I live across the street from a fruit market. Whatever fruit is in season, I buy by the basketful. During August and September, the sidewalk stand is bursting in the purple bounty of grapes and plums. Peak purple!
My grape diet:
In August I picked grapes with Not Far From The Tree, an organization in Toronto that picks fruit from overlooked or neglected spots, and shares it within the community. Owners of fruit trees or bushes or vines can sign up their fruit to be picked by volunteers (like me!), and the harvest is split into thirds - one third is donated to charity, one is kept by the owner, and one is split between pickers. The grapes I picked were overgrown wine grapes, transforming the owner’s backyard with a rugged fruit canopy. However, due to our not-so-sunny Toronto summer, many bunches were not fully ripe by picking time. Green grape berries studded the clusters. Maybe not the best grapes to be hand fed whilst lounging, Dionysus style, but perfect grapes for Winemaker’s Grape Cake.
Other than my garden wine grapes, I did get my end of summer grape fix with bunches on bunches of Ontario Coronation grapes. I love these grapes. With their deep blue hue, taut, bursting skin and taste - slightly acidic but floral and refreshing - they are so quintessentially grape-y, the way a grape should look/feel/taste.
I used some Coronation grapes for a grape and rosemary focaccia, and made epic sandwiches, straight from the forno or salumeria: focaccia, mayo, dijon, mortadella, capicollo, mozzarella, basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar and maldon salt.
Simple, classic grape focaccia recipe from here.
I started a new job (and am on the opening team!) at General Public, a new steakhouse/British pub/brasserie that opened in August. One of the desserts on the menu is a cream tart with grape jam and a grape jelly topping. Inspired, I decided to make grape jam at home. It’s an oft-forgotten preserve as it is laborious, removing the seeds and separating the skin from the fruit takes TIME! Plus, the jam doesn’t use pectin to thicken it, making it a little bit more old fashioned (which I love!). Our pastry chef recommended I use this recipe from Serious Eats, which I then found in my Bernardin Preserves book. The resulting jam is thick and richly purple, delicious on a PB&J. Or, my breakfast as of late: nut butter, grape jam, raw honey. End of summer grapes can be on my plate for at least a couple more months.
Grape bonus: my peanut butter and grape jam stuffed croissant from Robinson Bread…
My plum diet:
Reason one to get excited about plum season? The same reason to get excited about ANY fruit season! Munching ur fruit immediately after purchasing. But reason two? I could finally make Marian Burros’ plum torte - an iconic recipe! Printed in the New York Times every September from 1983 until 1989, readers protested when the Times stopped publishing it, and now the recipe is available every summer-turned fall. It’s a very simple recipe, with a short ingredient list and even shorter method. The torte itself, however, is perfectly jammy, cake-y and moist, with an aromatic hint of cinnamon and lemon. I love this recipe!
Dinner Party Dispatch
The Marian Burros recipe inspired this recipe for an almond and plum snacking cake from Yossy Arefi, a baker whose cookbooks I adore (I wrote about one of them here). I served it as dessert for a weeknight seasonal dinner for my friends: spicy olives and taralli, blistered shishito peppers, pesto pasta using my nonna’s recipe, and corn on the cob with a green onion, parsley and black pepper compound butter. We watched Marriage Italian Style, starring Sophia Loren. Her character, Filumena, runs a pasticceria, and I love this still from the film:
Popcorn
Nathan often reminisces upon his daily childhood after-school snack of nachos and smoothies. When visiting his parents in Kelowna this summer, a giddy Nathan made me his favourite cheesy treat on the first night: tortilla chips and microwave melted cheese. Watching Stepbrothers in his family’s basement, I noticed the opening sequence. Full circle.
Sexy Little Snack
On Thanksgiving, I made the trek to Niagara Falls to witness Ontarian Beauty. The natural beauty of the falls themselves, and the liminal, human-made fever dream of beauty that is Margaritaville Niagara Falls. I sampled a 5 O’clock Somewhere (a play on a hurricane) before heading back to Toronto for the Swiss Chalet Thanksgiving Special. Swiss Chalet is celebrating 70 years of Canadian classic chicken comfort this year, and the very first location was originally open at 234 Bloor Street West - not far from my apartment! Ontarian beauty is abundant.
Ciao! XO - Hannah