7 Winter Recipes You Need To Try from Female Foodies

Photo via Less with Bread

This winter has been incredibly unpredictable. Seems like one day we’re hovering between 3-5 degrees Celsius, and the next day, we’re back down to negative 15! But the one thing that remains constant during these winter months is our desire for comfort foods! To me, winter just screams oversized, comfy sweaters and meals that soothe the soul! So today, I’ve rounded up 7 winter recipes you’re going to want to check out for those winter nights, when all you want to do is stay in and hibernate!

My last recipe round-up was way back in the summer, so I thought it was about time to do another! Once again, I reached out to some amazing female foodies (Abbey, Aleshia, Angelie, Charlene, Robyn, Asima, and Olivia) and asked them to share their favourite winter recipes with me. They’re all such talented ladies, and their blogs and YouTube channels are a major source of inspo for me! Thanks to them, I’m sharing satisfying winter recipes, like soup, lots of stews, pasta, and of course, desserts to end it all off. Mmmm…my mouth is watering just writing this post!

I also asked these ladies to answer the following fun Q&A, so you could get to know them a bit better too:

1. When did you start your blog?
2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?
3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?
4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?
5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?
6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?
7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

So, without further ado here are the 7 winter recipes you need to try from Abbey, Aleshia, Angelie, Charlene, Robyn, Asima and Olivia.

Starters

Abbey of Abbey’s Kitchen: Vegan Roasted Cauliflower, Parsnip and Chickpea Soup

To start, Abbey’s roasted cauliflower, parsnip and chickpea soup is perfect for vegans and non-vegans, alike! Like Abbey, I love cooking soups because they can be made in large batches, and can be eaten as a starter or main meal. Also, roasting your vegetables first will add more complexity and flavour to your dish, which Abbey shows us in her recipe. As a registered dietician, Abbey shares so many facts about food with her readers and even debunks many of the popular myths!

Abbey’s Q&A:

1. When did you start your blog?

I started blogging part time about 8 years ago and full time about 5 years ago.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I really didn’t get into the kitchen until I was a teenager, and by 18 I was obsessed. I ended up going to school to become a dietitian while taking culinary classes at night.

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

I love my spiralizer! It helps me get healthy low carb noodles that I eat for lunch and dinner and make some of my favourite dishes (like this zucchini noodle carbonara).

I also love my Vitamix blender because I make a smoothie several days of the week.

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

I don’t believe that any food needs to induce guilt, but I’m admittedly obsessed with anything caramel and ice cream. I have a sweet tooth and I’m proud of it.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

I’ve eaten jelly fish, balut, and sea cucumber to name a few foods. I can’t say I’ve cooked anything like that, but I do love cooking wild game meat and I’ve cooked kangaroo, boar and venison.

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

I used to be a professional singer, and my job in high school was to sing and record cheesy radio jingles.

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

First, I would need really good bread. Like a crusty dark sourdough with hand whipped salted butter. First course would be some sort of creamy root vegetable like sweet potato or sun choke soup. Dinner would be a hearty duck confit ragu with pappardelle pasta. I would need a cheese course with Brillat-Savarin triple cream brie, fig preserves and toast. Dessert would be sticky toffee pudding. And I would need to drink some sort of Bourbon Sour. I know it doesn’t go with the wine, but that’s what I would want to drink.

Aleshia of Less With Bread: Pasta e Ceci

Pasta’s a first course, right? I mean, that’s how the Italian’s do it, so why shouldn’t the rest of us?! And we totally don’t need to feel guilty about eating pasta, because as Aleshia shows us, it’s all about creating a healthy relationship with food and educating ourselves on what’s good and bad for us. Her pasta e ceci is just the type of recipe I love – not only beautiful, but tasty, and can be made easily! Plus, she makes fresh pasta at home, so I know where to turn whenever I want a pasta recipe!

Aleshia’s Q&A

1. When did you start your blog?

I started my blog about 3 years ago, after a push from my friends. I had been always flooding their Instagram with poor quality pictures of food, and decided to move it to a more serious platform.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I started cooking when I moved away from home for college. I always grew up eating (as it happens in an Italian family), but never really helped in the kitchen. When I moved to Toronto for school, I started exploring all of these new cuisines that I had never knew about in my small town, and experimenting with different recipes and fell in love with cooking. I’m completely self taught! (Many, many, MANY hours of reading lol).

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

I’d have to say my cast iron pan (or my chef’s knife, but that’s a given). Cast iron is so versatile, you can cook just about anything in it from a steak to a dessert. I use it every single day, and love how durable and trusty it is – if you take care of a cast iron pan it will outlive you!

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

This is a hard one. I’m pretty gluttonous when it comes to eating *rolls eyes*. I would have to say processed foods in general. Chips, Kraft Dinner, hot dogs etc. I promote cooking with whole, good quality, REAL ingredients on my blog (such is the Italian way), but I definitely have a soft spot for synthetic flavours like Doritos lol.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

Probably lamb brains. I don’t think I’ve actually cooked anything exotic – I keep it pretty simple in the kitchen!

