played in the Rheostatics for a number of years, and he’s the drummer and lead singer of the band, Communism.  Their song, Take Care of Each Other should be the anthem of the pandemic.  Dove and Austin are their sons.

You can find Claudia’s gorgeous store, Horses Atelier, at: horsesatelier.com

The song “Take Care of Each Other” is from Communism’s album Get Down Get Together, and features Don on drums and vocals; Kevin Lacroix on bass and vocals; and Paul Linklater on guitar and vocals.  Kurt Swinghammer rocks the guitar in their live shows.

You can find more information about Sistering, a shelter that supports under-housed women at: sistering.org

All other music written and performed by JJ Ipsen.

Claudia Dey + Don Kerr, with Dove and Ozzy

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Suzanne Barr has become one of North America’s most respected chefs with a signature flair for fresh comfort food and a passion for local community, food security, and advocacy for people of colour and LGBTQ communities.

In the fall of 2019, Suzanne embarked on her latest venture as Head Chef/Owner at True True Diner in Toronto, Canada. This concept is a mirror of Suzanne’s unique culinary repertoire and social advocacy. As published by blogTO, “The diner concept pays homage to the sites of many civil rights sit-ins, and the history of the diner in breaking down segregation.” Suzanne has also been heralded with championing marginalized people within the workspace through equitable employment practices. Her team members are all paid equal, livable wages and tips are pooled among not only front-of-house staff, but with the kitchen as well.

She was the owner of the popular restaurant Saturday Dinette, and the inaugural chef-in-residence at the Gladstone Hotel.

Find her at www.suzannebarrfood.com

Music in this episode was written by JJ Ipsen.

Chef Suzanne Barr, Toronto

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Electro-pop musician, Lou Canon, has a new album, Audomatic Body, coming out at the end of May, 2020 (Paper Bag Records).   Her first album, Suspicious, is “music for nighttime; roiling drumbeats and breathily expressive vocals that lead you through the dark corners of your innermost subconscious.”  The music you’ll hear in this episode is an instrumental version of her latest single, Next to You.  She released a gorgeous video for the song this week: 
https://youtu.be/eJEYihQb-4w  

Find Lou at: www.loucanon.com
Paper Bag Records: paperbagrecords.com

Intro music in this episode was written by JJ Ipsen

Lou Canon, Toronto

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Kaye Freeman is a visual artist who lives in Los Angeles.  She’s exhibited her work throughout Australia, the US and Germany, and she currently has a digital show called Further From Heaven at the LA-based gallery Band of Vices.  She's amazing!

You can find Kaye here: kayefreeman.art
Her digital show is at Band of Vices: bandofvices.com

Music in this episode is by JJ Ipsen.

Kaye Freeman, artist, downtown Los Angeles

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Singer, songwriter and environmental activist, Sarah Harmer, lives just outside of Kingston, Ontario.  She is the co-founder of PERL (Protecting Escarpment Rural Land) an organization concerned with protected the Niagara Escarpment in Southern Ontario.  She has released six albums, the most recent of which came out in February.  It’s a gorgeous collection of songs called Are You Gone (Arts and Crafts).  You can hear parts of two songs from the album in this episode: St. Peter’s Bay and Little Frogs.

You can find Sarah here: www.sarahharmer.com
And PERL here: www.facebook.com/Perlburlington/

Intro music written by JJ Ipsen

Sarah Harmer, just outside Kingston, Ontario

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Cherien Dabis is a celebrated filmmaker, writer, actor and director.  She has written and directed two feature films –  AMREEKA, and MAY IN THE SUMMER. AMREEKA world-premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, opened New Director’s/New Films at the MoMA and won the coveted International Federation of Film Critics Award (FIPRESCI) in the Director’s Fortnight at Cannes. It went on to win a dozen more international awards including the Humanitas Prize and Adrienne Shelly Excellence in Filmmaking Award and was nominated for a Best Picture Gotham Award, 3 Independent Spirit Awards, including Best Picture, Best First Screenplay and Best Actress and was named one of the Top Ten Independent Films of the Year by the National Board of Review. Dabis was also named one of Variety’s “Ten Directors to Watch” in 2009. AMREEKA was released theatrically worldwide and became the most-screened Arab-directed film in U.S.-cinema history, peaking at 40 screens across most major American cities.

