Toronto, the Multicultural Feast, Harvest & Meeting Place

Toronto, the Meeting Place ... the meeting place for so many diverse cultures since 1792 ... the Meeting Place for four seasonal bounties.... the Meeting Place for sharing diverse ways to cook the local and seasonal harvest ...

As we enter into the month of November, we're right in the thick of Fall Harvest. A season for all the senses! Witness the burst of colours in any of the Toronto markets thanks to the pumpkins, squashes, peppers and dried corn on the cobs ...  Throughout Halloween ghost walks madness, my husband  and I survived on my hearty Fall Harvest soups made ahead of time. We had my Persian Spinach Soup (minty meatballs floating in a thick broth of spinach, eggs and loads of sweet Ontario onions).  We supped on Ontario Leek and organic Sweet Potato Soup. We savoured my Salmon Bouillabaisse with multi-coloured Ontario carrots. Yes, this year, I decided to support cook and eat as much local and organic ingredients as possible while sticking to a tight tour guide's budget.

I look forward to the remaining weekends for this month as I shop and try out new produces.

I can't wait for the next Saturdays (November 12th, 19th) when I drop into Kensington Market along my Kensington Foodies Roots Walks with my camera and shopping bags in tow. This coming Saturday November 12th, I'm thinking of I asking fellow shoppers along the streets plus guests on the walking tour, how they'll use Brussels sprouts ... Of course, I'll share what I plan to cook in the next while ...  the lovely Brussels Sprouts  - I'll try again Chef David Lee's fiery recipe for Thai-style Brussels Sprouts in the Saturday October 22, 2011 edition of The Globe & Mail  ... and then make another favourite Brussels Sprouts dish, where I'll steam and then marinade them in Treadwell's fragrant Baco Noir & Blueberry Balsamic Vinegar.  Now, what about those lovely pie pumpkins?  I think Cinderella just found out what happened to her pumpkin stage coach at the stroke of midnight! It became Pumpkin baklavas or cheesecakes or cupcakes or muffins or pancakes or risotto or soup or waffles! Did I miss anything? What do YOU plan to do with any of the above mentioned?

Stay tuned for Toronto's multicultural holiday celebrations as I revisit Kensington Market with new eyes, palate and other senses along the Kensington Festive Foodies Roots Walks on Saturday December 3rd, 10th & 17th, 2011.  Yes, I love all the holidays, so we celebrate not one, but all the Festivals of Light: Diwali, Winter Solstice, Christmas, Channukah and Kawanzaa. Of course, the best part of the celebrations -  the spirit of sharing the foods, the drinks, the changing customs and traditions of your own culture with others!