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

They might not know that I only watch really bad movies, and haven’t seen any of the classics. You can probably name a movie that everyone should see and I definitely haven’t seen it :/

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

Charcuterie board of Italian meats and cheeses, cacio e pepe i ate at cajo e gajo in Tome, and tiramisu for dessert.

Mains

Angelie of The Lifestyle File: Bombay Shrimp Curry

Making curry at home might seem intimidating to some, but Angelie shows us how to do it easily and in just about 30 minutes! Rich in flavour (and spice, for those who can handle it!), this Bombay shrimp curry is a nod to Angelie’s East Indian heritage! You can whip it up and serve over basmati rice or eat on its own! Yum! Some of Angelie’s passions include eating, cooking, entertaining, writing and living life to the fullest (which is probably why we get along so well!).

Angelie’s Q&A

1. When did you start your blog?

I started my blog in January 2013. It was something I had been working on for awhile but I finally just decided to the take the leap and formally begin.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I always loved food and cooking but began cooking meals on my own when I was 10. My parents were working late and I was at home with my siblings. I thought – wouldn’t it be nice if mom and dad came home to a hot meal? I called my mom’s friend and she walked me through the steps to make a simple curry over the phone. My mom and dad were so surprised and happy. That’s when I began cooking meals for my family. It was my way of contributing at home. In my twenties, I decided to take my love of cooking to the next level and enrolled in Culinary school part-time.

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

Such a tough question to answer! These days I’m loving my Instantpot. I also can’t get by without my Chef’s knives by Zwilling and then my immersion blender.

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

I’d have to pick my favourite Indian street food – pani puri. If you haven’t tried it – it’s crispy puffed wafers, filled with potatoes and chickpeas, a savoury spiced water and tamarind chutney. SO GOOD.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

Eaten – Hawaiian pork that was cooked in an underground pit overnight. It was paired with grilled pineapples, jackfruit and other exotic ingredients. Cooked – I doubt this is considered ‘exotic’ but I once cooked a live lobster (in culinary school) and I will probably never do it again. Strange, because I am by no means a vegetarian but it was heartbreaking to do it.

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

When I’m in the kitchen it’s almost like meditation for me. I get so wrapped up in what I’m doing, I forget everything else – if I’m tired or something bad happened that day. It all leaves my mind. The kitchen is my happy place.

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

I’d ask for Thanksgiving Dinner. With nice place settings, candles, turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans. It’s my favourite meal of the year! Oh, and cranberry sauce. Can’t forget the cranberry sauce.

Charlene of Chew Street: Shrimp & Cod Stew

Similar to Angelie’s recipe above, Charlene came up with this shrimp & cod stew as a way to use up her shrimp and cod leftovers from the holidays – ingenuity at its finest!!! As a fellow West Indian, this dish really speaks to me, and I think I’m gonna have to give it a test-run, myself! Apart from learning about Charlene in her Q&A below, another fun fact about her is that she’s a lawyer (like me!). She practices law full-time and runs Chew Street as her creative outlet; and judging from this stew, she’s a pretty kick-ass chef too!

Charlene’s Q&A

1. When did you start your blog?

I started my blog in May of 2014. I started off blogging and hosting food events to raise money for charity. After 4 events that first year, I had to take a step back and figure out how to manage my passion project and my law project. I blogged sporadically in 2015 and then started back up again seriously in 2016.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I didn’t start cooking seriously until I was almost 30.  I went to law school in Nova Scotia when I was 28.  I was living near the ocean and I became obsessed with experimenting with all the fresh ingredients I had access to. Cooking became a way for me to decompress (and, let’s face it, procrastinate) when I didn’t want to study. By the time I left law school my culinary skills were on another level.

I’m not formally trained but Iove to travel so I always take a class or workshop whereever I go.  I’ve taken lessons everywhere from Prince Edward County to Peru.

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

I’m pretty old school when it comes to cooking, I prefer to do things by hand.  However, I got a food processor a few years ago. Nothing fancy but there’s no going back now. I love it.

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

A classic burger and fries, no question.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

I’m a first generation Canadian and I travel a lot so I’m keenly aware that food someone considers exotic is probably standard home cooking to someone else. That being said, the most adventurous thing I’ve eaten was Alpaca in Peru. It’s a common protein in South America and it tastes amazing! Like a cross hybrid of beef and pork. I can’t think of anything I’ve cooked that I would consider exotic but I’d like to tackle octopus soon.

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

Everyone is shocked when they find out I’m not a fan of ice cream.

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

Hopefully some concoction that would help me live longer! Barring that, I’d want to sit down with my family and enjoy a meal of the West Indian favourites I grew up eating – roti, curry chicken, rice and peas, saheena, jerk pork, cassava balls, callaloo, doubles, green banana salad, sorrell, and guava candy, mango pie. All of those foods bring back so many cherished memories.

