summer in the city.

It's snowing today in Toronto, and so to honor the sweet sweet days of summer, here is a delicious sangria recipe sure to make you reminisce of the good old fashioned days of sunshine and patios.

1 bottle of dry red wine
2 L of club soda, or gingerale if you prefer something a little bit sweeter
3 oz cranberry juice
3 oz lime juice
3 oz orange juice
6 oz cherry whiskey
3 oz triple sec
1 c rose wine
Mix together in a punch bowl and add ice.

Add sliced oranges, lemons, berries and pineapple for extra flavor. It's also fun to eat the booze soaked fruit after the sangria has been polished off.

Serve with guacamole, tacos and ceviche for an indoor version of a Mexican fiesta!

banana bread: not just gluten-free, vegan too!

You can imagine how happy I was when I received my copy of BabyCakes NYC bakery's cookbook in the mail. Always up for a food challenge, I ran to my nearest healthfood store and stocked up on all the necessary ingredients to make use of the 6 brown bananas that had been sitting on my counter for 3 weeks.

Erin McKenna, owner and creator of BabyCakes really knows her stuff. This is the best banana bread I have ever tasted, gluten free or otherwise. It's delicious!

2 c Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 c coconut oil, and more for the pan
2/3 c agave nectar
2/3 c rice milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
6 medium bananas, peeled & mashed.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease a loaf pan with the remaining coconut oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, and cinnamon. Add1/2 c oil and agave nectar, rice milk and vanilla to the dry ingredients. Stir until the batter is smooth. Gently fold in bananas until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 35 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. The finished loaf will be a nice golden brown.

Cover with plastic wrap, and store at room temperature for up to 3 days, but trust me, it will never last that long!

*recipe courtesy of Erin McKenna and BabyCakes nyc bakery.

stuffed peppers.

For a delicious & creative alternative to salad, make this simple stuffed pepper as a side dish to accompany chicken, fish or beef.

Start with 4 peppers. I usually use red, but orange or yellow work too because of their sweetness.
Cut the top off and hollow out all of the seeds.

2 cups brown rice, cooked
1/2 c spinach, chopped
1/4 c tomatoes, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 artichoke hearts (canned ones work fine)
1/2 can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained

1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp basil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Mix rice and all the vegetables, garlic and chickpeas into a bowl. Scoop into the hollowed out pepper, until the filling reaches the top.
Place peppers in a heat resistant baking tray, and drizzle with a tiny bit of olive oil. Cover with tin foil, and bake for about 30 minutes, checking every so often.

Bake until pepper gets golden and starts softening.

*For cheese lovers, add a sprinkling of parmesan cheese on top of the filling before baking.