Dabis returned to Sundance with her second feature film MAY IN THE SUMMER, which opened the 2013 Sundance Film Festival’s U.S. Dramatic Competition section and had its international premiere at the Venice Film Festival. In it, she makes her onscreen debut alongside Bill Pullman, Alia Shawkat and Hiam Abbass. With the screenplay, Dabis won a Sundance / Time Warner Storytelling Grant, several Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art Grants as well as the prestigious NHK International Filmmaker Award at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.

She was one of the writers and producers of the TV series the L-WORD, and she’s directed two episodes in the third season of the Netflix series OZARK, and a number of episodes of the Hulu show, RAMY.

You can find her here: http://cheriendabis.me/

Cherien Dabis, New York City

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Evalyn Parry is an actor, director, writer, and singer-songwriter. She is the Artistic Director of Buddies in Bad Times Theatre-- the largest queer theatre in the world.  Most recently, Parry has co-written KIINALIK: THESE SHARP TOOLS with Inuk artist and performer, Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory. They've performed the play all over the world to rave reviews. Parry's acclaimed show SPIN, which features a bicycle played as a musical instrument (played by percussionist Brad Hart), tells the story of Annie Londonderry, first woman to ride around the world on a bike in 1895.  She often performs with the theatre company Independent Aunties with Anna Chatterton and Karin Randoja, and their play GERTRUDE AND ALICE was shortlisted for the Governor General's Award for English-language drama.

Music for this episode is by JJ Ipsen.

Evalyn Parry, Toronto

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Julie Shapiro is the Executive Producer of Radiotopia from PRX- a curated network of incredible podcasts.  She’s the co-founder, and was the Artistic Director of the Third Coast International Audio Festival from 2000-2013.  She’s a champion of story, and a positive force. She lives in Arlington, Massachusetts with her husband and son.

You can find Julie here: www.julieshapiro.org
Radiotopia: www.radiotopia.fm

Music for this episode is by Nathaniel Braddock.  He's a musician and composer who tours internationally and performs an array of musical styles in venues as disparate as underground arts spaces and Lincoln Center.  Nathaniel performs solo fingerstyle guitar concerts drawing on his repertoire of African roots and American Primitive music. 
In this episode you'll hear his song "Silvering Ghosts" from his album Quadrille & Collapse (2017).

You can find Nathaniel here: www.nathanielbraddock.com

Intro music is by Hayden: www.wasteyourdaysaway.com

Julie Shapiro, Arlington, Massachusetts

Kitchen Windows is a side-project of the Sunday Night Dinner podcast.  In this time of Covid-19 and social isolation, it’s a chance to have a brief look into the kitchens of writers, musicians, chefs, artists and health-care superstars.  What can they see out their window?  What are they cooking for comfort?  Who are they with?  How do they spend their days?

Shad is a Juno Award-winning rapper known for his witty, socially conscious lyrics.  Born in Kenya to Rwandan parents, his family moved to London, Ontario where he grew up.  He has released six studio albums, four of which have been shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize, and he won a Juno for Rap Recording of the Year in 2011.  He has been called “Canada’s most talented, genuine musical artist and one of the industry’s finest poets.” He also hosts the amazing documentary series Hip Hop Evolution on HBO Canada and Netflix.

You can find Shad here: www.shadk.com

Music from this episode:
"Motel" by Hayden from his album US ALONE, on Arts & Crafts

Shad songs featured: "Intro" from his album TSOL, on Black Box Recordings
"Rose Garden" from TSOL
"Keep Shining" from TSOL
"The Fool Pt 1 (Get it Got it Good)" from A SHORT STORY ABOUT A WAR, on Secret City Records

"If You Love Me Like You Say You Love Me" by Betty Wright
"Lovely Day" by Bill Withers
"Family Affair" by Mary J. Blige
"The Model" by Kraftwerk
"Long Tall Sally" by Little Richard

Shad, Toronto

Cook along with your favourite chefs, authors, fellow food-lovers, and learn their secrets for enjoying the last meal of the weekend.  For those who love cooking and those who like to avoid it.

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