Robyn of Simply Fresh Dinners: Roasted Garlic Beef Stew

Robyn’s roasted garlic beef stew is Canadian Living magazine approved! Not tentative at all with the amount of garlic it uses, it’s most certainly for all the garlic lovers out there (like me!). While rich and hearty, it’s made up of so many healthy, whole food ingredients – so it’s a must try this winter! Robyn’s food blog is total goals, and she and I have literally spent hours on the phone chatting about blogging!

Robyn’s Q&A

1. When did you start your blog?

I started as a hobby about 6 years ago but made the leap into full time 3 years ago.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I didn’t learn how to cook until I got married! Thank goodness, my husband was a good and patient teacher. Not formally trained and still learning a lot every single day.

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

My Vitamix is definitely my favorite appliance.  It is like a tank and could chop wood if you put it in there! It produces the creamiest sauces so quickly and it allows me to really take advantage of cooking with whole foods.

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

Spaghetti and Meatballs – really – is there anything better?  Especially with a fabulous Cabernet.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

I’ve eaten shark, which I wouldn’t do now given that they are endangered.  I’ve also tried haggis – good gawd that’s an awful concoction!

I haven’t cooked anything too exotic but I do love Southeast Asian foods like Biryani – the house has amazing aromas in it when I cook with all those amazing spices.

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

I’m a lover of sea creatures and have spent hundreds of hours on my boat watching orcas, porpoise, sea lions and grey whales. I would do it every day if I could.

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

Pizza with double cheese, red peppers, pineapple, and mushrooms!

Dessert

Asima of Haute Sucré: Swirled Blueberry Pavlovas

Asima is a Le Cordon Bleu Paris-trained pastry chef, so she is most certainly an authority on dessert!!! Her swirled blueberry pavlovas are a sight for sore eyes. While they were originally a holiday treat, there’s no reason why they can’t be enjoyed all winter long! She shows us how to incorporate blueberry syrup into a traditional meringue recipe, for a twist on a classic dessert!

Asima’s Q&A

1. When did you start your blog?

I started my blog back in June 2014 as a means to showcase my day to day dinner and dessert recipes.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I started cooking when I got married back in 2006. I am a classically trained Chef, I graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, France.

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

As a classically trained Chef, I was taught not to rely on appliances but arm muscle.  But in this day and age, a stand mixer is a godsend. Have you ever whisked a bowl of egg whites? (Ha!) It is a timesaver and cuts my prep time.

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

Macarons and Butter Croissants. I say these two things are my biggest guilty pleasure because they are such delicate and refined food items that are exquisite and are challenging to make everyday at home. It’s a nice treat to indulge in when you don’t have to make them yourself.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

As a young child, I was exposed to many different cuisines. I would have to say that the most exotic meal was cow brains which resembled scrambled eggs and exotic fruit at that time was custard apples.

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

I didn’t always make pastries, I used to have a corporate career in human resources but followed my heart to Paris!

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

Steak Frites, Parisian style, a platter of fine French cheeses, really amazing wine, a French Mimolette Tart, silky crème brûlée with rhubarb ice cream and finished with a luxurious vintage Sauternes.

Olivia of KeepUpWithLiv: Paleo Cinnamon Rolls

Comfort food can be healthy too! Liv’s recipe for paleo cinnamon rolls delivers a satisfying dessert without the grain and refined sugar! Apart from being refined sugar-free, this recipe is also gluten free, paleo friendly, and vegan friendly. Liv is one of my favourite resources for healthy recipes because I can not only read about them on her blog, but also watch them on her YouTube channel!

Olivia’s Q&A

1. When did you start your YouTube channel?

About 4 years ago, though I didn’t really get into it until about 3 years ago.

2. When did you start cooking? Formally trained or not?

I have been cooking since I was little. I have always been in the kitchen and loved to make my own recipes since I was young.

3. What is your most used/trusted appliance or something you couldn’t live without in the kitchen and why?

My Ninja Master Prep Professional! It is like a food blender and food processor combined, plus it is super powerful. I can blend bananas into nice cream in a breeze.

4. What is your biggest guilty pleasure food?

Sweet potato fries! I am a potato girl at heart, always have been.

5. What is the most exotic food you’ve eaten? Cooked?

When I was in Thailand I tried crickets. It actually wasn’t that bad!

6. What is one thing your readers/followers might not know about you?

I am studying to be a Naturopath! I feel like many people don’t know that. It is also where a lot of my knowledge comes from and what has helped to develop my passion to help people live their best life.

7. If you knew you were going to die tomorrow, what would your last meal consist of?

Sushi for sure, especially with raw tuna. If it could, it would be from Blue Fish restaurant in California, they have the best sushi I have ever had. And then for dessert creme brulée, it is my favourite dessert of all time.

I hope these winter recipes and the lovely women who have shared them have inspired you to cook up these comfort food dishes in your very own kitchen. Bon Appétit!